Top Polish Leaders

The results of the Polish corporate leaders ranking, 4^th edition, organized by the foreign affairs portal (psz.pl), were published at the end of 2011. Lesław Kuzaj, GE CEO for Central Europe, tops the ranking that was conducted among almost 700 Polish leaders. He has been present in the ranking since its 1^st edition, subsequently strengthening his position among the first ten candidates. Due to GE’s growing market capitalization, Lesław Kuzaj dethroned Ryszard Malinowski, Vice-president of Intel Mobility Group and CEO of Intel Chipest Group, who was the winner of the ranking for the last three years.

Lesław Kuzaj, GE CEO for Central Europe and Hugh Gillanders, GE Director for Public Affairs Europe

The two major factors taken into consideration were the size of the company and the positions’ importance and international reach. Filip Topolewski – co-author of the ranking comments, based on the results, said that “each year, the number of Poles in top management positions in global corporations is growing. This year’s TOP 50 was put together from among 100 more candidates than last year”.

Number of candidates in the ranking of Polish corporate leaders (2008-2011)

This trend is visible within GE, as well. According to Lesław Kuzaj “the recent years in GE have shown that the number of managers from outside the headquarters is systematically increasing and most locations have local managers. It should be noted that, as a global corporation, GE applies the same HR procedures and the same principle to develop leaders around the world. The direction of the employee’s career is based on a number of different factors and one of the primary criteria is certainly the employee’s potential.”

Anita Błaszczak, journalist at Rzeczpospolita national daily who follows the leadership trends, explains that “the successful transition of the Polish economy after 1989 is a unique experience that allowed Poles to gain competencies difficult to achieve in stable markets, which have developed and created their corporate culture for decades”. She also adds that “the combination of history with a good understanding of the specificity of CEE’s economy and business often makes Poles a natural candidate for the head of the region”.

Michał Młynarczyk – Hays, CEE Managing Director, simply indicates that due to their historical background, Poles have developed adaptation skills through decades. “Such a state of affairs derives from the fact that the country was always in the middle of every significant event in Europe.” Therefore, Poles had to adapt quickly to new surroundings and circumstances. Moreover, he points out that among other characteristics which are beneficial for the Poles, the European Union membership has significantly contributed to the current situation. “The population of Poland has already been influenced by numerous training programs offered by the European Union. It is necessary to mention that the ease of traveling provided the possibility to start working abroad. This created an opportunity to learn not only the language, but most importantly the corporation culture of these companies”.

The positive trend, meaning a higher number of Poles in leading positions, is expected to continue in the coming years. Michal Młynarczyk notices that “Poles have gained a stable presence on the global human resources market”. Moreover, Poland is increasingly becoming a global economic player and is perceived as a success story in terms of market development. It has recently been targeted as an ideal destination for the outsourcing high-end, knowledge-based processes, which may potentially provide an opportunity for further development of skills among the workforce.