In Sheraton Hotel in Cracow, the leaders of outsourcing sector, shared service and IT gathered together. They discussed the issues under „„Squaring the Circle – Collaborating in a competing world”, which was the main subject of this years' edition of the conference. Among the participants, there were such resepected persons as: professor of computer science Ian Angell from London School of Economic, British specialist on branding Wally Olins, professor of sociology from Jagiellonian University Piotr Sztompka and British athlete and Olympian Derek Redmond, one of the best motivational speakers in Europe. The conference was held for the third time.
Cracow is undoubtedly one of the most crucial centers of SSC/BPO in our part of the continent. The share of market of shared service centers is significantly bigger thank in other cities. Th capital city of Lesser Poland is an attractive localisation thanks to well-educated employees, high ethics of work and relatively low working cost, especially in comparison with Western Europe, where most investments come from. Moreover, Cracow, like many other Polish cities, has got qualified employees who have experience with SSC/BPO, are ready to share the best dealings and know European languages very well - that is very hard to find in Asian centers of SSC/BPO, or smaller cities of Middle and Eastern Europe - said Paul Jasniach, the head of SSC Centre of Excellence team in PwC.
In the capital of Lesser Poland, there are nearly 90 centers of shared service, IT and business service. That is why ca 30 000 people were employed. Within a year, the dynamics of employees' number's growth equals approximately 25 per cent. Experts from PwC claim that this trend can be stable, e. g. thanks to Cracow's activities to gain new services from more advanced branches and the developement of existing centers.
The advantage of Cracow is the qualified labour force and good localisation and communication with other European countries.
In Cracow, educated, young people will never be lacking and the quality of teaching is currently on one of the highest levels in Poland. It is proved by this year's edition of a list, prepared by Rzeczpospolita newspaper and an educational magazine Perspektywy, where Jagiellonian University was for the second time chosen as the best university in Poland according to the level of teaching. - Adrew Hallam, Secretery-General of ASPIRE, commented.
A lot of young people from other part of Europe work In BPO and SSC departments in Cracow. Currently, their amount equals 15 per cent of employees in this sector, yet this number will be growing. The capital of Lesser Poland is recognizable and appreciated by foreigners.
Business service is currently one of the most important branches in Poland. According to Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency (PAIIZ), BPO/SSC sector was more popular than automotive industry. In the first quarter of 2012, among new investments announced by PAIIZ, 35 projects concerned exactly the business service sector. Their joint worth equaled 34 billion euro and 7 981 new workplaces. According to ASPIRE association, each workplace created is worth 40 000 dollars. In 2012, thanks to this brand, Polish economy gained 3,4 billion dollars.
To preserve its position, Cracow will try to gain services from more advanced branches - researches and developement, as well as processes based upon knowledge. The significant part of growth of centers in the city will come from the already existing ones, who will go up the chain of values. The branch will develop vertically by drawing additional services, such as, staff processes and buyings. What is also very apparent is the interest in centers of shared service and outsourcing from both Polish companies and international middle-size companies. It is a great chance for the further development of Cracow and Lesser Poland region. – Paul Jasniach from PwC emphasized.