New start-up program being launched by Orlen

Orlen announced on Friday that it will open an internet platform on which entrepreneurs can propose their ideas for innovative solutions directly to the company in any one of its energy, manufacturing or marketing and sales areas, a company statement released to the Polish press said. The platform will be part of a project the company is running with the aim of exchanging technological knowledge and supporting start-ups. “We hope that the platform will become a bridge between the corporation and the environment, start-ups and innovators. We believe that the use of an external potential [via] accessing forms of support, [such as through] specialized laboratories and [our] vast retail network in several countries, will allow for effective and faster marketing of innovative solutions, and effectively contribute to the full potential of innovation and entrepreneurship,” said the company’s Executive Director of Strategy, Andrzej Kozłowski. The company indicated that the program would focus on the theme of reverse coaching, in which outside researchers’ and entrepreneurs’ suggestions for innovation are received and welcomed by its experts. It mentioned that, on the company’s website, information about the new program can be found under the ‘Accelerator’ and ‘Crowdsourcing’ sections.