They are brave, confident, and decisive, capable of bringing about the most complicated decisions quickly, they never stop learning, without much thought they can accept each given job opportunity, they are full of positive energy and rarely accept compromise. Their distinction is: flexibility in relation to their colleagues, innovative and developed communication skills, they rely on team work and aggressiveness in exposing their ideas, they use their feminity as an advantage, and they have balance between their private lives and their business environment. With all that, they are still forced to think like men.

Those are several of the characteristics of successful business women, attained during a survey compiled among thirty top female managers in the Croatian business world. The list was compiled using criteria for their positions in the ownership or managerial structure of a company which makes up the crème of Croatian economics. Their managerial abilities and responsibilities create the destiny of thousands of employees that directly depend on their decisions and do not see them differently then they see their male colleagues. It does seem though that a portion of women in high management and entrepreneurial positions in Croatia are neglected. The total number is impossible to calculate: that type of research is not carried out by the Government Statistics Agency or the Managers Association, among which is even a society that worries about the interests of women in business- ‘Krug’. The miserable number of top female managers is proven by the information provided that the total number of female members is found in the largest and most influential managerial organization, CROMA, which estimates only 2% of women in its organization. Also, in the past ten years that the award has been given, only three women have received the most prestigious business award in Croatia – the Manger of the Year award- which is given out by the same organization.

Whether or not male employers believe women to be incapable of high managerial structure was proven in the research done by Prof. Smiljana Leinerdt Novosel from the Political Science University at the end of 2002. That survey, which was ordered by the Government Agency for the Protection of Families and Maternity, had several interesting results in the opinion of employers in regards to the advantages of women in business: in most cases, men and women agree that women are more devoted, more successful in communication and listening skills, favor team work, and worry more about interpersonal relations. When key managerial abilities are questioned, a drastic difference in opinion arrives. Men and women, in most cases, believe that creativity, courage, independence in bringing about decisions, and focus on the goal at hand is only a characteristic of their gender.

Nacional attempted to see how thirty of the most successful women in Croatia see their personal success.

Tatjana Divjak, director of ‘Ogilvy&Mather’ advertising agency
Tatjana Divjak is divorced and has a twenty year old daughter, who is a second year student at the Medical University. Her favorite hobby is sailing. When we asked her which moment was critical in deciding her professional career, she said: “The moment of decision was that I become an official entrepreneur: I need to check if I was worth as much as I thought I should be on the market. I realized that I was worth a lot more.” Tatjana Divjak uncovered a golden secret for all women in Croatia that want to succeed in business that helped her develop her successful business career. The most important thing is to do what you love while you love it.

“When you feel the need to make a change, use your intuition. That is the path to success”, said Tatjana Divjak, adding how important it is to learn to say ‘no’. For successful business woman that lead life and work using the motto ‘what does not kill you makes you stronger’, she adds one more rule for success in business: “Change and learn from others as much as they can learn from you.” Tatjana Divjak recommends that all women who want to be successful in business do what feels right at the end of the day; that is letting themselves go.

Nevenka Cerovsky, Vice president of Atlantic Group
Nevenka Cerovsky, a former member of the Podravka Executive Board, will take over the position of Vice President at Atlantic Group for finance and strategic development. The golden rule for success seen by Nevenka Cerovsky is made up of several simple principles- knowledge, continued learning, much work and the desire for success are the basic prerequisites.

“Experience taught me that it is not always enough to know and be right, you must use your social intelligence to spread support and succeed in any project that you are working on.” Nevenka Cerovsky’s professional career was defined by the Pliva privatization project. “That was an opportunity for all participants to enter the world of market capital through the big door.” The new Vice President of Atlantic Group is married and has a seven year old daughter, and usually spends her free time traveling, at the theater or at concerts. She often plays preference with her friends.

Marina Marinović, owner of Pam code
Marina Marinović is 37 years old and the owner of Pam code, a company that deals with final production for movies, directing, and equipment rental, and she is the majority owner of Zadar fest. She deals with the organization of various projects, from smaller promotion events for individual companies to large festivals such as Porin, Zlatna Ptica, Croatian Radio Festival, the opening of the freeway in Zadar, New Year’s celebrations and so on.

Marina Marinović is so busy that she jokes about how she forgets that her family exists. For success in business, she claims that it is most important to control female hormones and use as much of a “male” brain as possible.
“It is important to know how to eat lamb and drink with men, as well as understand everything the same way that men do”, said the Director of Pam code, adding that genes were critical for her business success. “It was decided upon when I was born. My parents are from Imotski”, said Marina Marinović who does not have a concrete hobby because she says: “My private life is my hobby.”

Ana Ivančić, Executive member of Adriatic Invest
Ana Ivančić, a member of the Executive society that manages Erste Blue pension plans is married and the mother of two girls. The first golden rule for success in business is self-confidence and a high level of courage. She also believes that it is important to accept each business opportunity that appears.

“It is important to never be completely satisfied with you current level of knowledge, and you should protect your characteristics, moral principles, and never accept a compromise even though it is oftentimes unpopular to do so”, said Ana Ivančić, adding how successful women need to be persistent and know how to get up after an unsuccessful moment. When remembering the moment that shaped her career Ana Ivančić said: “The fact that I was a beginner most influenced my professional career, after University I got a chance to prove myself. With every well done project, my confidence rose; this resulted in public acknowledgement and me not being anonymous anymore. That is when I became different”. Ana Ivančić spends most of her free time with her children, at the theater, or at the gym.

Vesna Trnokop-Tanta, the President of JANAF Executive Board
This forty-four economist is one of the rare women in Croatia’s petroleum industry. After a range of successful research projects, she became the Assistant Executive Director in 1997 for the production of petroleum gas for commercial operations at Ina, and in November 2000, she became the President of the Adriatic pipeline Executive Board.

Vesna Trnokop-Tanta is married and is the mother of a fifteen year old son. She believes that the rules of the game are not the same for men and women, and that the difference must be used as an advantage. When asked about the rules necessary for the success of women in business, Vesna Trnokop-Tanta emphasizes the importance of a stable and well organized family, positive energy, determination, consistency and the ability to ignore provocation. When asked about the moment that was decisive in her career, Vesna Trnokop-Tanta answered how she took each phase in life step by step and that she never achieved anything overnight; she says the best things in life are experienced when least expected.

The Executive President at JANAF says that she tries to use her little free time to read and participate in sports- roller blading, tennis, or skiing.

Vesna Lužar-Stiffler, owner of CAIR Center
The winner of the Fulbright Scholarship for Stanford University in the USA is one of the largest experts for research, development, and statistical programs at the University of Zagreb, Stanford, Maryland, Naples, Neufchatel, and the SAS Institute. She established the CAIR Center, an advising company, in 1994.

The five conditions for business success as identified by Vesna Lužar-Stiffler are: do what you love, create a balance in business and family responsibilities, set up long term goals, believe in your abilities, and be prepared for learning. The moment that defined her professional career occurred at Stanford University, when she realized how important it is to apply scientific technology in bringing important decisions in industries, companies, and government organizations. Afterwards, she directed her career towards professional consulting and education. She is married to an American citizen who resides in Croatia. She has a son and a daughter from her first marriage; both have graduated and are working. She also has one granddaughter who is two years old. Her favorite hobby is programming using a SAS program.

Melita Mačeta Racanović, President of the Varaždin Stock Exchange
Even though she is only 32 years old, Melita Mačeta Racanović has been one of the key figures in Varaždin’s capital market over the past five years, where she began as a broker in 1996. Among other things, she is a member of the Economic Council in Varaždin as well as a member of the Supervisory Board for Varaždin television – VTV.

Her five golden rules for a successful business career are responsibility, perseverance, flexibility, positivism, and rationality. The moment that characterized the beginning of her career was when she was made the Director of the Varaždin Security market in June 1996, today’s Varaždin Stock Exchange. She is married, has no children, and enjoys time in nature as a way to relax. She enjoys gardening as well. Her special way to relax is playing the piano and organ.

Tatjana Holjevac, Assistant Minister for Maritime Traffic
Tatjana Holjevac, the Assistant Minister for Maritime Traffic, sees the most important period in her business career as managing the telecommunication center during the Patriotic War. Along with assistance from her colleague in the Main Telecommunication Center, she managed to secure telephone communication in Croatia, which was vital for information flow on Croatia to the world.

Tatjana Holjevac believes that the most important thing that businesswomen in Croatia should remember is expert knowledge and the knowledge of foreign languages, along with constant improvement. She recommends constant work in widening the circle of business colleagues with correct and expert work, innovation and orientation to new ideas, a correct and sincere relationship with colleagues and exactness in carrying out business responsibilities. She also recommends that each businesswoman in Croatia has decent business elegance in dress.

She does not have any hobbies because her interests, work, and hobbies have all been used in the telecommunication business.
Tatjana Holjevac, a mother of two daughters, points out that she has one beautiful grandson.

Bernarda Cecelja, owner of ‘Bernarda’
The director and owner of “Bernarda”, which deals with the production of beds and mattresses, is one of the most successful private entrepreneurs in Croatia. She began her business in 1988 with her own money, earned during temporary work in Switzerland. Today, her largest clients are leading European hotel chains: Sheraton, Holiday Inn, Ramada, Radisson, Hilton, Astron and Kempinsky.

Bernarda Cecelja is divorced and has a 25 year old son, Boris, and spends her spare time reading or gardening. She believes that it is most important to have a clear goal in business, be decisive, persistent and correct. “Nothing can be done without a little bit of starting capital, because banks do not show any trust towards new entrepreneurs. When you begin working, it is important to fulfill agreements on time and high in quality: this was the deciding factor in my company”, said the winner of the Golden Kuna award for small business in the Međimurje County in 2002.

Nina Oberiter-Gluhak, Executive President of PBZ American ExpressLovorka Penavić, Executive member at Raiffeisen bank
Lovorka Penavić is a member of the team that manages one of the five most powerful banks in Croatia. Her deciding moment was when Lovorka Penavić realized that she might be better than the others. From her own experience, every woman that wants to be successful should have diligent and responsible work, solid education and constant improvement in the chosen field, ambition for promotion, development of emotional intelligence and, the achievement of balance between private life and business life. She is married and the mother of two grown up women. After a long work day, she relaxes through her favorite hobbies: gardening, reading, and cooking.

Nina Anđal, member of Lura Executive Board
One of the most powerful women in the milk product industry believes that people should not be divided in work by their gender, or that women and men should act using different rules to succeed. “Maybe I was lucky in that, but personally, I never have dealt with a situation in my career where I was not treated equally because I am a woman. I do not think that way, and my goal in every assignment that I have completed was to get the best results possible”, said Nina Anđal. Because of that, she cannot pinpoint the moment that was crucial in her career and each step forward for her is based on the past principles of the previous step. As one of the greatest experts for managing human resources and communication, shown by her abilities at Pliva and Coca-Cola, Nina Anđal became the boss for corporate administration at Croatia’s largest milk company with over 3,000 employees and a profit last year of 47 million kuna. She is married and the mother of a 17 year old daughter.

Gordana Kovačević, Vice President at Ericsson Nikola Tesla
Gordana Kovačević identifies success as dedication to work. “If you believe in your abilities, if you are motivated and think as a winner, you will achieve success”. In her opinion, the golden rule necessary for success is knowledge and continuous education, and the development of competency so that you can take a step forward each day in order to be ahead of the rest. She also believes in the advantages of team work. “I think that success can be achieved by someone who is a positive thinker and who is courageous, who sometimes aggressively presents his/her programs and ideas for the first step towards the goal that they wish to attain”, said the Vice President of Erricsson Nikola Tesla, where there are more than one thousand employees. The critical moment in her career was the arrival of ‘Ericsson’ in Nikola Tesla, which internationalized her career and allowed her to be in the closed circle of individuals responsible for managing a company that has a profit of 1.4 billion kuna in 2002.

In all of that , she surely would not have succeeded without support from her family, mostly her daughter. With good organization of her time, Gordana Kovačević always has room for music, theater, or a good book. She enjoys Herman Hesse, Richard Bach, Miroslav Krlež and Vesna Krmpotić, as well as many others.

Ljerka Puljić, Executive Vice President at Agrokor
Ljerka Puljić is one of six Executive members at the largest nutrition-trade concerns in Croatia where over 10,000 people are employed and where last year’s profit totaled 6.7 billion kuna. Her recipe for success is simply: “work, work, and more work.” The decisive moment in her career was when Ledo entered Agrokor, where she was the marketing director. With that, she received the opportunity to lead the restructuring of the entire company, with support by leading world experts, achieving new knowledge and the possibility to implement that knowledge in a practical situation. “That is an enormous amount of capital that needs to be recognized and utilized. I believe that was the breaking moment, and I constantly have to attain new knowledge and skills”, said Ljerka Puljić. She relaxes by reading and taking walks in the park. She is married and has a sixteen year old daughter, Lana.

Ivana Šoljan, Executive member at HT
Ivana Šoljan, the General operative Director at HT for on-line operations believes that women will be successful using the same rules for men: work a lot, be honest and fair, be decisive, professional and positive towards to company and your colleagues.

Her decisive moment came when she realized that she enjoys her work and that she cannot be satisfied if she is not an active member of change in the environment that she lives in. “Everything that followed was consequence and luck”, said the Executive member at HT, a company with more than 10,500 employees and 8 million kuna in profit last year, taking over second place for the most successful company. Ivana Šoljan is married and has a seven year old daughter. She loves the sea and sun, boats, the beach and everything on water or around water. She does not have any particular hobbies, but she jogs regularly and attempts to use every free moment for traveling.

Zvjezdana Blažić, Executive President at Kraš
Zvjezdana Blažić, an attorney, has spent most of her professional career at Croatia’s largest factory for sweets- Kraš. She became the head of the company this year, which employs 2300 individuals and has an annual income that is close to one billion kuna; she was the advisor for the Executive Board last year. Zvjezdana Blažić sees the first step in being successful as the ability to make decisions and motivate others. “A tem of expert and responsible individuals is vital for business. Lead instead of manage, be among the first, and make sure that the opinions of your employees are important”, points out Zvjezdana Blažić. In her own words, she has worked a lot since she started her career, and she gave herself over to her work without even thinking about a promotion. As she achieved better results in her work, she paid more attention to professional improvement and gaining managerial skills. Zvjezdana Blažić is happily married and has two sons – Domagoj and Hrvoje, and she says: “I am proud of my children, even though I must point out that my husband put a lot of effort into their development. Without support from my parents and husband, I would not be able to do this job.” On her free time she says: “When I am tired, walking is my favorite way to relax. I like to read and listen to music, and for the last while I have been listening to music that my children choose.”

Maja Pečarević, owner of Generalturist
Maja Pečarević, The Executive President at Generalturist and Budget rent-a-car started her managerial career in 1987 at Generalturist. After that, she went to Australia with her husband, and became the Assistant Director at Diners Club upon her return, and later at Generalturist.

Maja Pečarević emphasizes her five golden rules for success: “A woman must be serious and dedicated to her work, she must fool around with facts that could ward off any colleague, and must hold her head up high and show that at all times. She can never forget that feminity is an advantage.” She believes that her deciding moment was when she realized that she was capable alone of bringing about decisions on which depend the strategy or a method of carrying out business decisions. “Of course this came after years of experience in work and in interpersonal relations on the professional field”, said Maja Pečarević. She has been happily married for 28 years, and has two children- her son Mark, and her daughter Petra. Her comments on her free time were: “My job is my hobby as well, but I do have several other passions: walking my dog, cooking, painting, I used to enjoy tennis but now I enjoy walking.”

Marina Čulić Fischer, joint owner of Dialog marketing agency
Marina Čulić Fischer, a 31 year old from Split, ties her ascent in her career to the decision to return to Croatia from a foreign country and continue her professional career. The decision occurred at the same time that development of the PR industry in Croatia began to quickly increase, and her large role in successful national company started followed by the later, more successful development; she became a strategic partner that recognized individual and market potential.

As a Master’s student at Karl University, Marina Čulić Fischer fulfilled her dream and turned her theoretical knowledge into practical: after seven years of working at the Ogilvy&Mather marketing agency in Prague and BBDO in Zagreb, she became the joint owner and member of the board in one of the most successful marketing agencies in Croatia.

She points out that she believes that professionals in Croatia and in foreign countries, men and women, need to maintain the basic rules for business success: expertise, managerial ability, experience, ethics, and efficiency.

She is a wife and a mother of one child, and along with constant travel, she uses her free time for sailing and skiing.

Andrea Šumanovac, co-owner of Unex Euro RSCG advertising agency
“If you want to be a successful woman, you need to look young, think like a man, act as a mature woman, and work like a horse”, said Andrea Šumanovac who saw her career opportunity after one business meeting with an older colleague, where she immediately adopted this phrase as a rule for a successful career. “Of course, with a large dose of professionalism, knowledge in the field, and patience.” Andrea Šumanovac said that during the time she spend in school, she had a strong ambition for creating a quality environment in which she would have the opportunity to achieve business conditions based on Western European business levels. . “The key moment happened 11 years ago when the idea that was developing in me for years was finally realized through the establishment of Unex, the advertising and marketing agency.”

Among various activities that she does in her spare time, she loves reading a good book, listening to good music, writing articles, and when she is free of responsibilities, she enjoys skiing and traveling. “We do not have children yet because in motherhood, like in work, I want to achieve perfection; my 24 colleagues are in some way like my children.”

Anđelka Buneta, director of Regos
Even though she is not the head of a company that can measure its success by its market position, Anđelka Buneta should surely be on the list of the most successful female managers in Croatia. The reason is that she has successfully organized Regos’s operations, which is the key institute for the new pension plan system in Croatia, whose efficiency in registering and transferring money into pension plan accounts surprised even the biggest optimists in the first year. Looking at the fact that she has always been attracted to projects with “high voltage”, which require a lot of energy, creativity and orientation, the project for the pension reform was really the deciding moment in her career. Anđelka Buneta is the winner of the prestigious CROMA award for the most successful project manager in 2002 in Croatia. “I do not know who said that ‘women are nature’, but it is the central point to female existence. Female difference is natural, which makes the world a much richer place.” She says that business women have one beautiful characteristic in negotiations and that is patience; she adds that women provide information to people in a more direct, clear and consistent fashion, and accept the “truth” in more “acute situations”.

Anđelka Buneta enjoys sports in nature and relaxing with a good book. She is divorced and is the mother of two daughters- 19 and 11 years old.

Biserka Fižulić, President of the Supervisory Board at Magma
Biserka Fižulić is the president of the Supervisory Board at Croatia’s first private company, Magma, founded in 1989 with over 700 employees; the profit for 2002 was 409 million kuna. Based on its business experience, the rule that each woman should stick to, in her opinion, is a willingness to learn and improve her expertise, as well as follow change. A woman should never decline an assignment offered by her boss, she should listen to orders, solve problems with understanding, cooperate and always be available, be prepared in detail for problems that may arise, and be confident in her opinions. She also believes that a woman should always inform her superiors on her process of solving an assignment, and ask for their opinions in preparing options so that she can show her understanding and not be afraid to state her opinion. The key moment in her career was when she felt that she could organize her time better and achieve more while working alone. ‘’My order was university, family and finally work’’, said Biserka Fižulić. The president of the Supervisory Board in one of the most successful Croatian companies is married with two children, and enjoys sports in her free time. She enjoys most sports but her favorites are swimming, jogging, sailing, skiing, flying, tennis, volleyball, and bicyclism.

Jasna Ludviger, Vice President and Executive member at INGRA
Jasna Ludviger, born in Zagreb, has worked at INGRA since 1970. During the past thirty years, she has led many large projects such as a hydro central, aviation, and various industrial operations in Algeria, the Ukraine, Russia, China, and Madagascar; these operations required skills in negotiations, organization, decision making, and patience.

Her rules for success are work as a foundation, perseverance, competency and courage. Her breaking moment was in 1970 when she chose to work at INGRA over three other offers. Her favorite hobby is skiing, which she has never missed with her family except during two years of the war, and her passion is shopping.

Jasna Ludviger has been happily married for 31 years, and has one daughter- an attorney who works at the District Attorney’s office; she also has a five year old grandchild.

Mandica Zulić, Executive President at Raiffeisen Savings
Mandica Zulić was born in Jasenica near Zadar, and has spent most of her career at Zagrebačka Bank. In September 1998, she was named the Assistant Executive President of the First Savings Bank which was established by Zagrebačka Bank; one year later, she became the head of Raiffeisen Savings.

“Work more than what is expected on you”, is the first attribute for successful women. She also says that it is important to never think that you know everything. She points out that an individual must always work on themselves, learn, optimally divide strength, and everyday determine the priorities in all life areas. Along with knowledge and professionalism, one must always use their intuition and keep in mind that success is the specific result of the success of subordinates. She advises business women in Croatia to not try to be men at work, because both sides have excellent advantages and disadvantages.

Mandica Zulić says that she cannot separate the deciding moments in her career, but she points out her positive opinion of her work and the belief that her career is in her hands. She enjoys planning and reading books related to her work; she also enjoys psychology and how it can be used in sales and marketing. Mandica Zulić is married to a manager and is the mother of two students.

Tatjana Rukavina, partner at PriceWaterhouseCoopers
Tatjana Rukavina is the leading expert in Croatia for the estimation of market value, preparation of company takeovers and merges; she proved herself when she reconstructed to government portfolio. She began working at PriceWaterhouseCoopers after she graduated from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, and she came to Croatia after PWC widened its operations in the region.

Tatjana Rukavina believes that most people in the business world build their careers on hard work and learning, and they do not wait for lucky decisions that show themselves in rare occasions. Her advice to business women is to not fool yourself into believing that there are special rules for women. She says that a man cannot succeed alone in the business world, only a winning team can succeed. Tatjana Rukavina advises working women to learn from their mistakes and to take responsibility of their consequences. Her favorite hobby is enjoying time with friends, a good movie, and summer sailing. She has no children and is not married, but she is in a “happy long time relationship with the man of her dreams.”

Ljerka Cerc, General Director at Inker
Ljerka Cerc, an economist, received her Master’s degree in 1993 in the field of business management. Until 1982, she was employed as a manager in the economic department for the estimation of investment projects at Končar. From 1982 until 1997, she worked at Kraš as the director for planning and analysis; the assistant director for finance, accounting, and computer science; the assistant director for development and head internal reviser. From 1997 until today, Ljerka Cerc is the General Director and member of Inker’s Executive Board.

The defining moment in her career was her departure from the financially stable Kraš to Inker, which was facing bankruptcy. She says that the risk paid off and that she enjoyed every working day because the improvement was visible.

Ljerka Cerc believes that devoted work, communication skills, and a positive approach to problem solving are vital to success in business. She also adds that self control and the ability to control stress are especially important. She sees the most important aspect to be continuous improvement, attainment of new knowledge and a combination of attained work experience with specialized theoretical knowledge.

Ljerka Cerc has a son who recently received his Master’s in the USA and a husband who is also in the business world. She emphasized that balance between business and private life is one of the prerequisites for success. In her rare free time, she enjoys oil painting, and enjoys playing cards with her friends.

Sanja Brkić Fakleš, Director of PMC for South East Europe
Born in Zadar in 1967, she moved to Zagreb in 1985 where she graduated in 1990 from the University of Law. She speaks English and German, and understands Italian. From 1996, she has been the director of PMC (Personnel and Management Consulting) International in Zagreb, and since 2001 she has been the regional director for PMC in South Eastern Europe. Sanja Brkić Fakleš is also a member of the American Chamber of Commerce Executive Board in Croatia.

Her deciding moment in her career was her entrance into PMC and the job that she does with complete satisfaction. Sanja Brkić Fakleš advises business women to be open and pleasant colleagues, to show complete respect to all levels of employees, and to avoid arrogance which often follows success in business. She also emphasizes the need for constant learning and improvement, and that a serious approach to work is a decent appearance. She recommends that business women employ people with quality work, the best staff, because that is they only way to make the company successful. She thinks that it is important to help people around yourself whenever possible, when it is morally and ethically allowable.

Sanja Brkić Fakleš has been married for nine years and has two sons. Despite her success in business, she claims that her family is the most successful part of her life and that she would never give up on her family for her career. Her favorite hobbies are tied to the sea, especially diving, fishing, and sailing.

Ružica Vađić, Assistant Executive President at Heruc Group
Ružica Vađić was born on 14 May 1957 in Požega where she finished her high school education. She graduated from the Economics University in Zagreb in 1980. That is when she began her career at Heruc. The area that she covers is wide and related to finance, accounting and controlling. She is the Assistance Executive President at the Central Bank, and the Assistant Executive President at Heruc for finance, accounting, and controlling at Heruc Group. She is fluent in English and has recently begun to coordinate her operations at the investment banking at Center Bank where Heruc, among other, is one of the investors for the coordination of Heruc Group financial operations. She believes that there are no golden rules for the success of women in the business world and emphasizes that a woman must be twice as active, competent, determined, and have twice the quality that a man has. Her defining moment was the happy marriage between her business ambitions, a successful company that guided her development and family “… which logistically supported her”. She is married with one son, who is currently a student. Her favorite hobbies are tied to her stressful job: that is why she enjoys long walks in the park, or fast short walks with friends.

Dragica Sužnjević, director and owner of Simbex
Originally a lawyer, Dragica Sužnjević became the boss in the legal department at HŽ before founding her company that deals with sales. One of the founders of the Croatian Peace League during the Patriotic War, she is also the founder of the Bistrič Association, which deals with children with high IQ’s. She is the founder of the Simbex Foundation which deals with care of the elderly. Dragica Sužnjević believes that there are no golden rules for success in business, there is only the desire to constantly learn. As she says, she has been learning something new everyday for the past twenty years. She believes that there have been many opportunities and moments that highlighted her professional career, that which women often do not seek as assistance or obstacles because all individuals, despite their gender, are respected because of their characteristics. She is the mother of three children, and her favorite hobbies are walking and read books on psychology, because she is very interested in the human psyche.

Marija Šutina, Executive President of EMKA fashion house
The twenty-seven year old owner of Emka fashion house from Pregrada, known for operations with Jobis, Montana, Betty Barclay, Escada and VanLaacka, says that every person is actually what they believe that they can be. “Consciousness of the existence of opportunities in choice is especially important. It is necessary to accept responsibility for communication with others; you must always listen to others first and then create a presentation in an acceptable fashion.”

Marija Šutina believes that a prerequisite for success is control in situations through flexibility and openness: “You should never judge a person because of their thought or opinions, you should admire the wealth of difference.” Her deciding career moment occurred in 1999, after the death of her father, when she took over management in Emka.

She enjoys adventure both in her private and business life: she enjoys paragliding, bungee jumping, and rafting. She is not married and has no kids.

Iva Balent, marketing director at Agrokor
“In work, like in my family, success depends on devotion, decisiveness, and compromise. I believe that women need to prove themselves more on this path and know how to create a balance between their business and private lives. One of the key factors for success, especially with women, is good organization in all daily activities and assignments. It is important to know how to separate important items and correctly place priorities, know how to delegate work, motivate members of your team and get the best out of you r colleagues”, said the marketing director for one of Croatia’s largest concerns.

Iva Balent was born in Zagreb. She graduated in 1998 from the University of Economics in Zagreb, where she is preparing her Masters. In November 1997, she was employed in Agrokor as a young assistant in marketing. Since October 2001, she has been the budget director for the concern. As of this year, she is responsible for the coordination of marketing in all companies in the concern. She spends her free time with her family and her daughter Tara.

Piruška Canjuga, Executive Vice President at Agrokor
Agrokor’s first person for retail sales is the most responsible for the spread of Konzum stores chain and the business results that placed this retail chain, in 2002, in fifth place among the most successful Croatian companies based on profit. Born in Sinj with a diploma from the Agronomy University and a Masters in the area of entomology, she points out five rules that women need to follow to succeed in business: be smart, with recommendations so that she does not have to show it, pretty (while always using this), shrewd, conceptual (while keeping the concept to herself), and finally: thin, blond girls have a better chance of succeeding in Croatia. Piruška Canjuga, who has been in the shadows of her husband for years, a high ranked HDZ politician and now a Parliamentary representative for HND, says that her deciding career day was when “HDZ fell from power.” She likes motorcycles, boxing, and she enjoys all sports that have some violence in them. Her hobbies are “cards, sushi, reading… and in the end work, work and more work.”