Lovrenčić: A Different Way of Viewing Challenges in Investment Projects is the Key to Our Success

Mladen Lovrenčić is a graduate economist and a master of management. He is at the helm of Dyvolve, which was created by merging Arata Biz with Savjetura, led by Saša Bart. The two business partners have directed Dyvolve towards two areas: the preparation and implementation of EU projects (according to the principle of offering ‘end to end’ service) and consulting in the field of sustainable transport development. Lovrenčić gained previous experience in both the private and public sectors. Before stepping into the private sector, he worked as an advisor to the Deputy Prime Minister for Investments, as well as in the Agency for the Promotion of Investments. He has transferred this experience to Dyvolve, where, together with other consulting colleagues, he develops a portfolio of ‘end to end’ solutions for co-financing projects from EU funds.

• What kind of people work at Dyvolve and what services do you offer?

– At Dyvolve, we have people from various professions with rich work experience. This diversity allows us to view the challenges that clients may face differently, but we all share the same passion for solving their challenges. We are always looking for new people who want to embrace the challenge of working on dynamic projects.

• Who are your clients?

– Our clients are companies from the private and public sectors. From the private sector, we are most often contacted by large and medium-sized enterprises that have significant investment potential. I would like to emphasize that Dyvolve is happy to collaborate with small and medium-sized entrepreneurs, especially if they have a project with clear goals and expected results.

• You are experienced in obtaining funds from EU structural funds. How do you stand with supranational financing instruments?

– Many projects that Dyvolve prepares for its clients include applications for supranational financing instruments. Such projects are more complex to prepare as they require the creation of international consortia. We assist our clients both in shaping the project idea and in the process of forming international consortia and later project management, and we are successful in this. For example, we participated in the preparation of several innovative infrastructure development projects for electric vehicle charging, which received funding through the supranational financing instrument CEF (Connecting Europe Facility). Additionally, we are participating in the Shareplace project, which has a total value of three million euros, funded by the INTERREG program for Central Europe, which addresses issues of sustainable public transport development.

• When it comes to consulting services in the field of EU projects, how much can you enter into your clients’ business as a consultant?

– As a rule, we do not enter into the clients’ business, as we are exclusively project-engaged in their ‘lives’ from the project preparation phase to the implementation and completion phase. However, it happens that companies start from scratch, and we guide such companies to organize their business to be more attractive from the perspective of assessing financial and implementation capacity as an applicant for a tender. It is essential to have a good idea, and the consultant’s job is to shape the idea so that it successfully passes the evaluation process.

• Does this mean that you are a consultant who is present from idea to realization? Why is this important?

– Once we sign a cooperation agreement, we are present in supporting our client from the beginning to the end of the investment cycle. Dyvolve offers an ‘end to end’ service, which our clients appreciate. This is important because, in my experience, clients like to have a consultant who worked on preparing their project proposal accompany them during the implementation of the project. There are certain rules in implementing projects funded by EU funds that entrepreneurs are not accustomed to. Primarily, it is about the reporting system to the implementing bodies and the procurement of goods and services that are prescribed.

• What areas of EU funds do you cover?

– We are primarily focused on innovative research, development, and innovation projects, sustainable transport systems, and small and medium-sized enterprises in the manufacturing industry and tourism sector. We are not focused on projects in the field of agriculture and rural development, nor generally on projects valued at less than one million euros. Given that we love challenges, we focus on more complex types of projects that are challenging to implement.

• Have you ever had a situation where a project did not receive a funding decision?

– Our success rate is over 98%. Of the approximately 60 project applications we have worked on, we had only one that was not selected for funding, and that was due to changed strategic priorities of the implementing body, which we could not influence during the preparation of the project application. It is really important to pay attention to every detail. Before any of our engagements, we conduct a free detailed assessment of the project idea. After that, we honestly explain to the client whether it makes sense to apply for the project or not. It is always in our interest for our clients to be successful with their project application because we also bear the risk with the client. Part of our fee depends solely on the success of the project we prepare for obtaining funds from the European Union.