International growth begins with people
Success is not created by strategies themselves. It is created by people. At the Executive Summit, I had the opportunity to share a story that was not just about business, but was in fact mainly a human story. A story of how we grew as an organisation, shifted boundaries and never stopped learning. A story of why I think differently about management today than I did a few years ago.
When you reach the top at home, new questions need to be answered
We became the leading company in our sector in Slovenia at the start of the new millennium. That was an important milestone, but also a time for reflection. We were faced with a simple question: What now? You can only grow so much in your domestic market. If we wanted long-term stability, further talent development and greater resilience to change, we had to look beyond the borders of our home country. Internationalisation is not just a business decision. At its heart, it is above all a decision about people.
Every new market is first and foremost a challenge for people
As we entered new markets, from Czechia to the countries of Southeastern Europe, we quickly realised that there were no universal solutions. The systems and processes that work at home often do not produce the same outcomes in other environments.
But what does work everywhere is people. People who understand the local environment, build relationships, and recognise that diversity is an advantage not an obstacle. Internationalisation therefore does not simply mean transferring ‘our way of working’ to another country. It means the ability to adapt to new circumstances, cultures and expectations. It is here that the role of HR becomes truly vital.
Culture cannot be exported
One of the biggest mistakes made by a company when attempting to grow internationally is believing that it can simply transfer its organisational culture from one country to another. It cannot.
While it can create a common framework of values and principles to guide employees, you have to take the local environment into account if you want to realise these values in practice.
It is also important to strike a balance between control by the parent company and local autonomy. Too much control dampens initiative and innovation, while too little can lead to a loss of a feeling of ‘common endeavour’.
Digitalisation does not lessen the importance of people
Today we are entering a new phase of development. Processes are becoming faster, services more straightforward, and customer expectations higher than ever before. But one thing remains unchanged: behind every digital solution stands a human being and behind every positive user experience a team. A modern HR strategy must therefore be founded on responsiveness (for swift adaptation to change), reliability (which builds trust within teams) and simplicity (which removes unnecessary complexity).
Trust is not just an advertising slogan
If we look at our development to the present day, one thing has not changed – trust. But trust isn’t something you can write into a strategy or hang on the wall in the form of a pretty slogan. It comes from the everyday acts of individuals – in the way they communicate, take responsibility and behave towards their colleagues. Trust is not built by organisations. It is built by people.
What does this mean for the HR profession today?
International growth begins with the development of people, not with expansion to new markets. Diversity is not a challenge, but a competitive advantage. The culture of an organisation might be globally oriented, but it always emerges locally. Long-term success is built on trust. Digitalisation does not lessen the importance of soft skills – indeed, it pushes them even further to the fore.
When I look at our international presence today, countries and numbers are not the first things I see. I see colleagues and co-workers. People from different backgrounds who speak different languages and think in different ways, but who are united by a common goal: to build a safer and more secure future.
It is for that reason that I believe that every organisation’s greatest competitive advantage comes from having people who believe in what they are doing.
Tedo Djekanović is executive director responsible for managing the subsidiaries of the Triglav Group.
