Tag: BUSINESS

Let’s talk about eventworking

Posted on by Katarzyna Halicka

On 15 February, Olivia Centre will host an extremely interesting meeting on networking. It will be an excellent opportunity to talk to Bernard Fruga and Artur Sójka, authors of the book “Eventworking”. A short interview with these experts was conducted by Bogusław Wieczorek from Olivia Centre. Welcome!

 

Bogusław Wieczorek: In his latest book “Eventworking. Or how to effectively use the potential of conferences, fairs and other business events” you prepare readers to participate in such events. Has their meaning and character changed after the pandemic?

 

Artur Sójka: It seems like an easy question, but it’s a difficult one. From my perspective, it’s both yes and no. Some of the events “returned” after years in an unchanged form. Some, however, are taking advantage of the opportunities created by this difficult period and are enriched with various tools or forms that did not exist before 2020. And then there were mixed events. The ones you can take part in either live or online.

 

Bernard Fruga: I can see that the temporary, forced cut-off from events has shown how important it is to meet in person. I’ve had experience when during a hybrid event, a participant resigns from online participation and moves to the room, because “it’s not the same energy through the webcam”.

 

Bogusław: I’m particularly intrigued by the chapter “Turning contacts into relationships and nurturing them”. Do you see value in spending time together on activities whose common denominator is hobbies, interests, sports?

 

Arthur: Of course! I’ve come across studies that men establish relationships by doing something together, women by talking. And this leads us to the bizarre conclusion that two “guys” can sit “fishing” and not say a word to each other all day, and then say that it was the best day they could have had together. This strengthens their relationship. Women, on the other hand, need to talk. They don’t have to do anything else. I would like to point out that we are talking about certain groups and the conclusions drawn from it, not about each individual individual. It can be different here.

 

Bernard: Spending time together in a non-professional context seems to be the best way to build a bond and get to know each other better. When asked by the head of the company how to select managers from among a dozen or so employees, I suggested that he go camping with everyone for a few days, and when he returned, it would be clear to him who was suitable for the leader.

 

Bogusław: At Olivia Centre, we create a lot of spaces for building a community. From the choir, through photography classes or the yacht club. We often host meetings and events of various nature – concerts, discussions or picnics. Would you recommend your readers to participate in such meetings, which are not necessarily an industry conference, and their nature is less formal?

 

Arthur: Man is a gregarious animal. Therefore, it is worth looking for groups that will give us the best chance to develop in the direction that suits us. And the private part of life is also important. Ba! Most important. We run a business in order to live well. Never the other way around. Business meetings can often give us money that we can turn into free time (hiring employees or outsourcing some of the work).

 

Bernard: I believe that the key to professional fulfillment is to maintain a good level of enthusiasm. The energy to act and cheerfulness must be supplied outside the company. That is why photography classes or participation in a concert are not only an opportunity to take care of your network of contacts, but simply a necessity to avoid professional burnout and enjoy well-being.

 

Bogusław: Thank you for the interview and see you on February 15th!

 

***

On February 15, 2023, a meeting with specialists from the networking industry will be held at the Sky Club:

Bernard Fruga – business consultant, trainer,

Artur Sójka – trainer, networker, speaker, founder of the recommendation organization Business Club Poland,

Ireneusz Osiński – trainer, speaker, business mentor and networker, who will also play the role of the meeting leader.

The reason for the meeting is the promotion of the new book “Eventworking” by Bernard Fruga and Artur Sójka.

This means a great opportunity to listen to the conversation with its authors live. Get a personal dedication in the book you own. And for those who do not have this item in their collections yet, but would like to become its happy owners, it will also be available for purchase.

The whole meeting will be held under the motto: “For the love of recommendations”. Which, according to Artur Sójka, should be an integral part of networking.

February 15, 2023, 6.00 p.m. – 9.30 p.m., Gdansk, Olivia Tower, Olivia Sky Club room.

 

BUY YOUR TICKET HERE

 

The ticket is a donation to the Foundation for the Development of Talents

 

 

Olivia Prize 2022: the call for applications for the third edition of the competition is now open!

Posted on by Katarzyna Halicka

We are looking for companies, teams and individuals from Olivia Centre whose activities in 2022 stood out for their effectiveness, innovation and real impact on the environment. Submit your company or project by February 28, 2023! With the Olivia Prize competition, we want to reward outstanding ideas and their implementations. The winners are selected by experienced representatives of the management staff of companies based in Olivia Centre. Together we appreciate, motivate and inspire!

The Olivia Prize will be awarded in four categories:

  • Olivia Business – for an economic or business project, carried out individually or in teams by Olivia Centre Residents.
  • Olivia Pro Bono – for a social project, carried out individually or in teams by the Residents of Olivia Centre.
  • Olivia Eco – for an ecological project, carried out individually or in teams by Olivia Centre Residents.
  • Olivia Impact – for the project that in 2022 had the greatest positive impact on the environment, in the business, social or ecological area.

Applications can be submitted until 28 February using
this form.
 The official announcement of the results will take place on March 22, 2023, during the award ceremony.

“The third edition of the Olivia Prize competition is ahead of us. We are very impressed by the many useful and important projects carried out by our Residents in 2021 – says Bogusław Wieczorek from Olivia Centre. – So far, the applications have included initiatives in the field of ecology or support for charitable organizations. However, special recognition should be given to business projects carried out despite the difficult, dynamically changing situation on global markets. The year 2022 presented us with many challenges that required us to react quickly and confront the changing conditions of doing business. This makes it all the more important for us to be able to appreciate valuable initiatives implemented in an unfavourable economic situation. Importantly, the jury is composed of representatives of Olivia companies, so each award is an expression of appreciation from the business community –Adds.

The Olivia Prize has been awarded since 2020. The nominated projects will be evaluated by a jury composed of managers of Olivia Centre’s resident companies. Last year, the jury considered 36 applications. The Olivia Prize was awarded in 3 categories:

  • Business – awarded to Omida for introducing intermodal transport to a new market.
  • Pro Bono – for volunteers from Energa for the project Pier(w)si win!
  • Eco – for ZR Trade for the #ZeroWasteWorking project.
  • The Olivia Impact Special Award went to the Regional Volunteer Centre in Gdańsk – for its current and subsequent comprehensive activities for refugees from war-torn Ukraine.

The Jury will award each winning initiative with a prize – a voucher to be used to organize an event in one of the spaces of Olivia Centre. The winners will be able to choose whether it is a lunch for the whole team at the Vidokówka restaurant, an exclusive dinner at Treinta y Tres or Arco, a conference with a view of the Bay of Gdańsk from the 34th floor or in the most popular coworking space in Poland, O4 Coworking or maybe exotic drinks in Olivia Garden. The deadline for submissions is February 28, 2023.

FILL IN THE APPLICATION

Olivia Centre is preparing two more buildings

Posted on by Katarzyna Halicka

After announcing two new projects, Olivia Centre remains the most interesting mixed-use centre. According to the plans, one of Olivia’s next buildings is to be used as an office building, and the other as a residential building for long-term rental (PRS). The investor has just received a building permit for both buildings.

 

The obtained permit confirms the direction of development that Olivia has taken since its inception: a multifunctional centre, open to residents and tourists. The obtained permit is the next stage of the investment and does not mean that the construction will start automatically. Further market analyses will provide an answer as to when the project will be given the green light for implementation, although its shape is already known.

 

The new buildings will be built in the northern part of the centre and will reach a height of just over 50 metres, corresponding to the height of the last investment, Olivia Prime. The first residential building in Olivia, whose working name Olivia Nord is related to the fact that it will be the northernmost building of the centre, will provide the function of long-term institutional lease. This increasingly popular lease formula provides residents with the opportunity to occupy the premises for many years, but also to benefit from standardized service and additional services, which are not available in the case of private rent. On the other hand, the direct location next to the office center calms the traffic in the area and revitalizes the urban fabric for the benefit of the entire district.

 

On the 4th floor of the building with the working name Olivia Nord, a terrace will be arranged, which will serve as a public open space. It will be filled with numerous plants and places to rest. The building will offer 151 apartments of various sizes. The residential part will reach 17 storeys, while the second building will reach 15 storeys, offering 20,000 sqm2 office and service space. The difference in the number of floors is due to the different heights of the apartments, although the height of both buildings is the same. The award-winning Design Anatomy studio will be responsible for the interior design, whose portfolio includes the interior design of 32 and 34 floors of Olivia Centre, over 100,000m2 of offices and apartments in @Home and Olivia Home projects.

The design of the latest buildings is the responsibility of the international architectural studio Epstein, which in the world is implementing such facilities as the O’Hare International airport in Chicago, and in Poland Varso, Chmielna 89 or Mennica Legacy Tower. As Paweł Kochanek , a senior designer from the Epstein studio working on the Olivia Nord and Olivia Nowa project, describes: The building complex consists of two free-standing forms connected to each other by a podium. They are adjacent to a common atrium containing a public space with greenery arranged for public and service functions. The architectural form forms the culmination of the urban layout of the existing form of Olivia Centre on the north side. At the ground floor level, the entrances to the buildings are spatially connected by elements of a roof in the form of a “meander” stretching intermittently along the façade to their southern corner.

 

The introduction of the residential function to Olivia confirms its long-term policy of development towards a multifunctional facility, open to residents and their needs. In the existing buildings of the centre, there are already 12 restaurants, numerous service outlets, a bakery, a two-storey fitness centre, a pharmacy, two medical centres, and a publicly accessible exotic Olivia Garden, where 3.5 thousand PLN have been prepared for guests. plants reaching up to 11 meters in height, representing over 400 species and coming from 5 continents, as well as event and conference centers that can accommodate up to 1000 people in total. Olivia has won numerous awards and distinctions for the implementation of such directions of development, and the proof of its openness to tourists and residents is the award of the Marshal of the Pomeranian Voivodeship granted on the occasion of the International Tourism Day in 2020, as well as the laurels of the European Property Awards for Olivia Garden, called the “architectural Oscars” in the industry.

 

Olivia Centre is also a cultural and sports offer available to all interested. The number of events each month reaches several dozen concerts, classes and even theatrical performances staged on the highest stage in Poland.

 

In both buildings, the ground floors will provide further commercial premises, additionally expanding the range of services available in Olivia Centre. These types of mixed-use centres or facilities integrate many urban functions. In recent years, the concept of 15-minute cities has been particularly popular, and Olivia is becoming a regional determinant of this trend. Its premise is to meet most of your daily needs within a 15-minute walk. The result is the creation of lively and fashionable urban districts, which are the center of life of local communities.

 

– The development of Olivia with new buildings is based on the continued high level of demand for its space, and at the same time the development of new functions, which have been signalled by the market for a long time – emphasizes Maciej Kotarski, Director of the Commercialization Department at Olivia Centre. – The introduction of the residential function to our centre is also another important step in the development of Olivia as a fully multifunctional facility, living 24 hours a day. We are very much looking forward to introducing the residential function to Olivia. To numerous cafés, catering outlets and highly rated urban functions, we introduce residential premises in a form previously unavailable in the Tri-City – we provide a combination of comfortable living and working within one facility.

 

In the foreground, the Olivia Nord residential building. Behind it, there is the Olivia Nova office building. Both buildings are connected to each other by a common base.

 

 

 

Olivia Centre in Gdańsk is the largest and most modern mix-use centre in the Tri-City agglomeration and in Poland. Its area currently amounts to 175,000 m.kw, and ultimately it will significantly exceed 200,000 m.kw. The design of the entire centre was created by Konior&Partners and BJK Architects, as well as the designs of individual buildings. Olivia’s largest residents include Amazon, Bayer, Capgemini, Deloitte, Energa, EPAM, Fujifilm, Lyreco, Medicover, Nike, Nordea, PwC, Ricoh, Sii, thyssenkrupp.

In the spring of 2021. Olivia Business Centre has undergone the most restrictive analysis conducted by experts from the International Well Building Institute (IWBI) in New York. The safety of building users was checked, as well as solutions improving the quality of life in the business centre. Olivia received the maximum score of 25 out of 25 points. It achieved this result in 22 basic categories and in 3 new ones related to the innovations implemented in its area. This is the first such result in the world, which confirms that our buildings are among the world’s top business companies. A year later, in a re-verification, Olivia maintained the same level of certification, confirming its membership in the group of the safest, but also user-friendly workspaces.

At the same time, Olivia Centre is much more than buildings. Over 1500 business, educational, cultural and sports events take place here every year. A unique combination of services and amenities for residents, their employees and guests has been created on its premises, which consists of eight restaurants, 4 cafes, a professional two-storey fitness centre, a kindergarten for 100 children, a primary school, a high school, an IT academy, a medical centre, a dental centre, a pharmacy, 5 banks and 5 conference centres, O4 – one of the largest coworking spaces in Poland, but at the same time a vast patio filled with vegetation, fountains and places of relaxation. In the central point of Olivia there is a vast (almost 1000 m2), year-round tropical garden Olivia Garden, which is a regenerative space for residents – it reduces emotional and psychophysiological stress, rebuilds depleted attention resources, has a positive effect on the ability to take on everyday challenges related to professional work and also fosters good social relations, creating a space for meetings.

In July 2019, on the 32nd, 33rd and 34th floor of Olivia Star, the highest building in northern Polish, a project was launched, constituting a unique, additional offer attracting guests from all over the world to Olivia. On On the 32nd floor, a public viewing level has been opened, allowing a 360° view. for the whole Tri-City. It offers not only a stunning panorama of the Bay of Gdańsk, the Tri-City Landscape Park and the Gdynia cliff coast, but also originally designed interiors, catering and recreational facilities. On On the 33rd floor of the building, there are two prestigious restaurants: Arco and Treinta y Tres, run by Paco Pérez, one of the most successful chefs in the world, winner of the 5***** prestigious Michelin culinary guide. On On the 34th floor, at a height of 150 meters above the ground, a multifunctional event and conference centre has been created, located the highest in Poland, allowing for the organisation of events for up to 400 people, where concerts of the greatest Polish stars, theatre performances and business conferences are held. Olivia offers over 1600 parking spaces, a number of electric car charging points, points for storing and charging electric scooters, several hundred bicycle racks and large changing rooms with showers for cyclists in each of the 7 buildings.

The Im. Stefan Kuryłowicz invites you to a workshop that will help to change a key place in Gdańsk

Posted on by Katarzyna Halicka

The Im. Stefan Kuryłowicz invites you to the Workshops with a Mentor – the 8th edition of the Practitioner Scholarship, during which architects will work on solutions for the space at the junction of Grunwaldzka Avenue and ul. Bażyński, where the business community and the academic community intersect, and this place is visited by tens of thousands of Tri-City residents every day. As a result of the workshops, there will be proposals for the development of the space in front of the legendary Gdańsk architectural icon – the Olivia Hall.

 

The call for applications for the workshops, which will take place in Gdańsk on April 1-2, 2023, has begun. The INTERNSHIP scholarship

is a three-stage program aimed at finding the most interesting ideas for improving the quality of public space. In the first stage, the jury will select up to 18 people from the submitted portfolios to participate in the on-site, weekend “Workshops with a Mentor”. The workshop will be held under the guidance of a mentor Prof. Peter Lorens, Architect of Gdańsk, employee of the Faculty of Architecture of the Gdańsk University of Technology; and Prof. Lucyna Nyka from the Faculty of Architecture, Gdańsk University of Technology; Prof. Rainer Mahlamäki President of the Finnish Association of Architects (SAFA) and Grzegorz Kidybiński from Olivia Centre – project partner. The workshop will be led by: Iza Burda, PhD (Faculty of Architecture, Gdańsk University of Technology), Arch. Jan Rubel (Faculty of Architecture, Warsaw University of Technology, Kuryłowicz & Associates) and Prof. Ewa Kuryłowicz (Chairwoman of the Foundation’s Council, Kuryłowicz & Associates).

 

In the second stage, the three best solutions developed during the workshops (individual or team) will be awarded monthly scholarships in the amount of PLN 2,000 each. PLN to transform the idea into an architectural concept. Then, from among the three projects selected for the finals, the Jury will select the winning project, which – based on a scholarship of 10 thousand zloty. PLN – will be perfected for 4 months as part of the third stage of the program. The final phase of the workshop will be a public presentation of the concept in autumn 2023. in Gdansk. Applications for the competition will be judged by a Jury consisting of: Jakub Wacławek, Dorota Szlachcic, Aleksandra Wasilkowska, Mirosław Nizio, Maciej Frąckowiak and Agnieszka Olędzka. In the next stages of the competition, these judges will additionally cooperate with the Workshop leaders in the evaluation of the competition entries.

 

The aim of the Foundation’s programmes is to Stefan Kuryłowicz’s goal is to support the work of young, creative and searching architects, to strengthen their attitude of responsibility for the architectural and urban order, to make attempts to recognize contemporary problems of public space and to develop bold solutions to these problems that take into account the needs of local communities. Prof. Ewa Kuryłowicz: “The possibility of influencing the image of this part of Gdańsk, as well as the chance to transform the adjacent area into an element of living tissue, is unique. There is an urgent need to consolidate the space in this region. The designs of young minds and hearts should therefore carry ideas that will attract investors and other users. A city is not only a spatial form, but above all people’s living conditions, traffic flow, mobility, and cooperation with nature. And since the involvement of all stakeholders is a prerequisite for success at the end of a long process of improving the state of life in the city, elements of persuasive graphics will be part of the workshop studies, which can motivate everyone to engage with a sense of agency. Fascinating work awaits us in one of the most beautiful places in Poland.”

 

– The subject of the workshop is a space that has a huge, but still untapped potential. – says Bogusław Wieczorek from Olivia Centre. – In the new centre of the metropolis, the paths of users of business hubs, the campus of the University of Gdańsk and the largest housing estates in Gdańsk intersect. The icon crowning the analyzed square is the symbolic and majestic body of the Olivia Hall, designed by Prof. Stanisław Kuś, Maciej Krasiński and prof. Eng. Arch. Maciej Gintowt, which celebrated its 50th anniversary last year. We count on the creativity of the project teams who, under the watchful eye of the greatest authorities, have an open field to develop and plan solutions around such an important and interesting place. We believe that the proposals will lead to win-win solutions for all stakeholders, and we will see them implemented shortly thereafter.

Speed Dating Recruitment for Olivia’s employers at O4 Coworking

Posted on by Katarzyna Halicka

Are you recruiting or planning to hire employees in the near future? Take advantage of the latest recruitment trends and take part in Recruitment Speed Dating instead of traditional recruitment. March 29, 2023 O4 Coworking organizes the fifth edition of this unique project for employers from Olivia Centre.

 

What is Recruitment Speed Dating?

 

Speed dating, which aims to connect two people with each other, is increasingly being used in business. They have also become an effective form of recruitment in various industries. Around the world, as well as in Poland, such meetings are organized to familiarize employers with job seekers. Giants such as Microsoft, Apple, Google, Airbnb take part in them.

 

O4 Coworking has already organized 4 editions of recruitment dates and has proof that it works!

 

– We are after four editions and we already know that Speed Dating Recruitment has a chance to shorten the distance between the employee and the employer, give the job advertisement a human face, and warm up the image of large and small organizations. At the same time, it allows people with little professional experience to show themselves more fully than through a piece of paper, to experience, a little relaxed and cheerful, the first job interviews and build their first business relationships. – says Michalia Domoń, PR & Marketing Manager at O4 Coworking. –For the employer, it is also a considerable time saver and an opportunity to get to know the candidate market. Speed dating recruitment is an effective form of hiring. All of our speed dating editions account for 60% of conversations that end in employment.

 

Participation in Speed Dating is an opportunity for companies and universities to test a new solution, but also to appear in the eyes of potential candidates as a modern place using market tools that are currently in trend.

 

O4 Coworking is the matchmaker of this success, but this project would not have been successful if there were no universities with us that want to support their students and help them find their way in the job market. This is the second time that WSB University has joined the project.

 

For whom?

 

We would like to invite employers from Olivia Centre who are looking for young, ambitious and cooperative juniors, this time among students in their final years at the Faculty of Social and Humanities (Philology ) and the Faculty of Business (Management and Finance and Accounting) of the WSB University in Gdańsk.

 

Who are the candidates?

 

Students, students of the last year of undergraduate and graduate studies at the Faculty of Social and Humanities – Philology at the WSB University in Gdańsk. These are people who have a good command of foreign languages and cultures of the world, are ready for challenges and changes, as well as open-minded, creative and creative.

Students, students of the last year of undergraduate and graduate studies at the Faculty of Business – Management and Finance and Accounting of the WSB University in Gdańsk. They can assess financial risks and manage an investment portfolio. Prepare financial analyses for management decisions. Apply international financial reporting standards. They are open to new challenges that require deepening their knowledge and applying it in practice, and are ready to work both independently and in a team.

 

They trusted O4 Coworking:

 

Acaisoft, Amazon, AMS, Arrow Electronics, Bayer Sp. z o.o., Develocraft, FUJIFILM Europe, infoShare Academy, Invest in Pomerania, @Lyreco Group Polska, @Manpowergroup , Nørd HR, Nordea, Olivia Centre, PKO Bank Polish, PredictX, Randstad, Ricoh Europe, Santander, Sawa Logistics Sp. z o.o., SoftServe, Sii Poland, TELUS International, Thyssenkrupp, Winning Moves Polska, Xceedance Poland, ZR Trade GmbH.

 

We are waiting for applications for the fifth edition!

Speed Dating Recruitment | O4 Coworking, Olivia Four | 29 March, 14:00-16:30

 

 

Join us and find unique, capable, competent, and job-ready candidates for your company.

Do you have any questions? Write to:
martyna.czarnobaj@oliviacentre.com

 

Testimonials

 

A great event – our company has gained as many as two employees. The form of the meeting allows you to get to know the candidates and representatives of other companies taking part in speeddating. An incredibly effective form of establishing contacts and developing the company. Tomasz Cylwik from ZR Trade

 

I am very happy that we were able to join the event. It is also a very interesting experience for us as employers. It is great to observe young people who are determined to gain their first professional experience. In such a short time, they are able to build a good impression, make people interested in themselves and their competences. The speed dating itself was organized in a professional way, and the pizza at the end was a great culmination of a busy afternoon.

Alicja Sawicka

 from Sii Poland

 

That’s great! I wish I had the opportunity to do so 14 years ago, when I was entering the job market. 6 minutes multiplied by the number of companies gives a huge dose of information about the market, which sooner or later will turn into a full-time job, and thus the development of each participant.

Kamil Parafiniuk

 from Develocraft

 

Olivia Prize 2022 has been awarded! Congratulations!

Posted on by Katarzyna Halicka

The third edition of the Olivia Prize competition is behind us. Awards for projects carried out by the Residents of Poland’s largest mixed-use centre were awarded in the following categories: Impact, Eco, Business and Pro Bono. The partner of the Olivia Eco award is the United Nations Global Compact Network Poland.

 

As many as 26 projects were submitted to this year’s edition of the competition. Most of them were related to the Olivia Business category, the aim of which is to distinguish concepts and implementations with the greatest business potential, characterized by innovation and responding to real market demand. Many initiatives were submitted in the Pro Bono category, related to the pro-social and charitable initiatives of Olivia Residents. In the current geopolitical situation, most of them were related to the involvement of business in helping the victims of the Russian attack on Ukraine. As in the previous year, initiatives in the field of ecology were also well represented. The partner of the award,
United Nations Global Compact Network Poland
, is an organization working for human rights, the environment and promoting social goals of doing business. The distinction in the Olivia Impact category is awarded to the company with the greatest impact in the area of business, social and innovation.

 

OLIVIA IMPACT

The award in this most important category for 2022 went to
Infoshare
– the creators of one of the largest conferences in the IT industry in Europe. The event creates a unique space for exchanging knowledge, establishing business contacts and attracting investors. At the same time, Infoshare is much more than a conference. After 17 years of operation, it is a thriving organization combining the world of business, modern technologies and marketing. Infoshare is also an academy for training programmers and Infoshare Roadshow – a series of meetings during which Pomerania is promoted in southern Poland as a friendly place for work and entrepreneurship development. Infoshare has become not only a business brand, but also a platform promoting the Pomeranian region beyond its borders as an area of modern, smart specializations.

“Part of our vision is to build a large community of people associated with the world of technology ,” says Grzegorz Borowski, CEO of Infoshare. – We strive to achieve it through various projects, not only nationwide, but also international. Most of them are carried out in Gdansk, in our office in Olivia Centre. That is why I am very happy about this award as an expression of appreciation for our contribution to the development of the Olivia community, as well as the promotion of the Tri-City and the Pomerania region.

 

OLIVIA BUSINESS

The statuette in the Olivia Business 2022 category went to the company Speeron Polska sp. z o.o. for the development of the Guest Portal application for hotel guests. It integrates at the level of smartphones, TVs or tablets all the services that hotel guests need during their stay in any facility in the world. The application is characterized by flexibility and the ability to adapt it not only to the selected hotel chain, but also to each facility separately, which multiplies its market potential. From there, it is possible to order standard services such as ordering meals to the room and booking standard hotel services, but also extended options such as concierge and reporting defects, checking the air quality in the vicinity of the hotel or the temperature of the water in the hotel pool. The app has already been bought by luxury hotels such as Bank Hotel and Berns Hotel in Stockholm, as well as the Swedish group Pite Havsbad, which offers hotel and campsite stays in Sweden.

 

– Thank you very much for this special distinction and appreciation of the continuous work of our programmers. We assure you that we will not rest on our laurels and will continue to develop our projects! The Olivia Prize in the Business category is a fantastic distinction for us, especially since we have competed in this category with the largest corporations and projects run by large teams of employees. This gives us wings and we are convinced that it will allow us to conquer new markets and develop this project – said Aleksandra Kozakiewicz from Speeron Polska shortly after receiving the award.

 

The distinction in the Olivia Business category went to Zaplify, a company offering a platform for automated sales support for companies which, due to their early stage of development, cannot afford to employ a group of salespeople and sales representatives. The platform selects a group of potential customers on social networks, consumer platforms and available databases.

 

OLIVIA ECO

The award in the Olivia Eco category went to SII for the EVAA project – Ecological Vertical Agriculture Assistant – a concept that uses artificial intelligence to solve the problem of hunger in the world. Within it, plants develop without the use of soil, and all the substances they need to develop come from water and are dosed by an algorithm responsible for monitoring the proper development of the plant. The project has already been noticed around the world. It has won an award in the international Intel Innovate FPGA competition for an attempt to technologically solve the problem of world hunger and environmental threats, and the French Research TAX Credit accreditation for the innovation of the R&D project.

 

Distinctions in the Olivia Eco category went to ZR Trade and Nowy Styl. The first one was awarded for the project of distributing fully functional toys with damaged packaging to children in need. Due to the defect, the toys were destined to be destroyed. Within 4 days, the company’s employees established cooperation with organizations that collected and donated toys to children in need. In this way, they gave a second life to objects that would otherwise be waste and would be disposed of. It is worth mentioning that ZR Trade has already been a winner in the Olivia Eco category for 2021, which confirms that ecology is permanently inscribed in the company’s DNA.

 

The second award in this category went to Nowy Styl, a Polish leader in the production of office furniture , for creating an eco-design management system. The system allows for planning the life cycle of furniture in the spirit of the circular economy and designing it in such a way that it is possible to fully recycle it later, the time of its use allows for many years of use (also by providing components that allow for the repair and replacement of worn parts without the need to dispose of the furniture due to a small defect), effective management of water and energy consumption needed for production and the use of recycling in furniture production.

 

OLIVIA PRO BONO

The award in the Olivia Pro Bono category went to Bayer GBS Gdańsk for the Border Angels, UA support hotline project. Within just a few days of the outbreak of the war, Bayer employees around the world organized themselves from the bottom up, creating a list of so-called “Bayer Workers”. shelters, i.e. flats or rooms (often in their private homes), which they were ready to make available to their colleagues from Ukraine. A group of Border Angels was also formed, consisting mainly of field workers, whose task was to pick up Ukrainian workers from the border and transport them to safe places. They developed their own telephone support coordination centre in the form of the UA Support Hotline, which provided 24/7 logistical, legal and psychological support and helped them find shelter after crossing Ukraine’s borders with Poland, Moldova, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia. The result of the work of the entire group was the provision of care and support for over 550 people, 200 beds, which were used by a total of 430 people. 130 employees of the Gdańsk branch of Bayer were involved in the project.

 

– Thank you very much for the award. I receive them on behalf of more than a hundred Bayer employees – not only from Gdańsk. We showed what is in our hearts, but also specific skills – organizational, technological, etc. At the same time, each of us would prefer not to receive this award. We live in the hope that this war will end soon – says Remigiusz Wojciechowski, Head of Bayer GBS Gdańsk.

 

In this category, honorable mentions went to thyssenkrupp, the Talent Development Center and the Olivia Choir. All the awarded projects were also related to the assistance provided by these entities for refugees and those affected by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.

 

 

“Corporate social responsibility is an area that is often under-noticed,” said Maciej Grabski , investor of Olivia Centre, during the Olivia Prize 2022 closing gala. The past year was dominated by the events in Ukraine, which showed how much good energy there is in us – private individuals, entrepreneurs, social activists. Everything we’ve seen this year has been awe-inspiring and highly appreciative. Much has been said about the help provided by private individuals who have taken in refugees seeking refuge from war. However, the projects that have been submitted reflect the scale of business support. Companies – from the smallest to multinational corporations – and the people who work in them have done something absolutely exceptional, for which we should be thankful. The Olivia Prize is an initiative in which we have the opportunity to thank for the scale of the contribution of these entities to doing good – added Maciej Grabski.

 

The evening was enriched by a meeting with a special guest , Marek Wikiera , a mentor, ultramarathon runner, extreme sports enthusiast, who was one of 47 people in the world and the first Pole to finish the 4 Deserts marathon, placed by Time magazine on the 6th place, among the 10 most endurance-demanding human challenges. Marek Wikiera emphasized the importance of small steps that every person striving for a goal must take in order to be able to achieve goals and dreams.

“The analysis of the applications for the jury was fascinating ,” Marta Moksa, the chairwoman of the Olivia Prize jury, summed up this year’s edition of the competition. Applications from the smallest companies as well as the largest corporations show the true spirit of Olivia Centre. Initiatives created by start-ups and huge programs run by teams of hundreds or even thousands of people take part in one competition. Personally, I am very happy about the Olivia Prize, because I am convinced that thanks to this competition we have a chance to learn about many valuable initiatives that are undertaken every year in Olivia. I am convinced that thanks to these projects we can also inspire and motivate each other.

Olivia Centre – a place open to everyone

Posted on by Katarzyna Halicka

The development of services, gastronomy and event spaces has transformed Olivia Centre, the largest Polish business centre, into a space open to the residents of the Tri-City and tourists, where the lights do not go out after 5.00 p.m. More than 140 events take place here every month. Among them, trainings, sporting events, as well as… theatrical performances with Krystyna Janda, Katarzyna Figura and Andrzej Grabowski and concerts of stars, m.in. Leszek Możdżer, Krzysztof Zalewski, Patrycja Markowska, Mroz.

 

We closed 2022 with an impressive number of events. In total, there were as many as 1680 of them last year. This number may seem unrealistic only at first glance, but taking into account Olivia’s wide offer, which includes the bustling O4 Coworking, Olivia Garden, observation floor, event center on the 34th floor of Olivia Star, Olivia Sky Club and events organized on the patio of the facility, this scale does not have to be surprising.

 

Club Meeting Places

Spaces for conferences and events have been available to Olivia residents since 2012. The first of them was Sky Club, located on the 13th floor of the Olivia Tower building. It is an intimate business space where meetings of entrepreneurs are held, discussion clubs and employers’ organizations gather. It is also a place that is often rented out for private events, most often held in the evenings and on weekends. In 2022, a total of 475 events took place at the Sky Club. Among them were meetings of the Business Center Club, Pomeranian Employers, book premieres, business cocktails and discussion panels. Among the most interesting were meetings with experts, such as Krzysztof Wojczal or Jacek Bartosiak, during which the participants could discuss the political situation and events in the country and in the world. It was also here that the final of the Olivia Prize 2021 took place – a competition for enterprises, social activists and the most important initiatives implemented in Olivia Centre in a given year.

 

Attractions accessible to all

The most popular among Tri-City residents and tourists are the Olivia Star spaces, which were opened in 2019. In July this year, an outdoor terrace with an observation floor on the 32nd floor of the tallest building in northern Poland was made available. It is a perfectly developed space where there is a restaurant, a café, a meeting room for 60 people, relaxation areas and observation points of the vast panorama of the Tri-City, which can be admired from a height of 130 meters above the ground. This space has become a favorite meeting place for families with children, birthday parties, social and business meetings. In the fall of 2022, Olivia prepared unique spaces for the 33. Olivia Star, inviting the international celebrity of gastronomy, Paco Perez, a Spanish chef who has so far been awarded 5 stars by the prestigious Michelin culinary guide, to collaborate.

 

On the floor above, there is the highest conference and event centre in Poland, where concerts of Polish jazz and popular music celebrities, theatre performances, business conferences and a number of other events are organized. The multifunctional space has been prepared in such a way that it can be divided into parts, so that up to 3 events can take place in it at the same time, and often these are different events during the day than in the evening. Olivia Star’s offer is complemented by the exotic Olivia Garden Botanical Garden, which welcomes guests entering the building. In the garden with an area of 800m2 there are nearly 4 thousand. plants, the highest of which reach up to 11 meters in height. Among them, there are many unique specimens, with a unique history, which is informed by the plaques placed near them. The Garden has become an educational, integrative, but also event space, as there is a mini amphitheatre in its centre, where yoga classes, concerts, meetings with authors and many other events are held.

 

After working hours, these spaces change their functions and attract a different group of guests. Every Friday at 32 p. Olivia Star hosts Disco 80′ Nights – discos with a view of the illuminated city located at the foot of the building. In summer, parties often move to the outdoor terrace, creating a one-of-a-kind atmosphere. There are also regular cabaret evenings, concerts and meetings with inspiring people. At the beginning of 2023, Radio 357 held its all-time top there, which ended with a concert by Ray Willson – the former lead singer of the legendary group Genesis. So it should come as no surprise that all of these events attract close to 30,000 people. visitors per month.

The magic of excellent cuisine among the stars

Paco Perez’s fame brings even more opportunities for Olivia’s guests. Restaurants from the 33rd floor have become the most important point on the gastronomic map of Polish, thanks to special evenings, during which friends of the Spanish master – the greatest celebrities of fine dining cuisine from around the world – present their artistry in the Arco by Paco Perez restaurant. Last year, in the interiors of this prestigious restaurant, guests could taste dishes prepared especially for these evenings by such celebrities of gastronomy as Nacho Manzano (winner of the 3*** Michelin guide), Diego Guerrero and Andoni Luis Aduris (2** each) and Wojciech Modest Amaro (1*) and take part in presentations of such iconic brands as Ferrari, Bentley, Macallan whisky, Dom Perignon.

The inexhaustible energy of Coworking

O4 Coworking is a place that is constantly teeming with life. The year 2022 closed with 150 events, of which only 50 were aimed only at the coworking community. In total, more than 5300 people attended the 2022 events. Photo shoots, conferences, workshops, trainings for various industries and regular meetings of the IT industry are some of the most frequently held events chosen by companies. What is also important is the unique, casual atmosphere that prevails in all Coworking spaces in 4 Olivia buildings. The list of events also includes team-building events organized by O4 as part of the Eventownia project. These events are primarily about active integration, which is in line with the idea that coworking is a community and a lifestyle. These meetings are always the most attended. At O4 there is also the Flow Club, whose offer is addressed to women. As part of it, once a month there are workshops in the field of project management, PR and marketing, HR, brand building and networking meetings. Most of the events are not exclusive to O4 members, but are open to anyone who would like to join.

 

“Olivia wants to be a part of the city and has been for many years ,” says Bogusław Wieczorek, Plenipotentiary of the Management Board of Olivia Centre. Our events are aimed at everyone, and Olivia’s spaces are open every day until late in the evening. It is a great satisfaction for us to be able to attract such diverse groups as lovers of literature, fine dining, family lego building workshops or jazz concerts. We want to inspire, integrate and remain open to all residents of the Tri-City, the region and tourists. A high-energy, multifunctional center where you can meet interesting people is the best definition of what we offer to our guests.

 

We invite you to Olivia and to participate
in our events
!

 

Community in the workplace. Olivia Centre publishes important research findings

Posted on by Katarzyna Halicka

Revolution in the labour market – conclusions from research conducted in the largest mixed-use centre in Poland.

Olivia Centre conducted a survey aimed at verifying residents’ opinions on the facilities and services available here, assessing the events taking place in Olivia and identifying the most important needs of employees of Olivia companies. The study covered people who work in Olivia’s offices on a daily basis, working in the “home office” and hybrid mode. The results provide an interesting body of knowledge on how building a community and creating initiatives dedicated to tenants translates into job satisfaction and evaluation of the office and its location in a specific facility.

The research was based on the ever-evolving labour market, which has undergone an unprecedented transformation after the lockdowns, remote and hybrid work. The results of the study confirm a complete change in the situation on the labour market. 64% of respondents make the date of coming to the office dependent on the schedule of additional activities that await them at Olivia Centre. Participation in the life of the community and the feeling of being part of it remains at a similar level regardless of the form of work chosen – hybrid or stationary.

32% of the respondents confirmed that they choose to work in the office on days when they have the opportunity to participate in additional activities at the centre. Such rules would have been unthinkable three years ago. This proves the huge revolution that the office market is undergoing in Poland and in the world. The conclusions are obvious: business centre owners must initiate interesting projects in order to provide their tenants with incentives to work in the office. It is not without reason that there are as many as 8 clubs in Olivia to develop passions, including singing, photography, plant care, volleyball and sailing.

As factors influencing the choice of the event and club membership, the respondents mentioned a good host, the atmosphere in the group and the cyclical nature of meetings. It is also worth emphasizing that the example of team leaders and their commitment are important. In Olivia, more than 70% of them declare their participation in events, and the respondents emphasized that for them the role of a leader is one of the foundations for choosing the club they want to belong to.

 

An additional context for the revolution in the labour market is the entry into the labour market of representatives of Generation Z, whose values are fundamentally different from the expectations of previous generations, and at the same time affect the expectations of employees representing earlier generations. All this changes the attitude of employees to work, and thus the need to monitor changes in expectations and satisfaction with the workplace. It can be assumed that the answers obtained in the survey by the respondents of the largest mix-use center in Poland, offering over 175,000 euros. m.kw. of usable space provide unique knowledge about the direction of changes preferred by employees.

The survey, conducted at the end of 2022, involved 517 people. The most important conclusion from the results of the research confirms the legitimacy of developing the accompanying infrastructure and implementing initiatives within the business centre. Events and clubs are a significant added value to the leased office space. It is worth emphasizing that the implementation of these additional amenities makes sense if the basic conditions are met: the employee has an easy commute to work, and the workplace meets the highest office standards.

Since its inception, Olivia Centre has been developing into a multifunctional centre, where life does not stop after 5 p.m., as is the case in standard business centres. After years of implementing community animation projects, it has become one of the most important Tri-City event centers, where the range of possibilities far exceeds the expectations that could be set for a business center. There are 12 restaurants available in Olivia, a publicly accessible exotic Olivia Garden, where 3.5 thousand plants reaching up to 11 meters in height, representing over 400 species and coming from 5 continents, as well as event and conference centers that can accommodate up to 1000 people in total. Over 140 events take place here every month, and Olivia closed last year with 1680 events, including trainings, sports events, as well as theatrical performances and concerts by such stars as Leszek Możdżer, Krzysztof Zalewski and Krystyna Janda.

“Like many business centres, we are keeping a close eye on new ways and how often offices are used. – emphasizes Bogusław Wieczorek, Plenipotentiary of the Management Board of Olivia Centre. For us, it is extremely satisfying that the percentage of people coming to the office in Olivia is much higher than other office buildings in Poland. We have been working on this long before the pandemic, animating Olivia’s community and constantly enriching the sports, cultural and social offer. We have achieved success in this area and we are happy to share our experience with others. This does not mean that we still do not have areas for improvement. Unfortunately, which coincides with general social research, young people, up to 25 years of age, participate in activities relatively less often. Meanwhile, taking advantage of the offer – getting to know other people, making friends, self-fulfilment – causes its rating to increase by up to 40%. The conclusions of our research correspond to the challenges that HR teams have faced in recent years. The offer of the business centre in which we have an office can therefore be a significant addition to the list of benefits offered by the employer itself. And our results show that it just works.

DOWNLOAD THE REPORT

Sii with a lease agreement for 5 floors in Olivia Centre

Posted on by Katarzyna Halicka

Sii has had its offices in Olivia Centre since 2010. It is therefore one of the longest-standing companies here. Sii has currently signed a lease agreement for 5 floors in Olivia Prime – the newest building of our center. The contract amounts to a total area of 10 thousand euros. m.kw. At the same time, arrangement works have begun, which will raise Sii’s offices to an even higher level than before.

 


Sii
 is the most dynamically developing provider of consulting, IT and engineering services in Poland. The company employs 8,000 people in 15 branches in the largest cities in the country, continuously obtaining the “Great Place to Work” status since 2015. This term is reflected not only in the company’s mission, but also in the amenities that Sii offers to employees. Innovative solutions open to their needs have been noticed by the jury of numerous competitions in which Sii’s office in Olivia Centre has won awards. Among them was the SuperStar distinction in a competition organized by CBRE, the status of the best office in the Tri-City awarded by the local media and a nomination for the international Property Design Awards.

 

Design Anatomy

studio was responsible for the award-winning project, which was also entrusted with the work on the new interior design.

 

– 5 years ago, when designing Sii’s office, we put a lot of emphasis on common spaces – says Justyna Biłat, architect from Design Anatomy. – There are zones for integration, casual meetings, relaxation and sport. Once again, the bar has been set very high, but after 5 years, we know that Sii’s investment in spaces where employees can work, meet, relax or have fun more freely was the right thing to do, and despite the passage of time and radically changing trends at work, it still has a positive impact on the users of the space and remains fully functional. After this time, we are richer with the experience of the users of the existing space and we also know how their needs have changed. This is a great opportunity and chance to raise the standard of the office to an even higher level in the area of caring for the well-being of employees and creating a space tailored to their requirements by designing new spaces. We continue to focus on spaces that are accessible to all. The aim of the project is to ensure the physical and mental comfort of employees. We will offer the latest ergonomic solutions, we want to take care of the climate in the office, not only in terms of visuals, but also air quality and acoustics. The goal of our joint activities is to be an office supporting the well-being of employees, which will maintain its friendliness for the next 5 years, and maybe even longer.

 

Among the areas identified by Design Anatomy and agreed with Sii, on which the architects will focus are acoustic comfort and greenery.

 

“In the modern world, we are constantly surrounded by noise,” emphasizes Justyna Biłat. At work, too, we have to deal with sounds coming from all directions. The office is not only what we see, but also what we hear. In the office, the needs of people with very different characteristics and different types of work are mixed. For many people, noise interferes with their ability to concentrate on work, while others cannot imagine effective activities without music. Excessive noise has a negative impact on well-being, often becomes the cause of chronic stress and reduces productivity. Thinking about improving Sii’s workspace, we want to create an acoustically pleasing environment that will provide high comfort to all people in the office. Therefore, in all the zones in which we are going to interfere, there will be as many elements as possible to improve sound absorption and disperse it. There is a wide range of solutions on the market, from acoustic panels made of wood wool, PET or felt, through acoustic lamps, curtains and furniture. All these elements will help us in our efforts to improve the comfort of office users.

 

Design Anatomy, by designing an employee-friendly, green space, can benefit from its extensive interior design experience, which has gained m.in. at
Olivia Garden
. It is also an award-winning project that has become the green heart of Olivia Centre.

 

Contact with nature has a beneficial effect on human well-being. This is where the well-known trend of biophilic design comes in. Designing spaces in this spirit helps to reduce stress, maintain emotional balance, supports regeneration, increases creativity and productivity, and even reduces absenteeism at work.

 

– Plants in the office increase the humidity level in the air. In the interiors of Sii’s office, we want to use species that purify the air, acting as natural filters that absorb harmful substances. We know which species purify the air from fungi and bacteria, and we focus our attention on them, thinking about a work environment that has a positive effect on humans. – adds Justyna Biłat.

 

“We are very optimistic about the future and the continuation of our cooperation with Olivia Centre. We are glad that we can be a part of a space that provides extremely comfortable and attractive working conditions for our employees and business partners – says Izabela Sobolew, Office Manager at Sii Poland. – An interesting and comfortable space, an excellent location of the office in the heart of the Tri-City, as well as the highest safety standards of the entire facility are just some of the advantages of Olivia, which give us confidence that our employees will come to work with satisfaction.

 

– Sii has been our business partner for 13 years and we are very pleased to receive such a great commitment of the company in the Tri-City – says Bogusław Wieczorek, Plenipotentiary of the Management Board of Olivia Centre. – Her unconventional approach to employees and the unique amenities that await them in the office make their presence in Olivia a great value for the community. Sii is a conscious and perceived resident. This year, their project EVAA – Ecological Vertical Agriculture Assistant – a concept that uses artificial intelligence to solve the problem of hunger in the world won the main prize in the Olivia Eco category as part of the Olivia Prize competition. It is an initiative in which representatives of residents select the most interesting projects with the greatest development potential from among the projects they implement. As part of the Sii project, plants develop without the use of soil, and all the substances they need to develop come from water and are dosed by an algorithm responsible for monitoring the proper development of the plant. The project has already been noticed around the world and shows how interesting and versatile Sii is.

 

 

Olivia with record-breaking interest from bondholders

Posted on by Katarzyna Halicka

On 13 April, series S bonds were issued, issued by Olivia Fin Sp. z o.o. SKA – a company belonging to the Tonsa Group, which is the owner of Olivia Centre. The first issue under the Third Bond Issue Programme, worth PLN 11.5 million, attracted 236 investors, whose subscriptions had to be reduced by more than 55%. This means that the total demand amounted to nearly PLN 26 million. This result confirms the high confidence of investors in the largest mix-used project in Poland, which is being developed in the Tri-City. The issue was carried out with the participation of brokerage houses Noble Securities and Michael Ström.

 

The average value of an order to purchase 3.5-year bonds was nearly 110 thousand. £. Their interest rate is variable and has been set on the basis of a three-month WIBOR + 6% margin. The bondholders were mainly individual investors, clients of brokerage houses that kept subscriptions. On 11 April, the Warsaw Stock Exchange adopted a resolution to introduce this series of bonds to the alternative trading system on Catalyst.

 

This is another reduction in subscriptions for bonds issued by Olivia FIN, but the last issue recorded the highest level so far. During the 13 years of the project’s development, there were as many as 31 issues out of over 560 million. PLN 18, of which PLN 350 million has already been repaid.

 

The success of the next issue and such a high interest in bonds from investors confirm the credibility of the project –
says Bogusław Wieczorek, legal counsel handling the programme on the part of Olivia Centre
. – At the same time, it confirms the trust in the project that has been carried out for 13 years and the investors’ acceptance of the direction of its development. Olivia is moving towards a multifunctional centre that combines additional functions for employees, but remains open to residents and tourists, offering them 12 restaurants, an exotic Olivia Garden, an observation deck with a 360° panorama. for the entire Tri-City and the Bay of Gdansk and a conference and event center. Projects are being prepared that will allow residential apartments for long-term rental and other office buildings to be added to this list.

 

I am glad that Olivia Group has chosen Noble
Securities
 on your partner and that our cooperation has been going on for 13 years. We have been providing the group with financing for the Olivia Centre project practically from the very beginning, observing how more and more buildings are being built, complementing the landscape of the Tri-City and filling the demand for office space in this region. I

am equally pleased and satisfied with the fact that – having a long-standing, exemplary history on the debt securities market – the Olivia

Group has decided to enter the Catalyst

platform. In the recent public offering, Olivia Fin offered the purchase of bonds to a wide range of recipients. The terms offered to investors are a market compromise, which is reflected in the price of the listed Catalyst Bonds. Before the offer, we expected a lot of interest, but I have to admit that the final demand exceeded our expectations. The above confirms that in today’s demanding market, investors crave quality issuers, and we consider Olivia Fin and the group to be one of them Olivia. – said Wojciech Gąsowski, Managing Director, Investment Banking Department at Noble Securities S.A.

 

Olivia Centre is the largest business centre in northern Poland and one of the largest in Central and Eastern Europe. It consists of 9 buildings located in the center of the Tri-City. The area of the Gdańsk centre is currently 175,000. m2, and ultimately it is expected to significantly exceed 200 thousand. m2.