CUPRINS - Universitatea George Bacovia

EU-Accession Of Cyprus: Implications And Challenges For Enterprisesand of the new way of viewing and doing things. All social partners (thebureaucratic machinery, the businesses, the workers, the consumers, etc) need to beactively involved in this information campaign so that everybody is made aware ofthe implications of harmonization to the EU laws and the potential impact thatthese changes will have on their daily operations and daily lives.Such information campaigns/measures are a sine qua non in order tominimize the potential resistance that is expected from such dramatic institutional,economic and social changes. Resistance would be expected from a number ofaffected groups in different capacities: (1) from firms having to change productionprocesses, to respect the environment, to ensure the health and safety of workers,(2) from business and professional lobbies interested in promoting andsafeguarding their special interests; (3) from consumers as individual purchasingagents needing to be informed of their consumer rights; (4) from labor unions asdefenders of workers’ rights; (5) from various social groups wanting to safeguardand/or enhance their established privileges; and other socioeconomic groups.With the accession of Cyprus in an enlarged EU market of some 450million people, the Cypriot enterprises will operate in a very competitiveenvironment, where only the fittest would be able to survive. The enterprises andthe sectors that are able to sustain productivity increases in the face of rising wageand other costs will be the ones to weather the storm and withstand the onslaughtof competitive pressures from the EU, and the world. On their part, governmentsmust endeavor to facilitate flexible and efficient labor and financial markets, whileconstantly improving the infrastructural facilities in order to foster sustainablegains in productivity.Beyond being burdened with additional costs, to conform to the acquis,enterprises need to change their business mentality and their business processes.They need financial strength and operational dynamism, achieved throughtechnological upgrading and business process re-engineering and modernization, inorder to gain operational efficiency and effectiveness. They also need to be moreflexible to the changing global business environment: They need to be innovative,use modern financing vehicles (including leasing, debt instrument and IPO),introduce flexible working conditions, and enter into collaborations with otherEuropean companies.Yet, financial strength and operational efficiency are no longer the onlycritical success factors. The successful enterprises will have to respect the rights ofworkers and provide for their health and safety at the place of work, they will haveto exhibit social responsibility by respecting the health and safety of consumers aswell as by contributing to the protection of environment, they need better corporategovernance and respect to investors and other stakeholders.219