iconannual2017

Issue 2017 

Official Magazine of iconvienna _ The European Business and Investment Forum 

presented by 2017 

BRAND TOGETHER

VALUE TO 

BRANDS 

Foto: fotolia.com 

Europe’s independent brand & IP institute 

www.europeanbrandinstitute.com

iconvienna 

Editorial 

BRAND 

TOGETHER! 

KR DI Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek 

President iconvienna 

Editor 

ıconvıenna 

ınvestments for europe 

Foto: Katharina Schiffl 

Gemäß dem diesjährigen Konferenzschwerpunkt 

„Brand together“, stehen heuer „Marke und Intellectual 

Property“ im Mittelpunkt. Am Vortag 

der iconvienna, dem “World Intellectual Property 

Day”, findet das Initial Meeting des „Brand Global 

Council for Value and Sustainability“ statt. Daher 

wird das diesjährige Forum zum Brand Forum, mit der 

Möglichkeit Erfahrungen zum Thema Marke auszutauschen 

und interessante Diskussionen zu führen. 

Das renommierte internationale Forum hat in den 

letzten Jahren seine Horizonte und Ost-West Beziehungen 

von Nord- und Lateinamerika über West-, Zentralund 

Osteuropa bis nach China erweitert. In diesem 

Sinne freuen wir uns, wieder zahlreiche Vertreter von 

Ost bis West beim diesjährigen Forum willkommen zu 

heißen. 

Mein besonderer Dank geht auch dieses Jahr wieder 

an die Stadt Wien und den Bürgermeister Dr. Michael 

Häupl für seinen Ehrenschutz. Ich möchte mich auch 

bei unseren weiteren Partnern Wirtschaftskammer 

Wien und Österreich, Ministerien und Botschaften, 

Vertretern von Regionen, Städten, Unternehmen, Medienpartnern 

sowie bei allen unseren Beiratsmitgliedern 

und dem European Brand Institute für die gute 

Zusammenarbeit im Rahmen der iconvienna sowie der 

vierten Publikation des iconannual bedanken. 

Für die Zukunft wünsche ich Ihnen gute Beziehungen. 

Nutzen Sie dieses Magazin ganz nach unserem 

Motto “MAKE CONTACTS TO CONTRACTS“! 

Viel Spaß beim Lesen! 

According to the main topic of the conference 

„Brand together“, the focus is on “Brand and Intellectual 

Property” this year. The initial meeting 

of the “Brand Global Council for Value and 

Sustainability” will take place on the day before the 

iconvienna – the “World Intellectual Property Day” and 

so we made this year’s forum a brand forum to give the 

opportunity to share experiences about brands and to 

hold interesting discussions. 

This prestigious international forum has expanded 

its horizons and East-West relations from North and Latin 

America to Western, Central and Eastern Europe and 

to China in recent years. In this spirit, we are pleased to 

welcome numerous representatives from East to West at 

this year’s Forum. 

I would particularly like to thank the city of Vienna 

and the Mayor Dr. Michael Häupl for his patronage. I 

would also like to thank our partners Austrian Federal 

Economic Chamber, Vienna Chamber of Commerce and 

Industry, ministries and embassies, region and city representatives, 

companies, media partners as well as our 

council members and the European Brand Institute for 

the good cooperation in terms of iconvienna and the 

fourth publication of the iconannual. 

For the future I wish you successful relationships! 

Use this magazine according to our motto: “MAKE 

CONTACTS TO CONTRACTS“! 

Enjoy reading! 

The European Business and Investment Magazine iconannual 3

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MORE CUSTOMERS. MORE BENEFIT.

BRAND TOGETHER 

Forewords 7 

Greetings 18 

Embassies of the Dominican Republic, Argentinia, Cuba, Venezuela, 

Colombia, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Paraguay, Uruguay, Slovakia, 

Romania and Bulgaria 

International Partners 44 

Brand Global Council 

UNIDO 

European Commission 

Central European Initiative 

European Fund for Strategic Investments 

Global Impact Investing Foundation 

Leitbetriebe 

Patentamt 

Select USA 

Innovation 64 

Novomatic 

Lyoness 

Elk 

Institute of Science and Technology Austria 

Future Cities 64 

Österreichischer Stadtebund 

Austrian Institute of Technology 

MA 23 – Wirtschaft Arbeit und Statistik 

International Finance & Projects 78 

Kommunalkredit Austria 

SummerLight Capital Partners 

Lansky, Ganzger + partner 

Branding 86 

Coverfoto: istockphoto.com 

China Council for Brand Development (CCBD) 

Technical Committee 066 

Bobby J. Calder 

European Brand Institute 

iconvienna 

Women Leadership Forum 

Sports for Life 

Brand Life Award 

Imprint: Publisher/Proprietor: maX iconvienna GmbH | 1010 Wien | Börsegasse 9 | A-1010 Vienna | Tel +43 1 532 1000 23 | Fax +43 1 532 1000 30 | Email office@icon-vienna.net | www.icon-vienna.net; 

Design & Layout: „Der Herr Bertl“ OG | 1220 Wien | Maria-Tusch-Straße 8/1/14 | office@derherrbertl.at; Print: Print-Sport Handels GmbH & CoKG | Ared Straße 20 | 2544 Leobersdorf | office@print-sport.at; 

Responsible for the content: maX iconvienna GmbH; Disclaimer: The publisher assumes no liability for the accuracy of the contents and the copyright to the photos. Typesetting and printing 

errors reserved. iconannual is the official medium of iconvienna and supports the networking concept of this platform. 


WO 

RLD 

CLASS 

PART 

NERS 

www.advantageaustria.org 

ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA is the official Austrian trade promotion 

organisation of the Republic of Austria. With its more than 110 

offices in over 70 countries, provides a broad range of intelligence 

and business development services for both Austrian companies 

and their international business partners. Our 800 employees 

and 35 consultants around the world can assist you in locating 

Austrian suppliers and business partners. We organize more 

than 1,200 events every year to bring business contacts together. 

Other services provided by ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA offices range 

from introductions to Austrian companies looking for importers, 

distributors or agents to providing in-depth information on Austria 

as a business location and assistance in entering the Austrian 

market.

iconvienna 

Foreword 

Make contacts 

to contracts! 

KR Dr. René Alfons Haiden 

Chairman iconvienna 

ıconvıenna 

ınvestments for europe 

Die iconvienna findet heuer zum 

13. Mal statt und ist längst ein 

geschätztes Umfeld für hochkarätigen 

Erfahrungsaustausch. 

Wie in jedem Jahr, werden auch heuer 

wieder Experten und Entscheidungsträger 

aufeinander treffen und über 

aktuelle Themen und Trends diskutieren. 

Neben dem essentiellen Networking, 

fördert die Plattform auch 

die Zusammenarbeit zwischen Unternehmen 

und Vertretern aus über 50 

verschiedenen Ländern. 

Dieses Jahr freue ich mich zudem 

über die vierte Herausgabe des iconannual 

– The European Business 

and Investment Magazine. Auch diese 

Ausgabe bietet wieder interessante 

Einblicke in spezielle Themenbereiche. 

Neben diversen Fachbeiträgen, 

handelt das Magazin unter anderem 

von internationalem Business, immateriellen 

Vermögenswerten, Städten 

als Knotenpunkte für Wachstum und 

vielem mehr. 

Ich wünsche allen Partnern und 

Teilnehmern der iconvienna viel Erfolg 

und gute Unterhaltung! 

Iconvienna is taking place for the 

13 th time this year and it already is 

a highly-rated platform for Top-Level 

Business Networking. Top experts 

and decision makers meet this 

year again and discuss current topics 

and trends. Beside the important 

exchange of know-how provided by 

iconvienna, it also fosters cooperation 

between companies and representatives 

from more than 50 countries. 

I am very happy to hear about 

the fourth publication of iconannual 

– The European Business and Investment 

Magazine. This year’s issue 

offers interesting insights in international 

business, intangible assets, 

cities as hubs for growth and many 

more. 

I wish all partners and participants 

a successful forum! 

Foto: Haiden 


8 iconannual The European Business and Investment Magazine 

Foto: istockphoto.com

City of Vienna 

Foreword 

Willkommen in Wien! 

Welcome to Vienna! 

Dr. Michael Häupl 

Bürgermeister und Landeshauptmann von Wien 

Mayor and Governor of Vienna 

Foto: Stadt Wien/PID, Fotograf Ian Ehm 

Mit der iconvienna liegt Wien 

auch heuer im Fokus von 

Fragen und Problemstellungen 

in den Bereichen 

Wirtschaft und Information. Diese 

Veranstaltung, die bereits zum 

dreizehnten Mal stattfindet hat 

sich zu einem der bedeutendsten 

Foren unter dem Motto „Brand Together“! 

entwickelt. Unternehmern 

und Projektplanern aus dem zentraleuropäischen 

Raum und Russland 

haben in Wien, in der Mitte 

der Region, die Möglichkeit die 

Kontaktmöglichkeiten zu fördern 

und zu entwickeln. 

Die Konferenz leistet ihren Beitrag 

zur wirtschaftlichen Zusammenarbeit 

in Europa und ist in 

Zeiten von momentanen globalen 

Machtverhältnissen von Bedeutung, 

ja von sehr großer Bedeutung. 

Wien ist dafür geeigneter 

Veranstaltungsort, da schon immer 

Dreh- und Angelpunkt zwischen 

Ost und West. Wir sind eine Stadt 

des Dialoges. 

Als Bürgermeister und Gastgeber 

für die Stadt Wien freue 

ich mich sehr über die abermalige 

Wahl unserer Stadt als Veranstaltungsort 

dieses hochkarätigen 

Forums. Ich wünsche allen Teilnehmerinnen 

und Teilnehmern 

interessante aber auch informative 

Tage in Wien – und bitte genießen 

sie auch unsere schöne Stadt. 



Foto: Landeshauptstadt St. Pölten/Werner Jaeger

Lower Austria 

Foreword 

iconvienna − eine der 

bedeutendsten 

Businessplattformen 

Foto: BMI/Alexander TUMA 

Mag. Johanna Mikl-Leitner 

Landeshauptfrau von Niederösterreich 

Governor of Lower Austria 

Eine der bedeutendsten Wirtschafts- 

und Businessplattformen 

im Herzen von Europa 

– dabei kann es sich nur 

um die iconvienna handeln. Seit 

Jahren wird das Business Forum 

erfolgreich von Meinungsbildnern, 

Führungskräften und Unternehmern 

aus Österreich, Europa und 

auf der ganzen Welt besucht, um 

Ideen, Unternehmen und Regionen 

zu verknüpfen. Dabei kann jeder 

Teilnehmer/jede Teilnehmerin 

sein/ihr persönliches Netzwerk an 

Kontakten ausbauen und neue interessante 

Personen aus der Branche 

kennenlernen. Aber auch wir, das 

Land Niederösterreich profitiert 

von den Inhalten und Themen der 

Expertinnen und Experten. Damit 

geben sie uns wertvolle Inputs, wie 

wir uns weiterentwickeln können, 

welche Trends bevorstehen und 

wie wir uns für zukünftige Vorhaben 

wappnen können. 

Daher wünsche ich allen Teilnehmerinnen 

und Teilnehmer des 

Forums einen spannenden und informativen 

Tag in Wien. Ich freue 

mich, wenn der ein oder andere 

anschließend nach Niederösterreich 

kommt und sich auch hier 

von unserer einzigartigen Landschaft 

und exzellenten Unternehmerschaft 

überzeugen kann. 



Foto: Dragan TATIC Foto: Creative Commons/Mahmoud

Ministry for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs 

Foreword 

Challenges and 

opportunities 

Sebastian Kurz 

Federal Minister for Europe, 

Integration and Foreign Affairs 

Foto: Felicitas Matern/feelimage.at 

We are living in times of 

profound changes in 

technology, society and 

business. This means 

challenges in some regards, but 

also great opportunities. We must 

not forget, that all great inventions 

initially were ideas on how to push 

borders. That is why we need to 

support innovation as a means for 

enhanced competitiveness, stronger 

economic growth and increased 

wellbeing of our people. I am deeply 

convinced that we need more of 

a culture of innovation, a readiness 

to take risks as well as a strong conviction 

that entrepreneurship and 

new ideas can change the world. 

iconvienna 2017 is an integral 

part of such future-oriented thinking. 

By connecting executives, project 

partners and entrepreneurs 

from different regions, the forum 

makes us all better prepared to face 

future challenges and recognise 

upcoming opportunities. I therefore 

warmly thank and congratulate 

the organisers of the 13 th International 

Business and Investment 

Forum for their active engagement 

and wish them and the participants 

all the best for the event. 



Foto: WKO

Austrian Federal Economic Chamber 

Foreword 

iconvienna − 

The perfect 

networking event 

in Vienna 

Dr. Christoph Leitl 

President Austrian Federal 

Economic Chamber 

Foto: Doris Kucera 

Iconvienna is taking place in Vienna for the 

13 th time as a platform for transnational 

meetings between leading decision-makers 

in the fields of business, politics and science 

at the premises of the Austrian Federal 

Economic Chamber. Therefore, 1 am proud 

that this prestigious and internationally established 

conference underlines Austria's importance 

as a meeting place specifically for 

companies and institutions from the Central, 

East and Southeastern European and Central 

Asian region, thus demonstrating our country's 

outstanding ability to f acilitate international 

business and social contacts. 

In many countries of these regions Austria 

has become one of the major business partners 

over the last couple of years, either as 

destination for our goods and services or as a 

location for production facilities and subsidiaries. 

Our companies engage in a vast variety 

of business activities, ranging from retailing 

or oil industry to financial and transportation 

services, along with professional services 

such as legal or tax consulting. Austrian 

production lines are found throughout all industries. 

The main issues stressed within the scope 

of iconvienna are internationalization, innovation, 

international branding and the role of 

future cities as hubs for growth. 

iconvienna's secret to success lies in the 

qualitative and up-to-date knowledge transfer, 

but also in its attractive supporting program. 

The platform strongly encourages the 

globalization with the exchange of ideas and 

experience between its international participants. 

Therefore, the slogan of the event 

“Grow together” should motivate everyone 

to build and grow professional networks and 

subsequently realize tangible business co-operations. 


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Vienna Chamber of Commerce and Industry 

Foreword 

Die tagliche 

Innovation 

DI Walter Ruck 

Präsident der Wirtschaftskammer Wien 

President Vienna Chamber of 

Commerce and Industry 

Foto: G. Weinkirn 

Wir entwickeln uns weiter 

und zwar jeden Tag. 

Die Herausforderungen 

sind durch die digitalisierte 

Welt immer vielseitiger und 

schneller, damit steigt der Anspruch 

an uns und unser Umfeld. 

Doch wer sich verschließt wird 

nicht mit dieser Zeit gehen können. 

Egal in welchem Feld man tätig ist, 

Trends gehen uns alle an. 

Damit wir gemeinsam Antworten 

finden, ist es essentiell, dass 

die internationale Gemeinschaft 

in die Umsetzung geht, daran 

führt kein Weg vorbei. In Österreich 

denke ich dabei vor allem 

an die Transsibirische Eisenbahn 

und die dritte Piste am Flughafen 

Wien. Doch wissen wir alle, dass 

wir das Tor nach Afrika aufstoßen 

müssen, um miteinander zu wachsen. 

Jede Konferenz die dies fördert 

ist ein Baustein auf dem Weg 

in eine innovative Zukunft. Das 

Motto „Brand Together“ zielt genau 

in diese Richtung ab und muss 

damit Leitbild nicht nur für alle 

Teilnehmer sondern uns alle sein – 

denn nur die Wirtschaft schafft 

Arbeitsplätze. In der Politik können 

nur die Rahmen richtig gesetzt 

werden, dass sich die Wirtschaft 

auch entfalten kann – egal ob auf 

nationaler oder internationaler 

Ebene. Nutzen Sie Wien als Kongress- 

und Diplomatiehauptstadt 

um in die Umsetzung zu kommen! 



Fotos: Embassy of the Dominian Republic

Dominican Republic 

Greetings 

Dominican Republic, 

a country of unique 

opportunities 

H. E. Ramón Quiñones 

Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to Austria, and Bulgaria. 

Dean of the Diplomatic Corps for Latin America and Caribbean 

As the Ambassador of the Dominican Republic 

to Austria and the Dean of the Diplomatic 

Corps from Latin America and the Caribbean, 

I would like to thank the European Business 

and Investment Forum iconvienna 2017 presided by 

Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek and his team for their kind invitation 

to participate once again in this important 

event, which allows us to exchange economic and 

commercial strategies and experiences, as well as 

unique opportunities for investment. 

Thanks to his privileged geographic location, the 

Dominican Republic has become an important commercial 

gateway between America, Europe and the 

rest of the world. Its position in the heart of the Caribbean 

provides international trade fast and efficient 

means of transportation through 8 international airports, 

12 sea ports, 5 cruise ports and more than 270 

international flights daily, thus making the country 

the ideal “Caribbean Hub” for exports and an attractive 

tourist destination which received about 6 million 

visitors in 2016. 

The Dominican Republic is currently one of the 

most privileged countries in Latin America and the 

Caribbean in terms of business environment owing to 

its vast natural resources, a stable political environment, 

as well as a conducive legal framework for foreign 

investments, economic stability and a bilingual 

and trained labor force. These factors have allowed 

sustained economic growth averaging more than 5 % 

over last 10 years, achieving 7 % in 2015 and 6.6 % in 

2016. The main areas of investment are: free economic 

zones, textile and footwear industry, renewable 

energy, customer contact centers & business process 

outsourcing, film industry, software development, 

medical devices, infrastructure, tourism, telecommunications, 

mining and agroindustry. 

Export products comprise almost 4,000 high quality 

product lines at very competitive prices ranging 

from agroindustry, health and beauty, construction, 

manufacture and industry, technology and cultural 

goods present in more than 170 international markets 

with preferential access to more than 900 million 

consumers through 5 trade agreements including 

with the European Union and the U.S.A. In the agriculture 

and livestock areas, we are renowned for being 

one of the main exporters of (bio)tropical organic 

products, such as cacao, bananas, mango, as well as 

other worldwide highly regarded products like rum, 

cigars, different sorts of peppers and avocados. 

I wish iconvienna the best of success in 2017. 

Foto: Embassy of the Dominian Republic 



Fotos: Embassy of Argentinia

Argentinia 

Greetings 

Congratulations 

to iconvienna 2017 

H.E. Rafael Mariano Grossi 

Ambassador of Argentinia to Austria 

It is an honour to welcome the 13 th iconvienna, Central 

Europe’s prominent investment forum, and refer 

to my country’s economy and investment opportunities. 

The Argentine Republic has strong fundamentals, 

which underpin its potential to become a regional 

economic engine. It is the third largest Latin 

American economy, after Brazil and Mexico; the 

fourth most populous country in the region, with 43 

million inhabitants; and the world’s eighth largest 

country in terms of territory, encompassing diverse 

climates and terrains. 

Argentina boasts a wealth of varied and available 

natural resources: 53 % of agricultural land; abundant 

reserves of oil, gas, minerals and water; and optimal 

conditions for the development of wind, solar, 

biomass and hydro power. The country is also rich 

in human capital, ranking first in Latin America’s 

Human Development Index and exhibiting an educational 

attainment comparable to emerging economies 

in East Asia and Central and Eastern Europe. 

The Macri Administration has undertaken a 

comprehensive program to reform the economy and 

realize its potential. Key initiatives include: removing 

capital controls and repatriation restrictions; 

resolving defaulted debt; regaining access to global 

financial markets; removing export taxes and import 

restrictions; implementing a government e-platform 

for tenders; setting up a Public-Private Partnership 

(PPP) regulatory framework; relaunching the National 

Statistics Bureau (INDEC); and establishing a 

4-year plan to eliminate primary fiscal deficit. 

Argentine GDP growth, currently over 2.7 %, is 

expected to be strong in the next years. There are investment 

opportunities in all regions of the country 

and in all sectors of the economy, with renewable 

energies being one of the most promising. Marking 

a relevant milestone, Act 27.191 was passed in 2015, 

setting forth that 20 % of energy must be produced 

from renewable sources by 2025. Subsequently, the 

RenovAR Program was launched in 2016, calling 

for a Public Tender Process for contracts with the 

wholesale electricity market (MEM) aimed at generating 

electrical power from renewable sources. RenovAR 

Rounds 1 and 1.5 have been very successful, 

with Round 2 expected to launch in Q2 2017. I invite 

you to join in the country’s development in a context 

of rapid growth and concrete opportunity. 

Foto: Embassy of Argentinia 



Foto: Cuban Embassy

Cuba 

Greetings 

Cuba: A place 

to invest 

H. E. Juan Antonio Fernández Palacios 

Ambassador of the Republic of Cuba in Austria and Permanent 

Representative to the United Nations Office at Vienna and the 

International Organizations based in Austria. 

Cuba develops an updating process of 

its economic model and it´s gradually 

advancing in the implementation of 

the strategic vision for the development 

of the economy, with a mid and longterm 

vision. 

A favorable business climate has been 

set up in Cuba with the passing of Law No. 

118 “Foreign Investment Act” and its complementary 

norms. Other advantages are 

added to tax incentives like high qualified 

workforce; political and social stability; geographical 

location in the centre of an expanding 

market and basic infrastructure 

throughout the country. 

The energy sector is one of the 12 areas 

prioritized for foreign investment. Cuba generates 

95% of its electricity using fossil fuels 

and we are working to change the country´s 

energy matrix by taking advantage of renewable 

energy sources. 

The potential for solar radiation recorded 

in the country is approximately 5KWh per 

square meter per day and it has been identified 

areas with the best prospects for the construction 

of photovoltaic parks, prioritizing 

for foreign investment those which could be 

built as part of the isolated electrical systems 

serving tourist resorts on remote keys. 

The tourism is also an important and prioritized 

sector. Foreign investment participation 

in this sector is directed to promote 

hotels through new building or rebuilding of 

accommodations facilities as well as of the 

complementary infrastructures. Another aim 

is to diversify the management and commercialization 

of tourist facilities by renowned 

foreign chains. Cuban tourism is the force 

driving other sectors of the economy. 

The country’s Portfolio of Business Opportunities 

for foreign investment includes 

395 projects valued at more than $9.500 billion 

USD. 

The Special Economic Development 

Zone of Mariel (ZEDM by its Spanish acronym) 

is a visionary project located in the 

center of the Caribbean Sea, very attractive 

for investments. 

Foto: Cuban Embassy 


Fotos: Embassy of Venezuela 

Los Roques is a Venezuelan archipelago that 

consists of about 50 islands, located in the Caribbean 

Sea, 168 km to the north of La Guaira, the port of 

Caracas. Due to its beauty and ecological importance, 

it was declared national park in 1972. 

What makes Los Roques a majestic place is the enormous 

expanse of calm sea, the presence of lagoons, 

cays, beaches of white sands of coral origin and crystalline 

waters of extraordinary colours. 

Los Roques is a dream place for lovers of diving, windsurfing 

and fishing. 



Venezuela 

Greetings 

Los Roques a Paradise 

of crystalline waters 

and white sand 

H. E. Jesse Chacón 

Ambassador of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela 

to Austria, Croatia and Slovakia 

I 

would like to express my sincere 

congratulation to the European 

Business and Investments Forum – 

iconvienna – for its 13th Anniversary. 

This is the third-time Venezuela is 

participating, and we are aware of its 

excellence as a network to establish 

new cooperation and interchange of 

business ideas. 

Allow me to present my country as 

a destination full of opportunities in 

opening new markets. In recent years, 

the Venezuelan Government has implemented 

policies to give new impetus 

to areas such as agriculture, industry, 

mining, technology and tourism. 

Venezuela is a country opened to 

the world that combines the charisma 

of our people, the richness of our nature 

and wildlife, and the spectacular 

landscapes with the variety of exotic 

places. 

Destinations that comprise the 

mountains, beginning with the Andes, 

which consists mainly of paramo 

vegetation and low temperature. The 

llanos, the plain area, dominated by 

plateaus, lakes and pastures. Flora 

and fauna make it part of our attractive 

places. The jungles and savannah, 

one of the most exotic and mystic destinations 

where the highest waterfall 

in the world – Ángel Fall or Kerepakupai 

Meru in indigenous language 

and the tepuis remain. Without forgetting 

the coast, Venezuela counts with 

a paradise of crystalline waters and 

white sand beaches. 

We believe that iconvienna is an 

excellent opportunity to expose our 

grandiose country and to enhance our 

strategic partnership with European 

countries, especially with Austria, establishing 

relations based on cooperation 

and solidarity. 

Foto: Embassy of Venezuela 



Foto: Embassy of Colombia

Colombia 

Greetings 

Peace as the 

foundation of a stronger 

Colombian economy 

H. E. Jaime Alberto Cabal Sanclemente 

Ambassador of the Republic of Colombia to Austria, and 

non-resident Ambassador to Croatia, the Czech Republic, 

Hungary, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia and Slovakia. 

Former Minister of Economic Development of Colombia. 

Foto: Embassy of Colombia 

The Peace Agreement signed between the government 

of Colombia and the rebel group FARC-EP 

implies a substantial improvement for the existing 

economy opening doors to new opportunities 

and the consolidation of different sectors both 

in cities and rural areas, historically affected by the 

armed conflict. 

Currently, Colombia has a GDP of US$ 292 billion 

and a GDP per capita of US$ 6.056 but according to official 

agencies, Colombia’s annual GDP growth could 

turn out higher than expected as a result of the Peace 

Agreement. 

The government will invest around US$ 13,7 billion 

in 2017 in different economic and social sectors, resulting 

in 765.433 new jobs and an expected GDP growth 

of 2.6 %. 

Furthermore, US$ 8,5 billion will be invested in 

housing and education sectors, which will result in a 

rise of housing solutions by 33 %. The investment of US$ 

3,13 billion in the development of thirty Fourth Generation 

(4G) road projects will lead to the creation of 313.784 

employments and a GDP growth of 0.35 % in 2017. 

In addition, there will be an investment of US$ 2.8 

billion in improvements of 51 airports as well as of US$ 

1,2 billion in port concessions and US$ 1.8 billion for 

the improvement of the navigability of the Magdalena 

river. 

The agriculture sector plays a key role in the 

post-agreement period through substitution policies 

of illegal cultivation, demining and the reconstruction 

of small infrastructure projects. Therefore the government 

will be investing US$ 5,3 billion in order to promote 

the creation of infrastructure projects by private 

businesses or organizations in the rural areas which 

are most affected by the armed conflict. 

The tourism sector has become a major driver for 

growth. Over the last years, the number of incoming 

tourists increased from 4.4 million in 2015 to 5.3 million 

in 2016 and for 2017 a number of 7 million incoming 

tourists is expected. 

Colombia is becoming a country of increasing business 

opportunities in a consolidated and stabilized 

economy positioning itself as a strategic partner both 

on a regional and international level. 



Foto: Embassy of Guatemala

Guatemala 

Greetings 

Guatemala − 

the largest economy 

in Central America 

Foto: Embassy of Guatemala 

H. E. Antonio Roberto Castellanos López 

Ambassador of the Republic of Guatemala to Austria, 

Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and Hungary 

It is a great honour to greet you distinguished readers 

of iconannual in this edition of the European Business 

and Investment Forum and celebrate another 

year of success in promoting business and trade in 

Austria and neighboring countries. 

Guatemala is the most populated country and largest 

economy in Central America and given its economic 

stability, steady growth and foreign investment promotion 

policies, there are significant opportunities for 

European Union and international businesses, including 

sectors such as clean energy, security, infrastructure 

and construction, education and the retail market. 

The country economy has grown by 3.7 percent on 

average in the 2012-2015 period. 

Guatemala also offers a strategic geographical location 

from which to access member countries of the 

“Meso-America Iniciative”: A market including over 

fifty urban centers, a population of 68 million and a 

regional economy worth some US$319 billion. On 

its part, Guatemala has also signed free-trade agreements 

with neighbors including Mexico, Panama, the 

Dominican Republic-CAFTA; Colombia, Chile and the 

Association Agreement with the European Union and 

Central America. 

Lacking a major refinery, most of Guatemala's heavy 

crude oil, is exported to the United States and Canada. 

Contracts for oil and gas exploitation are commonly 

signed for a 20-25 years period, with an option for renewal. 

Energy: Guatemala is the strongest potential biofuel 

producer in Central America, given the country's high 

yields of sugarcane and palm oil and its efficient local 

industries. 

Agriculture and foodstuffs:. The sector generates 

direct employment for more than 75 000 people and 

353 000 indirect jobs. Guatemala has approximately 

11 million hectares of fertile soil of which only 12 per 

cent is cultivated. 

Coffee: Guatemala ranks second in the world after 

Colombia, in the amount of high-grade coffee production, 

and has the highest percentage of its crop classified 

as "high quality" by international buyers. In terms 

of exports, coffee is Guatemala's flagship product: In 

2011 and 2012, exports of more than US$2.13 billion 

were recorded. 

Infrastructure: Guatemala is the logistics and services 

center of the region, thanks to a large road network 

and efficient ports on the Pacific and Atlantic oceans 

(Caribbean Sea), along with airports in Guatemala City 

and Flores, Petén. 



Fotos: Embassy of El Salvador

El Salvador 

Greetings 

Introducing 

El Salvador 

H.E. Lucía Rosella Badía 

Ambassador of El Salvador to Austria and 

Permanent Representative to UNO Vienna 

The Embassy of El Salvador is 

pleased to participate in the 2017 

edition of Inconvienna. This important 

platform in Austria allows us 

to interact with business people interested 

in networking with decision makers in 

different areas, finding new partners and 

provide them with up to date information 

about business climate and opportunities. 

El Salvador is a business bridge between 

North and South America, and is 

also part of the bi oceanic corridor linking 

Europe to Asia. Our current trade agreements 

provide preferential access to major 

markets in America, Europe and Asia, 

with flexible rules of origin and significant 

reductions on import tariffs. 

El Salvador is fully committed to the 

United Nations 2030 Agenda. On the economic 

side, public and private sector are 

working towards an inclusive industrial 

development with sustainable growth 

associated with productive employment, 

innovation, development of technology, 

participation of small and medium sized 

enterprises, labor rights and respect for 

the environment. 

Central America and the European Union 

have consolidated their economic relations 

through an Association Agreement. 

For business opportunities, this agreement 

promotes trade expansion through the reduction 

of tariff barriers and the provision 

of trading standards and technical regulations 

and promotion of regional economic 

integration. This agreement entails the 

commitment to establish a free trade zone 

with the EU. 

Regarding investment, El Salvador 

stands out for its qualified labor force, infrastructure 

connectivity and monetary 

stability. Our legal framework offers attractive 

tax incentives to companies and guarantees 

the protection of their investments. 

Over the years companies established in 

El Salvador have relied on our International 

Service Law, Industrial Free Trade Zone 

and Commercialization Law, Tourism Investment 

Law and Renewable Energy Incentives 

Law. Among some sectors to are 

the following: Aeronautics; Logistics and 

infrastructure; Offshore Business Services. 

Agro-industry; Tourism; Energy; Light 

manufacturing. 

Foto: Embassy of El Salvador 



Fotos: Embassy of Costa Rica

Costa Rica 

Greetings 

Costa Rica: 

much more than its 

famously natural beauty 

Foto: Embassy of Costa Rica 

H.E. Pilar Saborio de Rocafort 

Ambassador of Costa Rica to Austria 

The Costa Rica’s growth is the result of having a diversified 

portfolio of trading partners with 14 FTA 

in force, 4 FTA in process, 15 BIA. We are also an 

active member of the WTO, and we have a Roadmap 

for Accession to the OECD. 

Costa Rica is unmatched as the top choice for investing 

in the region and organise their export portfolio in 7 

main productive sectors: 

1. Exotic and Fresh Products: Tropical Fruits, Vegetables 

and Greens, and Roots and Tubers. 

2. Plants, Flowers and Foliage: more than 11 thousand 

species of plants have been on our inventory. 

3. Food Specialties: a consolidated industry offers the 

most exquisite culinary expressions to delight even 

the most demanding palate. 

4. Furniture: we have 7 categories of furniture to offer. 

5. Personal Care: Natural & Organics, Specialized and 

Retail Health, and Spa Products. 

6. Biotechnology: Costa Rica ranks No. 1 in availability 

of engineers and scientists and No.2 as medical 

devices exporter in Latin America since 2010 (World 

Economic Forum 2014-2015 Report). 

7. Aerospace Industry: Costa Rica Aerospace Cluster 

comprises a group of local businesses that work 

together in R&D within the aerospace, and thrive 

thanks to the pool of highly skilled local talent that 

has allowed inserting itself in the high-tech Global 

Value Chain. 

According to Site Selection Magazine 2016 we are in 

the top 5 “Best to Invest” countries in the world and has 

become the preferred location in LATAM for industry 

leaders that seek growth opportunities in the most reliable 

and safe environment: 

1. Services: Costa Rica is the No.1 Exporter of high value 

added services in Latin America. 

2. Advanced manufacturing: Costa Rica is also leader 

in production process sophistication in Latin America 

and yes, we do rocket science. 

3. Life Science: we are the second largest exporter of 

Medical Devices in Latin America in Class I to Class 

III medical devices. 

4. Light Manufacturing: since 2013, almost 40% of total 

exports of goods were linked to global value chains. 

Our talent is very much familiarized with working 

under the ISO9001, ISO14001, ISO22000, and BASC 

among many others. 

5. Food Industry: Costa Rica offers +350 different agricultural 

and food-processed goods to export and 

more than 130 destinations. We are also home of food 

companies in the world ranked by Food Processing's 

Top 100. 

Today, European Union is our third largest trading 

partner after the US and China. Costa Rica is a Member of 

the EU-Central America Association Agreement, a threepart 

agreement covering free trade, political dialogue 

and co-operation. The country represents the 63.5% of 

Central American exports to the EU and the spot as “best 

export performance in Latin America” In 2016. 




Paraguay 

Greetings 

Business opportunities 

in Paraguay 

H.E. Horacio Nogués Zubizarreta 

Ambassador of the Republic of Paraguay to Austria 

Representative to United Nations in Vienna 

and other international organizations 

The Embassy of Paraguay in Vienna has the honor 

to congratulate the 13 th the European Business 

and Investment Forum that provides a very important 

platform to promote business, exchange 

experiences and contact network. 

Paraguay is a World Class food producer; open and 

connected to the world; with high rates of development, 

rule of law and public safety; environmentally sustainable; 

with women inclusion and young entrepreneurship 

as trademark; and a Government that promotes solidarity 

and transparency. 

The Business Opportunities Paraguay offers include: 

Labor Intensive companies taking advantage of the Free 

Trade Zone for installing industrial platforms, The implementation 

of the High – Tech Assembly Act providing 

advantages for Labor Intensive Companies, Preferential 

access to MERCOSUR through a List of Exemption 

for goods, as a driver to increase the competitive of the 

industry, Focus on Productive Chain Integration with 

Brazilian companies to take advantage of existing markets 

and Industrial Parks promoting the installation of 

Food Service, Financing and Logistics companies. The 

most competitive Paraguayan products are: clothing, 

food, plastic articles, insecticides and pesticides, leathers, 

balanced and animal feed, footwear. 

In recent years, the tourism sector has undergone a 

significant expansion thanks to the warn climate and 

the known hospitality of Paraguayans. 

Paraguay has gone from being the best kept secret of 

Latin America to stand out as an attractive investment 

destination because of our favorable business climate. 

PARAGUAY IN THE WORLD… we are: 

1° Producer of Renewable Energy 

2° Producer of Stevia 

3° Producer and exporter of yerba mate 

3° Owner of barge fleet 

4° Soybean exporter 

4° Largest exporter of soybeans 

4° World exporter of cassava starch 

6° Largest producer of soybeans 

6° Largest exporter of maize 

6° Largest exporter of beef 

6° Largest exporter of wheat 

Our sincere gratitude to iconvienna for the opportunity 

to participate in this edition of this important business 

forum. 

We invite you to visit Paraguay and to know the opportunities 

we have to offer to the world. 

Foto: Embassy of Paraguay 



Fotos: Embassy of Uruguay

Uruguay 

Greetings 

Work and invest 

in Uruguay 

H.E. Bruno Javier Faraone Machado 

Ambassador of Uruguay to Austria, 

Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia 

The Oriental Republic of Uruguay, hereafter referred 

to as Uruguay, is a small country both in 

size and population. Its culture, health and living 

standards are among the highest in Latin America. 

Long known as the "Switzerland of South America", 

the country covers an area of just 186,000 sq km (72,000 

sq miles) and more than half its 3.5 million people live 

in greater Montevideo, the rest spread among attractive 

coastal towns and the interior of the country, dedicated 

to cattle, sheep, rice, and fruit production. 

From 2003 onwards, the flow of foreign direct investments 

has dramatically increased in different sectors of 

our economy, especially in Forest & Cellulose – with two 

state-of-the-art plant mills with large scale of production 

–, Transport and Logistics, Telecommunications, 

Information Technology, Retail & Consumer, Energy and 

Agribusiness. 

Changes in the energy matrix were introduced, focusing 

on renewable sources (wind mills, solar farms, 

biomass), and Oil & Gas prospecting has started in the 

maritime platform. 

An infrastructure investment plan has been recently 

announced by President Tabaré Vázquez – for an 

amount of USD 12bn during his term of duty –, focusing 

on energy, roads, social and housing investments, 

communications and water, among other, with the participation 

of the public and private sector. 

Uruguay offers significant advantages to those who 

are currently evaluating doing business and making 

investments in South America. 

It is a country with a strong respect for the rule of 

law and the essential grounds of the economic activity. 

This is why it ranks among the top countries in Latin 

America according to the main rankings which gather 

information on aspects of political stability and democratic 

soundness. In Uruguay there are no differences 

in the treatment of national and foreign capital and 

incentives to investment promotion are available for 

both. There are no limits for foreign capital endowment 

in companies either. 

For years the country has shown a strong political 

and social stability, supported by a consolidated democracy 

and strong legal certainty. This consolidated 

institutional framework, the deep respect for democracy 

and the low corruption of the country have placed 

Uruguay in the first position in the Democracy Index 

compiled by The Economist Intelligence Unit (2015) 

and the Perception Corruption Index of Transparency 

International (2015) with respect to other Latin American 

countries. 

Welcome to Uruguay, a country to invest, work and 

live in. 

Foto: Embassy of Uruguay 



Fotos: Slovakian Embassy

Slovakia 

Greetings 

Dear readers! 

H. E. Juraj Macháč 

Ambassador of the Republic of Slovakia to Austria 

I 

t’s a great pleasure for me to address you in iconannual 

also this year. Since I’m the Ambassador 

of Slovak republic in Vienna, I could have 

never missed the opportunity to take part in 

such a valuable event as the iconvienna undoubtfully 

is. The motto “Make contacts to contracts” 

tells everything by itself. Networking effect plays 

not only a huge role in the cross-border businesses 

but in developing regions as well. 

Also many regions in Slovakia have gained 

much through these investments. Particularly 

automotive industry has recognised comparative 

advantages. In 2016, Slovakia has again surpassed 

the production of one million cars, which means 

that our country produces the most cars per capita 

in the world. 

The first strong investment in this field was 

Volkswagen in Bratislava. Since its opening, the 

factory has produced over 3 million of vehicles, 

6 millions of gearboxes and 200 millions of components. 

Also due to very successful story of automotive 

giant factory in our capital, Bratislava 

once again is considered one of the wealthiest 

regions in Europe. According to the newest research 

of European Commission is Bratislava the 

region with the 3rd highest production per capita. 

Peugeot-Citroën in Trnava is another example 

of how successful investments in Slovakian 

regions can be. The production increased every 

year and reached its peak in 2015 with more than 

300 000 cars produced. 

The third big automotive company producing 

in the northern part of Slovakia is KIA. The factory 

situated near Žilina has contributed in the 

huge amount to the development of the region. 

The production of this factory also started in 

2006. Nowadays it’s able to produce more than 

350 000 cars annually. 

The whole new adventure for Slovakia brings 

the investment of British Jaguar- Landrover, who 

decided to move part of its production to the continental 

Europe. The 4th great automotive brand 

in Slovakia starts the production of Land Rover 

Discovery in 2018. 

But automotive industry is just a part of a story. 

I believe that Slovakia has much more to offer. 

Our task is to use our advantages even more. iconvienna 

and other useful forums play a crucial role 

in the process of achieving that goal. I wish the 

European Business and Investment Forum to be 

this year even more successful than ever before. 

Foto: Slovakian Embassy 




Romania 

Greetings 

Dear readers! 

H. E. Bogdan Mazuru 

Ambassador of Romania to Austria 

Innovative entrepreneurship and brand stimulation 

are needed nowadays to fasten economic growth all 

around the world. iconvienna initiative to focus this 

year forum on brand and innovation aspects must 

be applauded. Debates, know-how and best practice 

exchange are important for understanding where we 

stand and how to improve our status. I congratulate 

iconvienna for being a platform for discussions and 

cooperation for more than a decade. 

Romania is committed to strengthen its economic 

growth through innovation and research. The National 

Strategy for Research and Innovation, adopted in 

2014, established to empower research and innovation 

activities and to offer substantial funds in these 

directions. Subsidies and different fiscal facilities are 

granted to the companies for research and innovation 

activities. For example, starting with 2017 companies 

and employees are exempted from income taxes for 

research activities. 

Romania is a stable economy with an economic 

growth which exceeded EU-28 average in last years. 

After a GDP growth of 3.8 % in 2015, a 5 % growth followed 

in 2016, which makes Romania the best performing 

country within EU. Industry sector followed by 

ICT were the main contributors to the GDP’s growth. 

Companies are stimulated through tax exemption to 

reinvest their profits in technological development 

and to develop their innovative capabilities. More and 

more Romanian products need to become well known 

brands around the world like RAV or BitDefender antivirus 

systems. 

Romania has a good technical high education system, 

which in conjunction with government measures 

to stimulate innovation and research will improve 

our country results in near future. Investors from 

Austria and wide world should put Romania on their 

future investment map for R&D plans. 

Romania offers business opportunities in other 

areas, too. After industrial sector, agriculture and tourism 

have great potential of growth. We have a fertile 

soil for agriculture and wonderful places for tourists. 

Cooperation in these areas will be beneficial for both 

sides. 

Culture is another important issue for Romanian 

people. We love traditional and modern arts and we 

are open to exchange ideas and emotions through art 

with other cultures. In recognition of that, a second 

Romanian city, Timisoara, will become the European 

Capital of Culture in 2021, after Sibiu, which played 

this role in 2007. We invite you to visit us and to start 

businesses in Romania! 

Foto: Romanian Embassy 




Bulgaria 

Greetings 

Sofia − die Planung 

eines Mittelpunkts von 

nationaler und regional 

europaischer Bedeutung 

H.E. Ivan Sirakov 

Ambassador of the Republic of Bulgaria to Austria 

Foto: Romanian Embassy 

Sofia hat ein bemerkenswertes Motto im 

Stadtwappen: „Wächst, aber altert nicht“. 

Der Stadtplan von Sofia vermittelt bereits 

beim ersten Blick den Eindruck einer 

ge-ordneten Metropole. Die Stadt besitzt 

ein übersichtliches Straßensystem und einen 

funktionsfähigen öffentlichen Transport, einschließlich 

der U-Bahn, dessen drittes Diameter 

in der Realisierungsphase steht. Das System von 

öffentlichen Grünräumen und die Bemühungen 

um ein zusammenhängendes Netz von Radfahrwegen, 

sowie eine Reihe von weichen Standortfaktoren, 

die in das Stadtsystem integriert sind, 

vervoll-ständigen das Image einer modernen 

und zukunftsorientierten Metropole. 

Die Lage von Sofia an der Kreuzung zweier 

wichtiger europäischer Korridore und die günstigen 

natürlichen Bedingungen haben bereits in 

der Antike den Römischen Kaiser Konstantin 

dazu bewogen, diesen Standort als Residenzstadt 

auszubauen. Seit der Gründerzeit erfährt 

die Stadt eine für europäische Verhältnisse beispielloses 

Wachstum – die Einwohnerzahl ist 

seit 1878 von 12.000 auf 1,5 Millionen gestiegen. 

Neben den bereits erwähnten günstigen Standortfaktoren 

wurde von Beginn an die Bedeutung 

der Stadtplanung für die Bewältigung des rasanten 

Wachstums und für die Etablierung der Stadt 

als Mittelpunkt der nationalen Entwicklung 

erkannt. Bereits die ersten Pläne, ausgearbeitet 

von Experten aus der Donaumonarchie, bringen 

den Optimismus der Zeit und die Zuversicht 

in die Zukunft der Hauptstadt zum Ausdruck. 

Diese Pläne folgen dem Leitbild des rationalen 

Großstadtmodells und haben eine bewundernswerte 

Entwicklungsfähigkeit erwiesen. 

Die aktive Planungstätigkeit begleitet seitdem 

die Entwicklung der Stadt und wird heute 

im öffentlichen Bewusstsein als Notwendigkeit 

und als Vorauszahlung für deren Erhalt 

als nationalen Mittelpunkt verstanden. Diese 

Einstellung erweist sich als entscheidende Voraussetzung, 

um ihrer Rolle als Standort von europäischer 

Regionalbedeutung gerecht zu sein. 



Brands are one of the 

but least understood 

companies 

The "Brand Global Council for Value and 

Sustainable Growth" was founded to 

change that. 

It is a global council of countries, organizations 

and professionals working to improve and 

communicate to all stakeholders the value 

of brands and their contribution to overall 

economic and societal wellbeing and inclusive, 

sustainable development. 

Background 

Over the years intangible assets have grown more 

and more in importance and brands have grown in 

their value too! The world has come online and there 

are many new markets and a growing middle class 

in countries like India, China, Brazil, Russia, South 

Africa, Nigeria, Indonesia and many more places. Not 

only will the value of brands continue to grow but 

brands can play an important role in the growth of 

these areas. 

This proximity breeds innovation. Cities are hubs 

of productivity, innovation, goods and service providers 

for their regions. Consumers buy brands, not 

products. The best brands today are meaningful in 

the lives of consumers. They are much more than 

products, names, advertising, etc. Brand performance 

management is a challenge that requires a sophisticated 

strategy and professional partners. 

From an organization’s viewpoint, a strong brand is a 

valuable asset. It is, however, an intangible asset. Its 

value to the company ultimately depends on the value 

of the brand to consumers, reflected by the extent to 

which they rely on the brand to make decisions. For 

this reason it has historically been difficult for organizations 

to evaluate brands and give them a financial 

valuation. 

Goals 

The Brand Global Council (BGC) will work to help set, 

maintain and implement high standards for brand 

evaluation and valuation and will cooperate and liaison 

with other international organizations to achieve 

this purpose. The goal is to help organizations realize 

and increase the value of their brands. Branding 

will become a larger and larger part in the growth of 

company value and BGC will play an important role 

in this. 

The second goal of BGC is to demonstrate that brands 

can play an important role in economic development. 

The BGC will assist smaller and medium-sized organizations, 

cities and destinations, and economically 

underdeveloped regions in using the value of brands 

as a sustainable source of economic growth. 

Brands create prosperity for economies. 

44 iconannual The European Business and Investment Magazine

International Partners 

most significant 

assets for 

and economies. 

Strong brands create wealth, jobs and growth 

and should be viewed as an economic asset. 

Brands create prosperity for economies 

45.000 

GDP per Capital (PPP) 

40.000 

35.000 

30.000 

25.000 

20.000 

15.000 

10.000 

Norway 

The Netherlands 

Austria 

Germany Belgium 

France 

U.K. 

Europa 

Average Europe 

Italy Spain 

Slovenia 

Czech Republic 

Portugal 

Slovakia 

Poland Hungary 

Croatia 

Russia 

Romania 

Bulgaria 

Sweden 

Denmark 

Switzerland 

Finland 

5.000 

0 

0,0% 5,0% 10,0% 15,0% 20,0% 25,0% 30,0% 35,0% 

Top 10 brands / GDP (PPP) 

brandglobal.org 

© 2017 BRAND GLOBAL Council 



America 

Europe 

Africa 

North America 

EU & CEE 

South Africa 

Latin America 

& Caribbean 

Russia 

Initial Areas of Focus 

• GLOBAL STANDARDS. Standards provide an 

opportunity for everyone to share their knowledge 

and for organizations to follow common and 

consistent business practices. Thus BGC’s work to 

promote brand standards and brand certifications 

will guide brand owners/managers and brand evaluators 

in implementing sophisticated brand evaluations 

and valuations. They will be more able to 

quantify the true value of their brand. This will 

bring more information to stakeholders and lead to 

better reporting, governance and management. 

• ALTERNATIVE FINANCING/INVESTMENT. 

Brands even now may average 40 percent of an organization’s 

worth. Thus BGC will work to make 

brand value to be more important in financing and 

investment decisions. But investors need better information 

and reporting about the value of brands. 

This could also lead to the development of new financial 

instruments and sources of investment. 

• FORUMS / EVENTS NETWORKING and exchange 

of information, about best practices of reporting, 

governance and management of brands are essential 

for brand owners/managers and brand evaluators 

in order to continuously create long term and 

brand-led growth. BGC will create Annual Brand 

Global Forums and support the development of national 

Brand Forums for more awareness and dialogue 

about brands and their value. 

• EXECUTIVE EDUCATION TRAINING is crucial 

to the realizing the business and societal value of 

brands. BGC courses will improve understanding 

of brands and their value for all stakeholders, 



Asia 

China 

India, Korea, 

Japan, etc. 

• European Initiative 

• Russian Initiative 

• Asian Initiative 

• Chinese Initiative 

• African Initiative 

• North American Initiative 

• Latin America & Caribbean Initiative 

© 2017 BRAND GLOBAL Council 

and therefore contribute to the implementation of 

brand activities in various organizations. 

• DEVELOPMENTAL INITIATIVES. Increased concern 

for and understanding of brand value can be a 

tool for the economic development of smaller and 

medium-sized organizations, cities and destinations 

and economically underdeveloped regions. 

In order to create awareness and assist organizations 

around the world, BGF will develop regional 

brand initiatives. These initiatives will communicate 

and demonstrate both the business and societal 

value of brands. 

Through these actions, the BGC will become both a 

top-down and a bottom-up organization representing 

nearly all of the world. 

The BRAND GLOBAL 

COUNCIL, with headquarter 

in Vienna, serves as NGO and 

global think-tank for coordination, 

know-how exchange, idea generation 

and development of collaborative 

initiatives and projects. All 

activities are directed to enabling 

organizations to report and benefit 

from the value of their brands 

and to making brand value a 

means of economic development. 

brandglobal.org 


UNIDO 

Introducing 

UNIDO’s long-term strategy of inclusive 

and sustainable industrial development (ISID) 

was adopted by UNIDO Member States at the General 

Conference in December 2013. Through this 

strategy, UNIDO aim to harness the full potential 

of industry’s contribution to the achievement of 

sustainable development in the post-2015 era.ISID 

Industry is the most dynamic driver of prosperity 

and collective wellbeing. Too often in the past the 

transformative structural changes have also been 

accompanied by environmental degradation and 

increased social inequalities. In order to ensure equitable 

distribution of the economic benefits of industrialization, 

ISID aims to address the multidimensional 

causes of poverty, through creating shared prosperity, 

advancing economic competitiveness and safeguarding 

the environment. 

ISID ensures: 

• Every country achieves a higher level of industrialization 

in their economies, and benefits from the 

globalization of markets for industrial goods and 

services. 

• No-one is left behind in benefiting from industrial 

growth, and prosperity is shared between women 

and men, urban and rural communities and enterprises 

in all countries. 

• Economic and social growth is supported within an 

environmentally sustainable framework, so industrial 

expansion does not jeopardize the well-being of 

future generations. 

• The unique knowledge and resources of all relevant 

development actors are combined, including the 

private sector and international financing instituions, 

to maximize ISID’s development impact. 

The regional context: 

The Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) Region encompasses 

33 countries, all of which are UNIDO Member 

States. Total population for the region was roughly 

600 million people in 2014, most of whom were already 

benefitting from improved living conditions. For 

example, more than 94% of the total population had 

access to improved drinking water sources; 82% had 

sanitation services coverage; and 79% lived in urban 

areas. But there is room for future improvement, as 

seen in the smaller percentages of the population that 

had access to potable water (82%) and sanitation in rural 

areas (63%) in 2014. 

The region comprises a total surface area of more 

than 20 million km2 with vast natural resources, including 

ample water resources and a flourishing biodiversity. 

Around 47% of the land surface is covered 

by forest. The Central and South American sub-regions 

provide the most abundant fresh water resources per 



Fotos: UNIDO 

capita worldwide. The region accounts 

for substantial reserves of 

oil, silver, copper, coal, bauxite, lithium 

and nickel. 

LAC’s Member States range from 

large, rapidly growing High- and 

Middle-Income Countries (MICs) 

like Brazil, Mexico and Argentina 

to small, fragile and vulnerable states 

like Haiti. 

The GDP of the LAC Region grew 

by 1.1% in 2014, its slowest annual 

expansion rate since 2009, mostly 

attributable to the region’s high 

dependence on commodities export 

prices. Current GDP structure 

by economic activity is comprised 

mainly of public administration, 

social and personal services (24%); 

financial intermediation, including 

real state, rentals and business activities 

(17%); wholesale and retail 

trade (15%); manufacturing (15%); 

transport, communications and 

construction (15%); and mining, agriculture 

and electricity (14%). 

One significant consequence 

of low economic growth has been 

weak job creation; however, the 

urban open unemployment rate edged 

down only from 6.2% to 6.0%. 

The slower job creation has affected 

women more than men, bringing 

an end to previous trends in which 

some gender labour gaps were narrowing. 

The poverty rate in Latin America 

stood at 28.1% in 2013, 11.7% 

of whom were living under conditions 

of extreme poverty. In human 

terms, these percentages represent 

165 million poor people, including 

69 million living in extreme poverty 

(e.g. on the equivalent of less 

than one dollar a day) (ECLAC- Preliminary 

Overview of Economies of 

LAC, 2014). For the LAC Region, the 

incidence is higher among younger 

segments of the population. Poverty 

rates also vary by gender, the rate 

among women under labour age 

being 1.2 times that of men. 

The LAC Region has the highest 

inequality rate in the world. The 

Gini coefficient, which measures 

income inequality, remained at 

a mean value of 0.52 (i.e. it ranges 

between 0, total equality, and 1, one 

person with all the wealth. 

In terms of industrial development, 

the region needs to develop 

comprehensive industrial policies 

that promote more equitable growth 

based on productive development 

and reduce the weight of financial 

sector; to strengthen Public Private 

Partnerships (PPPs) and policy 

instruments for promoting new 

business and fostering Small and 

Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), 

as well as to increase investment in 

research, development and innovation 

to generate greater value added 

and increase competitiveness. 

UNIDO works closely with the 

Community of Latin American and 

Caribbean States (CELAC), the largest 

regional bloc representing 33 

sovereign countries in the Americas, 

all of which are also UNIDO 

Member States. 

Future outlook: 

The 33 countries that comprise 

UNIDO’s Latin America and the 

Caribbean (LAC) Region, as diverse 

as they may be, all share one thing 

in common: they all need vital 

strategic advice on industrial development 

strategies, policies and 

instruments, followed by concrete 

support for implementation and 

monitoring. Some of these countries 

are newly emerging Middle Income 

Countries (MICs) that require more 

than a classic Technical Assistance 

(TA) project approach, although 

a transition phase of several years 

when both approaches co-exist is to 

be expected. UNIDO is engaged in 

promoting practical, pragmatic implementation 

of the guiding principles 

of inclusive and sustainable industrial 

development in the region. 

ISID’s new Vision, as introduced at 

the outset of this brochure, is being 

incorporated into all UNIDO activities 

carried out in the region. 


European Commission 

Intercity 

cooperation 

as a driver for European innovation 

and new growth 

The world economy is changing quickly. Europe 

is the largest market of the world, and it holds 

strong industrial and scientific foundations for 

securing future growth. However, to maintain 

strong growth and innovation potential, we have to 

adapt. Therefore we have to make all our regions and 

cities attractive places to live, work and invest in. We 

can count on the diversity of our regions in Europe to 

find together the solutions for our common challenges 

in the provision of jobs, energy, mobility or health care 

to our citizens, and turn these challenges into opportunities 

for economic development, growth and competitiveness. 

European Union's Cohesion Policy is boosting the 

dynamics of European growth, by focussing efforts 

on priorities like innovation and research, energy efficiency, 

low carbon and digital economy, sustainable 

transport, SME competitiveness, education and social 

inclusion. This aims at supporting growth and jobs 

in all regions of the EU and fostering territorial, economic 

and social cohesion. To make this work, we call 

upon regions and cities to focus on their strengths and 

unique opportunities for future growth and competitive 

advantages. This "smart specialisation" requires 

also "smart cooperation". Cooperation on innovation in 

the EU Strategy for the Danube Region is a good example 

for this. 

Europe is one of the most urbanised 

continents in the world. 

Today, more than two thirds of 

the European population live in 

urban areas. 

Between 2000 and 2013, GDP growth in cities was 

50 % higher than in the rest of the EU and employment 

in cities grew by 7 %, while it declined slightly in the 

remainder of the EU. 1 This higher performance is due 

to the economic advantages of cities, because they concentrate 

industries and services, education and training, 

and logistic infrastructure that connects them to 

local and global markets, and – most important – they 

host people with a variety of skills. This proximity 

breeds innovation. Cities are hubs of productivity, innovation, 

goods and service providers for their regions. 

1 The State of European Cities 2016: Cities leading the way to a better future (www.ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/en/policy/themes/urban-development/cities-report) 

2 OECD (2015), The Metropolitan Century: Understanding Urbanisation and its Consequences (www.oecd-ilibrary.org/urban-rural-and-regional-development/the-metropolitan-century_9789264228733-en) 



Foto: European Commission 

Corina Cretu 

European Commissioner 

for Regional Policy 

They have positive spill-over effects on the economic 

performance of surrounding regions that is measurable 

up to a distance of 200-300 kilometres. 2 Due to the 

dense and well-connected network of cities in Europe, 

cities in close proximity to other cities can become 

more productive than their size alone would predict. 

For instance, the joint smart specialisation strategy between 

Berlin and the surrounding region of Brandenburg 

thrives notably thanks to this. 

While innovation can happen anywhere, it occurs 

especially in highly urbanised areas, because of close 

interaction between companies themselves but also 

between companies and research and education institutes 

in culturally vibrant environments. Some of 

these cluster effects are stronger in large cities, but medium-sized 

cities can also offer such advantages. And 

networks of cities can provide the critical mass needed. 

Europe's dense city network is well connected to all 

regions and is thus a strong comparative advantage in 

the global context. Therefore Europe has to promote 

its cities as demonstrators of new innovative solutions 

for improving daily living conditions of their citizens, 

which will also inspire others. The Finnish "Six City 

Strategy" is such an inspiring example of the leverage 

effect of cooperation among cities on future oriented 

growth (see box). 

Our cities play a major role in building up the competitiveness 

of their regions and countries. Networks of 

cities have been a unique historical strength of Europe 

for trading goods and exchanging ideas that inspired 

new solutions for common challenges. Nowadays, we 

need networks of cities to be facilitators of strong specialised 

clusters and to connect companies and innovation 

communities to co-create new futures for their regions 

and Europe. The European Commission is ready 

to fully support them in this endeavour. In this respect 

the adoption in 2016 of the Urban Agenda for the European 

Union and its follow-up work through specific 

'partnerships' will provide the right framework to further 

spur innovation and growth but also inclusion and 

overall, sustainable urban development. 

EXAMPLE II: SIX CITIES IN FINLAND JOIN FORCES TO BECOME BETTER AND SMARTER 3 

The Six City Strategy (www.6aika.fi/in-english) enables six cities in Finland to experiment in a larger context than just one 

city with cooperative projects. The current project portfolio ranges from smart mobility, clean technologies and agile piloting, 

to creating development environments for product testing and boosting open data for 

business. The innovation communities/platforms are test-beds for companies, academia 

and other actors to run their research, product development and innovation in real-life 

settings. The total budget for 2014–2020 grows up to approx. 100 million euros. 

The Six City Strategy has three focus areas: open innovation platforms, open data and interfaces, 

and open participation and customership. Opening up public data has the potential to 

offer fuel for companies to make money with new apps and services. The six cities are harmonizing 

the ways their data is opened and released and are also working towards shared 

ways of offering customer service. For companies, this would mean a potential to scale up 

to a larger market. In the long run, the cities work towards reforming their public service 

structure, as well as a new mind-set when offering customer service to city residents. 

Foto: Metropolia UAS SOHJOA-projekt 

The European Business and Investment Magazine iconannual 51 

3 www.6aika.fi/in-english


CEI 

Foto: CEI 

Immediately after the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989, 

Italy, Austria, Hungary and the former Yugoslavia 

established – as it is known today – the Central 

European Initiative (CEI). Since its inception, the 

CEI has taken root, grown and finally blossomed into 

the largest and oldest regional intergovernmental forum, 

committed to supporting European integration 

through cooperation among its Member States and the 

European Union (EU). Currently counting eighteen 

Member States 1 , the CEI has become a recognised promoter 

of EU/non-EU-country partnership and regional 

cooperation. 

The CEI strategic objectives, outlined in the CEI 

Plan of Action, are focusing on supporting its Member 

States on their path towards European integration; 

promoting the alignment of the CEI Member States to 

EU standards; implementing small and medium-sized 

projects and converting constructive ideas into innovative 

results. In order to offer a solid contribution to 

European integration the CEI combines political dialogue 

(multilateral diplomacy) and project management, 

both as donor and recipient, while also bridging 

European macro-regions. Through its project-oriented 

working method, the CEI is also a flexible basis for 

regional cooperation of its Western Balkan countries 

and the three Eastern Partners (Belarus, Moldova 

and Ukraine). The CEI is paying special attention to 

its non-EU Member States’ need for capacity building 

through know-how transfer and exchange of experience 

with its EU countries, thus also providing sound 

evidence of the permanent validity of its mission in 

these difficult times of political turbulence and economic 

crisis. 

Central European 

Its unique geographical position makes the CEI the 

only regional international organisation connecting 

the Baltic, the Danube, the Adriatic-Ionian, the Black 

Sea and the Alpine regions. It is the only organisation 

providing a peer-to-peer environment for bridging experience 

and synergising the new added values of the 

macro-regional approach to the complexity of transnational 

governance and programming. 

Funds, Instruments & Figures: strategic 

approach to regional cooperation 

The CEI is a well-functioning intergovernmental machinery, 

our strong operational character and project-oriented 

approach, our manifold activities in 

various areas and initiatives to create a good business 

environment as well as our investment in a knowledge-based 

economy have served and are going to 

continue serving to increase the economic, social and 

territorial cohesion within our regional scope. 

In order to meet the strategic objectives for the benefit 

of its Member States, the CEI makes use of a variety 

of Funds and Instruments covering ten main areas 

of cooperation 2 : 

Our 25 year old partnership with the European 

Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is a 

real success-story in this regard, significantly contributing 

to strengthening CEI’s project-oriented dimension. 

The CEI Fund at the EBRD, towards which the 

1 CEI Member States and accession date: Albania (1996), Austria (1989), Belarus (1996), Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992), Bulgaria (1996), Croatia (1992), Czech Republic (1993), Hungary (1989), Italy (1989), 

Macedonia (1993), Moldova (1996), Montenegro (2006), Poland (1991), Romania (1996), Serbia (2000), Slovakia (1993), Slovenia (1992), Ukraine (1996) 

2 Transport and Logistics, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Climate and Rural Development, SMEs and Business Development, Research and Innovation, Life-long Education and Training, Information 

Society, Intercultural Cooperation, Media, Civil Society 



Botschafterin Dr. Margot Klestil-Löffler 

Alternate Secretary General 


Initiative: 28 years 

Foto: Vojtech Vlk 

Italian Government has solely made a total contribution 

of € 40.5 million, mainly provides grant-type assistance 

for specific components of Technical Cooperation 

(TC) projects. Since its inception, the Fund has 

provided more than € 25 million for funding more than 

130 TC assignments, mobilising € 4.8 billion of international 

investments in the countries of operations. For 

one euro spent on CEI Technical Cooperation, € 215 

had been invested by the EBRD and other IFIs. 

The CEI-EBRD partnership also aims at strengthening 

links within the business communities in 

CEI Member States in order to foster opportunities 

for commercial partnerships and co-investments as 

wellas compete for project-related contracts. Indeed, 

just one year ago the CEI has organized together 

with EBRD an International Conference under the 

title “Supporting Local Enterprises and SMEs along 

China’s Belt and Road Initiative in South Eastern Europe”. 

The event took place in Trieste and aimed at 

strengthening links within the business communities 

in CEI Member States in order to foster opportunities 

for commercial partnerships and co-investments as 

well as compete for project-related contracts with the 

Chinese business partners. 

Since 2004, the CEI Fund at the EBRD has also 

contributed a total of more than € 2.1 million to the 

Know-How Exchange Programme (KEP) supporting 

75 projects. 

As of 2007, the KEP has been also financed by Austria 

through an agreement with the Austrian Development 

Agency (ADA): it has so far committed around 

€ 730.000 for 26 projects. Poland had also contributed 

with € 50.000 to co-financed projects. 

To achieve the objectives outlined in its multi-annual 

Plan of Action, the CEI is also promoting result-oriented 

projects by participating in EU-funded 

programmes. We are proud of our records: 29 EU-funded 

projects, where the CEI operates both as Lead Partner 

and as a reliable, effective partner in key sectors of 

transnational cooperation, e.g. transport, science and 

innovation, renewable energy, cultural heritage, capacity 

building. This operational participation in the 

implementation of the EU policies is also the mainstream 

of our concrete ties with the European Commission 

as mandated by our Foreign Ministers. 

This CEI expertise in the implementation of transnational 

projects is very important in view of pursuing 

the goals of the EU macro-regional strategies and 

of the Eastern Partnership, where most of our countries 

are included. All macro-regional strategies have 

a role to play for the benefit of the CEI non-EU Member 

States. Bringing them closer to the European Union 

in a very consistent way to reach the strategic goal 

driving our activity. We are active in the EU Strategy 

for the Danube Region (EUSDR), we are contributing 

to the EU Strategy for the Adriatic - Ionian Macro-Region 

(EUSAIR) and to the Strategy for the Alpine Region 

(EUSALP). In the same time, we have also revitalised 

our collaboration with the Council of Baltic 

Sea States. 


European Fund for Strategic Investments 

Europe is facing 

huge domestic 

and foreign policy challenges 

For many, the European project that began with 

the signing of the Treaty of Rome 60 years ago is 

no longer a successful model for bringing former 

enemy states together, tearing down borders and 

promoting a prosperous economic area. 

A major reason for the dwindling support is that 

the European economy has yet to gain real momentum, 

years after the crisis. Growth is lukewarm and 

unemployment is high – particularly among young 

people – and Europe still has a huge investment gap 

of several hundred billion euros every year. 

The reason for this investment shortfall is a market 

failure. Persistent risk aversion and uncertain regulatory 

and economic environment prevents companies 

and investors from spending money on projects in the 

real economy. 

This is why, two years ago, the 

European Investment Bank (EIB) 

and the European Commission decided 

to launch an investment offensive 

based on three pillars: 

Firstly, the “European Fund for 

Strategic Investments”, or EFSI for 

short: under this guarantee facility, 

the EIB Group – comprising the 

EU bank and the European Investment 

Fund (EIF) – has committed 

to expanding its usual activities to 

strengthen the competitiveness of 

the European economy by supporting 

investments worth EUR 315bn 

by 2018. A substantial portion of 

these funds will support innovation 

and the digital agenda in Europe. 

Fotos: Katharina Schiffl 



Mag. Wilhelm Molterer 

Managing Director of the “European Fund for 

Strategic Investments”, Vice-President and 

Member of the Management Committee of 

the European Investment Bank 

The EIB Group is on track so far making use of the 

EFSI guarantee mechanism, which consists of commitments 

of EUR 21bn (EUR 16bn from the EU budget 

and EUR 5bn from the EU bank's reserves). EFSI enables 

the EIB and EIF to provide more risk capital to 

projects, reaching out to encourage private investors 

to participate. By the end of last year, around 420 

transactions were made possible with EFSI support, 

supporting total investments of over EUR 160bn. 

At the same time, all the investments must be economically, 

technically and environmentally viable. 

This is particularly applicable to infrastructure investment, 

which the public sector is currently unable 

to shoulder alone due to the need for fiscal consolidation. 

The EU bank will work together with the public 

sector and state-owned promotional banks to finance 

the implementation of infrastructure projects via public-private 

partnerships where this makes sense. 

The second pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe 

– a comprehensive advisory service dubbed the 

“European Investment Advisory Hub” – was launched 

at the same time as EFSI. 

In the past, promising ideas from project promoters 

and municipalities have often failed due to insufficient 

preparation of both financing and technical 

planning. This is countered by the new advisory 

iconvienna 2016: The audience is listening to keynote speaker Wilhelm 

Molterer and his topic "Purpose and context of the European Fund for 

Strategic Investments". 

service ensuring that investments are made possible 

where they are needed, whether it be in Calais, Naples 

or Duisburg. 

The third pillar of the Investment Plan is to make 

the regulatory environment more investment-friendly. 

The European Commission has put forward far-reaching 

proposals to boost the single market, especially in 

the digital, energy and capital market domains. 

The Investment Plan for Europe is currently a work 

in progress. The Commission has suggested increasing 

the current guarantee facility from EUR 21bn to 

EUR 33.5bn. This would put the EIB Group in a position 

to catalyse investments of over EUR 500bn within 

the EU by 2020. 

With this investment offensive, the EU has 

launched an initiative to strengthen the economy 

and deliver added value. After all, only a competitive, 

prosperous Europe with plentiful jobs will convince 

European citizens – but also our global partners – to 

turn back towards the European model for success. 


Global Impact Investing Foundation 

Impact 

Investing 

Mobilising 

capital to 

finance 

solutions for 

today’s 

challenges 

Impact investing is a relatively 

new sector within the financial 

services industry. 2014 was a 

breakthrough year for this segment, 

as several high-level publications 

have noted. The Rockefeller 

Foundation’s “The Power of Impact 

Investing” and “Impact Investment: 

The Invisible Heart of Markets”, 

a report by the Social Impact 

Investment Taskforce, are just two 

of them. Since then, the number of 

participants and amount of money 

in the sector has been growing rapidly. 

In 2015, the OECD’s “Social 

Impact Investment – Building the 

Evidence Base” report added a fra- 

mework for assessing the social impact 

investment market and highlighted 

the importance of further 

„There has been a steady increase in the number 

of social sector organisations that raise revenue 

through government contracts or by charging 

for services or products they supply. Equally 

remarkable is the number of entrepreneurial startups 

emerging that have social mission at the heart 

of their organisation and the variety of business 

models they use.” Social Impact Investing Taskforce, 2014. 



„ The world is on the brink of a 

revolution in how we solve society’s 

toughest problems. The force capable 

of driving this revolution is (social) 

impact investing, which harnesses 

entrepreneurship, innovation and 

capital to power social improvement.” 

Social Impact Investing Taskforce, 2014. 

international collaboration in developing global standards 

on definitions, data collection, impact measurement 

and evaluation of policies. In the same year, 

all 193 members of the United Nations agreed upon 

the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These 17 

goals and 169 associated targets are the core of the 

UN’s “2030 Agenda”, a new plan of action for people, 

planet and prosperity. Impact investing has the power 

to mobilise private capital for the achievement of the 

SDGs by financing entrepreneurs that offer solutions 

to the targets and thus creating real (social) impact. 

In light of these developments, Christian Kern, 

Chancellor of the Republic of Austria and Li Yong, 

Director General of UNIDO, signed a Joint Declaration 

last November to support the development of the 

Foto: Oskar Steimel 

impact investing sector within Austria. This is being 

achieved through the Global Impact Investing Foundation 

(GIIF), whose mission is to foster the development 

of impact investing and establish Vienna as its 

global hub. Furthermore, its activities will support 

the achievement of the SDGs. Members will include 

both individual countries from all over the world and 

international organisations supporting the mission. 

One of the numerous activities of GIIF is the Global 

Impact Investing Vienna Exchange (GIIVX), an online 

platform connecting impact investors with sustainable 

entrepreneurs meeting their investment requirements. 

Given the pressing challenges the world currently 

faces, such as hunger, the effects of climate change 

and unemployment, impact investing allows investors 

to ensure positive impact on people and the environment 

while also generating returns on investment. 

The evolution of impact measurement leading to a 

lean, objective and worldwide standard is needed to 

push this nascent industry to the next level. We are 

therefore cooperating with an international team of 

scientists and several industry experts on a new standard 

that will be presented at a global Impact Investing 

Conference in late 2017. For further details, please 

visit our websites www.giif.org and www.giivx. 

com, which are constantly updated, or get in touch 

directly with us. 


Leitbetriebe 

Industrie spielt 

Schlusselrolle fur 

die Energiewende 

• Großes Einsparungspotenzial durch Optimierung 

der Produktionsprozesse 

• Produktionsmaschinen werden zum Stromspeicher – 

Verschiebung der Verbrauchsspitzen in Phasen 

schwächerer Stromnachfrage 

• Steuerliche Investitionsanreize sind überfällig 

Fotos: Sabine Klimpt 

Die ausgezeichneten Leitbetriebe des Abends. 

Die Industrie spielt in Österreich eine Schlüsselrolle 

für die Erreichung der 2015 bei der 

Klimakonferenz in Paris festgelegten Klimaziele 

des Klimaschutzabkommens 2030. Nur 

wenn die Optimierungspotenziale in der industriellen 

Produktion bestmöglich und rasch genutzt 

werden, bestehe noch die Chance, die ambitionierten 

Einsparungsziele zu erreichen, waren sich die 

Experten bei der Fachveranstaltung „Energiewende 

in der Industrie“ von Leitbetriebe Austria einig. 

„Neben Verkehr und Wohnen kann die Industrie das 

dritte starke Standbein der Energiewende bilden. 

Das umfasst die Optimierung des Produktionsstandorts 

und der Maschinen sowie die Herstellung energieeffizienter 

Produkte“, betonte Leitbetriebe-Austria-Geschäftsführerin 

Monica Rintersbacher. „Die 

Klimaziele sind nicht irgendein statistischer Wert, 

sie sind eine Schlüsselfrage für uns alle. Die österreichischen 

Leitbetriebe sind sich Ihrer Verantwortung 

bewusst und in dieser Hinsicht Vorreiter. Weil 

es aber wichtig ist, dass diesen Vorbildern auch andere 

Unternehmen folgen, haben wir ökologische Verantwortung, 

Energieeinsparung und CO 2 

-Reduktion 

zu einem unserer Leitthemen für 2017 gemacht.“ 

Wie groß das Optimierungspotenzial im Hinblick 

auf Energieeffizienz ist, zeigt exemplarisch der 

Leitbetriebe-Austria-Netzwerkpartner Salvagnini 

Maschinenbau GmbH, an dessen Produktionsstandort 

Ennsdorf die Veranstaltung stattfand. Der weltweit 

tätige Spezialist für Blechbearbeitungsmaschinen 

wurde 2016 für seine Energiesparmaßnahmen 

mit dem klima-aktiv-Preis ausgezeichnet und gilt im 

Hinblick auf Klimaschutzanstrengungen als absoluter 

Vorzeigebetrieb. „Allein durch Standortmaßnahmen 

wie LED-Beleuchtungen, Heizung mit Wärmerückgewinnung 

oder Schnell lauf-Hallentore konnten wir 

230.000 kWh einsparen, aber das Potenzial im eigentlichen 

Produktionsprozess ist noch um ein Vielfaches 

größer“, erklärt Wolfgang Kunze, Salvagnini-Technikchef 

und Leiter des Standorts Ennsdorf. 

So konnte Salvagnini beispielsweise in seiner 

wichtigsten Produktionslinie binnen 17 Jahren den 

Energieverbrauch um 80 Prozent verringern und den 

Gesamtenergieverbrauch am Standort Ennsdorf in 

den vergangenen fünf Jahren trotz einer Steigerung 

der Produktionsmenge um rund 50 Prozent gleichzeitig 

um etwa neun Prozent reduzieren. Besonders stolz 

ist Salvagnini aber auf eine Innovation, die eigent- 



Pressekontakt Leitbetriebe Austria: 

M&B PR, Marketing, Publikationen 

Thomas Brey 

T: +43 (0)1 233 01 23-15 

M: +43 (0)676 542 39 09 

E: brey@mb-pr.at 

v.l.n.r: Martin Wagner – GF Verbund Solutions, Monica 

Rintersbacher – GF Leitbetriebe Austria, Wolfgang Kunze – 

Technikchef Salvagnini Maschinenbau & Christian Fuchs – 

Präsident ECL-OÖ EXPORT CLUB OBERÖSTERREICH 

lich primär zur Erhöhung der Betriebssicherheit 

entwickelt wurde: 

„Wir exportieren in zahlreiche 

Länder mit instabiler Stromversorgung. 

Für diese haben wir 

Maschinen entwickelt, die auch 

ohne Stromversorgung aus dem 

Netz weiterarbeiten können. Die 

Maschine selbst wird damit zum 

Stromspeicher und wir arbeiten 

daran, diese autonome Betriebszeit 

von derzeit einer Minute deutlich 

zu verlängern und damit auch die 

Möglichkeit zu schaffen, die Stromabnahme 

in Phasen geringer 

ÜBER LEITBETRIEBE 

AUSTRIA 

Leitbetriebe Austria ist die 

Exzellenz-Plattform von durch 

das Leitbetriebe Institut ausgezeichneten 

Vorzeigebetrieben 

der österreichischen Wirtschaft. 

Mit der Mission „Gemeinsam sind 

wir Marke“ repräsentieren die 

Leitbetriebe öffentlichkeitswirksam 

wertorientierte Ziele wie Innovation, 

Wachstum, Marktstellung 

und Mitarbeiterentwicklung. Das 

Netzwerk ist ein aktives Forum 

von Entscheidungsträgern zum 

Austausch auf „Augenhöhe“. 

www.leitbetriebe.at 

ÜBER VERBUND 

Verbund ist Österreichs führendes 

Stromunternehmen und einer 

der größten Stromerzeuger aus 

Wasserkraft in Europa. Verbund 

deckt rund 40 % des österreichischen 

Strombedarfs – mehr als 90 

% dieser Leistung stammen aus 

erneuerbarer Wasserkraft. Exakt 

auf das Bedürfnis und auf das Segment 

abgestimmt bietet Verbund 

verschiedene Stromprodukte für 

Haushalte, Gewerbe, KMUs und die 

Industrie an. 

www.verbund.at 

Netzbelastung zu verschieben.“ 

Dieser technischen 

Entwicklung misst 

auch Martin Wagner, 

Geschäftsführer der Verbund-Tochter 

Verbund 

Solutions, besonders hohe Bedeutung 

zu: „Das Thema Stromspeicher 

wird sowohl für Privatkunden, 

als auch für Industrieunternehmen 

immer wichtiger.“ Verbund bietet 

Stromspeicher zur Steigerung des 

Eigennutzungsgrades für private 

Photovoltaik-Anlagen bis hin zu 

Gewerbe- und Industrielösungen. 

Darüber hinaus treibt Verbund 

die Entwicklung neuer Produkte 

mit erneuerbaren Energien sowie 

neue Vermarktungsmöglichkeiten 

von Flexibilitäten ständig voran. 

„Dabei arbeiten wir gemeinsam 

mit Partnern aus der Industrie an 

innovativen und lukrativen Lösungen, 

die gleichzeitig die Stabilität 

des Stromnetzes stützen und 

damit die Versorgungssicherheit 

garantieren“. 

Einig sind sich Salvagnini-Chef 

Kunze und Verbund-Solutions-Geschäftsführer 

Wagner, 

dass die rasche Umsetzung der Energiewende 

in der Industrie dringend 

wirksame staatliche Investitionsanreize 

erfordert. In Frage 

kommen für Kunze insbesondere 

ein Investitionsfreibetrag für Investitionen 

in die Energieeffizienz 

oder eine „Abwrackprämie“ für 

energietechnisch veraltete Maschinen 

und Produktionsanlagen. 

ÜBER SALVAGNINI 

MASCHINENBAU GMBH 

Seit mehr als 50 Jahren entwirft, 

konstruiert und verkauft das italienische 

Unternehmen Salvagnini 

Maschinen und flexible Systeme für 

die Blechbearbeitung. Mit einem 

dichten Servicenetz mit 20 Filialen, 

die sich ausschließlich dem Verkauf 

und technischen Kundenservice 

widmen, und weiteren zehn 

Servicecentern mit spezialisiertem 

Fachpersonal ist Salvagnini weltweit 

tätig. Die Niederlassung in Ennsdorf 

mit ca. 350 Mitarbeitern ist das 

weltweit größte Kompetenzzentrum 

für das automatische Biegen und 

dazu die größte Produktionsstätte 

von Biegenzentren auf der Welt, 

mit fast 200 gefertigten Maschinen 

alleine im Jahr 2015. 

www.salvagnini.at 


Patentamt 

Foto: Österreichisches Patentamt 

PRIO 

Die provisorische Patentanmeldung 

Start-ups müssen bei der Gründung tausend 

Dinge auf einmal tun. Viele Gespräche mit 

vielen Partnern sind notwendig. Bevor die Innovationen 

öffentlich präsentiert und Werbung 

gemacht wird, ist es wichtig, an den Schutz geistigen 

Eigentums zu denken. Eine Patentanmeldung 

sichert das Geburtsdatum von Erfindungen. Patentanmeldungen 

müssen jedoch gut vorbereitet sein. Das 

braucht Zeit und Aufmerksamkeit. Denn alle Details 

müssen genau beschrieben und formelle Vorschriften 

beachtet werden. Schließlich muss ein Patent „Hand 

und Fuß" haben, um bestehen zu können. Das ist 

möglicherweise ein Dilemma. Erfinder/innen wissen 

zwar, was sie erfunden haben und besitzen auch eine 



„Start-ups stecken in einem echten 

Dilemma. Sie müssen viel über ihre 

Innovationen reden. Wie können sie 

sonst Investoren überzeugen? Dabei 

riskieren sie aber, dass ihre Idee 

geklaut wird. An den Schutz ihres 

geistigen Eigentums denken sie oft zu 

spät. Unsere neuen Angebote helfen, 

dieses Dilemma aufzulösen.“ 

Mag. Mariana Karepova 

Patentamtspräsidentin 

Foto: ÖPA/Johannes Zinner 

vollständige Dokumentation der technischen Details 

Ihrer Erfindung. Aber die Unterlagen entsprechen 

vielleicht noch nicht den formellen Anforderungen 

an eine reguläre Patentanmeldung. Vielleicht ist auch 

noch nicht entschieden, welche der beschriebenen Eigenschaften 

der neuen Entwicklung genau geschützt 

werden sollen, das heißt, die genaue Formulierung 

der Patentansprüche ist noch offen. Damit Erfinder/ 

innen trotzdem über die Innovation reden, pitchen 

und Investoren suchen können, bietet das Österreichische 

Patentamt jetzt eine zusätzliche Möglichkeit 

an: PRIO, die provisorische Patentanmeldung. 

Die Möglichkeiten mit PRIO: 

Auch wenn die – inhaltlich komplette – Beschreibung 

der Erfindung noch nicht formvollendet ist 

und beispielsweise die endgültige Formulierung der 

Ansprüche noch fehlt, können Sie trotzdem schon 

anmelden. PRIO sichert, wie bei einer regulären Patentanmeldung, 

das „Geburtsdatum" der Innovation 

– weltweit für 1 Jahr. Die eingereichten Unterlagen 

müssen so ausführlich sein, dass eine Durchschnittsfachfrau/ 

ein Durchschnittsfachmann die Erfindung 

nachvollziehen kann. Am besten ist es, wenn die 

PRIO-Anmeldung auch all das enthält, was Sie später 

über die Erfindung auf Ihrer Website, in Werbeprospekten 

oder bei sonstigen Präsentationen herzeigen 

werden. Nach Ihrer PRIO-Anmeldung haben Sie bis 

zu einem Jahr Zeit, um zu überlegen, ob Sie daraus 

eine reguläre Patentanmeldung machen wollen. Sie 

entscheiden, wie Sie PRIO nützen wollen – je nachdem, 

ob die Marktchancen gut sind, und ob Ihre Investorensuche 

erfolgreich war. PRIO kann jederzeit zu 

einer regulären Anmeldung upgegradet werden, oder 

es wird die Entscheidung getroffen, den Patentschutz 

für diese Lösung nicht weiter zu verfolgen. Damit Sie 

keine Fristen versäumen oder Zeit ungenützt verstreicht, 

begleiten Sie unsere Expert/innen während dieser 

zwölf Monaten mit Beratung, Hinweisen auf die 

Fristen und weiteren Informationen. 

Die Vorteile im Überblick: 

• Die Innovation liegt im "Safe". Der Prioritätstag – 

das international gültige "Geburtsdatum" – ist 

gesichert. 

• Amtlicher Nachweis gegenüber der Konkurrenz, 

dass die Innovation zu einem bestimmten Zeitpunkt 

gemacht wurde. 

• Zeitgewinn, da "patentkonforme" Formulierungen 

erst später notwendig sind. 

• Im Unterschied zur regulären Anmeldung, die zumindest 

€ 342 kostet, werden bei PRIO nur € 50 

verrechnet. Erst mit einem allfälligen Upgrade ist 

die restliche Recherchen- und Prüfungsgebühr* 

zu bezahlen. 

• Das, was Sie in Ihrer PRIO-Anmeldung beschrieben 

haben, können Sie bei Pitches, in der Werbung 

und bei Präsentationen zeigen – durch die Anmeldung 

haben Sie den amtlichen Beleg für Ihre Erfindung. 

Wie PRIO genau funktioniert, wer anmelden darf und 

was noch zu beachten ist finden Sie auf unserer Website 

www.patentamt.at 


Select USA 

Select USA − 

the world’s largest market. 

The United States offers the largest consumer market on earth 

with a GDP of $18 trillion and 325 million people. Household 

spending is the highest in the world, accounting for over a quarter 

of global household consumption. At the same time, free trade 

agreements with 20 other countries provide enhanced access to 

hundreds of millions of additional consumers – and the United 

States continues to work with foreign partners to increase 

opportunities for U.S. exporters. 

The U.S. consumer market 

is the most robust on the 

planet. In 2014, families 

purchased $11.5 trillion in 

goods and services, or more than a 

fourth of the entire world’s household 

consumption! 

The United States is also a 

leader in consumer goods market 

research, product innovation, 

manufacturing, and branding and 

marketing, and offers a highly 

skilled workforce. This lucrative 

open market is a powerful growth 

engine for companies of all sizes. 

Financial markets in the United 

States are the largest and most liquid 

in the world. In 2015, finance 

and insurance represented 7.2 percent 

(or $1.293 trillion) of U.S. gross 

domestic product. Leadership in 

this large, high-growth sector translates 

into substantial economic activity 

and direct and indirect job 

creation in the United States. 

Investment in the U.S. financial 

services industry offers significant 

advantage for financial firms. In 

2015, at least 128 of Fortune's Global 

500 companies have chosen to 

locate their headquarters in the 

United States to take advantage of 

its creative, competitive, and comprehensive 

financial services sector. 

The industry offers great array 

of financial instruments and products 

to allow consumer to manage 

risk, create wealth, and meet financial 

needs. 

The United States is renowned 

for innovative goods and services, 

high standards of quality, customer 

service, and sound business practices 

– giving U.S. exports a unique 

competitive edge. U.S.-based businesses 

are connected with 20 additional 

countries through free trade 

agreements, providing enhanced 

access to over 760 million consumers. 

And the United States does not 

put up barriers: according to the 

World Bank, no other country has 

more rapid export procedures. 

Many foreign investors recognize 

the value offered by the 

United States as an export platform. 

The U.S. affiliates of foreign 

companies export US$425 billion 



Foto: istockphoto.com 

worth of goods -- more than one-quarter of all U.S. 

goods exports. 

The United States is consistently ranked among 

the best internationally for its overall competitiveness 

and ease of doing business. Backed by a regulatory 

environment that is particularly conducive to 

starting and operating a business, U.S. business culture 

encourages free enterprise and competition. The 

United States welcomes free enterprise and encourages 

economic growth – a new business is born about 

every minute. From location to business structure, it 

is entirely up to each investor how they would like 

to form a business in the United States. Additionally, 

while the procedures for incorporating and registering 

a business varies by state/territory, the process is 

typically straightforward, fast, and inexpensive. 


Novomatic 

NOVOMATIC 

continues its 

international 

growth strategy 

The NOVOMATIC Group continues 

to expand and for the first time 

ever achieves combined revenues 

of more than 4 billion EUR. 

As Europe’s leading gaming technology group, 

NOVOMATIC once again wowed visitors this 

year with the largest stand at the International 

Casino Exhibition ICE Totally Gaming, the most 

important international gaming exhibition, held February 

7-9, 2017 in London. On a surface area of approximately 

4,700 m², a total of 25 group companies presented 

the NOVOMATIC Group’s comprehensive product portfolio. 

The offer at the NOVOMATIC exhibition ranged 

from casino equipment, systems and cash management 

solutions to arcade and pub products and sports betting, 

lotteries and online, mobile and social gaming. 

“With this trade show appearance, NOVOMATIC 

once again proves that as a full-service provider we are 

among the world’s leading gaming technology groups,” 

added Mr. Neumann, CEO of NOVOMATIC AG, at a 

press conference at the ICE event in London. 

ICE – now in its 23 rd edition – prided itself on combining 

land-based and interactive under one roof and 

NOVOMATIC’s expansive stand enables the Group to 

demonstrate its leading Omni-channel solutions in 

every segment of the international gaming space. Split 

into distinct sections, visitors will be taken on a 360° 

journey through the world of NOVOMATIC, culminating 

in the traditional hospitality area with a selection 

of Austrian foods and drinks. 

Harald Neumann said: “As we are heading into 

another exciting year for NOVOMATIC and for the 

international gaming industry, stakeholders, decision 

makers and gaming experts all gather at ICE Totally 

Gaming in London where the NOVOMATIC 

Group again took pride of place with a 360-degree gaming 

experience that covered all aspects of modern gaming.” 

Growing success 

According to Mr. Neumann, preliminary calculations 

indicate that in fiscal year 2016, Gumpoldskirchen-based 

NOVOMATIC AG was able to outpace the 

previous year’s record results by another 10 percent to 

reach a total of approximately 2.3 billion EUR. The combined 

Group revenues, including the two Swiss sister 

holding companies Gryphon Invest AG and ACE Casino 

Holding AG, is expected to increase to 4.4 billion EUR. 

This revenue growth was mainly achieved in the core 

markets of Great Britain, Germany, Spain and Italy. The 

NOVOMATIC Group, furthermore, had 28,974 employees 

worldwide at the end of 2016 – an increase of approximately 

15 percent over the previous year. 

Ongoing expansion 

In 2017, the technology group will focus on expanding 

its market position, particularly in South America, 

the US, Australia and Asia. The acquisition of a majority 

stake in the Australian company Ainsworth Game 

Technology offers an important lever for the development 

of these markets. NOVOMATIC and Ainsworth 

have been working together to complete this merger 


Innovation 

NOVOMATIC presents the 360° gaming experience at the 

ICE Totally Gaming, the industry’s leading gaming exhibition 

Foto: www.sebastianphilipp.com 

since receiving approval of the minority shareholders 

in June 2016. NOVOMATIC CEO Harald Neumann is 

looking forward to the future collaboration: “In this 

short time, we have already made significant progress 

and begun the strategic planning process for our joint 

future after NOVOMATIC becomes Ainsworth’s majority 

shareholder.” In February, Ainsworth appointed 

Mr. Neumann as “Non-Executive Member of the 

Board”. Both companies are currently in the process 

of obtaining the approval of various gaming authorities 

required for the completion of the acquisition. 

NOVOMATIC is also very pleased with its development 

as a technology supplier. The company recently 

entered into a five-year contract with the Greek lottery 

company OPAP (as of February 2017, the Sazka Group, 

a Czech consortium that also holds a share in Casinos 

Austria AG, is OPAP’s majority shareholder with 

a stake of 33 percent). With revenues of more than 1.4 

billion EUR in 2015, OPAP is the leading gaming company 

in Greece and Europe's fifth largest lottery operator. 

Starting in 2018, NOVOMATIC will be providing 

its innovative and secure Omni-channel platform for 

all OPAP lottery games. 

Further, the British competition authority CMA 

(Competition Markets Authority) recently gave the 

green light for the acquisition of the English company 

Talarius. With this acquisition, NOVOMATIC is now 

the largest operator in the segment of adult gaming 

centers in the UK. 

ABOUT NOVOMATIC 

The NOVOMATIC Group is one of the biggest international 

producers and operators of gaming technologies and 

employs around 29,000 staff worldwide. Founded by 

entrepreneur Professor Johann F. Graf in 1980, the Group 

has locations in more than 50 countries and exports hightech 

electronic gaming equipment and solutions to 80 

countries. The Group operates more than 260,000 gaming 

terminals in its some 1,800 plus gaming operations as well 

as via rental concepts. 

Through its numerous international subsidiaries the 

NOVOMATIC Group is fully active in all segments of the 

gaming industry and thus offers a diversified Omni-channel 

product portfolio to its partners and clients around the 

world. This product range includes land-based gaming 

products and services, management systems and cash 

management, online/mobile and social gaming solutions as 

well as lottery and sports betting solutions together with a 

range of sophisticated ancillary products and services. 

Foto: Novomatic 


Monitoring systems 

for user-friendly short and long-term measurements 

HBM offers a complete solution for your measurement task. 

For choosing and installing the individual measurement technology components or for planning and starting 

up the measurement setup, including suitable training – HBM is your partner. 

Transducers 

■ 

■ 

■ 

■ 

■ 

■ 

■ 

Displacement, strain, crack width 

Oscillation, acceleration 

Tilt, sinking 

Temperature, humidity 

Analog current / voltage sensors 

Digital inputs / outputs 

Fiber-Optic Sensor Technology 

Measurement signal conditioning with QuantumX 

■ Stand-alone data recording 

■ Scalable as a group of devices, allows for flexible setup and 

works synchronously 

■ Can be used in stationary or mobile applications 

■ Offers high measurement quality by compensating for line 

lengths and interference frequencies as well as high EMC 

stability and cyclical auto-adjustment. 

■ Threshold monitoring 

Further information: www.hbm.com/civil-engineering 

HBM Test and Measurement ■ Tel. + 43 1 865 8441-0 ■ info@at.hbm.com ■ www.hbm.at ■ www.argos-systems.eu

Lyoness 

Innovation 

Smart shopping in 

world of 

the 

Lyoness 

The globally active Shopping 

Community Lyoness has reassembled 

it self over the last two years. With the relaunch 

of the Cashback App, the company 

is breaking new ground in the digital world. 


Since its foundation in 2003, 

Lyoness has gone on to become 

one of the world's largest 

international shopping 

communities. During the development 

of an extensive and versatile 

Merchant network for its Members, 

Lyoness attaches great value to a solid 

mix of chain stores, online shops 

and especially SMEs. It is important 

to Lyoness that the economy in 

the regions is strengthened. 

The Shopping Community is 

now active in 47 countries. The 

seven million Members can shop 

at 70,000 Loyalty Merchants and 

make use of attractive benefits: For 

they will receive up to 5% Cashback 

and can also collect Shopping 

Points for every purchase made at a 

Lyoness Loyalty Merchant. Lyoness 

provides added value not only to its 

Members, but to the companies as 

well. With the Cashback Solutions, 

Lyoness has created a professional 

customer loyalty program specifically 

for the SME sector. Thus, 

small and medium-sized enterprises 

can attract new and loyal customers 

in an efficient manner and simultaneously 

save on 

advertising and marketing 

costs. The B2B 

options are extremely 

attractive for SMEs: 

It is now possible for 

them to gain Lyoness 

Loyalty Merchants 

as customers and 

to receive Cashback 

when making 

purchases for their 

company at those Loyalty 

Merchants. 

Digitally linked with the 

Cashback App 

In order to make the shopping experience 

even more attractive for its 

Members, Lyoness has launched an 

improved version of its innovative 

Cashback App, which is available 

worldwide as both Android and 

iOS versions. The app offers a location-based 

Loyalty Merchant search 

including a distance indicator and 

a current overview of the amount 

of personal Cashback as well as 

the number of collected Shopping 

Points. In addition, Shopping Point 

Deals can be redeemed via the App 

and shaking the smartphone brings 

about the barcode of the personalised 

Cashback Card, thereby allowing 

the card to be with you wherever 

you go. 

Registering to Lyoness is completely 

free of charge as well as non-binding. 

Further information can be 

found at Lyoness.com 


Elk 

erfolgreich bei 

ELKMotels und Hotels 

Ein großes Produktportfolio, eine starke Fokussierung auf die 

Kunden, laufende Innovationen bei Häusern und Haustechnik 

sowie höchste Qualität haben ELK zu einer bekannten Größe 

im Fertighausbau gemacht. Neben Einzelkunden setzen auch 

immer mehr Business-Partner auf die Kompetenz des Waldviertler 

Familienunternehmens. So gibt es mittlerweile schon 

mehr als 20 Nächtigungsbetriebe, die ELK realisiert hat. 

Foto:s ELK Fertighaus Gmbh 

Das prägnante Logo mit dem 

Elch ist untrennbar mit dem 

Fertighausbau verbunden. 

Das überrascht nicht, denn 

das innovative Familienunternehmen 

ELK hat schon für tausende Familien 

ein Haus fürs Leben gebaut. 

Das Hausangebot ist vielfältig 

und das garantiert, dass es für jeden 

Wohnwunsch und jede Familie 

ein passendes Haus gibt. Ob 

ebenerdiger Bungalow, ein günstiges 

Haus für Jungfamilien oder ein 

individuell nach Kundenwunsch 

realisiertes Domizil – ELK ist der 

richtige Partner für den Hausbau.

Innovation 

INNOVATIV und ENERGIESPAREND 

Eine große Stärke von ELK sind ständige Innovationen, 

sei es bei Architektur, Ausstattung oder Haustechnik. 

Vor einigen Jahren ging das niederösterreichische 

Unternehmen daran, die Energieeffizienz von 

Häusern zu verbessern, mit starker Wärmedämmung 

und zukunftsweisender Haustechnik. 

ERFOLGREICH im HOTELBAU 

Auch im Motel- und Hotelbau punktet ELK mit perfektionierter 

Ausführung, Technik und Logistik, kurzer 

Bauzeit sowie niedrigen Kosten. So gibt es mittlerweile 

mehr als 20 von ELK geplante, produzierte 

und errichtete Hotels bzw. Motels. Alle Standorte 

und alle Infos zu Motels und Hotels von ELK findet 

sich unter www.elkmotel.at 


Institute of Science and Technology Austria 

The Institute of Science and Technology Austria 

(IST Austria) is an international, PhD-granting, 

interdisciplinary research institution dedicated 

to cutting-edge basic research in the life sciences, 

physics, math, and computer sciences and 

training the next generation of scientists. 

IST Austria 

Training the next 

generation of 

scientists 

An ecosystem for science and career development 

One of IST Austria’s main objectives is to help outstanding 

scientists to successfully climb the steps of a meaningful 

career. Emphasis is put on supporting career 

development on all stages of an international scientific 

career ranging from internship programs and PhD 

studies to Tenure Track professorships and promotion 

to Full Professors after international external Tenure 

evaluation. The multi-disciplinary US-style Graduate 

School provides depth and breadth of a modern, interdisciplinary 

PhD education. 

Scientific quality and promise as hiring criteria 

Effective recruiting ensuring scientific quality and 

potential is the only key to sustainable success on all 

career levels at IST Austria. Applications are accepted 

from all scientific fields currently present: Biology, 

Neuroscience, Mathematics, Physics, and Computer 

science. Scientists are integrated in world-class multidisciplinary 

research, with close interactions with 

colleagues from different fields (through shared facilities, 

joint projects, and events). IST Austria aims to 

break down the traditional boundaries between disciplines 

and fosters both theoretical and experimental 

research, with an emphasis on close and meaningful 

collaborations between the two camps. 

ISTplus Postdoc Program – Horizon 2020 MSCA 

COFUND 

With the implementation of the ISTplus program IST 

Austria also wants to break new grounds for the advancement 

of scientific careers on the postdoctoral level. 

No matter if postdocs stay in research (academia 

or industry), or go into management (founding small 

companies, running big companies), or into the public 

sector (science administration, policy advice) – international 

recruitment based on excellence and diversity 

combined with the specific research and training 

program will lead to successful alumni in all of these 

fields. As a coherently integrated program with strong 

monitoring, evaluation and follow-up, it offers two-year 

fellowships for highly qualified, incoming postdocs 


Innovation 

The ISTplus Program has received funding from the European 

Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under 

the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 754411. 

featuring an open, bottom-up 

international recruiting 

process, truly interdisciplinary 

research 

options, a Targeted Competence 

Building program, 

and a secondment scheme 

with an intersectoral network 

of partners. 

Cross-boundary network 

The ISTplus postdoc program is a first step in a longer-term 

undertaking to establish close interaction 

and cross-fertilization between stakeholders from 

different sectors. As a consequence the program will 

be carried out with a partner network, incl. SMEs, applied 

research companies, organizations in the field of 

tech transfer and science education, and commercial 

enterprises. A secondment scheme will kick-start and 

facilitate cross-boundary networking and translational 

research. Fellows will be supported in the choice 

Fotos: IST Austria/Nadine Poncioni 

of the right partner, in setting up a research plan, and 

may opt for an extension of the fellowship for up to 

six months to enable intersectoral mobility. Various 

events, workshops, trainings, and further activities in 

the area of tech transfer will cultivate an open-minded 

entrepreneurial spirit among program participants. 

Fellows planning to pursue intersectoral co-operations 

even after their fellowships will be given the option 

to do so by applying to the internally funded one-year 

TWIST-fellowship. 

Translation to economy 

The project to build a science and technology park for 

research-intensive enterprises adjacent to the IST Austria 

campus is one of the key actions to establish an 

innovative ecosystem at and around its campus. The 

completion of the first buildings is expected for 2018. 

Already now, IST Austria rents out office space to future 

residents of the tech park, that are interested in the 

research fields present at IST Austria. Thus frequent 

and direct interaction with stakeholders from different 

sectors happens naturally and on a daily basis. 

IST Austria was established by the federal government 

of Austria and the state government of Lower Austria and 

was inaugurated in 2009. Following the implementation of 

the ambitious development plan, about 90 research groups 

will be working in a highly modern environment by 2026, 

modeled after international examples such as the Max 

Planck institutes, ETH Zurich, and the Weizmann Institute of 

Science. President of IST Austria is Thomas A. Henzinger, a 

leading computer scientist and AAAS, ACM and IEEE Fellow. 

www.ist.ac.at 


Osterreichischer Stadtebund 

Smart Cities: 

Transformation, 

Transition, 

Change. 

These are very interesting 

times for cities. During the 

last decades, cities constantly 

gained greater attention. 

Urbanisation is no longer a 

new trend – it is a fact. 

Cities like Vienna grow double the amount of 

people that have been predicted and to cope 

with that, the city is in constant change. In the 

US „change“ is associated with a quite positive 

meaning: Change is good, change smells like future. 

In Europe, it is not that easy when it comes to change. 

Nonetheless we all are aware of the need to cope with 

it. So for the last years, the cities political and administrative 

representatives intensely engaged themselves in 

opportunities and threads of the digitalization process 

that arose around the „Smart Cities Initiative“. 

During the ongoing research on e-mobility services 

automotive driving brought another significant twist 

into this discussion. And along came once again the 

question: When it comes to accidents - shall machines 

decide who will be saved and who not? This is the 

most serious of all previous „smart-up your life“ discussions. 

Local politicians are in the middle of this 

process. It has never been an easy job but with a more 

complex world, it has grown into a huge challenge. The 

Austrian Association of Cities and Towns (AACT) has 

been founded to represent the interests of Austria`s 

municipalities. It is a platform, where city representatives 

exchange their experiences and knowledge and 

formulate united efforts. This year the AACT`s General 

Assembly concentrates on the topic „To think the city 

anew – To master digitalisation“ 1 . 

Looking back, when it comes to mobility, things 

seem quite clear today: Our cities suffer from congestion 

and particulates and digitalisation is providing 

the much-needed intelligent solution. In Vienna congestion 

causes a damage of Euros 300.000,- per day, 

but digitalisation clearly proofed to be a helpful tool to 

shift people`s mobility behaviour. 

Another relevant topic for European cities is online 

trade: We`ve already undermined our historical city 

structure by car-concentrated outskirt shopping malls. 

Nowadays, e-commerce is most popular, 56% of the 

consumers confirm to already buy online 2 . 

Last but not least, a recent study says that during the 

next 30 years, 43 percent of all EU-Jobs will be automatized. 

3 In Austria, only 12 percent of working people 

expect more jobs through digitalization, sceptics are 

1 www.staedtetag.at 

2 www.pressebox.de/inaktiv/kpmg-ag-wirtschaftspruefungsgesellschaft/KPMG-Umfrage-Digitalisierung-und-Vernetzung-verschaerfen-Wettbewerb/boxid/627648 -> 

3 Presse am Sonntag, 20.11.2016, Seite 4, Ausland 


Future Cities 

Smart Shuttles in Sitten, 

Switzerland 

Foto: Joel Kernasenko 

Foto: PostAuto Schweiz 

Digitalisation has reached the cities 

sure that 20 percent of all jobs will be lost. 4 

Experiences and polls are one way to ponder, another 

is applied research. And there are some extreme 

examples: In the US, actually a city for 35.000 people is 

being built for research purpose only. But what results 

will research without real-life-users bring? 

Cities as well as citizens have always proofed to be 

adaptable. The tramway once replaced carriages, and 

where automotive driving will lead us. In Austria 60 

percent of the people think that advantages prevail, 

when it comes to technological innovation. 5 So, sceptic 

or not: We all are more or less fascinated by new inventions 

that seem to come straight out of a Science Fiction 

movie. And cities want and have to be partners in this 

innovation process. While economy and research can 

only concentrate on the solution of a specific part or 

problem in one`s life – the people behind „the City“ 

have the responsibility to ensure a sound structure of 

public services and a good quality of life. 

There are no easy decisions, when it comes to 

change. Beate Hollbach-Grömig, expert for Trade at the 

German Institute for Urbanism (difu) recently raised 

red flags: Online trade is „ruinous for city centers“. 

Reals costs and ecological stress are being neglected. 

One solution for city centers might be digitalisation itself, 

like online platforms for local shops and Apps for 

online grocery shopping and delivery. But the expert 

closes her speech with good reason as follows: „Cities 

are attractive because of their (historical) structure and 

atmosphere.“ That’s their unique selling proposition. 

Throughout all necessary transition, transformation 

and change we should not forget about that. 

4 & 5 Marketagent.com (im Auftrag der DBT), www.it-press.at/presseaussendung/IKT_20160520_IKT0009/oesterreicher-erwarten-arbeitsplatzverluste-durch-digitalisierung-bild 


Austrian Institute of Technology 

At AIT, models are being 

developed on how urban 

centers of tomorrow can be 

simulated, planned and ultimately 

realized. 

Our services 

Developing tools in order to: 

• understand network interaction 

and support city planning 

• efficiently identify energy losses 

in the cities 

• visualize the effectiveness of 

CO 2 

reduction measures 

• reduce energy consumption in 

urban areas 

• increase the safety of the population 

and maintain water quality. 

Foto: Johannes Zinner/AIT 

Prof. Dr. Reinhard König, 

Senior Scientist at the Center 

for Energy, Sustainable 

Buildings and Cities, Austrian 

Institute of Technology 

„ Thanks to Design Space 

Exploration, we are 

developing models that 

provide an important 

basis to arrive at fast 

compromise solutions 

for complex urban 

planning issues.“ 

Our work 

According to UN Habitat estimates, 

about 3 million people around the 

world are moving to urban centers 

every week – the proportion of the 

urban population will thus further 

increase in the coming decades 

and rise to about 70 percent by 

2050. This, however, also leads to 

increasing social and ecological 

challenges as cities are already 

one of the main causes of climate 

change. They consume about twothirds 

of the total energy and thus 

also account for a large part of CO 2 

emissions. Urban spaces are a very 

complex system in regards to their 

structure and networks, whose 

physical, social, technological and 

economic development depends on 

the interactions between the public 

sector, businesses, politicians 

and citizens of the city, but also on 

the interaction with the city surroundings 

and with other cities. 

Developing livable, resource-conserving 

and low-emission cities therefore 

requires special concepts, 

procedures, processes and tools to 

be deployed in a complex interplay 

with stakeholders. 


Future Cities 

Planning the cities 

of tomorrow 

A smart city comes to life: 

the lakeside city of Aspern 

is an interdisciplinary 

research project with 

AIT participation. 

Foto: Lukas Lang 

Simulation models startng 

with the green meadow 

AIT therefore designs simulation 

models that open the door to 

an analysis of the questions posed 

and create solutions – always 

doing so in a highly complex, interdisciplinary 

context and with 

the clear goal of conflict resolution. 

Measuring and interpreting 

behavior 

The findings are relevant to the 

developers and providers of future 

metropolitan centers to be able to 

provide effective solutions as well 

as to urban decision-makers in order 

to be able to invest in the most 

promising measures for achieving 

social and urban planning objectives. 

City planners are forced to 

create structures that are as resilient 

as possible and will not be 

completely obsolete 10 years down 

the road. Therefore, AIT can generate 

different variants at the push 

of a button which significantly 

support the relevant decision-making 

processes. 

Complexity science hub 

The Complexity Science Hub in 

Vienna is a showcase project for 

the interplay between research 

institutes and innovative companies 

for smart cities in which concepts 

for urban development are 

being developed by the Technical 

University of Vienna and AIT 

on an interdisciplinary basis. For 

only multi-modal, holistic and 

cross-sectoral solutions will make 

it possible for cities to remain viable 

and “smart” in the future. In 

order to accelerate a comprehensive 

implementation of smart city 

concepts, scientific methods are 

being developed that allow the 

handling of complex questions in 

this interdisciplinary context. 


MA 23 _ Wirtschaft Arbeit und Statistik 

What is a future city? A quick 

web search seems to provide a 

simple answer: cities of the future 

are characterised by constant 

growth, a booming tourism industry, 

high quality of life, low prices, 

a competitive economy, perfect 

infrastructure, political stability 

and a cosmopolitan attitude. 

Mag. Elisabeth Unger 

Dezernat Forschung, Technologie und Innovation 

MA 23 - Wirtschaft, Arbeit und Statistik 

Future cities 

as hubs for growth 

Their population is highly 

educated, open-minded, mobile, 

creative and diverse. 

Of course, everything about 

these cities is smart, innovative, 

resource-efficient and socially responsible. 

Most probably, to be honest, no 

single city in the world has all of 

these characteristics, but some cities 

can clearly be associated with at 

least part of them. 

What about Vienna? In terms of 

tourism and quality of life, the Austrian 

capital certainly meets the criteria. 

Vienna is among the world’s 

most highly rated cities in areas 

like cultural life, infrastructure 

and innovation. It tops the Mercer 

survey on quality of living in international 

cities on a regular basis. To 

keep this status in the future, the 

Vienna City Administration has 

committed to the Smart City Wien 

concept for an intelligent, sustainable 

and opportunity-oriented city 

of the future. Its key focus is on ensuring 

and further improving the 

city’s ecological, economic and social 

performance. At the same time, 

demographic change, new patterns 

of employment and consumption, 

technological progress and the 

greening economy have considerable 

impact on cities like Vienna. 

After all, Vienna is a fast-growing, 

young and multicultural city. 

With a population of 1.9 million, 

projected to reach the two million 

mark in a few years, it is currently 

the sixth largest EU city. Its historical 

background and central location 

at the heart of Europe make it 

an attractive business location and 

a magnet for people from the German 

speaking parts of Europe, the 

surrounding regions and countries. 

Immigration from the Middle East 

is also on the increase. 

With over 195,000 students – 

more than in Berlin or Munich – 

Vienna is now the biggest university 

city in the German-speaking 

countries. Around a quarter of the 

city’s enrolled students come from 

abroad. Knowledge, research and its 

application in the form of new technologies 

and innovative products 

or processes form the basis for the 

city’s successful future. Vienna is 

among the top ICT cities in Europe, 

with a strong service sector focusing 

mainly on leading-edge technology. 


Future Cities 

Foto: Peter Burgstaller 

As a city of university education 

and services, Vienna stimulates the 

creation of new jobs in future-oriented 

sectors like ICT, life sciences 

and other R&D intensive fields. The 

number of businesses conducting 

research has tripled over the past 

15 years. More than 40,000 people 

are currently employed in research 

and development, and the number 

of jobs in this sector is projected to 

increase sustainably. R&D spending 

as a percentage of the gross regional 

product is yet another indicator for 

a location’s knowledge focus; with 

currently 3.6%, Vienna is among 

the top regions in Europe in this 

regard. Furthermore, Vienna has 

a very favourable efficiency score: 

in terms of labour productivity, Vienna 

is among the top 10 first-tier 

metropolitan regions, and efficiency 

has been rising faster over the 

medium term than could be expected 

against the backdrop of convergence 

trends in the urban system. 

Nevertheless, Vienna’s success story is not only 

based on its economic strength. High quality of living 

also means that everybody who lives in the city should 

be able to participate in social life in accordance with 

their own needs and preferences. This applies to all 

spheres of life – the labour market, cultural offers, educational 

facilities etc. Insecurities and uncertainties 

caused by social change and, in particular, by fastpaced 

technological change must be taken seriously 

and require targeted measures to tackle these challenges 

(e.g. information, further education and training, 

support and assistance). Vienna’s claim that no one 

should be left behind is also laid down in the city’s 

economic policy guidelines. 

In summary: can Vienna be called a future city? Its 

excellent quality of living, high ecological standards, 

economic success, social stability and forward-looking, 

innovation-friendly policies certainly speak a clear language. 

The Austrian capital has always been known for 

its optimistic outlook on the future, its generally positive 

attitude towards new developments, and its willingness 

to take an active part in these changes. All in 

all, the conclusion is clear: when talking about future 

cities, there are many good reasons to count Vienna in. 

Foto: Christian Jobst 

Foto: Peter Burgstaller 


Kommunalkredit Austria 

Paradigm shift in 

infrastructure financing 

The environment for infrastructure 

financing in Europe has 

changed drastically in recent 

years. This has resulted in a 

paradigm shift. 

As governments have hit the 

debt ceiling – currently, the 

national debt of 17 out of 28 

EU Member States exceeds 

the Maastricht limit of 60% of GDP 1 – 

the financing of infrastructure investments 

has become increasingly 

difficult. This has led, in turn, to a 

shift from budget financing to project 

financing. Moreover, new regulatory 

provisions for banks are 

making it more difficult for them 

to hold long-term assets, and the 

costs of long-term lending have increased 

significantly. At the same 

time, the historically low level of 

capital market yields is compelling 

investors to broaden their investment 

universe. 

In this environment, infrastructure 

investments represent an attractive 

asset class that is likely to 

generate stable cash flows in the 

long term, with institutional investors 

benefiting from a more favourable 

regulatory treatment of 

equity than in the case of corporate 

investments. 

Demand for infrastructure investments 

is high, especially in the 

energy and transport sectors; according 

to estimates by the European 

Investment Bank (EIB), approx. 

EUR 2,000 billion 

2 in capital 

expenditure will 

be required within 

the European 

Union (EU) 

during the period 

up to 2020, 

not counting 

other important 

sectors such 

as waste, waste 

water and social 

infrastructure. 

Special schemes, 

such as the Juncker 

Plan initiated 

in 2015 (European 

Fund for 

Strategic Investments 

/ EFSI), 

Alois Steinbichler 

Chairman of the Executive Board 

of Kommunalkredit Austria 

through which public and private 

investments in the real economy in 

a volume of at least EUR 500 billion 3 

are to be mobilized over a period of 

three years, are intended to help 

meet this demand and stimulate 

economic activity. 

Kommunalkredit Austria has 

positioned itself as an expert in public-sector-related 

infrastructure 

project business. 

The bank acts as 

a bridge between 

project sponsors 

requiring structuring 

and financing 

solutions, 

on the one hand, 

and institutional 

investors 

(insurance companies, 

invest- 

Foto: Petra Spiola 

ment funds, etc.) 

looking for investment 

opportunities, 

on the 

other hand. The 

bank’s direct focus 

is on project 

1 Public Debt, Austrian Economic Chamber: European Commission, OECD, November 2016. 

2 Private Infrastructure Finance and Investment in Europe, EIB 2013. 

3 Strengthening European Investments for Jobs and Growth: Towards a second Phase of the European Fund for strategic Investments and a new European external Investment Plan, European Commission, 

September 2016. 


International Finance & Projects 

structuring and the financing of the construction phase, 

whereas long-term finance for the operational phase 

is provided, above all, by institutional investors, who 

tend to focus increasingly on asset classes with stable 

cash flows. In this context, public-sector-related infrastructure 

projects are an attractive target segment. 

Serving a broad customer base in Austria and the 

European core countries, Kommunalkredit concentrates, 

above all, on projects in the sectors of 

• social infrastructure (care homes, health care and 

educational institutions, 

administrative 

buildings), 

• transport (commuter 

transport, road and rail 

transport), and 

• energy & environment 

(sustainable sources of 

energy). 

Kommunalkredit covers 

the entire value 

chain, i.e. project consulting, 

project structuring 

and, in particular, financing 

of the construction 

phase. In an effort to meet the demand for project 

finance more effectively, given the limited financial 

latitude allowed to public budgets due to the need for 

budget consolidation, the bank also offers alternative 

forms of finance, e.g. models of availability-based 

compensation. 

The availability model is well suited for public-sector 

projects, such as the construction and/or renovation 

of public facilities, e.g. schools or kindergartens, as 

it provides a framework not only for the construction 

of the facility, but also for its continuous availability 

over a certain contract term. The facility is planned, 

financed, built and operated by a special purpose company 

under private law on behalf of the public-sector 

principal and in cooperation with a private partner. 

Thus, availability models go beyond pure financing, 

as they also constitute a method of procurement. The 

expertise of private partners is used to limit the risk 

for the public-sector principal. Thus, the private partner 

assumes not only the construction risk, but also 

the risk of limited availability, as the compensation 

to be paid by the public sector-client depends on the 

fulfilment of a previously agreed set of specifications. 

Except for the availability compensation, models of 

this type do not count for the European System of Accounts 

(ESA) and the Maastricht criteria. 

Graph: Availability model for the construction and maintenance of a school 

Kommunalkredit’s bridge function consists in its 

ability to structure projects in cooperation with public-sector 

principals and private partners, to design 

a financing structure, to raise funds for the construction 

phase and to cover long-term refinancing during 

project operation together with institutional investors, 

such as pension funds or insurance companies. 

These are ideal prerequisites for an accelerated implementation 

of infrastructure projects. On this basis, 

Kommunalkredit has been involved in a number of 

infrastructure projects, such as the construction of 

a new building for a government ministry, a road rehabilitation 

and lighting project, and a credit facility 

for the renovation of a school building, all within the 

framework of availability models, in several European 

countries. 



Private Equity Partners 

Während Ihr Unternehmen Finanzierung für Betriebsmittel und 

Arbeitskapital erwerben kann, ziehen bis dato Markeninvestitionen 

selten das Interesse der Finanzwirtschaft auf sich. 

Die Zukunft Europas hängt 

allerdings am geistigen Eigentum 

und hier besonders 

an den vielen starken und 

wertvollen Marken, die noch viel 

besser vermarktet werden müssen. 

Aber wie lassen sich Markeninvestitionen 

finanzieren? Durch 

alternative Finanzierungsformen 

wie etwa Private Equity, Venture 

Capital oder spezialisierte Markenfonds, 

wird hier ein großes Potential 

geschaffen. 


fokussiert sich auf Unternehmen in 

Europa, die eine schnell wachsende 

Marke im Einzelhandel, Dienstleistungssektor 

und in der Konsumgüterindustrie 

besitzen. Mit 

dem European Consumer Brand 

Fund schaffen wir Möglichkeiten, 

die es bisher in Europa nicht gab. 

Unsere gemeinsame Aufgabe ist es, 

das Wachstumspotential Ihres Unternehmens 

durch Branding auszuschöpfen. 

Jede Investment Situation ist 

unterschiedlich und ein individueller 

Ansatz vonnöten. Das 

Markenunternehmen wird vorab 

genau analysiert und es werden 

Strategien über die zukünftige 

Ausrichtung des Unternehmens 

und dessen Marken entwickelt. In 

den meisten Fällen führt dies zu 

einer Anteilspartnerschaft (Private 

Equity), aber auch Markenfinanzierungsprogramme 

können 

in Verbindung mit Private Equity 

oder Stand-Alone umgesetzt werden. 

Die Entwicklung der operativen 

Ergebnisse und KPIs und die 

dazu notwendigen Instrumente, 

sind eine Voraussetzung für eine 

positive gemeinsame Markenentwicklung. 

Durch die Wiederbelebung von 

„Heritage Brands“ und mit nachhaltigen 

Investitionen in bestehende 

Marken, die in Europa vor allem 

durch viele Klein- und Mittelbetriebe 

vorhanden sind, haben wir 

hier ein immenses Marken-Potential. 


bieten Kapital und Know-how zur 

Markenentwicklung und ermöglichen 

damit die Wertsteigerung für 

ihr Unternehmen. 

Gehen wir gemeinsam den Weg zu 

neuen Nummer 1 Marken. 



Foto: Christina Haeusler 

Foto: Schedl/APA/European Brand Institute 

Klaus Müllner 

Founder & Chief Investment Officer 

Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek 

Founder & Chief Brand Officer 

While your company can obtain funding for 

growth and working capital, brand building 

investments do not attract interest from the 

funding community that much. 


Europe’s future depends on intellectual property 

and in particular on the many strong and 

valuable brands that should be marketed even 

better. But how can brand investments be financed? 

Great potential is created through alternative 

financing such as private equity, venture capital or 

specialized brand funds. 

SummerLight Capital Partners focus on companies 

in Europe with a fast-growing brand in the retail, 

services and the consumer goods industry. With the 

European Consumer Brand Fund, we are creating opportunities 

that have not yet existed in Europe. Our 

mission is to establish your business’ growth potential 

through Branding. 

Each investment situation is different and an individual 

approach is required. A potential company 

is precisely analyzed and discussions are conducted 

about the company’s orientation. In most cases, 

the results lead to a private equity partnership, but 

brand financing programs can also be considered in 

connection with private equity or stand-alone. The 

development of the operating results and KPI’s and 

the necessary tools are a prerequisite for a positive 

brand development. 

By reloading “Heritage Brands” through sustainable 

investment in existing brands, which we find in 

many small and medium-sized enterprises in Europe, 

we can raise an immense brand potential. 

SummerLight Capital Partners provide capital and 

know-how for brand development and therefore enable 

value creation for your company by brand-led growth. 

Let’s start a journey together to build new number 1 

brands! 



Directive 

2014/95/ 

Foto: CanStockPhoto.com 

In the case of individual countries, such as France and 

Denmark, comprehensive disclosure requirements 

for undertakings have already been applicable. Until 

now, these have been exceptions in the EU. In the era 

of globalisation, undertakings operate worldwide and, 

due to interlinked supply chains, across country borders. 

In the course of their global operations, human 

rights violations and harmful environmental influences 

can, however, also occur. For this reason, there is 

mounting global pressure on companies to act in a responsible 

and sustainable manner. On the international 

level, a trend towards mandatory CSR reporting may be 

observed, with politicians recognising the importance 

of corporate responsibility for society and the environment. 

In October 2014, the European Parliament and the 

European Council placed an important emphasis on 

“managing change towards a sustainable global economy” 

with the amendments to Directive 2013/34/EU: 

the amended Directive (2014/95/EU) provides for the 

mandatory disclosure of “non-financial and diversity 

information” in the financial reporting of “certain large 

undertakings and groups”. With effect from January 

2017, there is a CSR-reporting obligation. The focus is 

on minimum standards for non-financial reporting, 

applicable across Europe, in order to establish transparency 

and comparability. The EU therefore obliges 

large undertakings to disclose social and ecological 

matters, as well as related risks, strategies, achieved results, 

and non-financial performance indicators. This 

“non-financial information” should provide information 

about commitment to sustainability in business 

activity and strengthen investor and consumer trust. 

At the same time, the disclosure requirements promote 

better comparability with regard to corporate responsibility. 

The disclosure requirements only concern those 

undertakings, which are public-interest entities (according 

to § 189a (1) of the Austrian Commercial Code 

[UGB] in Austria), whose balance sheet total exceeds 

20 million euros, or whose turnover exceeds 40 million 

euros, and whose annual average number of employees 

exceeds 500. In this regard, undertakings of 

public interest (“public interest entities”, “PIEs”) are 

undertakings whose securities are admitted to trading 

on the stock market of an EU Member State or that of a 

signatory state of the EEA, corporate credit institutions 

and insurance companies, or undertakings, which, irrespective 

of their legal form, are described as “public 

interest entities” in federal law with reference to their 

purpose. 

The information to be disclosed in the progress report 

section of the management report includes details 

that are necessary for understanding the undertaking’s 

operations and its performance, the position of the 

group, as well as the impact of its activities, and must 

make reference, as a minimum, to environmental, social, 

and employee matters, to respect for human rights, 



EU commits undertakings 

to sustainability 

and measures to tackle corruption and bribery [Article 

19a, paragraph 1, points a) to e), Directive 2014/95/ 

EU]. The report must also include policies and a description 

of due diligence processes implemented with 

regard to social and employee-related matters. The results 

of such policies, main risks associated with the 

matters outlined above, business relationships, as well 

as the most significant non-financial performance indicators, 

should also be indicated [Article 19a, paragraph 

1, points a) to e), Directive 2014/95/EU]. The matters 

and information to be reported should be identified on 

the basis of their significance for the undertaking. An 

omission of information should be explained following 

the “comply or explain” principle. There are, therefore, 

no mandatory specifications regarding the length. Guidelines 

of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), as well 

as other internationally-recognised standards, such 

as, for example, the ISO 26000 guidelines, can provide 

guidance for the content of the sustainability report. 

In the area of risks for human rights, the CSR guide 

of the “UN Guiding Principles Reporting Framework” 

sets the standards. 

The sustainability report must be disclosed either 

as a statement in the progress report, or in the form 

of a so-called “separate non-financial statement”. The 

Directive requires that Member States ensure that the 

statutory auditor or the audit firm checks whether the 

non-financial statement or the separate report have 

been provided (Article 19a, Paragraph 1.5 of Directive >> 

Dipl. iur. 

Tatiana 

Urdaneta 

Wittek is 

an attorney-at-law 

at Lansky, 

Ganzger + 

partner 

(LGP) and 

founding 

member of 

the Austrian Desk of the Italienische Handelskammer 

für Deutschland (Italian Chamber of 

Commerce for Germany, ITKAM). The lawyer, 

who is qualified in the jurisdictions of several 

countries, grew up in Italy, and predominantly 

represents clients on matters of Italian law, 

and on all issues pertaining to bilateral trade 

relations between Austria, Germany, and Italy. 

Further specialisations include human rights 

and international law, areas which today play 

a major role in the global economy. Since the 

creation of the Austrian Desk, Tatiana Urdaneta 

Wittek has been involved in strengthening 

the positioning of the “Made in Italy” mark in 

Austria. She is licensed to practice as a lawyer 

in Germany and Austria, studied law in Cologne, 

Lausanne and Vienna, and speaks fluent 

German, English, French, Italian, and Spanish. 

Foto: LGP 


Thinking outside the box 

is not just a phrase, 

but rather our approach 

to legal advice. 

“Grow your market share. Leave protecting your business to us.” That is what lawyers usually say. 

At LANSKY, GANZGER + partners we do not limit ourselves to presenting legal issues. 

Native language experts, lawyers and advisors from more than 20 nations bring the necessary 

skills to the table to solve a wide range of problems in day-to-day business life. Our geographic 

reach extends to Southern Europe, into the CIS area, and Asia. Our network includes local partner 

firms in over 50 countries worldwide. 

Successful legal advice means more than simply knowing and applying the law. 

We Lansky, provide Ganzger advice + on: 

partner, one of the leading law firms in Austria and the Slovak Republic, 

• has Company longstanding formation and profound M&A 

experience that enables it to deliver an all-encompassing, 

• inter Setting disciplinary up sales structures 

and cross-regional service of the highest level. 

• Labour law issues 

• Lansky, Market Ganzger launch of + products partner and closely services 

col labo rates 

and inter national banks, corporations and 

• with Media, ex ternal IP and specialists IT 

and a worldwide network 

companies have, over the past years, relied on 

• of Private consultants international and local law 

advisers. This ensures 

the firm’s extensive expertise. The all-inclusive 

• that Public the decision-making firm able to offer processes 

individual, strategic 

approach of Lansky, Ganzger + partner clearly 

• and European pragmatic law, all-in-one subsidies, solutions antitrust and to their competition national law 

distinguishes itself from the general standard of 

• and Outsourced international legal clients. services 

Many renowned national 

a conventional, solely legal consultancy. 

LAnSky, GAnzGeR + partner 

Attorneys at Law 

Biberstrasse 5 

a-1010 Vienna (austria) 

W: www.lansky.at 

T: +43 1 533 33 300 

F: +43 1 532 84 83 

e: office@lansky.at 

Vienna – BraT isL a V a – Baku – asT ana



2014/95/EU). Member States may additionally stipulate 

that the content of the report is checked by an independent 

provider of auditing services – an external content 

audit is therefore not a requirement of the Directive. 

In Austria, Directive 2014/95/EU was implemented 

into national law with the introduction of the Improving 

Sustainability and Diversity law (Nachhaltigkeitsund 

Diversitätsverbesserungsgesetz, NaDiVeG). This 

was published in the Federal Law Gazette on 19.01.2017. 

The legislature has intervened both in the Austrian 

Commercial Code (Unternehmensgesetzbuch, UGB), 

as well as in 

In Austria, Directive 

2014/95/EU was implemented 

into national law. 

the Austrian 

Stock Corporation 

Act 

(Aktiengesetz, 

AktG), and in 

the Austrian 

Limited Liability Company Act (GmbH-Gesetz) – in 

this manner, § 243b and § 267a, for instance, were newly 

incorporated into the Austrian Commercial Code. 

The latter contain the obligation for a “non-financial 

statement”. The NaDiVeG stipulates mandatory disclosure 

on diversity policy and its promotion through the 

administrative, management and supervisory bodies of 

the undertaking. In Austria, approximately 125 undertakings 

are subject to the NaDiVeG reporting requirements 

1 . 

Altogether, approximately 6000 undertakings 

across Europe must fulfil the Directive’s reporting requirements. 

However, the number of undertakings required 

to do this varies between the EU Member States. 

In Slovakia, approximately 30 to 40 undertakings are 

subject to the reporting requirements of the amended 

version of the Accounting Act (i.e. Accounting Act/ 

Federal Constitutional Law 1992, in its version no. 

431/2002), into which the EU Directive has been transposed. 

2 By contrast, in Croatia, the number of undertakings 

is estimated at approximately 200. 3 

Small and medium-sized undertakings are (for the 

time being) exempt from the reporting requirements 

pursuant to Directive 2014/95/EU. Nevertheless, the 

EU provision permits the inclusion of further undertakings 

in the reporting requirements at a later date. 

One thing is certain: already, the newly introduced reporting 

requirements are radiating out to undertakings 

(albeit indirectly), which are not yet subject to this obligation. 

This is because undertakings subject to the CSR 

reporting obligation, for their part, disclose information 

about suppliers and networks. As a result, information 

pertaining to CSR may also be requested along 

supply chains from small and medium-sized enterprises, 

with whom the undertaking has a contractual relationship. 

Conflicting “Codes of Conduct” among individual 

contractual partners can certainly lead to legal 

uncertainties. An agreement on standardized information 

requirements between all stakeholders, 

in the form of a voluntary reporting standard, 

can serve as a corrective in this matter. 

An improvement in transparency of reporting 

is an important step towards responsible 

business practice. An undertaking can only 

change its business practice with relation to 

sustainability when it is aware of the substance and 

impact of its economic activity. Through the disclosure 

obligation, and the associated need to structure business 

activity in the non-financial area, the undertaking 

automatically assumes social responsibility. 

A shift has taken place in our society: undertakings 

are no longer merely judged by their economic 

performance. On the contrary: commitment to social 

and ecological issues (also documented in the annual 

report) may even increase the undertaking’s value. 

Correspondingly, CSR reports are used as a marketing 

tool, because a proactive observance of human rights 

increases the attractiveness of the undertaking for investors, 

employees and customers. The EU Directive 

2014/95/EU takes the growing importance of sustainability 

issues in our society into account. An obligation 

for reporting in matters of sustainability is not 

only relevant for corporations, but also for medium-sized 

suppliers. 

As such, the 

Directive encompasses 

(at least indirectly) 

a huge 

segment of 

market participants. 

Foto: shutterstock.com 

1 www.wko.at/Content.Node/Service/Umwelt-und-Energie/Nachhaltigkeit-und-Umweltmanagement/Nachhaltigkeit/Unternehmen/Informationspflicht-ueber-Nachhaltigkeitsaspekte.html 

2 & 3 www.csreurope.org 



Fotos: CCBD 

2016 China Brand Evaluation Press Conference 

CCBD is mainly engaged in brand 

theory study, formulation of international 

and national standards, 

publicity of brand evaluation, professional 

and technical training, 

international cooperation, etc. 


is the only national brand-related organization 

that has acquired permission from State Council 

and approval from Ministry of Civil Affairs 

of the PRC and is under the direct administration of 

General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection 

and Quarantine of the PRC (hereinafter referred 

to as “AQSIQ”). Adopting the system of council, 

CCBD is a non-profit social organization constituted 

voluntarily by enterprises, public institutions, social 

groups and individuals that are relevant to brand development. 

Mr. LIU Pingjun, member of the national 

committee of CPPCC and former deputy director of 

AQSIQ, acts as the president of CCBD. 

CCBD is mainly engaged in brand theory study, 

formulation of international and national standards, 

publicity of brand value evaluation, brand fostering 

consultation, professional and technician training, 

brand exhibition, international cooperation and exchange, 

etc. 

CCBD has been focusing on brand evaluation, 

which is currently its important undertaking, in 


Branding 

China Council for 

Brand Development 

To be scientific, impartial, 

transparent and admitted 

the principle of “To be scientific, impartial, transparent 

and admitted”. It also publishes “China Brand 

Evaluation Information” on Dec. 12th every year by 

cooperating with entities like CCTV to conduct annual 

summary and analysis on Chinese brands’ comprehensive 

connotation and value. Brand evaluation 

is an important action to generate positive energy for 

Chinese brands, improve their international influence 

and propel them to go global. 

As required by the development of international 

brand evaluation, International Organization for Standardization 

(ISO) established a Technical Committee 

(ISO/TC 289 Brand Evaluation) in January, 2014 through 

the voting among ISO members and ISO/TMB 

in response to the joint proposal from China (SAC) 

and the U.S. (ANSI). The secretariat of ISO/TC 289 is 

in CCBD, which also hold the national mirror committee 

in China. 

By now, ISO/TC 289 Brand Evaluation has held 

three plenary meetings in Beijing, London and Cancun; 

and four Working Group (ISO/TC 289/WG 1 

Brand Evaluation Process) meetings in Shenzhen, 

Vienna, Cancun and Moscow for the development 

of new international standard. SAC (China) and ASI 

(Austria) share the convenorship of ISO/TC 289/WG 

1 to initiate the formulation of international standard 

Brand Evaluation-Fundamentals and Principles. 

CCBD is willing to cooperate with institutions of 

brand research, evaluation and management all over 

the world in multiple levels and aspects to promote 

brand development and build a better life. 


Technical Committee 066 

Experience 

and business reputation 

as a part of a brand 

Nowadays, the activities of 

any company are being 

evaluated and criticized 

either by the consumers or 

by independent rating agencies. A 

positive or negative score of a company 

has a significant impact on 

their business development. One 

of the basic indicators that can be 

evaluated in any brand or company 

is their reputation. 

Evaluation of experience and 

business reputation of enterprises 

is a relatively new concept for Russia, 

but every day is gaining popularity. 

The image and reputation are 

both parts of a brand. However, the 

two concepts intertwine semantic 

elements, but the difference lies 

in the fact that the image of an organization 

can be created through 

advertising and the media in a relatively 

short time, while the reputation 

is earned over the whole life 

of the enterprise, and constantly 

needs to be verified. 

In some cases the image of a 

brand can compensate the absence 

of other distinctive features of 

products or services. As a rule, it 

serves to attract customers. Business 

reputation determines the 

level of confidence and motivation 

in appealing to a particular brand. 

Based on a positive business reputation, 

the customer considers the 

brand as a guarantee of quality and 

prefers it in building long-term 

relationships. A well-known and 

popular brand adds value to the 

service or product. 

Business reputation as an intangible 

asset of the company has 

a significant impact on competitiveness 

and business efficiency. 

This intangible asset can be calculated. 

Currently, there are a couple 

of methods for assessing business 

reputation. It does not exist separately 

from the company and it is 

impossible to dispose of as a separate 

object. Positive business reputation 

can be regarded as a supplement 

to the price. 

Evaluation of experience and 

business reputation arose in re- 


Branding 

Fotos: Anna Zobnina 

sponse to a new trend in Russian 

society — a need for trust in commercial 

structures. 

The construction industry is 

one of the key industries, which 

plays a huge role in formation of the 

national economy. Stabilization of 

the construction market following 

the 2008 crisis became a prerequisite 

for the emergence of many 

small and medium-sized contracting 

and subcontracting organizations. 

Despite the fact that at that 

time there were already self-regulatory 

organizations (SRO), which 

supervised and issued permits for 

certain type of jobs, in the construction 

industry the problem of 

choosing and controlling scrupulous 

providers has increased. Lack 

of control resulted a decline in the 

quality of services and disruption 

of the execution of the obligations 

by the enterprises. 

A system, which would contribute to the improvement 

of quality and settles a classification of suppliers 

(on a number of grounds) measuring their reliability 

at the same time, simply did not exist. 

The first standard was published in 2014, which 

gave the scope of evaluation of experience and business 

reputation of construction companies in the Russian 

market. Later on, the Technical Committee for 

Standardization 066 "Evaluation of experience and 

business reputation of enterprises" developed an improved 

version of it and other standards in new areas 

as well. 

The evaluation system of experience and business 

reputation is dynamically developing and has established 

itself as an effective instrument to achieve a 

result in fair selection of service provider, as well as 

in increasing service quality. 

Technical Committee 066 cooperates with the European 

Brands Institute participating in meetings of 

the International Organization for Standardization - 

Technical Committee (ISO/TC 289. Brand Evaluation.) 

and in preparing of the implementation of the brand 

evaluation standard in Russia. TC 066 is kind of a 

counterpart of the TC 289. Their activities are related, 

as business reputation is an integral part of the brand. 

The cooperation between the two committees would 

continue and deepen. Several joint projects are scheduled 

in the year 2017. 

The 4 th Meeting of 

ISO/TC 289/WG1 

Moscow, Nov 2016 

Thomas Mezossy 

Head of Authority 

Member of TC 066 and TC 289 



Brands as 

Intangible Assets − 

Changing the Future! 

Everyone recognizes that brands are 

important. But why are standards for 

determining brand value important? 

To start 

with, we 

must realize 

that 

since the 1990s 

investment in 

intangible assets 

(such as- 

R&D, software, 

human resources 

and brands) 

has exceeded 

that of tangible 

assets. The 

intangible asset 

value component 

of the S&P 

stock index 

grew from 32 

percent in 1985 

to 87 percent in 

2015. 

100 % 

80 % 

60 % 

40 % 

20 % 

0 % 

COMPONENTS OF S&P 500 MARKET VALUE 

83 % 68 % 32 % 20 % 13 % 

87 % 

80 % 

68 % 

32 % 

17 % 

1975 1985 1995 2005 2015 

Tangible Assets Intangible Assets 

Source: Ocean Tomo, LLC 


Branding 

Foto: Renate Altenhofer 

Foto: Kellogg Graduate School of Management 


is the Kellstadt Professor of Marketing at the 

Kellogg Graduate School of Management, 

Northwestern University, Evanston, IL USA. 

Intangible assets are now the 

key to economic growth and increasing 

corporate value. Unfortunately, 

as with intangible assets 

generally, it has historically been 

very difficult assign a value to 

brands. Everyone recognizes that 

brands are important. It is just 

that in the past we have had great 

difficulty in measuring the value 

of a brand. There has been little 

success in developing standards 

for brand value. 

The reason for this is that standards 

for intangible assets are in 

general difficult to develop and 

they are particularly difficult for 

brands because of the very nature 

of a brand. On the face of it everyone 

knows what a brand is and 

would recognize the American 

Marketing Associations definition 

of a brand as a “Name, term, design, 

symbol, or any other feature 

that identifies one seller’s good or 

service as distinct from those of 

other sellers.” 

This definition is good, so far 

as it goes, but it does not go far 

enough, for brands are really not 

things. Brands exist in the minds 

of customers. Names, symbols and 

the like are just ways of referring 

to brands, ideally in a way that 

itself influences how consumers 

think about the brand. The brand, 

however, is the ultimate meaning, 

or the idea, of the product in the 

consumer’s head. It is how the 

consumer thinks about the product, 

what he or she believes to be 

true about it. 

These beliefs can be functional 

in that they concern what the product 

does or how well it does something. 

Beliefs can also be emotional, 

how the brand makes the 

consumer feel. They can also be 

beliefs about what kind of person 

you are if you buy the brand. The 

brand can become linked to the 

consumer’s very concept of self. 

A brand is thus subjective, not 

objective. The key point to realize 

is that it is the consumer who 

owns the brand. The brand exists 

in their subjective world. 

Although brands are created 

by tangible investments in advertising 

and other marketing activities, 

the resulting brand is the idea 

or meaning that is created in the 

consumer’s mind. It is an intangible 

asset. Beyond this, and unlike 

software or patents, a brand 

only exists as a subjective state in 

the consumer mind. From a company’s 

point of view, the question 

becomes, how do you assess 

the value of a brand when brands 

are so intangible as to be essentially 

subjective. A standard must 

necessarily set a monetary valuation 

for something that exists in 

the consumer’s head. 

To do this we have to first 

evaluate the strength of the brand. 

A standard must specify the 

different kinds of indicators of 

brand strength that can be used to 

evaluate the power of the brand >> 



idea or meaning in the consumer’s 

mind. Many indicators have been 

developed by marketers and used 

to measure brand strength. A simple 

one would be to ask consumers 

which brand in a category they 

would pick if they could have any 

of them regardless of price. 

A measure of brand strength is 

not sufficient however. A strong 

brand might make little difference 

in the actual marketplace (being 

outweighed by other factors); a 

weak brand might still make a 

difference (if there is nothing else 

to influence choice). Hence a standard 

must also incorporate a test 

of brand performance. This test 

has to reveal the effect or impact of 

the brand’s strength on some critical 

market behavior. An obvious 

test for many brands is how likely 

the consumer would be to buy the 

brand at a higher price than at its 

current price (i.e., at a price premium). 

We would need to determine 

the amount of any price premium 

(willingness to pay extra) that is 

due to brand strength. Consumers 

might be willing to pay a price 

premium for other reasons, say, 

because of better distribution for 

the product. The evaluation of the 

brand should only take into account 

the price premium attributable 

to the brand’s level of brand 

strength. 

The final step in determining 

the value of a 

brand is to relate the 

evaluation of the brand 

to one or more metrics 

of financial performance. 

The performance on 

financial cash flow determines 

the valuation 

of the brand. 

The value of a brand for a company 

can thus be measured even 

though brands are inherently 

intangible and subjective. For 

such measurements to be accepted 

and implemented, however, standards 

must be developed so that 

measurements are consistent and 

comparable across organizations 

and over time. 

Standards are the key really 

being able in the future to treat 

brands as intangible 

financial assets 

so that they may be 

fully taken into account 

in corporate 

governance and in 

transactions among 

companies as well 

as in investment 

decisions. And instead 

of managing 

marketing functions 

based on efficiency 

(such as the 

number of consumers 

reached by an 

advertising expenditure) 

brand value 

standards offer the opportunity 

to manage effectiveness- how effective 

the organization is in creating 

brand value as an intangible 

asset. 


Branding 

Fotos: Renate Altenhofer 

DEFINITION OF A BRAND: 

Name, term, design, symbol, or any 

other feature that identifies one 

seller’s good or service as distinct 

from those of other sellers. 



KR DI Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek 

Präsident European Brand Institute 

MARKEN sind 

Foto: Schedl/APA/European Brand Institute 

Qualitatsmerkmale 

und Wertfaktoren 

Es ist kein Geheimnis, dass Marken von größerer 

Bedeutung sind, als die Produkte oder Dienstleistungen 

selbst. „People buy brands not 

products“ – gilt insbesondere in der globalen 

Kommunikationsgesellschaft. Marken werden 

zwar teilweise schon als höchst wertvolle Güter 

des Wirtschafts lebens anerkannt, ein großer 

Weg bleibt uns aber noch zu gehen. 

Im Rahmen einer guten Markenführung und im 

Sinne einer guten Corporate Governance müssen 

Marken und deren Beeinflussungsgrößen nicht 

nur im Sinne der Kunden sondern auch für Investoren, 

Aktionäre, das Management, die Gesellschaft, 

die Partner und die Mitarbeiter verfolgt, verstanden 

und gemanagt werden. 

Der Trend in der Entwicklung der Werthaltigkeit 

von Vermögensgegenständen in Unternehmen heute 

geht weg von den materiellen und hin zu immateriellen 

Vermögensgegenständen. Das wertorientierte 

Management sollte daher vor allem auf immaterielle 

Vermögensgegenstände – also auf die Marke – 

ausgerichtet sein. 

Man erwartet zunehmend nicht nur eine finanzorientierte 

und auf „hard facts“ basierende 

Informationsgestaltung, sondern vor allem eine 

stärkere Integration der „soft facts“, um die Effizienz 

und Abläufe der unternehmerischen Entscheidungsstruktur 

besser nachvollziehen zu können 

und den Wettbewerbsfaktor Marke transparent 

darzustellen. 


Branding 


Mit den neuen ISO Normen 

leisten wir hier einen 

wesentlichen Beitrag dazu. 

Als immaterieller Vermögensgegenstand wird der 

Wert der Marke auch eine der wichtigsten bilanzrelevanten 

Kennziffern. Informationen darüber 

werden für Investoren und Kapitalgeber immer von 

zentraler Bedeutung sein. 

Investoren erkennen bereits zunehmend die 

Vorteile einer starken Marke: also erhöhte Rentabilität 

und niedrigeres Risiko. Auch kenne Sie die 

Tatsache, dass der Wert der Marke oftmals einen 

Großteil des gesamten Unternehmenswertes, laut 

unseren Studien im Durchschnitt um die 40 Prozent 

aller Unternehmen, Tendenz Richtung 60 Prozent 

steigend, darstellt. Deshalb ist es wichtig, Marken 

und Patente in regelmäßigen Abständen von 

unabhängigen Experten qualifizieren und bewerten 

zu lassen. >> 



MISSION 

Die Steigerung des Werts von Marken für alle Stakeholder 

für eine inte grative und nachhaltige Entwicklung. 

Unternehmensführung / Reporting 

Öffentlichkeit / Gesellschaft 

BRAND 

Konsumenten / Mitarbeiter 

Investoren / Finanzen 

WARUM MARKEN BEWERTEN? 

VERHANDLUNGS− 

SITUATIONEN 

MARKEN 

MANAGEMENT 

FINANZIERUNG 

• Markengeschäfte 

• Fusionen & Erwerb 

• Markenrechtsverletzungen 

• Benchmarking – Studien 

• Strategische Planung 

• Portfolio Management 

• Marken Controlling 

• Franchising 

• Lizenzen 

• Fundraising 


EBI unterstützt die europäische Wirtschaft beim 

Aufbau Marken- und IP-orientierter Unternehmensstrukturen 

und begleitet auch kleine und mittlere 

Unternehmen bei der Maximierung ihrer Marken-IP 

Werte und der Schaffung von Nachhaltigkeit. 

EBI unterstützt Unternehmen und Organisationen 

mit innovativen Dienstleistungen, ihre wichtigsten 

immateriellen Vermögenswerte – die Marke 

& IP – in einer wertorientierten Weise zu managen 

um Wettbewerbsvorteile zu realisieren. 


Branding 

An new ISO Standard on Brand 

Evaluation will be developed 

In September 2014, a new ISO committee on 

Brand Evaluation was constituted in Bejing. 

Foto: CCBD 

Within this committee a new global 

standard on brand evaluation will 

be developed, where the President 

of European Brand Institute, Dr. 

Gerhard Hrebicek holds the Chair. 

Goals of this new ISO 

Initiative are as follows: 

This standard is aimed to standardize 

the technical requirements and 

evaluation methods in the implementation 

of major components of 

brand valuation, which will guide 

the brand manager and brand evaluators 

to conduct activities in the 

field of brand evaluation. 

Brand evaluation contains 

three major steps: 

1. identify the key elements which 

influence brand value 

2. measure the actual performance 

of brand key elements (taking the 

stake holders' awareness and evaluation 

of all key elements into account) 

3. draw the conclusions (including 

monetary and non-monetary). 

Although the key elements of brand 

value and evaluation methods are 

various, the major influencing factors 

can be identified by study on 

successful brand cases and analysis 

of the relevant data. 

The benefits of the development 

of the new ISO Standard 

on Brand Evaluation 

The international standard of 

brand evaluation will bring more 

brand information to the consumers 

and more information on the 

evaluation and management of 

the world's best brands research 

results and practical experience 

(particularly in developing countries, 

small and medium-sized 

enterprises) in order to conduct 

brand management more effectively 

to the brand owners. 



GLOBAL TOP 100 

BRAND CORPORATIONS 2016 

Global TOP 10 Brand Corporations Brand Value in Mio. € 

91.850 

75.572 

73.426 

59.486 

55.413 

54.200 

53.334 

52.390 

50.242 

148.531 

©2016 European Brand Institute 

World’s most valuable brand corporations 2016 

World’s most valuable brand 

corporations US-dominated: 

1. Apple, 2. Google, 3. Microsoft, 

Alibaba shows highest growth 

(+77%) overall 

The GLOBAL TOP 100 BRAND 

CORPORATIONS RANKING by 

European Brand Institute – Europe’s 

independent brand & patent 

valuation experts, examined more 

than 3.000 brand corporations and 

their brands in 16 industries, according 

to the latest ISO valuation 

standards. 

Global 

Apple remains world’s leading 

brand corporation with a brand 

value of EUR 148,531 bn (+8%), followed 

by Google representing EUR 

91,850 bn (+25%) and Microsoft 

with a brand value of EUR 75,572 

bn (+13%). Amazon increasing its 

brand value by +54%, climbing to 

global rank 7. Asian No.1 China 

Mobile EUR 52,946 bn (+9%) holds 

global rank No.9. 

Europe 

French No.1 LVMH remains Europe’s 

most valuable brand corporation, 

representing brand values of EUR 

43,510 bn (+9% / global rank 14), followed 

by Belgian AB Inbev showing 

EUR 39,468 bn (+10% / global rank 

17) and Swiss No.1 Nestlé representing 

EUR 37,957 bn (+11% / global 

rank 20). German No.1 Volkswagen 

Group EUR 26,662 bn holds global 

rank 28, Austrian’s Red Bull EUR 15, 

111 bn holds global rank 70. 

Growth 

Average growth of TOP 100 shows 

+13%, TOP10 USA rise by +17%, 

TOP10 China grow by +22% and 

Europe’s TOP 10 grow by +13% . 

Alibaba shows the highest growth 

(+77%), followed by Facebook gaining 

+57% and ex-aequo Starbucks 

and Amazon by +54%. Europe’s 

growth leaders are Robert Bosch 

and BT Group increasing their 

brand values by +28%. 

Segmentation 

US brand corporations are leading 

with 49 (+2) out of the TOP 100 

brand corporations. Europe represents 

35 (0) with Germans leading, 

whilst Asia is represented with 16 

(-2) brand corporations. 


Branding 

Industry Leaders 


Europe’s industry leaders are: 

• Automotive – 

Volkswagen Group (Germany) 

• Business Services – SAP 

(Germany) 

• Consumer Goods – AB Inbev 

(Belgium) 

• Durables – Bosch (Germany) 

• Financial Services – HSBC (U.K.) 

• Industry – BASF (Germany) 

• Luxury – LVMH (France) 

• Media & Entertainment – 

Bertelsmann (Germany) 

• Pharma, Health & Biotech – 

Novartis (Switzerland) 

• Retail – Inditex (Spain) 

• Telecommunications – 

Vodafone (U.K.) 

• Utilities – Shell (U.K.) 

America’s industry leaders are: 

• Automotive – General Motors 

• Consumer Goods – 

Coca Cola Company 

• Durables – Nike 

• Financial Services – Wells Fargo 

• Industry – Boeing 

• IT & Technology – Apple 

• Logistics – UPS 

• Media & Entertainment – 

Walt Disney 

• Pharma, Health & Biotech – 

Pfizer 

• Retail – Amazon 

• Telecommunications – AT&T 

• Utilities – General Electric 

Asia’s industry leaders are: 

• Automotive – Toyota (Japan) 

• Financial Services – 

China Construction Bank (China) 

• Industry – Tata (India) 

• IT & Technology – Samsung 

(Korea) 

• Retail – Alibaba Group (China) 

• Telecommunications – 

China Mobile (China) 

Data based on Fiscal Year 2015 


About 

iconvienna 

iconvienna is an organization, which aims to 

promote business contacts between Austrian and 

international companies and regions. Annually in 

April, the European Business and Investment Forum 

iconvienna invites to an active dialogue and personal 

networking. According to the motto: 

"Make Contacts to Contracts" 

We provide services for 

participants and partners 

through personal 

contact and presentation 

opportunities. We develop 

the most recognized European 

platform for business and economics. 

iconvienna allows company 

representatives and decision 

makers to present projects in 

exclusive circles and specifically 

to establish contacts with export 

markets. 

iconvienna in brief 

iconvienna – Make Contacts 

to Contracts 

The European Business & Investment 

Forum iconvienna is an 

exclusive Business & Networking 

Event, promoting business 

contacts between Austrian and 

international companies and encouraging 

project and investment 

business between East and West. 

Following the motto “Make Contacts 

to Contracts”, top-level national 

and international decision 

makers from politics and economy, 

international experts and 

representatives of regions meet 

at the forum. We deliver value to 

participants and partners through 

personal contacts with executives, 

entrepreneurs, government officials, 

project partners, as well as 

concrete business opportunities at 

the forum. 

Conference Language 

German and English with simultaneous 

translations 

Welcome reception in 

Vienna City Hall 

The Opening Night at the Vienna 

City Hall is an excellent occasion 

for easy initial contacts and thus 

promote networking and know 

how exchange, offering delegations 

of regions the opportunity to 

introduce themselves to potential 

business partners, investors and 

decision makers. 

Expert Panels 

During the day, national and international 

experts present and 

discuss contemporary key issues 

that are vital to Europe’s integration 

and sustainable development. 

Project Exhibition 

Enterprises and regions present 


iconvienna 

(left to right) Gerhard Hrebicek, Xingle Gao, Wilhelm Molterer, Jürgen Roth, Ingrid Valentini-Wanka 


(left to right) Ambassadors: H.E. Antonio Roberto Castellanos Lopez (Guatemala), H.E. Paulina 

Franceschi (Panama), H.E. Juan Antonio Fernandez Palacios (Cuba), H.E. Ramon Andres Quinones 

Rodriguez (Dominican Republic), H.E. Wilson Marcelo Pastor Morris (Ecuador), H.E. Alvaro José Robelo 

Gonzales (Nicaragua), H.E. Jesse Alonso Chacon Escamillo (Venezuela) 

best practice projects and opportunities. 

This is an excellent 

chance to network, attract investors 

and to acquire new business 

partners. 

High Ranking Participants 

CEOs, entrepreneurs, top politicians, 

representatives of regions, 

international organizations and 

science meet at the iconvienna forum. 

Including side events, participants 

from approximately 40 different 

countries join each forum. 

Vision 

iconvienna – the appealing platform 

in the center of Europe for 

the effective promotion of economic 

and social integration in 

Europe. >> 

(left to right) Alois Steinbichler, Monika Langthaler, Edgar Maras, Andrea Faast, 

Andreas Matthä, Andrea Winkler, Gerhard Hrebicek, Julian Jäger 


Carla Natascha & 

Band 


Mission 

iconvienna offers an appealing, 

promoting and effective environment 

including the features of the 

city of Vienna such as: 

• Vienna as a secure hub for the 

international Project-Businesses 

for representatives from politics 

and economy 

• a mix of new and effective business 

and social events for regions 

and companies including 

amongst others exhibitions, presentations, 

lounges, contact areas, 

panel discussions and keynote 

speeches, dinners and receptions, 

as well as 

• cooperation with public institutions, 

business incorporations, 

media and business partners 

from the East and West 

iconvienna emblazes the background 

for a successful integration 

between East and West, especially 

• the actual economic development 

within the East and the 

West 

• regional "Priority"-Projects 

• Best Practice experiences of regions 

and companies, as well as 

• environmental, resource and financial 

questions 

(left to right) 

Hans Greiner – Cisco, Johann Pluy – ÖBB, 

Dorothee Ritz – Microsoft, Ulrike Huemer – 

City of Vienna, Eva Kühn – TU Vienna, 

Bernd Richter – ASCR 

iconvienna provides an effective 

and efficient contact platform between 

East and West, in which 

• targeted contacts to experts and 

decision makers can be established, 

• the attractive side events offer an 

ideal atmosphere to 

• establish a cooperation network 

including targeted contacts to 

business partners, 

• the international business network 

can be of use year-round and 

• equity financing, growth capital 

and advancing across partners 

can be provided. 


iconvienna 

Values 

Respect and Confidence 

Our cooperation bases on reliability, veracity, transparency 

and open communication. We respect the 

cultural and social usage and differences of the countries 

in and with which we are working. 

Expertise 

Professional competence, innovation, quick decisions 

and flexibility affect our work and the work of our 

partners. 

Conference at the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber 

Customer Focus 

We and our partners concentrate on the individual 

requirements of our customers and provide efficient 

and effective support to strengthen your competitive 

position and productivity. 

Corporate Responsibility 

Through responsible exposure to the resources of our 

customers, as well as the adoption of our employees and 

partners talents we create long-ranging cooperations. 

FACTS AND FIGURES 

Patronage: 

Dr. Michael Häupl, Mayor and 

Regional Governor of Vienna 

Countries of origin since 2005: 

Participants from 78 countries 

Chairman of the Advisory Board: 

KR Dr. René Alfons Haiden 

President: 

Foundation: 2004 

First Forum: 2005 

KR DI Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek, MBA 

Target Groups: National and international Top 

Decision-Makers from international 

organizations, Politics, Economy, 

Science and Media Representatives of 

Regions from Russia, Central & Eastern 

Europe, Latin America and the 

Caribbean and USA 

Motto: 

Make Contacts to Contracts 

Participants since 2006: around 8.900 

Speakers since 2005: around 650 

FOCUS 2017: 

Grow Together 

Previous Focus Areas: 

• International Summit on Innovative Entrepreneurship (2016) 

• East-West Summit on Regional Cooperation through Innovation 

and Entrepreneurship (2015) 

• East-West Summit on Innovation and Smart Cities (2014) 

• East-West Summit on Innovation and Infrastructure (2013) 

• East-West Summit on Innovations for Growth in the 

Danube Region (2012) 

• East-West Summit on Innovation and Sustainability (2011) 

• East-West Summit on Energy and Sustainability (2010) 

• East-West Summit: New opportunities through East-West 

Cooperation (2009) 

• Challenge Russia - Europe-Russia: New Opportunities (2008) 

• Future Investments for Europe (2007) 

• Sustainable Solutions for the Information Society (2006) 

• Information and Consulting (2005) 


Anzeige 

Destillerie Peter Affenzeller: 

Die flussigen 

Schatze des 

Muhlviertels 

Die Edel-Destillerie Peter Affenzeller 

aus dem oberösterreichischen 

Mühlviertel ist 

tief in der Region verwurzelt. 

Für die Produktion, der weit 

über die Grenzen des Landes hinaus 

bekannten Spirituosen, wird 

ausschließlich eigenes Getreide, 

bestes heimisches Quellwasser 

sowie hochwertiges Holz für die 

Fässer verwendet. So entstehen die 

unverwechselbaren, hochprozentigen 

„Schätze des Mühlviertels“ 

als durch und durch regionale Produkte, 

mit dem hohen Anspruch 

auch im internationalen Vergleich 

zu bestehen. 

Fine Austrian Whisky 

Whisky ist ein mystisches Getränk. 

Geprägt von jahrhundertelanger 

Tradition. Gebrannt aus 

Getreide, vermischt mit klarem 

Wasser und sorgsam über Jahre im 

Eichenfass gereift. Jeder Whisky 

besitzt seinen eigenen, individuellen 

und herkunftsspezifischen 

Geschmack. Das gilt insbesondere 

auch für die international 

vielfach ausgezeichneten Whiskys 

von Peter Affenzeller. Diese 

wurden zuletzt bei der Destillata, 

der bedeutendsten europäischen 

Prämierung für Spirituosen, mit 7 

Goldmedaillen ausgezeichnet und 

in zwei Kategorien zum Whisky 

des Jahres gekürt. 6 weitere Medaillen 

auf der International Wine 

and Spirit Competition (IWSC) in 

London bestätigen ebenfalls den 

hohen Qualitätsanspruch der edlen 

Destillate aus Oberösterreich. 

„ Meine Vision waren 

immer regional geprägte 

Top-Destillate, die aber 

auch internationalen 

Ansprüchen gerecht 

werden und Experten 

rund um den Globus zu 

100 % überzeugen.“ 

Vodka und Gin im Zeichen des 

Schwans 

Ergänzend zum so erfolgreichen 

Whisky-Sortiment, vermag Peter 

Affenzeller auch mit seiner Vodka- 

und Gin-Linie „White Swan“ 

zu beeindrucken. Die sprichwörtliche 

Reinheit und Schönheit des 

Schwans steht bei „White Swan“ 

sinnbildhaft für die Brillanz und 

Perfektion dieser beiden Destillate. 

Egal ob der Vodka mit seinem kühlen 

Duft, den feinen Vanillenoten 

sowie der glasklaren Frische am 

Gaumen oder der Gin mit seinem 

typischen Wacholderduft, umgeben 

von einer saftig-frischen Zitrusnote, 

abgerundet von würziger Cassiarinde: 

Gemein ist beiden Produkten die 

perfekte Harmonie aller geschmacklichen 

Nuancen sowie eine einzigartige 

Eleganz. Und hier schließt sich 

auch der Kreis zum gemeinsamen 

Markensymbol, dem eleganten, mythenumwobenen 

„White Swan“. 

Die vielfach ausgezeichnete 

Destillerie aus Oberösterreich produziert 

jährlich 20.000 Liter Whisky 

und 5.000 Liter Vodka und Gin. 

Oberweitersdorf 7, 4211 Alberndorf 

+43 (0) 7235 70444 

office@peter-affenzeller.at 

www.peter-affenzeller.at

iconvienna Gallery 

(left to right) Michael Pisecky, Kambis Kohansal Vajargah, Eva Czernohorszky, 

Gertraud Leimüller, Martin Heimhilcher, Brigitte Bach, Gerhard Hrebicek 

Vienna City Hall 

Impressions 

of iconvienna 

2016 


Foto: Alice Schnuer-Wala 



Sonja Kato – unikato, Ulrike Huemer – City of Vienna, Dorothee Ritz – 

Microsoft, Renate Altenhofer – Managing Partner iconvienna 

Institute of Science and Technology 


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Austrian Federal Economic Chamber 

Gerhard Hrebicek, President iconvienna 

Maya Stoeva – Project Manager iconvienna, Sonja Kato – unikato, Gerhard 

Hrebicek – President iconvienna, Tanja Wehsely – SPÖ, Renate Altenhofer – 

Managing Partner iconvienna 

Institute of Science and Technology 

Viktor Pasquali, Eric Samuiloff, Katherina Pühringer, Michael Altrichter, 

Lee Thomason, Markus Wanko 




Cuba at the iconvienna reception 

Hans Greiner – Cisco, Johann Pluy – ÖBB, Bernd Richter – ASCR, Dorothee 

Ritz – Microsoft, Ulrike Huemer – City of Vienna, Eva Kühn – TU Vienna 

Dominican Republic 

Wilhelm Molterer – EFSI 



An Initiative of 


DIGITAL 

The 

POWER WOMAN 

WOMEN LEADERSHIP FORUM was 

initiated by European Brand Institute to 

promote Women Leadership in the fields 

of economy, science & research, public 

institutions, society as well as to connect 

successful women and powerful men with 

the purpose of strengthening innovative 

and economic power in Austria. 


Branding 

"At ÖBB-Personenverkehr AG, we are 

particularly proud to report a growing 

share of women from top management 

to apprentices. The 

increase in the proportion 

of women is supported 

by ÖBB gender equality 

management." 

On September 14 th of 2016, the European Brand 

Institute invited to the 4 th Women Leadership 

Forum at the Novomatic Forum in cooperation 

with the US Embassy, ÖBB, Novomatic, 

Wien Holding and Wiener Hafen. Following the motto 

“FRAU MACHT UNTERNEHMEN”, the event focused 

on the topic “Digital Power Women”. 

This year’s star guest was Jasmin Taylor, founder 

of JT Touristik, who gave very personal insights of the 

development of a “Digital Power Women” in her keynote 

address. 

The Ambassador of the United States of America to 

Austria, H.E. Alexa Wesner opened the event for the 

last time, before heading back to the US. Sonja Kato 

led through the day and the high quality panel casts 

were guided by NEWS-chief editor Eva Weissenberger, 

Anett Hanck and Brigitte Bach, head of the Energy 

Department Austrian Institute of Technology. >> 

Foto: Medizinische Universität Wien 

Foto: ÖBB/Katharina Stögmüller 

Evelyn Palla 

Member of the Board of 

Directors ÖBB Personenverkehr 

AG 

"Austria's economy is becoming more and 

more feminine, and around one in every 

three companies is run by a woman, and 

women are also in the 

run-up to the start-ups, 

but the basic conditions 

for women in the 

economy still need to be 

significantly improved." 

Doris Pulker-Rohrhofer 

CTO Hafen Wien 

"Unused talents, skills, visions and knowledge 

of women are no longer an option – we have 

to work on our future – women and men 

together! Especially the digital age shows 

that female entrepreneurship brings new 

opportunities for personal 

success and strengthens 

the business location and 

makes it more competitive 

at the same time." 

Renate Altenhofer 

Initiator Women Leadership 

Forum, Managing Partner 

maX iconvienna 

"Female entrepreneurs 

can no longer rely on an 

invisible glass ceiling if 

something doesn‘t work. 

Because it‘s the objective 

performance that counts!" 

Martina Flitsch 

Member of the supervising 

board Novomatic AG 

"In all areas and at 

all levels, the balance 

between women and 

men and equality is 

needed. This does not 

exclude entrepreneurship 

and leadership." 

Ronald Schranz 

Partner Austria & CEE 

Brunswick Group 

Foto: European Brand Institute 

Foto: Anna Stöcher 

Foto: Petra Spiola 




Mag. Renate Altenhofer – iconvienna, 

H.E. Alexa Wesner – former US Ambassador, 

Jasmin Taylor – JT Touristik, 

Dr. Kirstin Hanusch-Linser – ÖBB, 

Anett Hanck – WLF 


Mag. Barbara Sipos – Leadership for 

Women, Eva Weissenberger – 

News, Ronald Schranz – Brunswick 

Group, Mag. Martina Flitsch – 

Novomatic, Martina Denich-Kobula – 

Frau in der Wirtschaft Wien 


"The guest list and the speakers prove 

what women have already achieved 

in Austria. A look 

at the domestic 

companies shows, 

that we have still a 

long way to go." 

Foto: www.fotoschuster.at 

Claudia Wiesner 

Managing Director 

Wiener Wiesn´ 

"Digital transformation also entails major 

changes in the working world. In the future, 

life-long learning means staying fit and upto-date 

with all the rapid changes. A very 

good educations, advanced 

training and networking 

are the essential factors for 

women to be successful in 

the future working world." 

Foto: AIT/Zinner 

Brigitte Bach 

Head of Center 

for Energy AIT 


Branding 

Local decision makers and trendsetters like Sigrid 

Oblak (Wien Holding), Kristin Hanusch-Linser (ÖBB), 

Doris Pulker-Rohrhofer (Wiener Hafen), Evelyn Palla 

(ÖBB), Irene Fialka (INiTS), Tatjana Oppits (IBM), 

Martina Flitsch (Novomatic) and Women Leadership 

initiator Renate Altenhofer pursued the topic, why 

self-employment and entrepreneurship in the “Digital 

Age” are a great chance for job-related success, especially 

for women. 

"When I decided to start a business 

in 2002, there were basically 

only three products that could be 

successfully distributed over the 

Internet: books, CDs, and travel. 

As I have said 'Travel as much as 

you can', I decided to have the right 

idea at the right 

time, so with the 

digital revolution 

I became the 

'Digital Power 

Woman'." 

Foto: Jens Passoth 

Jasmin Taylor 

Founder JT Touristik 

“Pioneers with potential” like Claudia Wiesner 

(Wiener Wiesn), Viktoria Schütze-Pirker (Endlich 

durchschlafen), Sophie Martinetz (Seinfield Professionals) 

and Bettina Steinbrugger (Erdbeerwoche) 

shared their personal experiences to the topic “The 

female start-up-power” and gave valuable advices for 

the way into autonomy. 

Prestigious experts, such as L’Oreal director Corporate 

Communications Alexandra Pifl, Stefanie 

Klotz (C&A Foundation), Ulrike Wüstenhagen (ORF), 

Leadership-Coach Barbara Sipos and Ronald Schranz 

(Brunswick Group) showed on the basis of international 

Corporate Initiatives how corporations strengthen 

female executives and female entrepreneurship. 

After the forum, designer Elke Freytag inspired 

the about 200 participants with a highly exclusive 

Fashion Show. At the following cocktail reception by 

ABOTHEK, the invitees had time to deepen and discuss 

all the ideas communicated during the event. 

"Diversity, collaboration 

and networking are the 

most important raw 

materials of the future." 

Kristin Hanusch-Linser 

Head of Open Innovation 

Lab ÖBB Holding AG 

Foto: ÖBB 

"In order to survive in a men-dominated world of 

executive boards, it pays off for women to beat 

men on their own territory – assumed they have 

enough female co-workers. 

It’s important to be risky, 

aggressive, result-oriented, 

self-confident and hard, even 

if tears flow." 

Foto: Privat 

Foto: OMV 

Anett Hanck 

Board Member 


Upcoming 

WOMEN 

LEADERSHIP FORUM 

September 19, 2017 

NOVOMATIC FORUM 

WIEN 

www.womenleadership.at 




Stephanie Klotz – C&A, Dr. Alexandra Pifl – 

L'Oreal, Anett Hanck – WLF, Dr. Ulrike Wüstenhagen 

– ORF-Radio, Mag. Evelyn Palla – ÖBB 

Personenverkehr, Mag. Doris Pulker-Rohrdorfer – 

Hafen Wien 


(left to right) Mag. Tatjana Oppitz – IBM Austria, 

Jasmin Taylor – JT Touristik, Mag. Dl Dr. Brigitte 

Bach – AIT, Dl Sigrid Oblak – Wien Holding, 

Dr. Irena Fialka – INiTS 

(left to right) Mag. Viktoria Schütze-Pirker – Endlich Durchschlafen, 

Claudia Wiesner – Wiener Wiesn, Dr. Kirstin Hanusch-Linser – ÖBB, 

Mag. Bettina Steinbrugger – erdbeerwoche, Mag. Sophie Martinetz – 

Seinfeld Professional 

"'Education 4.0' is more important than 

ever before. The proportion of women in 

technical professions in Austria is only 

around 15%! Digitalization 

is omnipresent and 

offers enormous possibilities 

for change and new 

leadership positions." 

Foto: Pepo Schuster 

Tatjana Oppitz 

Country General 

Manager IBM Austria 

"It is our responsibility to use these new 

opportunities to create an environment that 

supports and encourages 

women, because it is the 

only way to consciously 

shape the future of 

women in leadership 

positions." 

Sigrid Oblak 

Director Wien Holding 

Foto: Eva Kelety 


maximize your business communication! 

award conception I brand communication & consulting 

event management I marketing outsourcing 

public relations I ratings & studies 

Our initiatives 

www.icon-vienna.net 

www.europeanbrandinstitute.com/forum/ 

www.womenleadership.at 

maX iconvienna GmbH 

Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Wien 

office@maxcc.at

Sports for Life 

Eine Initiative von 

Foto: David Zirngast 

Foto: David Zirngast 

Players like Andreas Dober and the camp coaches take a lot of time for the kids. 

Autographs and certain morning rituals are a standard feature. 

SPORTS FOR LIFE _ 

SPORTS FOR GOOD! 

SPORTS FOR LIFE! is an initiative of former footballers and 

sportsmen aiming to promote football to society, especially to 

kids who are socially disadvantaged! 

In today’s society it is very important 

to lead our children from 

indoor to outdoor activities in 

order to get them in good trim. 

Sports encourages the youth and 

connects them – it doesn’t matter 

which ethnic or social group they 

belong to. Team sports are very important 

because they teach children 

self-confidence and help them 

learn a lot about respect, teambuilding 

and other important traits 

that will help them in their future 

social and working life. 

The cooperation between the 

SPORTS FOR LIFE!-Foundation 

and several sponsors as well as 

local associations throughout Austria 

ensures a variety of benefits for 

children. 

Austria’s trade union for football 

players (Vereinigung der Fußballer, 

VdF) hosts the Bruno-Gala, an 

event where footballers and trainers 

are being honoured. In terms 

of this exclusive event, donations 

enable disadvantaged families free 

access to the camps. 

Foto: Michael Graf 


Branding 

STARCAMPS 

2016 – 32 Starcamps 

with around 750 participating 

children. 

In cooperation with Merkur Insurance, some Starcamps 

offer a special training and performance check which is 

highly rated by the participants! Professionals like Louis 

Schaub and David Alaba always conjure a smile on the 

kids’ faces. For most of them it is the only time they can 

experience professional players up close. 

Fotos: David Zirngast 

Thanks to its unique concept and the support of 

many sponsors and communities, STARCAMPS 

can offer attractive prices starting from 99€, 

which enables access for everyone. This is the 

most favorable price offered in Austria, mixed with the 

know-how of well-educated and professional trainers. 

The main goal of the initiative is to make sports 

a part of children daily life on the one hand, and to 

provide them with the benefits of teamwork and social 

contacts on the other. This way the foundation 

attracts many children (7-14 years) and gives them 

the opportunity to join the beautiful game of football. 

This year, over 750 children took part in 32 camps! 

Various professional football players of the Austrian 

Bundesliga come to take part in different exercises 

in terms of the STARCAMPS’ trainings. The children 

have the great chance to train with them and ask individual 

questions – an interesting experience for everyone! 

Beside the reasons listed above, creating fun and 

future prospects for children is SPORTS FOR LIFE!’s 

main ambition. 

Since 1998 the VdF is highly engaged in the promotion 

of young football players. Therefore they have 

been successfully promoting the camps for years. 

With lots of specific camps and finally with the STAR- 

CAMPS (since 2006) the VdF managed to fill the gap 

with high quality offers and fair prices. All this became 

possible thanks to the support of many authorities 

and professional footballers. 


Brand Life Award 

A lifetime 

for a brand 

BRAND [ LIFE ] AWARD 

On October 18 th 2016, the brand life award ceremony took 

place for the 8th time, awarding Austrian personalities 

for their life-time achievement in successfully establishing, 

developing and managing brands and brand 

corporations. 

This year’s winner was the only independent bean-tobar 

manufacturer, chocolatier Josef Zotter, who received the 

award for his brand Zotter. Amid the applause of the crowd, 

the president of the European Brand Institute Gerhard Hrebicek 

and IAA vice-president Kristin Hanusch-Linser awarded 

Josef Zotter the trophy; the laudation was held by “Wiener 

Lustspielhaus” principal Adi Hirschal. 

In his acceptance speech Josef Zotter revealed how to 

be successful without advertisment. “We never taste the 

products we take to the market beforehand.” 


(left to right) Werner Kuhn, MBA – SK Rapid Wien, Wolfgang Ebner – Novomatic Forum, 

Josef Zotter – zotter Schokoladen Manufaktur, KR Dl Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek – European Brand Institute 


Branding 

Zotter chocolate tasting 

(left to right) Dr. Kristin Hanusch-Linser – ÖBB, Prof. Adi Hirschal, Dkfm. Helmut Hanusch – 

VGN, Josef Zotter – zotter Schokoladen Manufaktur, Werner Kuhn, MBA – SK Rapid Wien, 

KR Dl Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek – European Brand Institute, Iris Sageder 

This year’s brand ambassadors were 

long-time marketing director of SK Rapid 

Wien Werner Kuhn, Vienna Opera 

Ball Grand Dame Lotte Tobisch, Kapsch- 

CEO Georg Kapsch and media legend 

Hans-Jörgen Manstein. 

The ceremony attended e.g. Wolfgang 

Ebner, Novomatic Forum, Horizont chief 

editor Marlene Auer, Markus Burscha, 

Donauinselfest-chief Thomas Waldner, 

Lyoness manager Silvia Kelemen and Heidemarie 

Kipperer, lawyer Gerald Ganzger 

and former minister Maria Rauch-Kallat. 

The event was sweetened by a chocolate-tasting 

provided by Zotter Schokolade. 

(left to right) KR Dl Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek – European Brand Institute, 

Marlene Auer – Horizont, Dr. Kristin Hanusch-Linser – ÖBB 


SK Rapid Wien Team: Thomas Waldner, Barbara Bobek, 

Werner Kuhn MBA, Petra Gregorits, KR Hannes Kassil 

(left to right) Mag. Renate Altenhofer – Women Leadership Forum, Silvia Kelemen – Lyoness, BM a.D. Maria 

Rauch-Kallat, Heidemarie Kipperer – Lyoness, Petra Gregorits – Rapid Wien, Dr. Kristin Hanusch-Linser – ÖBB 


Anzeige 

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Anlagen Service System 

Die A.S.S. Anlagen Service System GmbH wurde 

im Jahr 1995 gegründet und hat seit Herbst 

2015 ihren Firmensitz in 1210 Wien, Richard 

Neutra Gasse 6. Der Schritt war erforderlich, da 

wir nun unser Lager, Firmenzentrale und Fuhrpark 

an einem Ort konzentrieren können. 

Im Jahr 2013 Eröffnung unseres Büros in Wiener 

Neustadt, Am Hauptplatz 19, um unsere Kunden vor 

Ort noch besser betreuen zu können. 

Unsere Auszeichnungen 

• 2014 Erlangung der ISO 9001 Zertifizierung 

• 2016 Verleihung des Austria Gütezeichens 

Für uns steht der Mensch im Mittelpunkt. Ein von 

uns betreutes Haus ist nicht „eines von vielen“, sondern 

wir streben im Rahmen unserer Tätigkeiten 

nach sozialer Verantwortung. Wir bemühen uns um 

Kontinuität bei unseren Mitarbeitern, denn für viele 

Hausbewohner ist ein vertrautes Gesicht als Hausbetreuer 

wichtig. Unsere Mitarbeiter haben auch stets 

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Wir erstellen nun seit über 20 Jahren für unsere 

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Mitarbeiterschulungen und gezielte Investitionen in 

Modernisierungen und Innovationen. Eine gute Organisation, 

lückenlose Dokumentation und laufende 

Qualitätskontrolle sichern einen reibungslosen Ablauf 

und hundert Prozent Zufriedenheit für unsere 

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Wir sind Ihr Partner, wenn es um Qualität, kompetentes 

Service und Kundenzufriedenheit geht. 

Unsere Serviceleistungen 

• GRÜNFLÄCHENBETREUUNG 

Für Ihr Büro/Firmenareal: 

Egal ob es sich um die repräsentative, dauerhafte 

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es gilt einen Garten zu revitalisieren – wir sind Ihr 

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Wir arbeiten für Privathaushalte, Hausverwaltungen 

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Vertrauen Sie auf die A.S.S. und übergeben Sie uns 

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Contacts 

AIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH Donau-City-Straße 1, 1220 Vienna, Austria www.ait.ac.at 

Anlagen Service System Richard-Neutra-Gasse 6, 1210 Vienna, Austria www.ass.co.at 

Austrian Federal Economic Chamber Wiedner Hauptstraße 62, 1045 Vienna, Austria www.wko.at 

Austrian Patent Office Dresdner Straße 87, 1200 Vienna, Austria www.patentamt.at 

Brand Global Council Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.brandglobal.org 

Brand Life Award Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.europeanbrandinstitute.com 

Central European Initiative Via Genova 9, 34121 Trieste, Italy www.cei.int 

China Council for Brand Development 

No 18, Bei San Huang dong Lu, Chaoyang District 

100013, Beijing, China www.brand-intl.cn 

City of Vienna Rathaus, 1082 Vienna, Austria www.wien.gv.at 

ELK Building Systems GmbH Wiedner Hauptstraße 120-124, 1050 Vienna, Austria www.elkbuildingsystems.com 

Embassy of Romania in Austria Prinz-Eugen-Straße 60, 1040 Vienna, Austria vienna.mae.ro 

Embassy of the Argentine Republic in Austria 

Goldschmiedgasse 2/1, 1010 Vienna, Austria 

Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in Austria Prinz-Eugen-Str. 72/1.OG/St. 1/Top 1.1, 1040 Vienna www.austria.gob.ve 

Embassy of the Dominican Repulic in Austria 

Embassy of the Republic of Bulgaria in Austria 

Embassy of the Republic of Colombia in Austria 

Embassy of the Republic of Costa Rica in Austria 

Prinz-Eugen-Straße 18, 1040 Vienna, Austria 

Schwindgasse 8, 1040 Vienna, Austria 

Stadiongasse 6-8/15, 1010 Vienna, Austria 

Wagramer Straße 23/1/1/2-3, 1220 Vienna, Austria 

Embassy of the Republic of Cuba in Austria Kaiserstrasse 84, 1070 Vienna, Austria www.cubadiplomatica.cu/austria 

Embassy of the Republic of El Salvador in Austria Prinz-Eugen-Straße 72/2/1, 1040 Vienna, Austria www.rree.gob.sv 

Embassy of the Republic of Guatemala in Austria 

Embassy of the Republic of Paraguay in Austria 

Embassy of the Republic of Uruguay in Austria 

Prinz-Eugen-Straße 18/Top 7, 1040 Vienna, Austria 

Prinz-Eugen-Straße 18/1/3a, 1040 Vienna, Austria 

Wallnerstraße 4/3/17, 1010 Vienna, Austria 

Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Austria Armbrustergasse 24, 1190 Vienna, Austria www.mzv.sk/vieden 

Embassy of the United States of America in Austria Boltzmanngasse 16, 1090 Vienna, Austria www.usembassy.at 

European Brand Institute Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.europeanbrandinstitute.com 

European Commission BERL 09/399, 1049 Brussels, Belgium ec.europa.eu 

European Fund for Strategic Investments - EFSI Boulevard Konrad Adenauer 98-100, 2950 Luxembourg www.eib.org/efsi 

European Youth Award Leopoldskronstrasse 30, 5020 Salzburg, Austria eu-youthaward.org 

Global Impact Investment Foundation Sachsenplatz 4-6/2, 1200 Vienna, Austria www.Giifoundation.com 

Hartl Resort GmbH 

Kurallee 1, Bad-Griesbach-Therme, 

94086 Bad Griesbach, Germany www.quellnes-golf.de 

HBM GmbH Lemböckgasse 63/2, 1230 Vienna, Austria www.hbm.com 

Institute of Science and Technology Austria Am Campus 1, 3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria www.ist.ac.at 

Kommunalkredit Austria AG Türkenstraße 9, 1092 Vienna, Austria www.kommunalkredit.at 

Land of Lower Austria Landhausplatz 1, 3109 St. Pölten, Austria www.noe.gv.at 

LANSKY, GANZGER & Partner Rechtsanwälte GmbH Biberstraße 5, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.lansky.at 

Leitbetriebe Austria Mariahilfer Straße 124/15, 1070 Vienna, Austria www.leitbetriebe.at 

Linsinger ZT GmbH Hauptstraße 31, 5600 St. Johann im Pongau, Austria www.linsinger.at 

Lyoness Austria GmbH Grazbachgasse 87-93, 8010 Graz, Austria www.lyoness.com 

MA 23 - Wirtschaft, Arbeit und Statistik Meiereistraße 7, Sektor B, 1020 Vienna, Austria www.wien.gv.at/kontakte/ma23 

maX iconvienna GmbH Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.icon-vienna.net 

Ministry for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs Minoritenplatz 8, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.bmeia.gv.at 

Northwestern University 633 Clark Street, 60208 Evanston, IL, USA www.northwestern.edu 

Novomatic AG Wiener Strasse 158, 2352 Gumpoldskirchen, Austria www.novomatic.com 

Österreichischer Städtebund Rathaus, Stiege 5, 1082 Vienna, Austria www.staedtebund.gv.at 

Peter Affenzeller Oberweitersdorf 7, 4211 Alberndorf, Austria www.peter-affenzeller.at 

Sports For Life Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.sports-for-life.net 

SummerLight Capital Partners Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Wien, Austria www.summerlight.eu 

TC 066 Kitaigorodskii proezd, dom 7, stroenie 1, 

109074 Moscow, Russia www.eicea.ru 

United Nations Industrial Development Organization - UNIDO Wagramerstraße 5, 1220 Vienna, Austria 

www.unido.org 

Vienna Chamber of Commerce and Industry Stubenring 8-10, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.wko.at/wien 

W24 Missindorfstraße 21/7/3, 1140 Vienna, Austria www.w24.at 

Woman Leadership Forum Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.womenleadership.at 


www.linsinger.at 

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An extract of our references 

Hauptstraße 31 | 5600 St. Johann im Pongau, AUT 

| T: +43 64 12 - 43 14 | F: +43 64 12 - 43 14 15 | E: office@linsinger.at

The independent 

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European Brand Institute GmbH 

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T.: +43 1 532 1000 52 | F.: +43 1 532 1000 30 

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WELTMEISTERLICHE 

TECHNOLOGIEN 

Gaming innovation starts here. 

Dafür steht auch unser Markenbotschafter Niki Lauda. 

Denn unseren Erfolg als einer der international führenden 

Gaming-Technologiekonzerne verdanken wir vor allem unserer 

Innovationskraft. Diese entwickeln wir ständig weiter – nicht nur 

am Stammsitz in Österreich und in 20 Technologiezentren sowie 

an 13 Produktionsstandorten weltweit, sondern auch in Kooperation 

mit führenden technischen Universitäten. 

Mehr dazu auf www.novomatic.com

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