Balkan Case Challenge Is More Than Just an Ordinary Challenge

The Balkan Case Challenge is more than just an ordinary challenge. It is a truly commendable experience which provides young people with a wide range of opportunities for networking, personal growth and development. During the event I got the chance to cooperate with and learn from highly qualified young people from different backgrounds, improve my teamwork skills and work on an inspiring case, and at the same time enjoy the lovely city of Vienna. Irena Efremovska, Macedonia, BIZ participant 2010

The very ﬁ rst moments of the Balkan Case Challenge made it clear that we were here for a common goal: bringing us and our countries closer together. I have not only gained a lot of professional experience but also found friends from all over South-Eastern Europe. Thomas Moik, Austria, LMC participant 2009

The BCC makes a difference, not only for the participants who deﬁ nitely make new friends and in the best case also get a job through the BCC, but also for the organizers. Veronika Nitsche, WUS Austria

The BCC is an important and constructive contribution, since without support for education, it is impossible to propel a transformation for peace and economic and social stability. Through education, we observe our responsibility for Europe and the future. Erhard Busek, Chairman Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe

More information on www.bcchallenge.org

international case study competition balkan caassee cchhaalllleennggee

INTERNATIONALINTERNATIONAL CASECASE STUDYSTUDY COMPETITIONCOMPETITION ANDAND CAREERCAREER FAIRFAIR WITHWITH FOCUSFOCUS ONON SOUTH-EASTERNSOUTH-EASTERN EUROPEEUROPE

July 5-9, 2010 IN VIENNA

148 TOP STUDENTS FROMFROM SOUTH-EASTERNSOUTH-EASTERN EUROPEEUROPE AND AUSTRIA COMPETING IN 4 ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES t

IMPRINT:

Published by: WUS Austria

Editors: Maria Brunnhofer, Andreas Krammer Layout: Edin Prnjavorac

All Photos by Reen West except on page 4 by Manca Juvan/Stability Pact, pages 5, 31 (top) by WUS Austria (Archive), page 28 (bottom) by ADA / F. Helmrich, pages 29 (bottom), 33 (bottom), 34 (top) by Edin Prnjavorac, pages 29 (top), 30, 31 (bottom), 32, 34 (bottom), 35 (bottom), 36 (top), 37, 38, private and page 33 (top) by Petra Spiola.

Print: Druckerei Khil, Neutorgasse 26, 8010 Graz

Graz, September 2010 table of contents FOREWORDS 4

HISTORY OF THE BALKAN CASE CHALLENGE 8

FACTS AND FIGURES 10

COMMENTS OF BALKAN EXPERTS 12

KEYNOTE SPEECH BORIS BUDEN 14

COMPETITION UND CASES 16

WINNERS 20

AWARDS 21

RECRUITMENT EVENT 22

PARTNERS OF THE BCC 2010 23

STATISTICS 25

BCC IN THE MEDIA 26

STATEMENTS ON 10 YEARS BCC 28

IMPRESSIONS 39

PARTICIPANTS 2001-2010 42

WUS AUSTRIA 46

TEAM AND CONTACT 48 foreforeweww

I have had the opportunity to work on peaceful development in the Balkan region from the days of the Dayton-Agreement up to the present. This is an Austrian and European responsibility, since everything that we have seen happen in our neighboring regions was decided at the latest between the Viennese congress in 1815, and in London, Paris, Berlin, Petersburg and Moscow and Vienna in 1918. It is a test for the European sense of responsibility. The BCC is an important and constructive contribution, since without support for education, it is impossible to propel a transformation for peace and economic and social stability. Through education, we observe our responsibility for Europe and the future. Every discussion about immigration, key workers, EU-development, etc. is meaningless if young people are not allowed a future. This is, of course, also applicable to the Balkan region. If we withhold there, we are withholding from the future of Europe and Austria. My thanks to everyone who has brought about great things in these 10 years.

Erhard Busek Chairman Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe

4 wwordsords

The Balkan Case Challenge, organized by WUS Austria with the support of the Austrian Development Agency and many other private sponsors including the ERSTE Stiftung, has developed over the past ten years into being the most important Talent-Show in the Balkans in the arena of higher education. The students from all the Balkan countries and Austria, who meet and work with each other in four competitions, can not only measure their strengths across the various ethnic groups, but also build valuable contacts in the world of economics and business in the entire Balkan region and in Austria. The pioneering initiative from WUS Austria has developed into a fl agship project, which had to overcome many obstacles and problems in connection with visa rules between the EU and the Balkan countries. The small group from Moldavia, on the road for three days in a rickety bus just to arrive in Sarajevo for the fi nal competition, remains a vivid memory for me. The intellectual potential of the Balkans is important. As a result of war and displacement in the 1990s, young people from the Balkans were obliged to continue their studies at universities around the world, broadening their horizons considerably. After the war, wide-ranging reforms were instituted in the universities and step-by-step, they steadily increased in their leadership potential in European higher learning circles. The Balkans can boast a relatively high rate of young people who are increasing the numbers of those pursuing higher education and who represent the most important potential for the future of the Balkans: the human resources that are necessary to strengthen their economy and society, but also as a workforce in other European countries. Already today, many Austrian companies that operate internationally profi t from key workers who have left their home countries because of the war in the Balkans and now fill important roles. In the future it will be necessary to contribute to new masters' programs and other types of endeavors so that the intellectual potential of the Balkans becomes an advantage for that region as well as for the development of Europe as a whole. For this to happen, it is important that politics is kept away from the universities and that the State and the international community provide the appropriate resources.

Wolfgang Benedek Chairman WUS Austria 5 foreforeweww

Europe Grows Together

ERSTE Foundation has supported the Balkan Case Challenge since 2006. This competition improves young people's networks and with them, their job opportunities. In the spirit of European thought, it makes connections across boundaries possible. In the ﬁ ve years of intense collaborative work with WUS Austria, we have experienced the event as something that successfully intensiﬁ es the collaboration between higher education and the economy, and which encourages the critical exchange of knowledge and ideas between students in South-Eastern Europe and Austria. When we started out, we were impressed by the enormous engagement and enthusiasm of the participants. The dynamic cultivated by this competition gave the impression that a united Europe can become a reality much more quickly than what pessimists might think. The young people who have participated in the BCC in the past ten years represent the best potential for these countries. If one looks around at NGOs, with whom we at ERSTE Foundation work frequently, it quickly becomes obvious that many of the activists working for them are very young. In this way, the Balkan Case Challenge is like a place where one is privileged to meet the activists of tomorrow's society, today.

More still: the BCC is a forum for further development and higher education. Unfortunately, there are not many opportunities for young people from these regions to meet others from so many countries on such a level, and to present their talents, capabilities and their vision for a future of breadth and openness. Through this event, more emphasis can be put on the continuing development of their own higher education system. Throughout the past eleven years, many European universities have tried to implement the so-called Bologna Process, so that they can take part in the newly-ordered landscape of higher education as an open institution, strongly connected internationally. The battle for the best thinkers has made its way into the Balkans as well. The Balkan Case Challenge serves as a bridge between regions which can learn from each other. Here, the future do-ers, visionaries and thinkers of these regions meet on an even level; these are young, extremely motivated people. I was encouraged by the high level of education represented by the participants of every year's event. Many companies recognized the chance they had to gain new top-talent, and took the event very seriously. Of course, the young democracy of the Balkans has to continually battle with its past. Although sights are ﬁ xed on the future, sometimes they are diverted backwards. But the ERSTE Foundation wants to open new ways of seeing and, above all, encourage discourse in areas of society and culture. Here, young people play the most important role. They show us, today, the true picture of the future which we are trying to realize with them. The most important aspect of this is for the young people of the region to feel like they are a part of Europe. For this, there are still many barriers to dismantle. In order for accession to the European Union for each waiting country to work, the people must feel accepted into Europe not through formal acts of politics, but as a vivid reality of being part of a true community, with the pleasures, privileges, and responsibilities that come with it. One can feel, regarding the BCC, that it is mostly about personal experience, and the essential exchange between students. They understand through experience that the others are not 'foreigners' but, instead, interesting partners who enrich each other's personalities in turn.

Boris Marte 6 Member of the Managing Board ERSTE Foundation wwordsords

BCC10*: 10 years of professional success and networking, 10 years of contribution to mutual understanding and 10 years of long-lasting friendships

When planning the 10th edition of the BCC we were certainly aware of the necessity of organizing a very special event; not only because it would be the anniversary event but also because it would mark the interim culmination of the BCC history. In the ten years of its existence the BCC has surely changed when it comes to its objectives, its target countries as well as to its model as such. However, two main aspects have always remained the same: to aim at linking higher education and economy, and at supporting the Balkan countries in growing together after a crisis-ridden decade. From the very beginning the BCC has achieved all of its goals: former participants reported their professional progress to WUS Austria – numerous students got a job after their graduation based on their BCC participation; they offered support to the organization of the sub-competitions and fi nals by taking the roles of trainers, jury members and case creators; and they were involved in the promotion of the event talking to their colleagues about their unforgettable experiences at fi rst hand. Thanks to the initiatives of former participants the number of applicants has been constantly rising until it reached its culmination in 2010 with almost 900 submissions. Every year the participants of the finals experienced the same: That the “Balkan people are so similar to each other”, that ” it’s fun to work together” and that mutual understanding among the people starts with the young generation as they have the open-mindedness, the tolerance, and the objectivity to initiate cross-border cooperation with their colleagues from the neighboring countries. In this regard, the BCC has proven its capability to initiate and support a change of mind in the Balkan societies, in a small but important environment. At the same time, the project contributes to a positive attitude of Western-European countries towards South-Eastern Europe. The future of the Balkan countries lies in the EU, and their accession to the EU must not only be a political decision but must be based on a friendly and welcoming attitude of the EU citizens towards new members. When the BCC was organized for the fi rst time, it was something extraordinary, something bold, but in the meanwhile it is part of the university sector in the Balkans. Additionally, it has gained a lot of reputation in the business world: This way a lot of international companies and organizations could be attracted to the project. These partners were not only involved in the fi nancial sustainability of the project but also in the design. Representative examples are the “Career Day South-Eastern Europe” in cooperation with Austrian trade which has been organized since the fi rst implementation of the BCC in Austria in 2006, or the organization of a big Opening Ceremony together with ERSTE Foundation with keynote speeches of renowned personalities from the political or cultural sector in the Balkans. Finally, thanks to such initiatives and the willingness of all actors involved, the BCC has always managed to adapt easily and immediately to new developments so that even ten years after its fi rst implementation the BCC is still following the ongoing trends in higher education, addressing the current problems, and answering the main questions of employment and society. This way, the BCC will always remain both a fl agship project and a brand. Jasmin Moser BCC Project Manager WUS Austria 7 history of the 10 years of Balkan Case Challenge

From the very beginning the Balkan Case Challenge (BCC) has always aimed to provide a kind of wake-up call to students from South-Eastern Europe. Its name was intended to welcome all those who considered themselves part of this geographical region which has suffered unfortunate events in recent years. The case study method, simulations of real-life engagements, teamwork, positive challenges, friendship, the exchange of ideas and cultures, and all the other specifi cs that accompanied the BCC together constituted its soul. The Balkan Case Challenge comprises four separate competitions under one roof, quite literally. However, each single competition (Business Case Competition, ICT Case Competition, Model European Council and Law Moot Court) has a dynamic and life of its own, an energy that makes it a specifi c and an integral part of the diversity that has been promoted by the BCC. This diversity refl ects the conditions of human resources on the labor market: the very resources the BCC seeks to improve and develop through its unique blend of disciplines, techniques and tools. These and many other reasons have contributed to the 10 years of the existence of the BCC, probably the largest, most prestigious and popular event for students from the Balkans or South-Eastern Europe (SEE) respectively, which is the more neutral term preferred by the inhabitants of this region. When we began the BCC in the year 2000, on the initiative of Mr Thomas Klein who did his civilian service at WUS Austria in Sarajevo, the capital letter B in “BCC” stood for “Bosnia and Herzegovina” since the participation in the event was limited to students from this country. In the consecutive years, the technical term “BCC” developed its own brand identity and the case competition itself included participants from more and more countries every year (in 2001 all countries of former Yugoslavia and Albania joined the BCC, in 2004/05 Moldova, in 2006 Austria; in 2008 and 2010 we even had guests from the Oman taking part). Even though the term “Balkan” in “Balkan Case Challenge” has led to lengthy discussions with participants, jury members and other stakeholders, we kept the name in order to promote the many positive connotations the term brings to mind, and retained the all-inclusive element that the students from these different backgrounds found in the competition. When we thought about the term “Balkan” in the context of the BCC, we wanted to give it a fresh, progressive and forward-looking meaning. We focused on the goals of the BCC: the richness in different cultural backgrounds, the team-oriented cooperation among the different ethnicities and the academic accomplishments. All these factors aimed at a higher employability and better future in all countries participating in the Balkan Case Challenge. For 10 years the Balkan Case Challenge has offered High Potentials (more than 2,500 participants in total!) from South-Eastern-Europe, and since 2006 Austria as well, the opportunity to present themselves in an international context and to establish ties with potential employers. Vienna, as a point of contact between the East and the West, played an essential role in the success of the BCC. In 2006, on the occasion of the EU Presidency of Austria, the venue of the BCC was relocated from Sarajevo to Vienna. In that way, Austria’s contribution to the economic development in SEE was given visibility. Apart from that the BCC encouraged exchange, network-building and the strengthening of ties between companies and students from SEE and Austria. Through the enhanced involvement of companies in the realization of the BCC, a closer connection 8 BCC

between university education and employment was establishhhed, since companies used the event to recruit employees for their business locations in South-Eastern Europe (in this way at least 10% of the participants found a job through the BCC). Finally, the Balkan Case Challenge aims at establishing awareness of South-Eastern Europe and the Balkans and its potential as an integral part of Europe. Therefore, besides the aspect of employability, the BCC also has a consistent “political” component. In 2006 the participants of the Model United Nations (which was replaced by the Model European Council in 2008) developed a Visa Liberalization Resolution in order to raise awareness of the EU-entry regulations for the countries in the Western Balkans. This resolution was widely distributed and the reactions proved relevant. Members of the EU Commission, the Austrian Ministry of European and International Affairs, the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Austrian Chamber of Commerce, representatives of the European Parliament and the European Parliament itself were among the respondents. Today, most of the countries that participate in the Balkan Case Challenge do not need visas anymore. This cannot be directly linked to the BCC but still we believe that we contributed to this process through projects, like the BCC, which support higher education in South-Eastern Europe with regard to the development of this region and within the context of the medium-term extension of the EU. Investments in higher education have a lasting positive effect on the employment of the population. Beside the development of human resources, a good tertiary education at university locations results in an increased interest in investments by local as well as international companies, and thus contributes to securing and developing business locations. In this regard, the Balkan Case Challenge is a success story where achievements can be measured and quantiﬁ ed. But the BCC is much more than facts and ﬁ gures; the BCC is about people, about cooperation and friendship. Or, as a former colleague once said: “The sparkle in the eyes of the competitors upon departure from a successful BCC cannot be replaced by any evaluation form or kind word. A successful BCC is a general feeling that is transmitted in bursts of positive energy among all those involved.” Therefore I want to thank all those involved, all participants, partners, donors, sponsors, jury members, case creators, coordinators … all who made 10 years of Balkan Case Challenge possible! It has been fun!

Veronika Nitsche Member of the Executive Board WUS Austria, former BCC Project Manager 9 facts and figufigurre

The Balkan Case Challenge (BCC) is a case study competition for excellent students from South-Eastern Europe and Austria. Every year the BCC offers the opportunity to more than 140 students from that region to apply their theoretical knowledge to a practical context, and to present their solutions to an international jury consisting of academic experts, representatives of the business world as well as national and international institutions. The competition consists of four academic disciplines, each dealing with a case study that is based on real-life problems. The Business Case Competition (BIZ) brings together top students from the fi elds of business administration, economics, and management and deals with the economic development in South-Eastern Europe. The Information Communication Technology Competition (ICT) simulates the application of new technologies in a specifi c business context. Participants are required to analyze the business procedures and infrastructure of the company in question and to present an integrative solution. The Model European Council (MEC) is an authentic simulation of the European Council. Students debate on current European issues and eventually resolve confl icts in the interest of the European cooperation. The Law Moot Court (LMC) is a simulation of a trial before the International Court of Justice. The teams are presented with a fi ctitious international dispute which they have to argue in front of the judges. Since the year 2000 more than 2,500 students from South-Eastern Europe and Austria have taken advantage of this unique opportunity either in the sub-competitions or in the fi nals. Thanks to the great support of the business sector the career-oriented aspect of the project has been even further strengthened in the past years. The companies appreciate the practical relevance of the case studies through which they are able to assess the participants’ theoretical qualifi cations as well as their soft skills. The evaluation of the project shows that as a result around 10% of the participants can fi nd a job through the BCC.

Participants at BCC Finals 2000-2010 Country female male BIZ ICT LMC MUN/MEC Total

Albania 60 36 29 23 20 24 96 Austria 18 23 16 4 10 11 41 Bosnia and Herzegovina 112 104 96 32 58 30 216 Bulgaria 63 41 34 14 27 29 104 Croatia 30 43 39 11 11 12 73 Kosovo 18 39 18 12 13 14 57 Macedonia 48 47 28 26 18 23 95 Moldova 25 28 18 10 8 17 53 Montenegro (since 2007) 10 14 6 9 3 6 24 Romania 81 34 39 22 23 31 115 Serbia and Montenegro (until 2006) 8 12 13 - - 7 20 Serbia (since 2007) 30 32 13 19 15 15 62 Slovenia 29 29 20 5 10 23 58

TOTAL 532 482 369 187 216 242 1014 10 res Participants BCC Finals 2010

Country feMALE male BIZ ICT LMC MEC Total

Albania 7 7 3 5 3 3 14

Austria 6 5 3 2 1 5 11

Bosnia and HerzegovinA 6 6 2 3 3 4 12

Bulgaria 7 6 3 2 4 4 13

Croatia 2 2 3 1 0 0 4

Kosovo 4 9 3 5 3 2 13

Macedonia 8 7 3 3 4 5 15

Moldova 7 9 5 4 2 5 16

Montenegro 6 3 1 3 3 2 9

Romania 16 3 4 5 6 4 19

Serbia 11 5 4 5 3 4 16

Slovenia 2 4 2 2 0 2 6

Total 82 66 36 40 32 40 148 comments of b a b alkan experts

The Balkans – Important for Europe!

The historian Maria Todorova has recently suggested that the discussion as to whether or not the Balkans belong to Europe is absurd since Europe, in the broadest sense, arose originally from the Balkans. The stabilization of this region is possible with the appropriate engagement, although it is not ultimately only about the accession of the Balkans to the European Union, but also about the appropriate political, economic and social development. This is a challenge, but also a great opportunity. The Balkans are rich with abilities and talents that we desperately need in Europe. Given the economic crisis, the initial push for further engagement may be found there, since so much is still needed. However, we should never forget about the talents that are richly available there. The Balkans have not been the ‘time-bomb’ of Europe for a long time now; instead they are its hope! Erhard Busek Chairman Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe

European Perspective and the Future of the Western Balkans

Apart from the affected countries themselves, the European Union should also make an effort to integrate the western Balkan region as quickly as possible. The current crisis should not endanger the European perspective on the region, nor should it be allowed to delay its entry into the EU far into the future. The memories of what took place in the last decades are still alive in all countries. Because of this, it is necessary that European values like cooperation, tolerance and multiculturalism are continually fostered. Even these values are often misunderstood, and the European Union reduced to simply a gathering of institutions, and entrance into the EU as simply a catalogue of requisites for candidate nations. Our countries will not be good members of the European family if we cannot ﬁ rst be good neighbors. These values are important factors in the “European Idea” and their strongest proponents are young people. In this way, programs like “Experiencing Europe” and the “Balkan Case Challenge” are outstanding opportunities for young people from the region to meet each other and enter into dialogue. They will be our future leaders and the best representatives of European values in their home countries. Ruzica Djindjic President of the Managing Board Zoran Djindjic Fund 13 keynote speech

What to do with the question: “What will the Balkans look like in 2020?” supported by ERSTE Foundation

[…] Maria Todorova concludes her book with a sort of plea: “If Europe has produced not only racism but also antiracism, not only misogyny but also feminism, not only anti-Semitism, but also its repudiation, than what can be termed Balkanism has not yet been coupled with its complementing and ennobling antiparticle.”1 In fact it is a plea for a sort of cultural translation in the sense that American feminist philosopher Judith Butler uses it, namely as a model for cultural universality. To put it simply: people of colour had been excluded from the idea of the “universally human” and, consequently, they were also excluded from the public political life in the West. So, by putting pressure on this concept of universality — in a political struggle — they succeeded, gained acceptance and, at least constitutionally, the same rights as white people, which ultimately altered the very idea of what is universally human. Similar processes took place for other minorities, such as Jews, to women, who even in some most developed countries of the West only few decades ago had not had equal rights with men. In a similar way Todorova expects that the Balkans, as a fi gure of cultural exclusion, will undergo this same process of inclusion of an excluded outside (of the West) and, in that way, push the existing concept of universality forward, in terms of its inclusivity, equality, justice — in short, in terms of democracy. To put it clearly: I am not talking about the traditional concept of translation that is based on the primacy of an original context, that is, obsessed with the idea of the original while conceiving the translation as its secondary product. Instead, the notion of translation I am thinking of here provides a model for forging a certain type of cultural generality or universality. Concretely, this means that as the fi gure of a previously excluded cultural identity, precisely by way of cultural translation, the Balkans successfully become part of — and thereby ultimately change — the concept of cultural universality. The Balkans don’t simply become the West, as in the case of cloning, instead they infl uence and transform the West. In short, including the Balkans also means that the West, or more precisely its concept of universality, is changed too. Translation is a repetition that produces differences both in the translation as well as in the so-called original. But was that ever a problem?

In fact, Todorova’s plea for European recognition of the Balkans was soon fulﬁ lled, literally a few years later (the book was published 1997), at least within the European art scene. In only one year, there were three large and quite ambitious exhibitions of art from the Balkans in Austria and Germany: In Search of Balkania (October–December 2002), curated by Roger Conover, Eda Cufer, and Peter Weibel at Neue Galerie Graz, Graz, Austria; the already mentioned exhibition by Harald Szeemann in Klosterneuburg; and ﬁ nally In the Gorges of the Balkans (August–November 2003), curated by René Block at Kunsthalle Fridericianum in Kassel, Germany. So the Balkans, as a label for a certain style of art-making – let us call it

1 Maria Todorova, Imagining the Balkans, New York, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997, 189. 14 boris buden

here pejoratively “Balkan art” — has been already included. It has already succeeded in entering the Western art system as a Western art commodity. The problem with this strategy is that it doesn’t even conceive of the Balkans as a problem — for, it is the market and its own dynamics that fi nally appear as a solution to all problems — and this is clearly another utopian moment too. In conclusion, the Balkans are in fact not a problem, and more concretely, the inclusion of the Balkans into what is called Europe or the West today, is already underway.2 So the future of the Balkans seems to be obvious as well. Why then are we asked about this future, if we already know the answer; if another answer than the expected cannot be imagined at all? Good old Althusser, a French Marxist and ideology theorist called it interpellation: by feeling addressed by this question and identifying with an attempt to answer it, we automatically become subjects of a historical process already ideologically structured. Concretely, we start to think of ourselves as those who actively make this process — in our case, the process of Westernization of the Balkans — happen. In terms of a social structure, this means that we automatically identify with Balkan elites, who are believed to be the ones that are naturally called to accomplish the task of becoming Western. On a more intellectual level — let’s call it the level of knowledge production — by attempting to answer the question about the future of the Balkans we assume the role of the so-called native informant, whose task is to represent the Balkans and inform the European audience about some specifi c Balkan experience. The fi gure of the native informant, as is well known, comes from anthropological fi eldwork. The task of the native informant was to supply “indigenous knowledge” to colonial subjects, and thus to facilitate exchange between the metropolis and the nation or country of origin. The fi gure of the native informant, or more precisely, of the “foreclosed native informant” is featured in Gayatri Spivak’s Critique of Postcolonial Reason.3 She argues, in short, that the planetary humanism that emerges with the Enlightenment and founds its theoretical foundation in the European ethical philosophical tradition of Kant, Hegel and Marx, foreclosed native informant as the condition of its possibility. For Spivak, a native informant is a necessary complicity in the humanist knowledge production. It is a character that stands in for an imaginary or absent fi gure — in our case this would be “a true Balkan identity.” In other words, there is no innocent knowledge production. We must therefore become aware of its complicity with imperialist or neo-imperialist projects, or to quote Spivak, “to acknowledge a responsibility toward the trace of the other, not to mention toward other struggles.”4 I hope it has become clear now what we have to do when confronted with the question “What will the Balkans look like in 2020?” We shouldn’t even try to answer it.

For the entire speech, please visit www.bcchallenge.org.

2 In fact, Todorova emphasizes that the Balkans have always already been Europe, moreover, that precisely what we call Balkanization is in fact only a symptom of an Europeanization: “From this point of view the Balkans were becoming European by (…) assuming and emulating the homogeneous European nation-states as the normative form of social organization.” Ibid., p. 13. Todorova also explains the last Yugoslav wars in the 1990s that have been widely ascribed to some Balkan essence — tribalism, primitivism, Balkan violence, nationalism, etc. — as the ultimate Europeanization of the Balkans. 3 Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, A Critique of Postcolonial Reason: Toward a History of the Vanishing Present, Cambridge MA, London, E: Harvard University Press, 1999. 4 Ibid., 198. 15 competition & c

Erste Group Business Case Competition (BIZ) Erste Group was founded in 1819 as the ﬁ rst Austrian savings bank (“Erste oesterreichische Spar-Casse”). In 1997, Erste Group went public with a strategy to expand its retail business into Central and Eastern Europe. Ever since, Erste Group's customer base has grown through numerous acquisitions and organic growth from 600,000 to approximately 17.5 million customers. Having always focused on retail and SME business, today Erste Group is one of the largest ﬁ nancial services providers in Central and Eastern Europe in terms of clients and total assets.

In 2010 the Erste Group provided the case “The Royalty of Loyalty” for the Business Case Competition at the ﬁ nals in Vienna. The participants were required to assume the role of business consultants of Erste Group which was interested in (re)building, strengthening and continuously maintaining customer loyalty in the course of its banking business even during ongoing times of economic strain. The students were expected to recommend a coherent strategy for managing customer loyalty that takes into account different target groups and the variety of markets Erste Group is being active in and can thus lead to further stabilization of the bank’s customer base.

COMPETITION AND CASES PREVIOUS BUSINESS CASES:

The case study method is a modern, 2009: Erste Group, Developing Direct Channel Sales Strategies for Bank Products in CEE practice-oriented learning method and 2008: Vienna Insurance Group, Development of a Sales and Marketing Strategy in confronts the participants with topical and/ or real-life problems. All cases used during South-Eastern Europe the Balkan Case Challenge have a special 2007: Erste Bank, Wealth@Age: Promoting Provisions for Sustainable Wealth in CEE focus on South-Eastern Europe and the European Union. 2006: OMV, How is the OMV able to Reach, to Attract and to Keep the Best Young Professionals and High Potentials in South-Eastern Europe? 2005: Sarajevo Graduate School of Business, Promoting of the MBA Program and Development of Services 2004: Bosnalijek, Environmental Management and Social Responsibility of a Pharmaceutical Company 2003: Coca-Cola, Cola light Positioning at the Market in Bosnia and Herzegovina 16 cases

Vienna Insurance Group ICT Case Competition (ICT) The Vienna Insurance Group has undergone a remarkable transformation in the past decades. The Group’s focus is on the Central and Eastern European region (CEE), where the Vienna Insurance Group is one of the leading insurance providers.

The Vienna Insurance Group (VIG), with its registered ofﬁ ce in Vienna, is now one of the largest international insurance groups in Central and Eastern Europe with approximately 23,000 employees and a premium volume of around EUR 8 billion. With its focussed and clear internationalization strategy in the CEE economic region, the insurance provider made the transition from a national insurance company to an international insurance group with more than 50 insurance companies in 24 countries. In total, about 50% of all group premiums already come from the Central and Eastern European markets.

In this year’s ICT case “The Impact of Solvency II” the students acted as management consultants who had been assigned a mandate by the VIG. The case study was based on the fact that the new regulatory regime Solvency II was going to be implemented in Europe by the end of 2012. Although Solvency II was a project within the European Union it was expected, that national supervisors of candidate countries and other Balkan countries would follow the implementation very closely. The students were asked to examine the impact of Solvency II on the local insurance markets and to analyze the data availability and quality for modeling purposes.

PREVIOUSPREVIOUS ICT CASES:

2009:2009: ComTrade Group, Design of a Project Development Software SolutionSolution 20082008:: Erste Bank, Developing ConceptsConcepts for an Internet Portal for Erste Bank 22007:007: ComTrade Group, Solutions for Product Data Management and Strategic Product Planning in the CEE RegioRegionn 22006:006: Autforce, Tailor-made Project Management Software for AutforceAutforce 2002005:5: Faculty for Information Technologies, Development of Long Distance Learning at the Faculty fforor InInformationformation TechnologieTechnologiess 22004:004: University of Sarajevo, High Availability of Online Student Services at the University of SarajevSarajevoo 17 competition & c

Law Moot Court (LMC)

The Law Moot Court is a simulation of a trial before the International Court of Justice where the teams are presented a ﬁ ctitious dispute between two states. The main aim of the LMC is to provide law students with the possibility of gaining in-depth understanding of the International Public Law and the procedural issues before the International Court of Justice.

At this year’s Law Moot Court the parties to the dispute, the two fictitious neighboring countries Mistral and Levante, asked the International Court of Justice to determine whether one of the two states had breached or violated a protocol concluded between them. The case was written by Thomas Skouteris, an expert in International Public Law at the American University in Cairo, and sponsored by the Energy Community Secretariat.

PREVIOUSPREVIOUS LMC CASES:

2009:2009: Environmental LawLaw 2008:2008: Environmental LawLaw 2007:2007: Environmental LawLaw 2006:2006: Environmental LawLaw 2005:2005: Human Trafﬁ ckingcking 22004:004: Territorial LawLaw 22003:003: Illicit Trafﬁ ckinckingg

18 cases

Model European Council (MEC)

The Model European Council is an authentic simulation of the European Council. Students assume the roles of heads of states or governments of the EU member states and are required to develop a position on or a response to the issues presented in the agenda relevant to the session. By doing so they get to know their inﬂ uence in the European Union and its bodies and form coalitions with their closest allies to prevail their interests in the discussion.

The topic of the Model European Council in 2010 was “Climate Change – Policy Options and Implications for the EU” and was created by Faris Hadrovic from the United Nations Population Fund in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

MODELMODEL EUROPEAN COUNCIL (MEC)/ MODELMODEL UNITED NATIONS (MUN)(MUN)

2009:2009: EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy 2008:2008: EU Expansion and Visa Policy 2007:2007: The Situation in CôteCôte d’Ivoire and Liberia (MUN)(MUN) 2006:2006: Border Tensions between Eritrea and Ethiopia (MUN)(MUN) 2005:2005: Israeli Palestine Crisis (MUN)(MUN) 2004:2004: Iran Nuclear Crisis (MUN)(MUN) 2003:2003: Middle East Water Crisis (MUN)(MUN) 19 winners

BCC10* - The Winners 2010

All students, who participate in the BCC as extracurricular activity, who apply their theoretical knowledge to practice and get in touch with potential employers, are winners. However, it is in the nature of a competition that some participants give a better performance than others and therefore deserve being mentioned and awarded.

Erste Group Vienna Insurance Group Energy Community Model European Council Business Case Competition ICT Case Competition Law Moot Court

First Place First Place First Place Best Diplomatic Skills Irena Efremovska Macedonia Tarik Causevic BiH Sonja Gitaric Serbia Adnan Cerimagic Austria Ludmila Malai Moldova Olsi Celaj Albania Stefan Ionescu Romania Emanuel Tutek Croatia Diana Ciocea Romania Aleksandra Saranovic Montengro Best Rhetorical Skills Ivan Todorovic Serbia Nina Spataru Moldova Visar Ramaj Kosovo Second Place Second Place Second Place Best Lobbying Skills Andra Anghel Romania Aizza Jundana BiH Jelena Brajkovic Montenegro Anja Gengo BiH Valentino Ljuljdjuraj Montenegro Besart Osmani Kosovo Kristina Kragujevska Macedonia Desislava Todorova Bulgaria Bojana Radovic Montenegro Adriana Minovic Serbia Best Teamwork Martin Schmidt Austria Alexandra Ungureanu Romania Visar Ramaj Kosovo and Third Place Third Place Best Orator Julija Vitanova Macedonia Nina Angelovska Moldova Jelena Kljakovic-Gaspic Croatia Ozana Olariu Austria Elisar Bashir Bulgaria and Dardan Lajci Kosovo Milan Milojevic Serbia Raluca Ciocian-Ardeleanu Romania Alina Racu Austria Oxana Ungureanu Moldova Liviu Varga Romania Best Consultant Best Consultant Oman Business Case Competition Alexander Ischenco Moldova Lyudmila Georgieva Bulgaria First Place Special Award by VIG Ahmed Said Marhoun Al Saidi Martin Schmidt Austria Second Place Fahad Yusuf Darwish Al Balushi Third Place 20 Nasser Mohammed Bakhit Al Hamer Al Kathiri awards

Awards 2010

Awards for the best individual of each competition:

European Forum Alpbach 2010 “Construction and Reality” provided by ERSTE Foundation The Forum Alpbach brings together students, academics and professionals, politicians and artists, scientists and practitioners who all work in a variety of ﬁ elds and disciplines of the social and natural sciences.

BIZ Award for the Winning Team: Discover Management Program at IEDC – Bled School of Management provided by Erste Group and project funds.This highly international program exposes young university graduates to contemporary management challenges and helps them to understand business from a systematic perspective.

ICT Award for the Winning Team: Discover Management Program at IEDC – Bled School of Management provided by Vienna Insurance Group. This highly international program exposes young university graduates to contemporary management challenges and helps them to understand business from a systematic perspective.

MEC Awards: International Civilian Peace-Keeping and Peace-Building Training Program This program is a practice-oriented training for experts of various professional backgrounds who work or intend to work as civilians in conﬂ ict regions. It promotes peace and peaceful conﬂ ict resolution and disseminates practical ideas for peace including its developmental and environmental aspects.

International Debate Academy Slovenia The event aims to deliver a high-standard public exchange of opinions on diverse topics surrounding the integration and expansion of the European Union and the challenges and opportunities these processes bring for the future of the European community.

LMC Award for the Winning Team: St. Gallen International Energy Forum provided by Energy Community. This forum offers the opportunity to discuss current issues, recent developments and challenges of contemporary energy policy issues. 2211 recruitment event

The Balkan Case Challenge aims at strengthening links between higher education and economy with a special focus on students’ recruitment and the employability aspect. Several components ranging from recruitment events and job fairs to CV databases and internships have been implemented to connect outstanding students from South-Eastern Europe and Austria with companies operating in the region.

In the framework of the Balkan Case Challenge every year a Career Day South-Eastern Europe takes place during the ﬁ nals in Vienna. This year the career day was organized in cooperation with Austrian Trade.

Highly motivated students from 12 different countries, who are at the end of their studies and searching for an opportunity to enter the labour market, have the chance to get to know potential employers. Almost every tenth participant fi nds a job trough the career day. Moreover, students can get in contact with universities and educational institutions to inform themselves about study programs, activities, and events in the fi eld of higher education. On the other hand local and international companies take the opportunity to meet international talents from the study fi elds business and economics, law and political sciences to present their companies to them.

Career Day South-Eastern Europe 2010

Participating Participating COMPANIES EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS

• A-TEC Industries AG / • Austrian Development Agency ATB Austria Antriebstechnik AG • CAMPUS 02 Fachhochschule • Catro Personalberatung GmbH der Wirtschaft GmbH • Erste Group Bank AG • EBC*L Repräsentanz Österreich • EVN AG (EBC Licencing GmbH) • FERTGAS Handelsges.m.b.H. • die Berater® • IMR Metal Powder Technologies GmbH / • Diplomatic Academy of Vienna IMR Fabrikautomation GmbH • FH JOANNEUM Gesellschaft mbH • Interforst GmbH • Institute for the Danube Region • ipcenter.at GmbH and Central Europe • Saravanja Grgo e.U. • Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz, • Saubermacher Dienstleistungs-AG LL.M. in South East European • Strabag SE Law and European Integration • UV&P Umweltmanagement-Verfahrenstechnik • University of Leoben Neubacher & Partner GmbH • WIFI International Network (WIN), • VIENNA INSURANCE GROUP Wirtschaftskammer Österreich Wiener Städtische Versicherung AG • WU Executive Academy • WOLF THEISS Rechtsanwälte / • WU (Vienna University of Economics Attorneys-at-Law and Business) – JOSZEF-Verein • Xella Porenbeton Österreich GmbH • World University Service Austrian Committee 22 partners of the BCC 2010 The Balkan Case Challenge 2010 is

WUS Austria would like to express its gratitude to all partners that supported the event ﬁ nancially or in kind. Moreover, we would like to thank all judges, trainers and jury members who dedicated their free time to the Balkan Case Challenge. Without this accumulated support and expertise the Balkan Case Challenge would not have been possible.

23 ALLE WEGE FÜHREN NACH COM.

Egal wann, egal wo, egal wie. DiePresse.com/services: statistics

THE BCC IS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT THE POTENTIAL OF SOUTH-EASTERN EUROPE TO A WIDER PUBLIC

ENHANCED CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO NETWORK WITH STUDENTS FROM OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO NETWORK WITH COMPANY REPRESENTATIVES FROM OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF DIFFERENT EUROPEAN CULTURAL VALUES

IMPROVED COMMUNICATION SKILLS

IMPROVED DECISION-MAKING SKILLS

I LEARNED SOMETHING NEW

IN THE LONG RUN BETTER COOPERATION BETWEEN SOUTH-EASTERN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

I WILL RECOMMEND THE BCC TO MY COLLEAGUES

0%50% 100%

Strongly agree Moderately disagree Moderately agree Strongly disagree 25

BCC 2010 in the media

27 stateme

Thomas Moik, Austria, LMC Participant 2009 The very fi rst moments of the Balkan Case Challenge made it clear that we were here for a common goal: bringing us and our countries closer together. I have not only gained a lot of professional experience but also found friends from all over South-Eastern Europe. The spirit of the BCC is still living on as I got my fi rst job through my performance at the Law Moot Court and I continue meeting with my fellows of the fi nals after my, in every sense, yielding participation. Special thanks also to the organizing team from WUS who, apart from perfectly carrying out the competition, were for us living examples of what joyfully working in and for the Balkans could mean!

Brigitte Öppinger-Walchshofer, Austrian Development Agency, Managing Director

Determination, team work and the exchange of knowledge has made the Balkan Case Challenge so special in the past ten years. The commitment young adults have shown during career days, meetings with business representatives and fellow students, has made a great impression on me. Seeing Europe’s future in the hands of these young and able adults makes me very optimistic. Ten years of this educational event have not only brought together around 1,500 young professionals but have also created networks between different universities and businesses. The Austrian Development Agency is proud to have supported this unique event in Vienna which has had such a positive impact on education and business. I wish the Balkan Case Challenge many more successful challenges and the young people in our partner countries enough courage and interest to lead their home countries towards a joined Europe.

1st BCC in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Bosnia Case Challenge) consisting of BIZ and LMC 2000 2000

Slobodan Milosevic leaves ofﬁ ce after widespread demonstrations throughout Serbia 2288 ments

Jovana Cirovic, Serbia, BIZ Participant 2008 BCC changed my life and I am not saying that as a worn-out phrase but as the mere truth. After my team had won the fi rst place in the Business Case Challenge and I had been pronounced the best consultant at the 2008 competition, my life took a wild twist. Within a year I went from the Austrian sub-competition in Graz to the fi nals in Vienna, I won a prize and a participation in the European Forum Alpbach which turned out to be an amazing two-week experience, I was offered an internship at the Vienna Insurance Group (VIG), one of the most successful Austrian companies, and fi nally I got a job opportunity in Warsaw where I now work as an assistant of the president of the management board of VIG Poland. So, if you ask me about the Balkan Case Challenge, I can say only words of appraisal and admiration for the people who organize it. I also want to send a message of encouragement to future participants and potential partners of the competition. You might have heard about the idea of the integration of the Balkan countries to work together towards a common and peaceful future. If you desire to see this concept at work, then come to the BCC.

Milica Cicovacki, WUS Austria, BCC Local Coordinator Serbia

When the fi rst Balkan Case Challenge for Serbia was held, WUS Austria Belgrade offi ce strived to organize and promote a case study-based student competition for the fi rst time, and one can say that over time it has become one of the best and most valued student competitions in Serbia. I have to say that I am very fortunate to have been part of the BCC organizing committee from the very beginning. I had the privilege to witness the growth of the competition but also, more importantly, the professional and personal development of some of the participants. The nicest part of the BCC for me has always been to listen to and read about the participants’ impressions and expectations after the sub competition in Serbia. The winners would ask about the fi nals while the others would proclaim their determination to try again next year. And that is BCC at its best: awakening within the once insecure applicants a striking self-confi dence and eagerness to take the next challenge in line.

1st MUN Competition Participants from all countries of former Yugoslavia and Albania join the BCC 2001 2001

Nobel Peace Prize jointly awarded to the United Nations and Koﬁ Annan 2299 stateme

Jovana Tozija, Macedonia, ICT Participant 2006

I participated in the Balkan Case Challenge in May 2006 and my team and I won the second place. This case study competition offered me the opportunity, as a student especially interested in ﬁ elds of information and communication technology, to apply my theoretical knowledge, gained during my studies, in solving real life problems. A highly professional and competitive environment was present and was constantly pushing us to test our knowledge, to learn and improve our team building capacities and problem-solving skills. Being a part of an international team, with people I had never met before, in circumstances where time matters, I was given the opportunity to analyze a software requirement from an Austrian company, to discuss, design and present our own project management software solution. These were ﬁ ve wonderfully exhausting days where a lot of nice friendships were made, some of which last even until today.

Johannes Leitner, Gehrer Plötzeneder DDWS Corporate Advisors, BCC Jury Member Before participating as jury member in the semi-ﬁ nals of the Balkan Case Challenge in July 2010, I had already lectured in Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Moldova, and Serbia at the Accompanying Measures workshops of WUS Austria. However, shaping the Balkan Case Challenge as a jury member in Vienna clearly was among my most favorite roles I played in the story. This is because it was great to evaluate the contributions made by the different teams. Even though it was evident that not all teams participated with a similarly high involvement and esprit, the results presented were innovative and thoroughly researched. In brief, I am convinced that the Balkan Case Challenge is a highly valuable program for all parties involved. Through its innovative, multi-ethnic, and interdisciplinary approach the BCC is a unique opportunity for students to prove their skills and know-how in front of a distinguished audience. On the other hand, the BCC is a highly relevant recruiting platform for companies being active in South-Eastern Europe.

2002 2002

Introduction of Euro bank notes and coins 3300 ments

Nerimana Rifatbegovic (née Kadic),Ministry of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina

It is a great pleasure to see that BCC celebrates its 10th anniversary! I do not exaggerate if I say that I am a true “BCC product”. I performed almost all roles within this project – starting as participant, followed by being a member of the organizing committee and ﬁ nally as member of the judge council. All of these roles were equally challenging on one side, and even more gratifying on the other side. The BCC has made a significant impact both in my professional and personal life. Thanks to the BCC I had the opportunity to put my theoretical knowledge into practice and to learn the meaning of the word “teamwork” as an LMC participant in 2002. During my work as head of the BCC organizing committee I had the opportunity to gain indispensible professional experience which for sure I would not have been able to gain elsewhere. The BCC gives a unique opportunity to young professionals to prove what they are able to achieve and to show that the responsibility which can be given to them is much greater than the one commonly perceived. The BCC genuinely made a difference in my life and I know it did for so many others.

Miso Dokmanovic, Institute for Strategic Research and Education, BCC Local Coordinator Macedonia

Leadership and education are indispensable to each other. In the last decade BCC has brought together exceptional students from all over South-Eastern Europe and challenged them to work together and combine their education and practical skills. However, BCC is not just a competition – it is a milestone in the education of many young leaders in the region. BCC stands for leadership, excellence, motivation and building of mutual understanding among nations in South-Eastern Europe. Being involved in the competition since 2002, I am fi rmly convinced that BCC has strongly infl uenced the development of young leaders of the region. Every year I am amazed with their enthusiasm, performance, skills and even more the new language of tomorrow they speak. Defi nitely, young leaders are the biggest investment in the region’s future.

2003 2003

Assassination of Zoran Djindjic 3311 stateme

Stanimira Taneva, New Bulgarian University, Administrative Director of Career Development Centre, BCC Local Coordinator Bulgaria

I was introduced to the idea of the Balkan Case Challenge more than ﬁ ve years ago when a cheerful girl visited me in the Career Development Centre and made a short presentation of this project. I thought it was an interesting initiative and a potential opportunity for highly motivated students to check their own academic achievements and perhaps to make some important contacts. Months later, almost by chance, I had the opportunity to visit the international Balkan Case Competition held in Vienna and to meet Veronika Nitsche and Adi Kovacevic. I was highly impressed by what I found – professionalism, innovation, opportunities, optimism, integration of people and ideas. There was no doubt – the project was something outstanding. Years later I had the chance to join the BCC team and getting to know the project better, its effects on students and their social attitudes, and its outcomes. I may ﬁ rmly say that the BCC is an extraordinary opportunity for young professionals to expand their academic careers and horizons.

Thomas Klein, Contrast-Management Consulting, member of the organizing team of the pilot project BiH Challenge in 2000

Ten years have passed since the Balkan Case Challenge was launched in 2000. Although much has changed in the time since then, I realize every year again, at this competition how the goals of the original idea for the project have been reached. For me, the core of the BCC is the fact that young, engaged people can experience the values of multi-cultural teamwork. As Peter Drucker once said: “The leaders who work most effectively, it seems, never say ‚I‘. And that‘s not because they have trained themselves not to say ‚I‘. They don‘t think ‚I‘. They think ‚we‘, they think ‚team‘. They understand their job to make the team function. They accept responsibility and don‘t sidestep it, but ‚we‘ gets the credit”. In this way, the Balkan Case Challenge is also a result of boundless, successful teamwork. For me, personally, this experience was unexpectedly rich and trail-blazing.

1st ICT Case Competition Students from Moldova join the BCC 2004/5 2004/5

EU-Membership of Slovenia Croatia and Macedonia become candidate countries 3322 ments

Larysa Winter, Vienna Insurance Group, Head of Group Human Resources

The title Balkan Case Challenge is self-explanatory. This yearly competition draws from the intensive collaboration of education and economic communities to foster the exchange of knowledge and ideas between Austrian students and those in 11 South-Eastern European countries. I, personally, have a special relationship with the program, since I began my career about 20 years ago through a similar project in the Ukraine. Therefore it is a personal passion of mine to ensure that future-oriented projects such as the Balkan Case Challenge are supported at the Vienna Insurance Group. For the VIG, this competition is the ideal opportunity to connect with young, talented people.

Adi Kovacevic, WUS Austria, Executive Director

The Balkan Case Challenge fosters the idea of a European Community beyond the frontiers of the European Union. It is not a question as to whether or not the Balkans belong to Europe but rather whether the peoples from the Balkans feel united with (the rest of) Europe and that the allegedly “real” Europeans see them as part of their community. Since the ﬁ rst BCC in Sarajevo in 2000, more than 2,500 students and more than 500 jury members from different countries have participated in this project and every single one of them acts as multiplier of precisely this European idea. The BCC therefore is not only about professional success stories of the participants but also about the success story of integration on a European level.

First Austrian participants Best individual performance BCC 2006: Venue relocated to Vienna Simon Grabrovec, Samid Sarenkapic 2006 2006

Austria takes over the Presidency of the Council of Montenegro declares its independence the European Union Death of Ibrahim Rugova 3333 stateme

Veronika Nitsche, WUS Austria, former BCC project coordinator

Working in the NGO sector for nearly 15 years, I have implemented countless projects but coordinating the BCC was really something special. It is not only that everyone simply loves this project – the participants, the partners, the staff, the media… The BCC affects you in many ways: its dynamics, the eagerness, courage and competence of the participants, their joy when being among the winners and their anger if not. And for already 10 years (!) now, the BCC shows us that cooperation between the countries of South-Eastern Europe is possible. The BCC makes a difference, not only for the participants who deﬁ nitely make new friends and in the best case also get a job through the BCC, but also for the organizers. I am grateful for having been part of it.

Faris Hadrovic, United Nations Population Fund Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Balkan Case Challenge has achieved what certain EU policies could not. Ever since its inception, the Balkan Case Challenge has been a great medium for promoting regional cooperation. It offered students an opportunity to meet and compare their various educational experiences, exchange ideas, and establish long-lasting relationships. And this is no slight accomplishment in a region with a troubled past. Sharing knowledge across borders (real and imaginary) and cultures and promoting intercultural dialogue and understanding have gradually become commonly shared values, for knowledge sharing and intercultural dialogue are important factors in enabling students to see situations, problems, and opinions from multiple and novel perspectives and to ﬁ nd solutions in a cooperative and constructive manner. The BCC’s phenomenal growth, successes, and rising popularity over the years are a testament to its value.

Best individual performance BCC 2007: Flavia Barle, Duje Prkut, Slaven Zilic and Uros Zivkovic 2007 2007

EU-Membership of Romania and Bulgaria Slovenia joins the Euro Area Montenegro joins the UNESCO 3344 ments

Erlis Hereni, Albania, MUN Participant 2007 The Balkan Case Challenge was a challenge for me since the very beginning for I was not selected during the fi rst phase. I was one of the students on the waiting list. […] The weird part was that it was just a Case Competition. But it meant the world to me because when you are a student from a country like Albania, where for a long time it had been a hard time to get a visa to travel abroad, this was a golden opportunity to show everyone that due to political fl aws and misunderstandings, we, the students, were deprived of the chance to prove ourselves. Then, WUS Austria showed up, and the possibility was there. I was fi nally selected to represent the Russian Government in a Security Council Meeting. The competition was diffi cult. Everyone was prepared, trained and a tough notch to crack. But I believe that I was blessed with the most perfect team in that competition, Anna Selic and Duje Prkut. […] With much effort, caucusing, and under table deals we managed to draft the resolution that was signed in the end. Duje got nominated Best Delegate, and I the Best Prepared Delegate. The Balkan Case Challenge was the fi rst international competition which I had participated in. I am proud to say, and sure not to exaggerate, that it taught me a lot and made me believe in myself and the education that I have obtained in my country. I have been acting as a trainer and judge ever since and for this 10th anniversary I wish WUS Austria: May this project last as many years as education and regional understanding and cooperation need it!

Reinhard Millner, WU (Vienna University of Economics and Business), BCC AM Workshop Lecturer

The BCC Accompanying Measures (AM) Initiative of WUS Austria has demonstrated that the region is in search of suitable best practices and has the ambition to further develop the Higher Education Sector on all levels, i.e. in the classroom, the faculty and the university level. Taking the case study method as a starting point, various forms of cooperation and links between higher education and economy have been discussed. In the course of the BCC AM workshop series we met highly engaged fellows from faculties and universities across the region. Clearly, there is no single right way and the respective national institutional frameworks need to be taken into account. However, a valuable and appreciated contribution has been made by exchanging experiences as well as by discussing best practices and feasible ways for implementation.

Sub-Competitions in all participating countries Best individual performance BCC 2008: First participants from the Oman Milos Boskovic, Jovana Cirovic, MEC replaces MUN 2008 Andrej Kalmar and Nedim Kulenovic 2008

Slovenia takes over the Presidency of the Council Kosovo declares its independence of the European Union 3355 stateme

Ermal Naziﬁ , Adviser of the Commission of the Albanian Competition Authority, BCC Local Coordinator Albania

Someone said that a good teacher gives examples while a great teacher inspires. I believe that the BCC is deﬁ nitely a very good teacher. It gives examples to students on how to think critically, how to work in a multi-ethnic environment, how to work under pressure, and how to solve real–world problems. It gives examples to higher education institutions on how to be students-oriented and how to use the case study method. It gives examples to the business community how to improve the HR and recruitment process by observing potential employees in action and not just reviewing application papers. I believe that the BCC is a great teacher. It has inspired thousands of students in some of the poorest countries in Europe to compete in order to become the best, and to improve their knowledge and skills in order to be competitive and face the challenges of the modern economy. They are working hard every day to change our society. And they are making it.

Dino Mujkic, WUS Austria, Regional Manager Bosnia and Herzegovina The Balkan Case Challenge has emerged as an initiative of enthusiastic young Austrians, led by Mr. Tho- mas Klein, at the time of their civil service in Sarajevo in 2000. Then positive outcomes, a great turnout of students, companies, and other partners gave a clear sign that this activity, which was at that time called the BiH Challenge, must gather a greater number of students from the entire region in order to open the area of higher education in Bosnia and Herzegovina to other countries in the region. It turned out that what seemed to be forgotten was becoming a reality again, namely that higher education institutions still attract companies that are willing to be part of the education process. We are proud to say that at this year’s ceremony, held on the occasion of celebrating the tenth year of the Balkan Case Challenge in Bosnia and Herzegovina, we had the opportunity to meet many BCC alumni. In the meantime the BCC alumni network counts over 1,200 members in total. They are not just friends of the BCC but also BCC ambassadors who promote, through fulﬁ lling their functions as successful managers, lawyers, politicians, engineers, and diplomats, this form of acquiring and disseminating knowledge as one of the basic standards at university institutions. Best individual performance BCC 2009: Nedim Kulenovic, Marko Lutovac, Viktor Todorovski, Petar Zivkovic 2009 2009

20th anniversary of the fall The Treaty of Lisbon enters into force of the Berlin Wall Visa-free travel for citizens of Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia 3366 ments

Ursula Kuntner-Schweickhardt, Erste Group, Head of Group HR Development & Recruiting

The ERSTE Foundation has been developing projects since it was established in 2005 within the framework of its three programs “Social Affairs”, “Culture” and “Europe”. The Balkan Case Challenge fits very well into the latter program. For this reason when the ERSTE Foundation asked me whether we would be interested in supporting the BCC as a partner I was very happy to involve Erste Group in this program. The students are certainly high potentials in that they have to qualify for the program via a rigorous selection procedure in their own country based on both their academic performance and on their extra-curricular activities, and they have to be proficient in English. Moreover, we regard the region from which the students come as part of our “home market” or “the community” we would like to invest in. The students are always very motivated and extremely enthusiastic and so it is easy to convince my colleagues to provide a business case for the students to work on. The cooperation between the worlds of further education and the economy - in our case banking - as well as the interaction between students from various countries in the region is both stimulating and practical for all involved parties: the students gain international experience and contacts and enhance their job prospects, and we have access to a pool of ambitious potential future employees. Several participants who have taken part in the Balkan Case Challenge in the last years, are currently working for us either full-time or in particular projects.

Irina Aga, BCC Local Coordinator Moldova

10 years of success = 10 editions of friends – this is what the Balkan Case Challenge has accomplished during its existence. At the local level the BCC has strengthened its position year by year in line with the contests of national importance attended by students.

At its 3rd edition in Moldova, the BCC has marked the best results ever: high indicators in the application process and afterwards in the submission, high potential of students’ theoretical and practical skills, high attention of companies aiming to support the next editions and high interest of ﬁ rst-year students in attending the next competitions. The experience that participants gain through this challenging competition has a valuable impact on their professionalism.

Best individual performance BCC 2010: Adnan Cerimagic, Lyudmila Georgieva, 2010 Alexandru Iscenco and Ozana Olariu 2010

Visa-free travel for citizens of Albania, and Bosnia and Herzegovina 3377 statements

Visar Ramaj, Kosovo, MEC Participant 2010 As a student of Law I have always been interested in studying how different policies and goals of society are transferred into laws and regulations. In addition to this I was also interested in the impact the stakeholders have in these processes. With these ideas in mind I found the Balkan Case Challenge (BCC) – Model European Council (MEC) as one of the best opportunities in the region of the Balkans. Without a doubt, participation in MEC was an experience which gave me an insight into the fact how hard it is to coordinate different needs, the importance of legislation and public commitments. MEC is an interdisciplinary challenge that gives you an understanding of the European Union Law and the institutional organization, international system, and politics, in addition to public speaking, negotiations and debate skills. I would like to highly encourage all students to take this great opportunity that the BCC offers.

Nena Cvetkovska, BCC Local Coordinator Slovenia

The Balkan Case Challenge is a unique event that provides young people from the Balkan region with the opportunity to work on real life cases, to network with successful people and companies and to set the path for a promising career. I have been lucky to be part of this project for four years, participating as a student in the Business Case Competition in 2007 and working as a local coordinator for Slovenia in the following three years. Participating in and working on this project not only provided me with a unique experience but also with a lot of contacts with companies and individuals for my present and future career. However, the most important and dear beneﬁ t to me was that I made hundreds of friends from different countries and nationalities from all over the Balkans. I believe that the future of this region is in these people’s hands and just working together can make a positive impact on the prospects of these countries.

38 Milan Milojevic, ICT Participant 2010:

The job fair was really great because we could meet companies from the IT and Business sector which provided us with great opportunities to ﬁ nd internships.

Georg Krauchenberg, Austrian Trade:

A large number of Austrian companies participate in the Career Day […]. This year there are 148 students present from all over South-Eastern Adnan Cerimagic, MEC participant 2010: Europe who have the possibility to talk with Austrian companies to fi nd a job The meaning of the Balkan Case Challenge for me is or internship. the opportunity to see that the people in the region can work together to fi nd solutions, and that we are Elisabeth Schüller, Erste Group: actually friends living together and trying to provide Irena Efremovska, BIZ participant 2010: a better place for all of us. The most important thing We had a very interesting marketing that I take home from the Balkan Case Challenge The Balkan Case Challenge is more than topic. I hope we could also give some is that Austria is our friend and that all of us have just an ordinary challenge. It is a truly good feedback to the young people in friends in the region. commendable experience which provides order to learn […] and maybe one or young people with a wide range of the other will become an employee of opportunities for networking, personal Erste Group. growth and development. During the event I got the chance to cooperate with and Faris Hadrovic, MEC Case Creator: learn from highly qualifi ed young people from different backgrounds, improve my We had two days of deliberations, teamwork skills and work on an inspiring fi ghting, arguing, joking, and in the case, and at the same time enjoy the lovely end joy and happiness, that we have city of Vienna. actually come to a solution and conclusions which everybody The BCC […] encourages young people to unanimously adopted. give their best, it awakened my desire to strive for new challenges, stay in contact with all the amazing people I've met and cooperate with them in the future. 39 impres Ludmila Malai, BIZ participant 2010:

The Balkan Case Challenge means hard work, a lot of fun, new emotions, new friends, the possibility to meet great professionals and the chance to discover and prove your knowledge and capacities. It’s an amazing feeling to be among the best students from 12 countries, BCC10 Participant: all from different backgrounds having different skills and expectations. One I don’t think that the awards are of the keys to success is your team and the most important thing, the the team work. I had the luck to have overall experience is the most Irena and Emanuel as my team mates. important thing. It’s challenging Together we managed to combine our as the name implies: Balkan Case skills and to learn from each other. I’ve Challenge. found out what dedication means and that the priorities of a team should go beyond the individual interests. Now, I also know that the best ideas appear at Emanuel Tutek, BIZ participant 2010: ﬁ ve o’clock in the morning! The Balkan Case Challenge was a real challenge and a lifetime experience for me. It is a fusion of brilliant young people, ready to work hard for many hours under pressure; it is a great cooperation with companies and a series of events that made our schedule really tight. The fact that I met a lot of amazing people, who became good friends, is another beneﬁ t for me. I’m Stefan Ionescu, LMC participant 2010: especially grateful for my unbelievable team mates, our team spirit and for So far it has been very challenging; it is indeed the Balkan Case witnessing sunrises in Vienna while still Challenge. But it was also an opportunity to learn a lot more about working on our case. Big thanks also go international law and to exchange information about other systems to WUS Austria and Erste Group for such of law, and how international law is getting important throughout an amazing opportunity. the Balkan states. 40 essions

Alexander Ischenco, BIZ participant 2010: BCC10 Participant: It is diffi cult to believe in a guy not It was an absolutely obtaining even a third place at the BCC10 Participant: fantastic experience. national level, but receiving an I had a great team, individual award at the international It’s about connecting people of different I really was not level. Well, looks like such things do countries, the exchange of knowledge, the expecting all of this. happen. And this is a memorable input exchange of views, and it’s about young We had so much fun, for me. However, there is a spoon of tar people having interesting ideas. let’s hope we will in this barrel of honey: our team did make it another year. not make it to the fi nals, so I stood on the scene alone. This situation provided me with input and feedback on my teamwork skills to consider and use for the next time. Anyway, we were really satisfi ed with our collaboration and Thomas Skouteris, LMC Case Creator: truly enjoyed working together. All in all, BCC 2010 gave me an Students improved their level from day to extraordinary intercultural experience, day which meant that they were able to useful lessons to learn and feedback to take in the comments of the jury […] and consider as well as unexpected positive I think that’s the most important thing. results to benefi t from in the future.

Paul Kräuter, MEC Participant 2010: Andreas Schoberwalter, Vienna Insurance Group: Besides the Job Fair, there were some workshops going on. There were repre- If you would like to make business in a market, if sentatives of the United Nations, of the you would like to have success in a market, you have OCSE, as well as from the European to respect the country. You have to know the social Union present. interactions and the economic situation. You can only get this information if you work together, if you listen to one another and if you learn from each other.

41 participants 2200

World University Service (WUS) Austria is a politically independent, non-governmental organization committed to Who the promotion of the human right to education on the basis of academic freedom and university autonomy. Since its establishment in Graz in 1983, WUS Austria has been working on the promotion of this aim in various countries all over we the world. Today the organization has a strong regional focus on the countries of South-Eastern Europe. While this area remains at the center of WUS Austria’s work, the organization is also transferring its knowledge and experiences to are... projects in other regions of the world.

Our vision is to be a competent partner for the development of higher education, which we believe is a key factor in the What socio-economic and political advancement of every society. Therefore we aim at increasing the quality of higher education in accordance with European and international standards. Our mission is to establish solid and sustainable we structures for a strong role of universities in society. believe in...

We ensure a high level of sustainability by applying both a top-down as well as a bottom-up approach from the policy How level to the individual level. We cooperate with many different partners such as higher education institutions, companies and individual experts on a national, regional, European and international level. The main principles guiding all our we activities are: • Ensuring sustainability and local ownership work... • Ensuring a high level of cooperation and partnership • Fostering sustainable development through capacity and institution building • Promoting academic solidarity, human rights as well as peace and stability

Sustainable development of higher education goes beyond the university level. Responding to this, we at WUS Austria The services work together with the public sector and the economy, as well as with civil society. Our activities mainly lie in: Higher Education Development, Linking Higher Education & Economy, Arts & Culture and Higher Education & Human Rights. we Within these areas we provide essential services including: • Development of new and innovative project ideas provide... • Professional management of projects • Fostering knowledge and technology transfer • Networking activities, and • A broad range of consulting services 46 a target areas

World University Service (WUS) Austria increases quality in Higher Education in accordance with international standards through its activities and the provision of project development, project management, networking and consulting services. The work of WUS Austria comprises four areas:

Higher Education Development Within this area WUS Austria supports universities in their reform processes, particularly with regard to the principles of the European Higher Education Area. - Curriculum Development - Quality Assurance - New Teaching Methods & Technologies - Higher Education Management - Academic Mobility & Cooperation

Linking Higher Education & Economy Taking into account that Higher Education plays a signiﬁ cant role in (regional) economy, this area contains projects that enhance the positive impact universities may have on the development of a region. - Research & Development - Development of Applied Curricula - Human Resource Development

Arts & Culture Programs in the area of Arts and Culture support the international cooperation and knowledge transfer in projects connected to the arts and in cultural projects in South-Eastern Europe. Establishing links to Higher Education is also one of the goals of the programs in this ﬁ eld.

Higher Education & Human Rights Ever since the foundation of WUS Austria, the incorporation of human rights into Higher Education has been one of its key activities. From the development of Human Rights Curricula and the implemention of Human Rights Trainings to the establishment of Human Rights Centers at universities in Former Yugoslav Republics and the setting up of a number of networking activities between them, WUS Austria has become an advocate of Human Rights Education as a pillar of an academic environment based on mutual cooperation and academic freedom. 47 team and contact

The Team of the Balkan Case Challenge 2010

Coordination: Jasmin Moser, Andreas Krammer

Competition Coordination: Ervin Kanlic (BIZ), Christoph Kircher (ICT), Astrid Kaltenegger (MEC), Johannes Frank (LMC) Event Manager: Tina Skero Finances: Clemens Juriga

Layout: Edin Prnjavorac Local Coordination: Ermal Naziﬁ and Orsiola Kurti (Albania) Vedran Sotonica (Bosnia and Herzegovina) Stanimira Taneva and Nikolay Dragov (Bulgaria) Damir Cosic and Mile Vidmar (Croatia) Luljeta Aliu (Kosovo) Miso Dokmanovic and Zoran Hristovski (Macedonia) Irina Aga (Moldova) Ruzica Stankovic (Montenegro) Simona Varga (Romania) Milica Cicovacki (Serbia) Nena Cvetkovska (Slovenia)

www.wus-austria.org

WUS Austria WUS Austria WUS Austria WUS Austria WUS Austria Head Offi ce Graz Belgrade Offi ce Podgorica Offi ce Prishtina Offi ce Sarajevo Offi ce Lichtenfelsgasse 21 Resavska 88 Rectorate Building, UoM Faculty of Philology, UP Branilaca Sarajeva 51 8010 Graz 11000 Belgrade Cetinjska br.2 St. Nena Tereze n.n. 71000 Sarajevo Phone: +43 316 38 22 58 Phone: +381 11 361 26 02 81000 Podgorica 10000 Prishtina Phone: +387 33 258 790 Fax: +43 316 93 17 51 Fax: +381 11 361 26 02 Phone: +382 20 414 268 Phone: +381 38 241 472 Fax: +387 33 258 792 offi [email protected] [email protected] Fax: +382 20 414 269 Fax: +381 38 241 472 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] The Balkan Case Challenge is more than just an ordinary challenge. It is a truly commendable experience which provides young people with a wide range of opportunities for networking, personal growth and development. During the event I got the chance to cooperate with and learn from highly qualified young people from different backgrounds, improve my teamwork skills and work on an inspiring case, and at the same time enjoy the lovely city of Vienna. Irena Efremovska, Macedonia, BIZ participant 2010

More information on www.bcchallenge.org

international case study competition