Kapetanović: We must act together to solve economic challenges

Today, the largest and most influential business-technology conference in the region – WinDays16 – has begun in Poreč.

As in previous years, the conference started with the Business segment to emphasize the importance of synergy and mutual cooperation between the ICT sector and the economy. The main themes of this year’s Business WinDays16 conference are related to creating a culture of success, building a system that will bring successful people to the market, and the importance of implementing all ICT technologies at all levels of the state and society. Investments are always at the center of business discussions, and thus, the WinDays16 conference will also address examples of successful investments and ways to turn Croatia into an economic tiger.

WinDays16 conference was opened by Hrvoje Kapetanović, the director of the Business segment of the Conference, who emphasized the importance of collaboration among all stakeholders in facing economic challenges.

– Every individual, company, and, of course, public administration should act together to successfully address the economic challenges we face. WinDays is one such initiative, which for 16 consecutive years has aimed to initiate changes in society, create a culture of success and new ways of education, and encourage innovation and entrepreneurship as key drivers of economic development. We will place special emphasis on how to influence changes in the value system and how to create leaders characterized by a growth mindset. Although over 39,000 highly educated professionals currently work in the IT sector, the number of job advertisements in the ICT industry in Croatia continues to rise. The current increase in jobs in the ICT industry is 45% compared to last year, which speaks volumes about how the IT sector in Croatia is strengthening and has a relevant role in the economy, said Kapetanović.

Following the opening of the Business segment of the WinDays16 conference, a lecture by Tomislav Tipurić, the director of content for the WinDays16 conference, took place on the topic “Courage and perseverance as a way of life,” emphasizing the need to dream and be persistent on the path to success.

– The 8th Business WinDays16 conference is dedicated to the development, retention, and attraction of talent. The overarching theme is divided into three categories – creating a culture of success, attracting foreign investments, and opening new companies – and each topic will be vigorously discussed at numerous round tables with the aim of finding as many interesting ideas as possible that will drive the Croatian economy. One of the round tables bears the provocative title “Croatia – a paradise for investors,” and we must admit that many were surprised by our positive attitude, but I believe we must dare to dream, as that is the only recipe, along with perseverance, for success.

Tomislav Tipurić’s lecture also served as an introduction to the topic “Yes, we can build a culture of success,” presented by Nenad Bakić.

– When we talk about changing mindsets and adopting a culture of success, there is a significant mental gap between Croatia and the world. However, it is easier for an individual to jump over that gap. Our current mindset is that it is shameful to succeed, or even to try, and there is great envy among people. That is what we need to change. We need to forget where someone was in 1991 and think about where our children will be in 2031, said Bakić.

On the second day of the Business segment of the WinDays16 conference, participants can expect numerous interesting lectures and round tables such as “The City that Creates Investment Opportunities” (Ivanec and Jastrebarsko), a round table on the topic “Croatia a paradise for investors” (Hrvoje Kapetanović, Željko Kukurin, Michael Georg Muller), followed by a lecture by Saša Cvetojević “Creating High Value – the Business Model of the Future for Croatia,” etc.

For a detailed overview of the WinDays conference schedule, see here.