Agenda Slovak Republic About Am Cham Slovakia Overview

Agenda Slovak Republic About Am. Cham Slovakia Overview of Am. Cham Activities Committee on Business Academic Cooperation Am. Chams in Europe Q&A

Slovak Republic • Population of 5. 4 million • Capital City Bratislava • Location in the heart of Europe • Slovakia adopted the Euro as its national currency on 1 January, 2009.

The American Chamber of Commerce in the Slovak Republic ABOUT AMCHAM SLOVAKIA

The American Chamber of Commerce in the Slovak Republic • Founded in Slovakia in 1993 • Officially authorized by the Ministry of Interior in May 1994 • Independent and self-supporting organization, dependant on contributions from its members, companies operating in Slovakia • Independent of the US or Slovak government • The most active foreign chamber in Slovakia • Approximately 100 events and other activities & initiatives every year

The American Chamber of Commerce in the Slovak Republic

The American Chamber of Commerce in the Slovak Republic Major business sectors in membership • Information Technologies (29) • Consulting and Corporate Advisory (27) • Manufacturing and Production (26) Recruiting and Executive Search (21) Banking, Insurance and Finance (19) Legal Advisory (19) Education and Training (17) Automotive Industry (14) Marketing, Advertising and PR (14) Hotels, Restaurants and Hospitality services (13) Accounting and Auditing (11)

Board of Directors 2010/2011 President Igor KOTTMAN Citi First Vice President George BABCOKE U. S. Steel Košice Second Vice President Peter ŠKODNÝ Accenture Third Vice President Marcel REBROŠ Cisco Slovakia Vice President of Finance Mark EBERST KPMG Eric ASSIMAKOPOULOS The Carlton Hotel & Offices Charles HACKETT Glaxo. Smith. Kline Michaela BENEDIGOVÁ SEESAME Communication Milan HÁN IMP Consulting Todd BRADSHAW Pricewaterhouse. Coopers Julian JUHASZ Squire Sanders Roman BRESTOVANSKÝ IBM Slovakia Pavol KOPEČNÝ Ecenter Stephen CAULFIELD DELL Martin KUBALA Hewlett Packard Peter ČEREŠNÍK Microsoft Slovakia Jacob PREISLER Philip Morris Slovakia

Official Mission Statement The mission of the Am. Cham Slovakia is to be the leading representative for U. S. , Slovak and international business in Slovakia, and to promote the global competitiveness of the country.

MAIN POINTS OF FOCUS: CONTACTS INFORMATION ADVOCACY

Am. Cham Events - Contacts 2002, 2006 & 2010 - Before the 2002, 2006 and the 2010 Parliamentary Elections Am. Cham hosted the “Slovak Elections Political Party Speaker Series“

Major Events "Innovation Policy and Technology Transfer Conference“ – April 2010

"Making Slovakia a Better Business Place" SME Survey and Conference December 2010 Major Events

The Foreign Investors Survey focused on three main areas: 1. Competitive Workforce 2. Better Regulation 3. Current Issues and Trends

FDI Survey -- Current Issues and Trends

FDI Survey -- Current Issues and Trends • A vast majority of foreign companies want to keep their operations at least at current levels or even expand • strong indication that Slovakia remains competitive

Am. Cham Policy/Advocacy Activities 1. Monitoring & Issue Identification 2. Providing Information 3. Providing Access to Decision-Makers 4. Sharing Ideas, Best Practices & Commenting on Legislation 5. Speaking with One Voice & Advocating Business Interests

Am. Cham Policy/Advocacy Activities Monitoring & Issue Identification Am. Cham Legislative and Policy Update § Legislation in the pipeline § National and EU level of decision-making § Bi-weekly e-mail updates § Highlights in Connection

Am. Cham Policy/Advocacy Activities Providing Information - Policy briefs and articles: § Slovak Parliamentary Elections § Main Elements of the Government Program § Regulatory Impact Assessments § Labor Code Revision § Social Insurance Law Revision § Income Tax Act Revision Providing Access to Decision-Makers: § SR: Prime Minister plus all relevant ministers and state secretaries § EU level: Commissioners, Members of the European Parliament, etc.

Am. Cham Policy/Advocacy Activities Am. Cham Committees and Task Forces Sharing Ideas, Best Practices & Commenting on Legislation • membership-driven, democratically elected leadership, regularly reporting to the Board § § § § Committee on Business-Academic Cooperation Employment and Social Affairs Committee Health Care Committee Tax Committee Public Procurement Task Force Telecom Working Group, State Aid Task Force NEW: FDI Committee Other Initiatives: TOURISM, CSR, CIVIL CODE

Am. Cham Policy/Advocacy Activities Speaking with One Voice & Advocating Business Interests

Am. Cham Publications – “Connection” Magazine • improved, modified and expanded • one of Am. Cham’s most appreciated services • widely read throughout the international business community

One of the most active committees in the American Chambers of Commerce BUSINESS/ACADEMIC COOPERATION COMMITTEE

Advocacy & Legislative Contribution The Ministry of Education invited Am. Cham Slovakia to join its Advisory Committee on Education Law and Law on Vocational Education to comment on Education Law and drafting of the Law on Vocational Education. Seven out of nine Am. Cham comments incorporated into Educational laws.

COOPERATION WITH OTHER AMCHAMS Am. Chams in Europe

Am. Chams in Europe “The Am. Cham Network” § Today represents the corporate interests of well over 17, 000 American and European companies. § All Member Chambers are members of the U. S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE § Encompasses approx. 40 countries § Over 20 million employees. § Member companies account for more than $1. 1 billion in investment on both sides of the Atlantic.

Top 10 Reasons for Investing in Slovakia! 1. Central European hub. 2. Political & economic stability 3. 19% flat tax rate 4. Availability of highly skilled workforce 5. Low labor costs vs. high labor productivity 6. Liberal labor code 7. Large selection of industrial land offices available for purchase/lease 8. Strong engineering, math and sciences tradition 9. Infrastructure growing steadily 10. Consistent economic growth

www. amcham. sk More information at: American Chamber of Commerce in SR Jake Slegers, Executive Director office@amcham. sk THANK YOU FOR ATTENTION!