Croatia Trip 2009
Mission
EWOB’s mission for our second trip to Croatia was twofold: education and sustainability. Through practice and application of consulting concepts facilitated by UIUC’s EWOB chapter, the students of the JJ Strossmayer University of Osijek experienced first-hand how to approach, evaluate and provide viable business solutions to small business owners. The newly founded EWOB Osijek chapter creates sustainability of these projects by continually working with the small business owners ensuring implementation of the solution provided.
Preparation
The UIUC EWOB chapter took on several Educational Initiatives in preparation for the Croatia trip. A team of members developed workshops on the consulting process, setting scope and framing a consulting engagement, reading financial statements, using strategic frameworks, and making presentations to clients. Our member then facilitated these workshops to teach the Croatian students before beginning the engagements.
International Experience
While in Croatia the UIUC EWOB chapter attended a series of seminars at the JJ Strossmayer University of Osijek Faculty of Economics. The topics of these workshops ranged from the Croatian economy to basic Baltic language skills and discussions with university students on differences between the educational systems in Croatia and the United States. Our group also visited the Center for Entrepreneurship in downtown Osijek which partners with university, its Graduate Programmein Entrepreneurship, and the Business Incubator BIOS Osijek. There, our members learned of the importance of entrepreneurship in Croatia and the recent trends of its economy.
Projects
Kinematografi Osijek – As a cinema that operates within a historically significantbuilding, this small business faced several problems including stringent governmental regulations and inefficient personnel. Solutions proposed included hiring new, younger, adaptable employees and creating new revenue opportunities such as renting out the space to other businesses, creating strategic synergies.
BioQ - An organic agricultural trade group with plans of expanding into the European Union market upon acceptance of Croatia into the EU. The group CEO wanted to understand the organic market within Croatia and the EU and how the group could effectively compete against existing competitors. The deliverable presented to the client consisted of market sizing, needs that must be addressed in order for the product to reach the mass market, and options the group could take to grow the business organically or through acquisitions or alliances.
Electronic Center – A small electronic equipment shop comparable to Radio Shack. The consulting work done was a feasibility analysis on two databases to see which one would better suit the company.
Escape Studio - A web design boutique that specializes in web solutions, e-commerce solutions, and internet marketing. Our consulting team helped them solve a problem in recruiting by finding new talent channels and ways to market themselves towards potential employees. A key concern was that the ideology of a developer from Slavonija was vastly different from those of other regions, let alone other countries. The company's website is www.escapestudio.net
Ivacic – A small business franchise that provides cartridge refilling services to the Osijek and surrounding region. This three man enterprise was facing problems with empty cartridge procurement and inventory supply chain management.
Grafoplast - A small digital printing organization based out of Osijek. We helped the client to better understand their current business, while working to grow their business in newer, more profitable market spaces.
Zeleni Osijek – A not-for-profit eco-tourism board based in Osijek for the surrounding region, Zeleni Osijek educates local schools on ecology and environmental sustainability, guides small groups on short trips through nature, and hosts corporate team-building exercises in their nature park. The company wanted to improve their marketing with modern, cost-efficient strategies. Our team first worked to identify the most profitable revenue channels, then designed a cheap, cost effective marketing mix for Zeleni Osijek to use.
Sithoniis LTD - A small mobile phone retailer in the greater Osijek area. Sithoniis currently operates 3 stores, but was considering acquiring 4 more stores to broaden its footprint in eastern Croatia. The task was to perform a financial analysis to see if this expansion was economically viable. Sithoniis LTD’s owners only spoke Croatian, and all the financial records provided were based on an accounting system foreign to Americans. Thus, we relied heavily on the Croatian students to learn the skills needed to complete the model. Eventually we were able to build future projections and run a complete financial analysis, resulting in finding that expansion would have a positive impact. Sithoniis LTD agreed with the findings and is set to open their first new store in May 2009.
