international CONFERENCE"Wanna grow? - Steps to scale up management"Registration is open until 3 July!
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@ Inter Expo Centre Sofia / Sofia, Bulgaria
4 July 2019
4 July 2019
CONFERENCE TOPICS
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Start-up to scale-up
Entrepreneurship ecosystem
Knowledge & skills of scale up advisors
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The international conference "Wanna grow? - Steps to scale up management" will also present the results of the Steps2Scale – EU steps to scale up management project, No. 2017-1-BG01-204-036221, co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme.
Please do keep in mind that the programme is subject to change.
Keynote Speakers
Jorge Garcia del Arco - Co-founder & CEO, AquaDAT
Co-founder & CEO of AquaDAT - a startup that transforms water data into timely knowledge for a better governance. It was the only european finalist @ MIT Water Innovation Prize 2017. A Shared Value explorer Startupping & Hacking Shared Value Creation for positive Social Impact whose first venture was at age 16 in order to be founding partner of a Public Limited Co. Executive MBA by Instituto de Empresa Business School, with over 20 years management experience in Telecom industry (Ericsson, IBV Corp, Euskaltel) and service BPO (Xupera). TEDxBilbao and Financial Congress Digital Meeting co-organizer. Founding curator of Bilbao´s Global Shapers Hub, a community born out of the World Economic Forum that empowers young people to play an active role in shaping local, regional and global agendas. He gets fired up about Social Innovation and SDGs. |
Genoveva Christova - Managing Director, Ligna Group
President of Bulgarian Furniture Cluster and Managing Director of LIGNA GROUP, Chairperson of the Managing Board of Association of Business Clusters in Bulgaria, Chair of the Control Committee of the Vocational training Centre at the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI), Bulgarian Entrepreneur of the Year 2010 (EU SME Week). 1994 -1998 Master in International Economic Relations, University of National & World Economics – Sofia; 2013 – European Foundation for Competitiveness 2013 – Cluster Management Excellence Instructor – Associate Trainer Certificate; 2013 – lusterland Upper Austria – Certificate: Cluster Academy. Since 2006, Ms. Christova has started her international cluster work and has been involved in clusters development projects in South-East Europe: Greece, Romania, Turkey and Serbia. |
Metodi Amov - Marketing Director, ScaleFocus
Metodi is responsible for new business development of the company; worked actively with the Burgas and Varna IT communities to align the market's business needs with universities and high-school programs, helps IT professionals in Burgas and Varna to grow and unleash their potential in one of the leading software companies in Bulgaria. Education: American University in Bulgaria, Ultrecht University.
Metodi is responsible for new business development of the company; worked actively with the Burgas and Varna IT communities to align the market's business needs with universities and high-school programs, helps IT professionals in Burgas and Varna to grow and unleash their potential in one of the leading software companies in Bulgaria. Education: American University in Bulgaria, Ultrecht University.
Scale up managers & advisers
Milena Koleva - Director, Knowledge Innovation and Strategies Management Club
Milena Koleva is Director of Knowledge, innovation and strategies management club (KISMC). She holds an MBA degree from HULT International Business School, Boston (MA) and has over ten years of experience in innovation management consulting and training. She worked as a management consultant with the Center for Innovation, Excellence and Leadership (IXL Center) in Boston – one of the leading consulting firms in innovation management. She has worked on various projects for enhancement of the innovation capacity of small and large companies, including Fortune 500. Since 2014 she is one of the founders of the Innovation Management Academy in Bulgaria – a brand for strategic cooperation between business-university-research. She is currently pursuing her PhD in ICT with focus on Innovative educational methods, technologies and approaches. She is managing several Erasmus+ KA2 projects in these fields. |
Rupinder Nandra - Head of international programmes, Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce, EEN
Rupinder has been part of the Birmingham Chambers of Commerce for more than 15 years. Head of International Programmes, Private Sector Liaison Officer to the World Bank Group and the IDB for the last 5 years. Birmingham City University Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services. 
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Garazi Azanza Martinez de Luco - Professor, University of Deusto
Garazi Azanza Martínez de Luco holds a BA in Psychology from the University of Deusto and a PhD in Psychology (International Mention) from UNED. She is currently a lecturer at the University of Deusto, where she teaches BA courses on Modern Languages and Management. Specifically, she teaches the following subjects: Entrepreneurship, People Management and Interpersonal Skills. She also teaches Interpersonal Communication in the Master's Degree in Human Resources at Deusto Business School. During the past few years she has worked as a researcher at the Deusto Entrepreneurship Centre, where she has coordinated the DeustoSTART entrepreneurship program and delivered employability and entrepreneurship training workshops. Her publications mainly focus on leadership, employment and entrepreneurship. She is part of the Communication research team.
Garazi Azanza Martínez de Luco holds a BA in Psychology from the University of Deusto and a PhD in Psychology (International Mention) from UNED. She is currently a lecturer at the University of Deusto, where she teaches BA courses on Modern Languages and Management. Specifically, she teaches the following subjects: Entrepreneurship, People Management and Interpersonal Skills. She also teaches Interpersonal Communication in the Master's Degree in Human Resources at Deusto Business School. During the past few years she has worked as a researcher at the Deusto Entrepreneurship Centre, where she has coordinated the DeustoSTART entrepreneurship program and delivered employability and entrepreneurship training workshops. Her publications mainly focus on leadership, employment and entrepreneurship. She is part of the Communication research team.
Bar Camp
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"Financing for start-ups - why US and not EU"
"How to innovate and grow your business" |
"Internationalization"
"EU Framework funding programmes" |
Veselin Iliev - Director General, International Economic Relations at Bulgarian Industrial Association
Veselin has extensive experience in foreign trade, export promotion, market analyses, investment consulting, diplomacy, corporate management, industrial automation, consulting of international companies. Team leader of Enterprise Europe Network BIA, member of WG Internationalisation, member of WG 24 Customs Union, National Contact Point for International Trade Centre ITC/UNCTAD/WTO. He is National contact point for Horizon 2020, Access to finance for Bulgaria and licensed consultant in IMPROVE. BUSINESSEUROPE: Trade Policy, Customs legislation, Export control, Supply chain security, Trade Defense Instruments; Specializations in U.K., China, Bulgaria. |
Milena Koleva - Director, Knowledge Innovation and Strategies Management Club
Milena Koleva is Director of Knowledge, innovation and strategies management club (KISMC). She holds an MBA degree from HULT International Business School, Boston (MA) and has over ten years of experience in innovation management consulting and training. She worked as a management consultant with the Center for Innovation, Excellence and Leadership (IXL Center) in Boston – one of the leading consulting firms in innovation management. She has worked on various projects for enhancement of the innovation capacity of small and large companies, including Fortune 500. Since 2014 she is one of the founders of the Innovation Management Academy in Bulgaria – a brand for strategic cooperation between business-university-research. She is currently pursuing her PhD in ICT with focus on Innovative educational methods, technologies and approaches. She is managing several Erasmus+ KA2 projects in these fields. |
Boryana Mladenova - Expert, Enterprise Europe Network
Boryana has been part of the BIA team since June 2017. She graduated from the National School of Mathematics and Science "Acad. Lyubomir Tchakalov", Sofia, specialty "Biology and Biotechnology". She has aquired Bachelor and Master Degree in Economy of Trade at the University of National and World Economy in Sofia. She worked for two years as a financial controller in a large Swedish company and also has been trained in the Consumer Protection Commission. Some of her favourite topics include entrepreneurship, intellectual property, international trade relations and tourism. Boryana is involved in managing, reporting and coordinating international projects. She is part of the Enterprise Europe Network team, which is engaged in consulting and supporting SMEs in the following areas: internationalization, access to finance and innovation. |
Christina Kasparyan - Expert, Enterprise Europe Network
Christina has joined BIA since 1st October 2018. She has graduated from the English Language School “Geo MIlev” in 1994, followed by acquiring a Master Degree in European Studies at the University of Ruse and internship at the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Industrial adjustment specialist with certificate from the US Department of Labour, with accomplished trainings in Canada, Italy and Belgium. In the period 1999-September 2018 she has been part of the team of Business Support Centre for Small and Medium Enterprises-Ruse, where she has been responsible for projects under Phare Credo, PLEDGE, CBC Romania-Bulgaria, CIP, LLL Leonardo da Vinci, FP7, COSME and other programmes. She has been part of the international team for development of the INTERREG V-A Romania-Bulgaria 2014-2020 Programme and a guest lecturer on Project Management at the Bulgarian-Romanian Interuniversity Europe Centre of University of Ruse. In the period 2010-2018, she has been a member of the Steering Group of Priority Area 9 “Investing in People and Skills” of the European Union Strategy for the Danube Region. |
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
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The Project Steps2Scale co-funded by the ERASMUS+ Programme of the European Union aims to create a harmonized qualification and competence framework for the profession Scaling up adviser which doesn’t exist in any EU country. The Commission’s Start-up and Scale-up Initiative aims to give Europe’s many innovative entrepreneurs every opportunity to become world leading companies. There are many start-up initiatives, but very few make it beyond the critical first few years. The European Commission is determined to change that and help start-ups deliver their full innovation and job creation potential.
PROJECT PARTNERS
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Inter Expo Center Sofia
blvd. "Tsarigradsko shose" 147 1784 Sofia, Bulgaria. 
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