Get yourself a good assistant
This week the WBJ's career expert, Matthew Tebeau, begins a new column where he asks the country's leading entrepreneurs, investors and chief executives to reflect on doing business in Poland.
Tom Keller received his MBA from Columbia University before being recruited to manage a distribution company in Poland. At that time Tom-who had spent six years in Asia as China was opening up-thought it would be a good opportunity to build his emerging markets expertise further before returning to the U.S. for an international marketing career. Things change however: a decade later he is still committed to Poland and Eastern Europe.
Matthew Tebeau: Do foreign firms or investors have realistic expectations when they enter the Polish market?
Tom Keller: Not always. A lot of people see Poland as cheap labor, but once you get bureaucracy, infrastructure, etc. it's not that cheap. Most Westerners who have been in Poland a long time understand that it has been through some tough times and now everything is razor cheap, pricing power is quite low.
Many new investors think that we'll price at our normal margins like in Western Europe. But they don't realize that Poland is a real battleground, especially in consumer goods. There are also retail wars here, so everyone has sharpened their pencils.
What are the key challenges for the Polish economy?
The key challenge is to energize the small and medium sized business sector. The Polish people will do fine, I have great faith in their ability to figure out ways to handle the market. But I don't trust the Polish government to get the environment right. In this sense the EU is invaluable because it gives a framework for the laws and rules.
What advice would you give a foreign executive just assigned to work in Poland?
Hire a really good assistant first of all, to help you understand what things mean and how they work. Secondly, realize that the devil is really in the details here; you need to listen to your accountants and lawyers. There is a lot of documentation that goes along with doing business here.
Another difference to be aware of is that in the U.S. you can look someone up, you can look up a company and check references. A lot of that is coming now, but is still not possible. So therefore a lot of business is done on impression and feel in Poland.
What do you value most in a senior executive working for you?
Trust and honesty. I would also suggest the ability to work hard. There are certain Poles that work nine to five and there are those you can call at 10pm and they can take care of any problem. That work ethic is just invaluable here. Poles work with their heart and if they believe in you they'll do anything you ask. I try to interview for these traits and look very hard for them.
Tom Keller received his MBA from Columbia University before being recruited to manage a distribution company in Poland. At that time Tom-who had spent six years in Asia as China was opening up-thought it would be a good opportunity to build his emerging markets expertise further before returning to the U.S. for an international marketing career. Things change however: a decade later he is still committed to Poland and Eastern Europe.
Matthew Tebeau: Do foreign firms or investors have realistic expectations when they enter the Polish market?
Tom Keller: Not always. A lot of people see Poland as cheap labor, but once you get bureaucracy, infrastructure, etc. it's not that cheap. Most Westerners who have been in Poland a long time understand that it has been through some tough times and now everything is razor cheap, pricing power is quite low.
Many new investors think that we'll price at our normal margins like in Western Europe. But they don't realize that Poland is a real battleground, especially in consumer goods. There are also retail wars here, so everyone has sharpened their pencils.
What are the key challenges for the Polish economy?
The key challenge is to energize the small and medium sized business sector. The Polish people will do fine, I have great faith in their ability to figure out ways to handle the market. But I don't trust the Polish government to get the environment right. In this sense the EU is invaluable because it gives a framework for the laws and rules.
What advice would you give a foreign executive just assigned to work in Poland?
Hire a really good assistant first of all, to help you understand what things mean and how they work. Secondly, realize that the devil is really in the details here; you need to listen to your accountants and lawyers. There is a lot of documentation that goes along with doing business here.
Another difference to be aware of is that in the U.S. you can look someone up, you can look up a company and check references. A lot of that is coming now, but is still not possible. So therefore a lot of business is done on impression and feel in Poland.
What do you value most in a senior executive working for you?
Trust and honesty. I would also suggest the ability to work hard. There are certain Poles that work nine to five and there are those you can call at 10pm and they can take care of any problem. That work ethic is just invaluable here. Poles work with their heart and if they believe in you they'll do anything you ask. I try to interview for these traits and look very hard for them.
