QUINLAN ZDRAVKO JOSEPH P. More than 35 top speakers. American Chamber of Commerce in Slovenia 36 AMCHAM EVENTS. Yearbook

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1 36 AMCHAM EVENTS American Chamber of Commerce in Slovenia S L O V E N I A B U S I N E S S B R I D G E C H A N G E / O P P O R T U N I T I E S / A W A R E N E S S / T R A D E M A R K / R E F E R E N C E C O U N T R Y More than 35 top speakers ZDRAVKO POČIVALŠEK Minister of Economic Development and Technology of the Republic of Slovenia JOSEPH P. QUINLAN Chief market strategist at U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management. A leading expert on capital flows, an established global economist and strategist on Wall Street. Cited by the world s leading financial media. Sponsors: Media Partner: Communication Partner:

2 AMCHAM EVENTS /16 3 RD I N V E S T M E N T A N D DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE October 14 16, 2015 Ljubljana Slovenia BORIS KOPRIVNIKAR Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Administration of the Republic of Slovenia. DR. JOHN COHN IBM Fellow, Internet of Things Division, mad scientist, tech wizard and boy scout forever. Partners: Supporters: REPUBLIC OF SLOVENIA EMBASSY IN WASHINGTON

3 38 AMCHAM EVENTS American Chamber of Commerce in Slovenia SLOVENIA A GREEN REFERENCE COUNTRY IN DIGITAL EUROPE, READY FOR INVESTMENT The third investment and development conference, titled Slovenia Business Bridge TM, has brought interesting views on investments in Slovenia and Europe generally. Slovenia is opening up to foreign investment and, at the same time, foreign investors are now recognizing the benefits that Slovenia brings. Things will become even more interesting for Slovenia, however, if it succeeds in positioning itself as a green reference country in a digital Europe. Digital transformations open up space for innovative business models and change the value chains in all sectors. This is an opportunity for Slovenia to become a green reference country with high living standards in a digital Europe. At the same time, this also represents a chance for Slovenian businesses to switch from being merely followers, to becoming agents of development. INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN SLOVENIA Welcome speech: PAWEL PEPLINSKI, SEE Assurance Leader, Country Managing Partner PwC Slovenia METOD DRAGONJA, State Secretary, Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Slovenia JANEZ ŠKRUBEJ, MBA, Executive Director, Bank Assets management Company - DUTB MATEJ RUNJAK, Member of the Management Board, Slovenian Sovereign Holding SDH ALEŠ CANTARUTTI, State Secretary, Ministry of Economic Development and Technology of the Republic of Slovenia GORAZD MIHELIČ, MSc, Acting Director, SPIRIT Slovenia Janez Škrubej, Bank Assets Management Company - DUTB; Aleš Cantarutti, Ministry of Economic Development and Technology of the Republic of Slovenia; Nevenka Črešnar Pergar, NP Consulting; Metod Dragonja, Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Slovenia; Matej Runjak, Slovenian Sovereign Holding SDH; Gorazd Mihelič, SPIRIT Slovenia NEVENKA ČREŠNAR PERGAR, Director, NP Consulting The Slovenian government is striving to become interesting for a variety of investments. Several interesting projects are currently taking place, some of which are from the list of the 15 state companies set for privatization. METOD DRAGONJA, State Secretary, Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Slovenia. Metod Dragonja, Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Slovenia Pawel Peplinski, PwC Slovenia

4 2015/16 AMCHAM EVENTS 39 SLOVENIA INVESTOR S VIEW Opening speech: ZDRAVKO POČIVALŠEK, Minister of Economic Development and Technology of the Republic of Slovenia The Government of the Republic of Slovenia is striving to create a supportive business environment for foreign direct investments and will continue with structural reforms, flexible employment and reducing administrative barriers. ZDRAVKO POČIVALŠEK, Minister of Economic Development and Technology of the Republic of Slovenia. ROB IRVING, Partner, Dentons MICHAŁ KĘDZIA, Partner, Enterprise Investors PETR SMUTNÝ, PwC Partner, CEE business recovery services leader JIM MORTON, Chief Commercial Officer, Director, Aerosol & Business Development Director, Magee Scientific NEVENKA ČREŠNAR PERGAR, Director, NP Consulting MEET THE FUTURE! PhD, JOHN COHN, IBM Fellow, Internet of Things Division, mad scientist, tech wizard and boy scout Panel Chair: PETRA KOCJAN, MSc, Advocacy and Communication Manager, AmCham Slovenia The problem is the bark. If the investor can get beyond the dog s bark, then there is no bite afterwards. Those investors that have been successful in getting past the bark are almost universally satisfied with their investments in Slovenia. ROB IRVING, Dentons I believe that Slovenia is on the radar of foreign investors. Several privatizations have been successfully completed and word is starting to spread. On the other hand, the opportunity this moment presents will not last forever. PETR SMUTNÝ, PwC Slovenia is a wonderful country, with many advantages. The problem is that investors are not familiar with these advantages, which need to be better communicated. JIM MORTON, Aerosol Everyone has experienced periods of uncertainty and change in their lives. What is important is to have the right approach to overcome these hurdles, as that is what will bring us success. We have to be fearless, deal with change and not be afraid of making mistakes. Remain playful and explore. JOHN COHN, IBM fellow Official drink of the Conference: The market is right for private equity. Slovenia is a small country but has a very interesting number of productive companies. What is missing is equity. I would therefore very much like to get engaged with Slovenian companies, injecting fresh capital in terms of minority shares. MICHAŁ KĘDZIA, Enterprise Investors

5 40 AMCHAM EVENTS SLOVENIA GREEN REFERENCE COUNTRY IN DIGITAL EUROPE Opening remarks: BORIS KOPRIVNIKAR, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Administration of the Republic of Slovenia JANKO MEDJA, MBA, CEO and President of the Management Board, NLB Group Welcome speech: ALBERTO COLZI, Vice President, Eastern Europe, Middle East & Africa Operations, AbbVie Biopharmaceuticals MICHAEL KOGELER, General Manager, CEE Multicountry, Microsoft Corporation PETR PAVLU, Director of Systems Engineering EMEAR Central, Cisco Systems OLGA RUMELIOTI, Senior Director for South & Central Europe Bulgaria, Bosnia, Croatia, Hungary, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Oracle Corporation ERVIN PFEIFER, Avanton American Chamber of Commerce in Slovenia Michael Kogeler, Microsoft Corporation; Petr Pavlu, Cisco Systems; Boris Koprivnikar, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Administration of the Republic of Slovenia; Olga Rumelioti, Oracle Corporation; Ervin Pfeifer, Avanton We are all transforming. There is a great disturbance in the force, and it is difficult to see the future (paraphrased from Star Wars). The ways we do things are going to change. And the common denominator is innovation. It requires teamwork and cooperation. JANKO MEDJA, NLB Group Digital is helping to shift the power towards our patients. Today patients can track their help and monitor the progress of their disease. So it is more about improving towards a healthier life. ALBERTO COLZI, Abbvie One of the things that I have learned is that the country needs to be managed like a company. If we set clear goals, IT can help with this and changes can be achieved. MICHAEL KOGELER, Microsoft Slovenia - a Green Reference Country in Digital Europe initiative, which positions Slovenia in the role of a reference country for developing new technologies: We want to be a reference country, open to new ideas; we want to be a partner in development and marketing. However, we also need to create a digital coalition, step forward together, find innovative solutions and get established as a reference country. What is good for the people is good for the country. And what is good for the people and the country is good for the economy. Slovenia is optimally sized to create such conditions. BORIS KOPRIVNIKAR, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Administration of the Republic of Slovenia Today, every company is a digital company, including companies in traditional industries such as the automotive industry. PETR PAVLU, Cisco The implementation of new technologies is essential in order for businesses to survive. We need to learn and adapt. OLGA RUMELIOTI, Oracle

6 2015/16 AMCHAM EVENTS 41 SLOVENES HAVE BRILLIANCE IN THEIR DNA Let s finally use this potential! PhD, MAJA MAKOVEC BRENČIČ, Minister of Education, Science and Sport of the Republic of Slovenia MITJA JERMOL, Head of the Centre for Knowledge Transfer, Jožef Stefan Institute MATEJ ČER, Owner, AvantCar JAKA STELE, COO, Visionect DEJAN ROLJIČ, Founder and CEO, ABC Accelerator IGOR ZORKO, Director, ZZI & Chairman of ZIT at Slovenian Chamber of Commerce BOŠTJAN BREGAR, CEO, 4thOffice.com MAJA MIKEK, Co-Founder, Celtra MARKO GUČEK, Director and Partner, GoOpti AJŠA VODNIK, MSc, Executive Director, AmCham Slovenia We have everything here in Slovenia. It s just a matter of managing it and making the right decisions. These decisions need to be taken with the right people, at the right time, with the future in mind, and to the best of our abilities. MAJA MAKOVEC BRENČIČ, PhD, Minister of Education, Science and Sport of the Republic of Slovenia In Slovenia we have to bring together all the brilliant people with ideas, talents and dreams. We need to succeed as one. IGOR ZORKO, ZIT It s always hard to talk about myself, but in terms of ingredients I m sure we have great DNA. We can be leaders and global leaders at that. MATEJ ČER, Avant Car Brilliant people are among us they just need an opportunity. MAJA MIKEK, Celtra We need people with different ideas, as they bring diversity. The future is in smart people and we have many of those in Slovenia. BOŠTJAN BREGAR, 4thOffice.com LJUBLJANA GREEN CAPITAL OF EUROPE 2016 Reception at the Ljubljana City Hall Honorary host: ZORAN JANKOVIĆ, Mayor of the City of Ljubljana DO S AND DON TS WHEN ENTERING THE U.S. MARKET Frequent questions when entering the U.S. market - ANTHONY V. RUSSO, President of TradeHub International, USA Frequent mistakes when entering the U.S. market - STEVE STARESINIC, CPA, CGMA Visas - KAREN MIMS, Consular Officer, U.S. Embassy Select USA - DALE WRIGHT, U.S. Commercial Department, Select USA Senior Commercial Officer Igor Zorko, ZZI & ZIT; Maja Makovec Brenčič, Minister of Education, Science and Sport of the Republic of Slovenia; Mitja Jermol, Jožef Stefan Institute; Dejan Roljič, ABC Accelerator VIDA DOLENC POGAČNIK, Deputy Director and International Cooperation Leader, AmCham Slovenia Maja Mikek, Celtra; Marko Guček, GoOpti; Matej Čer, Avantcar; Boštjan Bregar, 4thOffice; Jaka Stele, Visionect Anthony V. Russo, TradeHub International; Steve Staresinic, CPA, CGMA; Dale Wright, U.S. Commercial Department, Select USA

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