Category: News

The echoes of the announcement of UniCredit’s return to Polish have not yet subsided, and the second largest banking group in Europe has already opened its first branch at Olivia Centre in Gdańsk. The facility is located on the ground floor of the Olivia Gate building and offers a full range of services for private and corporate clients, including premium customers.

“We assume in the three-year plan that our revenues will come from three main sources, in a proportion of 1/3 each. Firstly, revenues from the banking as a service (BAaS) part, the second part is revenues from the large company segment, and the third part is individual customers and small businesses – said Wojciech Sobieraj, CEO of Vodeno and Head of the Supervisory Board of UniCredit NV/SA, during the press conference.

UniCredit Group is a pan-European universal bank with assets of EUR 880 billion. It has over 15 million customers, among which 1 million are business customers. Its activities include, m.in, Italy, Germany, Austria and the region of Central and Eastern Europe. In 2016, the group decided to withdraw from Polish, and now it returns with an offer of services, available m.in example in the application.

Olivia Centre is the largest Polish business centre and one of the largest in Central and Eastern Europe. It consists of 9 buildings located on the main artery connecting Gdańsk, Sopot and Gdynia. The area of the Gdańsk center is 175 thousand. m2. Companies such as Amazon, Bayer, Capgemini, Deloitte, Energa, EPAM, Fujifilm, Lyreco, Luxmed, Medicover, Nike, Nordea, PwC, Ricoh, Sii and thyssenkrupp have their offices in Olivia.

“The choice of Olivia was determined by several factors,” says Monika Misztal-Rybka, director of the Gdańsk branch of UniCredit. The decisive influence was the central location in Gdańsk, convenient access, modern office infrastructure and an extensive range of services for tenants. Access to common spaces and business events taking place in Olivia is also important. The biggest advantage is the ability to organize business meetings in an inspiring environment. We also appreciate the modern architecture, comfortable office facilities and the unique atmosphere of the place, which is conducive to integration and networking in the Tri-City business environment. An additional convenience is access to a wide range of gastronomic options, including a Michelin-starred restaurant and an observation deck with a panorama of the city.

The first Tri-City Unicredit branch will offer the full range of the bank’s offer.

– Thanks to full automation of processes and the use of modern fintech technologies, we save our clients’ time and simplify banking services. Companies gain a unique, fully remote process of applying for and signing a loan agreement, attractive exchange rates and solutions supporting day-to-day business management, including the allocation of financial surpluses. We will also soon be making available a wide range of opportunities to invest locally and globally. All in one next-generation “all-in-one” app where you can conveniently manage all your finances. Customers benefit from a comprehensive offer tailored to their needs – both in a branch and remotely via an app or in a place convenient for them. Our team is also mobile – thanks to modern technological solutions, we can carry out most of the processes, including submitting and signing applications, in a place and time convenient for the client. These are all elements of our philosophy of building relationships based on convenience, trust and real benefits – emphasizes Monika Misztal-Rybka.

NAVBLUE, a company of the Airbus Group, has opened its office in Olivia Centre. The company’s presence in the region strengthens the position of Pomerania in the aviation sector, which is gradually becoming the Polish center for this sector. It is also another step in the development of the Pomeranian Aviation Hub – a cluster in which over 1700 people currently work.

NAVBLUE, a wholly owned subsidiary of Airbus, manages a key European aerospace operations solutions center in Gdansk. The office specializes primarily in the production of aeronautical data and software, develops and delivers solutions for aviation operations. Thanks to them, it is possible to increase the operational efficiency of airlines and develop aviation in a more sustainable dimension.

“With around 118 specialists, NAVBLUE is actively recruiting software engineers, data analysts and technical support experts,” says Artur Siebert, Ho Aero Data & Managing Director at NabBlue. – The choice of Gdansk was of strategic importance to us, mainly due to the region’s reputation as a recognized European software and aviation hub. It is also a region that currently provides access to talented employees and the excellent infrastructure and accessibility of the Olivia Centre. The company also emphasizes its goal of striving to become a preferred employer in the region.

The development of NAVBLUE directly strengthens Airbus’ broader industrial commitment in the country, which already employs highly qualified staff at three locations (Warsaw, Łódź and Gdansk). As a result, the Polish office is an important element of Airbus’ strategy to pioneer in building a safer and more sustainable future for the aerospace sector in Central Europe. The city of Gdansk was chosen because of its recognized position as an aviation and software hub in Europe.

As Maciej Kotarski, director at Olivia Centre, emphasizes, the slogan of the Navblue brand perfectly reflects their plans: Reach for the Skies – the slogan NAVBLUE can be understood literally, because it is a company dedicated to air operations carried out for airlines and aircraft operators. Olivia will be staffed by a team that is developing very quickly and has already crossed the barrier of 100 people. Such a resident confirms that Gdańsk and Oliwa are becoming a recognized European center of aviation, software and human resources for the aviation industry.

The company has joined other entities related to air transport that have their offices in Olivia. Previously, AirBP, a company specializing in JET-A1 fuel trading and handling aircraft refueling processes in Gdańsk, Warsaw, Katowice, Lublin and Szymany near Olsztyn, located its offices here. The offices in Gdańsk are the headquarters of the company’s management board, and they also employ specialists in administration, logistics and trade.

One of the three offices of Boeing Poland also operates in Oliwa. The Gdańsk branch focuses on the development of software and management systems for global databases, supports Boeing’s full portfolio of digital services for pilots and airlines. About every fifth flight in the world uses navigation maps from Gdansk. In addition, the office is home to the Software and Avionics Engineering Center. Nearby, also in Oliwa, there is also another tycoon from the aviation industry – Lufthansa Systems Poland. The company specializes in the development of software and other IT solutions for the aviation and logistics industry. Lufthansa Systems Poland provides outsourcing and BPO services: it creates and implements IT solutions for companies in the aviation industry.

The development of companies from the aviation segment in Oliwa is related to the development of the Pomeranian Aviation Hub, as well as the development of the airport in Gdańsk Rębiechowo. Since 2019, the Aviation Hub project has been developed in the Pomeranian Voivodeship – a cluster of companies from the aviation industry, the task of which is to increase the number of services and products related to the aviation industry, delivered and developed in Pomerania and Poland, to develop cooperation between aviation market participants and academic staff in order to increase the level of innovation and integration of the created aviation solutions, to increase the level of their competence and specialization, education and sharing of aviation industry knowledge with a wider audience, offering modern technologies directly to customers of the aviation market, promotion of high-class aviation products and services created and developed in Pomerania. The project partners are Invest Pomerania, the Gdańsk Economic Development Agency, Boeing Gdańsk, Lech Walesa Airport and Smart4Aviation.

One of the main factors in the development of the cluster is the growing position of Lech Walesa Airport in the domestic and European air transport market. The average year-on-year increase in passenger numbers remains at 12% and already in 2023 exceeded the record results that the airport achieved before the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, the airport ended with a total of 6,714,149 passengers, which allowed it to maintain the third position, after Warsaw Chopin Airport and Krakow’s Balice. The dynamic growth in the number of passengers and services also allows Gdańsk Airport to be one of the most dynamically developing airports in Europe.

Fig. Dawid Linkowski

Two days of intense meetings, filled with conversations about leadership that starts with a person. The next edition of the LeadWell conference has ended at the Olivia Centre – an event that has already managed to gain the position of one of the most important points on the map of the development of the leaders of northern Polish.

The program included lectures, discussion panels, workshops and networking. Experts invited to participate talked about the most important challenges of contemporary leaders: from job crafting and self-reflection, through motivating teams and improving the competencies of the future, to creating and implementing strategies. The agenda also included a topic without which it is impossible to talk about effective leadership: healthy sleep and its impact on work efficiency. According to experts, a sleep-deprived leader is up to 30 percent less engaged team.

On the LeadWell stage, m.in Sebastian Drzewiecki, Maja Gojtowska, Agata Grenda, Paweł Wujec, Bartek Olejniczak, Piotr Nowosielski, Mateusz Majchrzak and Rocco Spencer performed. The workshop part was led by practitioners who have been professionally accompanying development leaders for years: Maciej Sznitowski, Monika Czupajło, Paweł Korycki, Iwona Borzym and Elżbieta Lewandowska.

Although the conference offered a solid portion of knowledge, the organizers unanimously emphasize that the most important thing was to change the perspective. Participants proved that diversity of ways of thinking drives development, and constructive differences of opinion can be more valuable than complete agreement. The shared experience of the presence of hundreds of leaders has also shown that a leader is never alone. The power of leadership lies in relationships, community and everyday decisions that have a real impact on the work environment.

LeadWell is an O4 Coworking initiative developed with passion and a lot of courage. The organizers joke that this is a classic “magical” project – no one requires its implementation, and yet it is difficult to imagine the autumn calendar of Olivia Centre events without it. The effort put into the preparations and the enormity of emotions were emphasized by the teams involved in creating the event. The ovations of the participants and positive opinions confirmed that it was worth it – even if the pace of preparations until the last moment resembled a long-distance run.

Martyna Czarnobaj-Borowska and Karolina Rymarczyk were responsible for the concept and production of LeadWell, with the great support of the experienced O4 team. The course of the event was also supervised by Marta Moksa – the host and one of the ambassadors of the idea of “leaders who like people”.

The atmosphere of the event is best summed up by the words of one of the participants, who described LeadWell as “bigos with chocolate” – an unobvious combination of strong emotions, insightful reflection and specific knowledge. A connection that lasts a long time.

The LeadWell conference will return in 2026!

Fig. Aleksandra Brzeska