AmCham Slovenia

Today, we held an introductory meeting for key stakeholders interested in collaborating with the initiative Slovenia Biotech Hills. Founding partners - AmCham Slovenia, herman & partnerji, Labena Slovenia, Lek Pharmaceuticals, Novartis, presented the objectives of the business accelerator and explored potential strategic partnership opportunities. Thank you to everyone who joined us to discuss the future of biotechnology in Slovenia! If you're interested in exploring the opportunities of the initiative, visit the following link: https://lnkd.in/dNgCGcVC

✍️In the spirit of the upcoming AmCham Business Breakfast, the Co-Chairs of the AmCham Investment Committee (Nevenka Črešnar Pergar & Aljoša Krdžić) have written a column on this critical topic✍️: 𝐓𝐰𝐨 𝐒𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐈𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐄𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 For many years now, we have been advocating for the role of foreign investment and the importance of a supportive business and political environment. As the Investment Commission of AmCham Slovenia, we made many concrete proposals and promoted them in a dialogue with key decision-makers of the country – points about bureaucracy, unfriendly taxation, over-regulated employment contracts, unwelcoming public attitudes, to name a few. The change has been slow and this often led to frustrations on our part. By this constant pointing out of weaknesses we may have created an impression, with potential investors, that Slovenia is a kind of an ugly duckling on the investment map.   We want to challenge this bleak view and turn a new page and start writing a new chapter of discussions on Slovenia’s future business development.   First, we want to point out that – despite all the obstacles – the role of foreign investors is strong already today. According to the Statistical Office, enterprises under foreign control created a good quarter of the total value added and of the total investments of the Slovenian economy in 2022. Investors in the economically most important foreign companies come primarily from the most developed European countries with high standards of business integrity and corporate culture – Germany, Switzerland and Austria. This shows that Slovenia as a business place can offer opportunities and a good environment to even the most demanding investors.   Furthermore, although Slovenia is not highly ranked in reports on international competitiveness, there are some areas where we achieve good scores. For example: share of high-tech exports, value added created in medium and high-tech industries, strong R&D culture, skills, education and talents.   ... 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐄 📄 https://lnkd.in/dNT8zT2H

We are just one week away from our first ☕AmCham Business Breakfast after the summer break, where we will come together to explore how Slovenia, as a well-positioned and open economy, can leverage global trends and challenges to its advantage. 💡This potential has also been recognized by several international companies, which have chosen Slovenia as the location for their development centers. We will discuss these and other relevant topics at the AmCham Business Breakfast titled: Global Investments in High Value-Added Companies: Frangež, Ljoljo, Massey, Mihelj Coustaury on Slovenian Potential WHEN? 📅 September 17, 2024 SPEAKERS🎤: Matevž Frangež, Robert Ljoljo, MBA, MSc., Gabriel Massey, Jasna Mihelj Coustaury Marko Ketler, LL.M. (LSE), Senior Partner at Ketler & Partners, member of Karanovic, will share his views and experiences as the moderator of the discussion. MORE INFO ℹ️ https://lnkd.in/dfavhgcH

We are pleased to announce that AmCham Slovenia has a new elected President and Board of Governors: Congratulations to the new President of AmCham Slovenia, Enzo Smrekar, Group Vice President for Savoury spreads, Donat and international expansion at Atlantic Grupa & Director, Atlantic Droga Kolinska, who was elected for a two-year term. Tomislav Cizmic, Telemach Slovenija; Alenka Mejac Krassnig, Visa Europe; Metka Svetlin, Google, and Matjaž Ulčar, CERHA HEMPEL Ulčar in partnerji have become new members of the AmCham Board of Governors.  Borut Ceh, Labena and Luka Podlogar, NLB Skladi run for a second term. We also congratulate all the elected members of the Boards of Governors and wish them a lot of successful work! They will join Beno Ceglar, NIL; Samo Kumar, IBM Slovenia; Eva McLellan, Roche; Greg Meier, U.S. Embassy; Urh Kovačič, PsyBit, and Ajša Vodnik, AmCham Slovenia. MORE 🖱️https://lnkd.in/dcvbKfaM

Congratulations to Urska Kajtner, who has been elected by YLC members as the new President, with a two-year mandate to lead the club and the Program Committee. She will be supported by Artjom Bajdak and Nika Frece as Vice Presidents, working together to strengthen and further the success of the YLC. 💼 We extend our sincere congratulations to all three and wish them a successful term ahead! 🏆 #Leadership #YoungLeaders #YLC #Success #AmChamSlovenia

Curious about what Google’s top minds are reading? Metka Svetlin, MSc, Marketing Manager, Google Adriatic, shares her 📚 picks. 

We Believe in Slovenia, because of exceptional individuals like Goran Dragić. ❤️ We are still under the impression of the spectacular charity event 'Night of the Dragon,' which amazed with a gala dinner, a match full of surprises, a Super Bowl-style show, and touching farewell words. We are proud to have been part of an event that blended sports and charity into a truly unforgettable experience. 🐉✨ By organizing basketball camps, renovating basketball courts across Slovenia, and through the humanitarian efforts of the Goran Dragić Foundation, he aims to inspire a love for basketball among young people. We are confident that he will continue to do great things. Dragić is also an ambassador of friendship for Believe in Slovenia. It was an honor for us to share his inspiring success story, which you can read at the following link 📖https://lnkd.in/dmnFm6qv

The Values That Guide Us 🧭 We asked the members of the AmCham Board of Governors if they had to choose only one favorite value from the five that best represent AmCham Slovenia, which one they would choose. Samo Kumar Governor of AmCham Slovenia, Country GM, IBM Slovenia, selected AMBITION: "𝐼 𝑐ℎ𝑜𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑎𝑚𝑏𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑆𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑛𝑖𝑎 𝑎𝑚𝑏𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑠 𝑜𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑛 𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑚 𝑡𝑜𝑜 𝑜𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑛 ℎ𝑎𝑠 𝑎 𝑛𝑒𝑔𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑛𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛. 𝐴𝑚𝑏𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑠 𝑎 𝑘𝑒𝑦 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑦 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑡ℎ𝑦 𝑏𝑢𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑒𝑛𝑣𝑖𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡, 𝑎𝑠 𝑖𝑡 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑚𝑜𝑡𝑒𝑠 𝑖𝑛𝑛𝑜𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑠 𝑔𝑟𝑜𝑤𝑡ℎ, 𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑠 𝑗𝑜𝑏𝑠, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑠𝑢𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑠. 𝑂𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑚𝑏𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑢𝑠 𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑎𝑐ℎ 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑤𝑒 𝑎𝑑𝑣𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑎𝑠 𝑎 𝑠𝑜𝑐𝑖𝑒𝑡𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑤𝑒𝑙𝑙-𝑏𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑔." Which one represents you the best? ⌨️⬇️ 🔸AMBITION 🔸COOPERATION 🔸INTEGRITY 🔸OPTIMISM 🔸TRUST

✍️ Today, as part of the Bled Strategic Forum, the Slovenia Biotech Hills Institute signed a letter of intent with the Government of the Republic of Slovenia to cooperate and develop a comprehensive biotechnology ecosystem. ❇️ We are proud to be one of the founding partners of the Slovenia Biotech Hills business accelerator, which is committed to establishing Slovenia as the premier biotech ecosystem in Europe and enhancing Slovenia's competitiveness. MORE https://lnkd.in/dPizmA8X

Today, our CEO, Ajša Vodnik, is moderating 🎙️ a conversation with decision-makers and top experts, including leading representatives from the biotech and pharma industries, on European innovation and competitiveness at the Bled Strategic Forum. They are exploring the future of global trade, economic recovery, sustainability, the transformative power of technology, workforce and skills development, collaborative initiatives, and more. Business is always a pleasure 🤝💡when discussing the potential with such visionary leaders and businesss people: ▪️ Klemen Boštjančič, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Slovenia  ▪️ Mark Bowman, Vice President for Policy and Partnerships, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development  ▪️ Mathias Cormann, Secretary-General, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ▪️ Matevž Frangež, State Secretary, Ministry of the Economy, Tourism and Sport of Slovenia  ▪️ Kerstin Jorna, Director-General, Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, European Commission  ▪️ Kyriacos Kakouris, VP, European Investment Bank ▪️ Steffen Lang, President of Operations, Novartis, Switzerland  ▪️ Anne Marie D., Global Head of Biologics& Injectables Operations, Sandoz ▪️ Fariz Rzayev, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan