As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Brnic writes, the Ukrainian IT company Eleks is a global software engineering company with around 2,500 employees based across Europe and the USA, which, even before the attack on their homeland, began to expand and chose Croatia as one of its locations in Europe.
At the beginning of the year, more precisely at the end of January, it was registered as a company in the court register, but the preparation process itself began months earlier.
Partners to the world leaders
The events of the horrendous war in Ukraine following Russian invasion only accelerated these activities, but even before the first shelling took place, 20 families of Eleks employees had arrived in Croatia from Ukraine. Offices have since been opened in Zagreb and now in Split. According to Marko Modrusan, head of the Croatian branch of the Ukrainian IT company Eleks, most of the employees are Ukrainian nationals, numbering around one hundred. They’re mostly from the areas most affected by the war’s unfolding events and engaging in their work there is impossible.
The remaining 30 members of Eleks’ team are Croats. Since the City of Split was chosen as the business base here in Croatia, the largest number of them are of course located in Split, where there are 85 employees. There are also 25 in Zagreb, and they also have 20 employees in other cities spanning Croatia.
Eleks has otherwise been operating for 31 years, providing ICT solutions and consulting services. The founders are Oleksij Skripnik and Ihor Skripnik, and in the meantime managers have joined the ownership structure. Last year, the company achieved a revenue of 62 million euros, it is recording continuous growth and is also expanding on the international market.
They cover market niches from custom software development for client needs to product design and technology consulting. Thanks to such a wide and varied spectrum of activities, they say they are partners with many of the world’s leading companies, as well as technology startups.
The Ukrainian IT company Eleks has its 17 offices in 13 countries spanning three continents, of which in the area of European countries, in addition to Croatia, there are offices in Poland, Estonia and Germany, and Great Britain. They already have offices across the pond in the USA, Canada and the United Arab Emirates, and after Croatia, the intensification of their business will follow in their already opened office over in Tokyo.
“The decision to expand in Croatia was a logical step in our business growth strategy,” explained Andrij Krupa, the president of Eleks. “We plan to further expand our team and develop ICT solutions, professional services, customer support and increase the possibilities of providing services to current and future markets,” added Krupa.
When asked why the choice for the central office in Croatia fell on Split, Modrusan explained that as part of the consideration and search for the best location, care was taken to ensure that it would be a location in Croatia that would be suitable for the application of the “work and holiday” working model. This means that Eleks employees from any of their branches in other countries will be able to come to Croatia, work for a few weeks, and then use the opportunity for an annual holiday in Croatia.
Due to its location, the City of Split is rated as ideal, because the nearby islands, the southern and northern coasts and excellent traffic connections are within reach, and the city is large enough to provide the necessary comfort and amenities to their employees.
Vladimir Putin’s attack increased their workload
When asked how Eleks will function here in Croatia and who their clients will be, Modrusan says that Eleks has a delivery centre in Croatia, and most of the partners will be from European countries and from the USA.
However, it is also expected that the new centre for the realisation of projects in Split will work to strengthen the regional presence and strengthen the partnership with new clients in Southeastern Europe.
“We’re excited to contribute our experience and expertise to the quality of software development and also to meet the growing demand for software development and digital transformation in the region. We’re looking forward to being a part of the local IT community where we will certainly participate in its construction,” pointed out Modrusan, inviting Croatian software experts to join the Eleks team, as they are planning further expansion.
Despite the attacks of the Russian army on Ukraine, Eleks didn’t stop working, quite on the contrary, they received increased requests for jobs, which is why the need for new employees is growing.
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