PwC, National Soccer Stadium, Farewall Dinner

From 10 to 12 a.m. we visited PricewaterhouseCoopers in Warsaw.
In front of the giant building we had an amazing greeting with people singing and dancing in traditional costume. Up in the offices there was a pianist performing “Chopin” due to a ceremonial occasion.

Anne von Loeben works in the tax & legal department and presented us some facts about the company. PwC in Eastern Europe is represented in 30 countries with 8400 employees in 47 offices. The biggest customers are ArcelorMittal and Gazprom. German mandators are Bosch, Volkswagen, Metro Group, Bayer and Boehringer Ingelheim, for example. It’s evident that lots of German medium-sized enterprises invest in Polen.

In Poland they have established 6 facilities over the last 20 years, each with at least one German speaking employee. 52% of the employees are women and the average age is about 33 years.

The service sectors of PwC comprise auditing, tax consulting & legal advice and other advisory activities.

 Following the visit at PwC we had a conducted tour at the new National Soccer Stadium at 1 p.m.. We were the first group ever that was shown the stadium which is still under construction. So prepared with safety shoes, helmets and neon yellow warning vests we started the two-hour tour.
We were shown the electricity, the irrigation system, VIP stands and the transport halls for the players as well as the immense tribune for about 55.000 visitors. We all got an impression of how much work it is to build such a stadium with circa 1200 workers and that there are still so many details left besides the first outside impression of a football stadium. It will be finished in the end of november this year.

 After returning to our hotel we all met together at the restaurant “Folk Gospoda” at 7 p.m., where Mr. Kornmeier and Mr. Ling had organized an amazing farewell dinner with some agents of companies we have already visited, like from the BASF or PwC, the German ambassador in Warsaw and construction managers of Imtech, the contracting business at the National Football Stadium. It was a harmonic atmosphere and a great opportunity for all of us to talk again to some agents while eating and drinking.