8th Grow East Congress 2017

April 4th, 2017
WKO Conference Center Vienna, Austria

CEE Reloaded: Lessons learned from nearly 30 years of transition

The Congress offered the possibility to meet influential people who have been shaping the economies of CEE and learn about their views of the region for the years to come: What are the lessons from nearly 30 years of transition inCEE? How will the region develop in the next years?

CEE –Surprisingly innovative: Business ideas that move markets and industries

In the afternoon, the spotlight was on innovation in CEE. Arnold Schuh, Director of the Competence Center for Emerging Markets & CEE atWU Vienna, opened the discussion with latest research on the innovation performance of CEE countries and firms. In the following panel sessions,CEE entrepreneurs and executives of multinational firms discussed their market moving business ideas and sources of success. Often overlooked, the CEE countries are a fertile ground for innovative ideas. For instance, Warsaw based Daftcode is a venture builder that sells innovative online and mobile products globally. Slovakian Jomido has successfully established itself as a platform for micro-jobs, bringing together CEE creativity and Western customers. Their partners on the podium are Alexander Benedict of the“hidden champion” Benedict Gmbh and Alf Netek of technology leader Kapsch AG. Martin Engelmann, CEO of the drugstore chain dm Drogeriemarkt CEE, Jacob Maly, head of the Czech market researcher IPSOS, Andreas Philippitsch, Amrop Jenewein, and Martina Steinberger-Voracek of Henkel CEE, discussed digitalization as a change factor in theirmarkets and in retailing.

Impressions:

Grow East Congress 2017

Presentations:

Find the speakers presentations here