Awards

New European Economy’s Top Ten Most Influential Companies & Business Destinations List celebrates those who have reached the pinnacle of achievement in terms of excellence and market influence. The list reflects the nominations, suggestions and contributions of the New European Economy readership (submissions made via email surveys) and analyses new trends to unearth the best and the brightest pioneers in business today. The featured companies represent the zenith of achievement across a wide variety of fields of expertise.

Some of the names on the list will be very familiar, and some possibly won’t. Pride of place at the top of the list goes to Volkswagen. The company needs no introduction – it is part of our everyday lives. Constantly innovating in anticipation of social conditions and trends, the Volkswagen Group is listed as the most sustainable automaker in the world’s leading sustainability ranking, the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices. Volkswagen is outperforming competitors in Europe, has enviable positions in growth markets such as China and Brazil and has good momentum in the US.

Of course, companies such as Volkswagen don’t start out as multinational giants. At some point, successful companies outgrow their national markets and start looking to further horizons. Several of the companies featured on our list facilitate the process of foreign trade, making it easier for ambitious exporters to gain the local expertise that can set them on their way to international growth.

Take Atradius, for example, which provides credit insurance covers against the risks of non-payment that can arise during that credit period between parting with goods or services and the due date of payment. Atradius allows exporters to concentrate on future sales without the worry of past debt and offer customers competitive credit terms. Then there’s Germany Trade & Invest, which informs clients about investment opportunities in Germany and general investment conditions in the country.

For several years, now, investors have been becoming increasingly positive about the Middle East. The region has a large population that is also one of the youngest and wealthiest in the world. The possession of vast natural resources and increasing oil prices have created substantial budget surpluses among oil exporters, which have helped governments to increase their spending on infrastructure projects and efficiently drive their diversification efforts.

Abu Dhabi and Dubai in particular are making a big push to turn their cities centres of business. Their respective convention bureaus, featured on this list, aim to drive and support the development and promotion of business events tourism throughout their emirates. They champion the emirates as dynamic global business events leaders and prove a truly excellent service in assisting with planners needs and acting as a one-stop-shop offering free advice, help with planning and local knowledge.

Finally, Novartis and AbbVie are addressing some of the world’s most serious healthcare challenges. They are market leaders in preventing and treating diseases, thereby easing suffering and enhancing the quality of life. They are committed to advancing science and building a sustainable future by providing solutions for the diseases that come with ageing, thereby relieve the burden on health systems.

1st Volkswagen
Volkswagen is the second largest automaker in the world, has three cars in the top 10 list of best-selling cars of all time, and ranks first of any automaker in terms of spending on research and development. Not a bad list of achievements for a company founded in 1937 with the goal of creating an affordable “peoples’ car”. Its mission has changed much: It still aims to meet its customers’ demands for individual and affordable mobility, but now through sustainable technologies. Volkswagen wants to be part of the solution and not the problem in a world where resources are becoming scarcer, emissions regulations are tightening, and booming cities require new and intelligent traffic and mobility concepts.

2nd Dubai Convention Bureau
The Dubai Convention Bureau aims to establish the Emirate as a leading business tourism destination. It does this by helping clients plan, organise and manage every aspect of their MICE event. The bureau is a division of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, which recognises that congress development is vital to overall tourism success. It provides free and impartial advice and communicates the important message that Dubai remains a dynamic destination where it is easy to conduct business. The bureau is making excellent progress, helping to ensure that the International Convention and Congress Association now ranks Dubai as first in the Middle East and as one of the major international meeting destinations globally.

3rd Elite Capital & Co. Limited
Elite Capital & Co. Limited is a private limited company that provides project related services including Management, Consultancy and Funding, particularly for large infrastructure projects. ECC offers a wealth of experience in Banking & Financial transactions and has a range of specialized advisory services for private, SME or corporate clients.When required we can also customize and structure our products and services to meet the specific needs of our clients. We will continue to customize, structure, create and implement funding products and services as the need requires. ECC has made strategic alliances with several organizations and companies which have given us access to international markets in Asia, Africa and Middle East.

4th The Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau
Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau (Abu Dhabi CB) drives and supports the development and promotion of business events tourism throughout the emirate efficiently, effectively, and transparently, and in partnership with all its stakeholders. Its main mission is to champion the emirate as a dynamic global business events leader. The Bureau can assist with any planners needs and acts as a one-stop shop, offering free advice, help with planning and local knowledge. The Bureau has created a range of incentives – under Advantage Abu Dhabi branding – to encourage organisers and planners to stage events in the emirate. The incentives are tailored to major conferences and corporate meetings business.

5th Royal Dutch Shell
Royal Dutch Shell is the second-largest company in the world in terms of revenue and one of the six oil and gas so-called super-majors. With operations in over 90 countries, Shell is active in every area of the oil and gas industry, including exploration and production, refining, distribution and marketing, petrochemicals, power generation and trading. With global energy demand rising, Shell is aiming to find ways to deliver more, cleaner energy and helping find ways to use it more efficiently. It believes that the most practical, commercially viable way to reduce carbon dioxide emissions over the next 20 years will be via lower-carbon biofuels.

6th Novartis
Novartis discovers, develops and markets innovative products to prevent and cure diseases, ease suffering and enhance the quality of life. Created in 1996 through the merger of Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz, Novartis is a global leader in pharmaceuticals generics, vaccines and consumer health products. Novartis collaborates with others to help address some of the world’s greatest health challenges, largely through philanthropic and not-for-profit programs. It concentrates its efforts on controlling and eliminating diseases such as malaria and leprosy, pioneering new business approaches to reach underserved patients, and finding new solutions to improve health for people around the world.

7th AbbVie
AbbVie is a global biopharmaceutical company focused on addressing some of the world’s greatest health challenges. The company began life in 2013 after Abbott Laboratories separated into two publicly traded companies, one focused on diversified medical products and the other on research-based pharmaceuticals. AbbVie has 25,000 employees, a business and investment model designed to address unmet patient needs, and proven commercial capabilities, infrastructure, and expertise. AbbVie was listed on the 2014 Dow Jones Sustainability World Index for its leadership in responsible economic, environmental and social performance.

8th Atradius
Atradius, founded more than 80 years ago in the Netherlands, provides trade credit insurance, surety and collections services worldwide. With a presence in 50 countries, the company has access to credit information on 100 million companies, enabling it to make around 20,000 credit limit decisions daily. Its mission is to strengthen our customers’ credit management and support their growth by providing them with accurate assessments of the payment default risk of their buyers, effective collections of overdue invoices and reliable surety protection against a range of contractual defaults. Atradius has a 31% share of the world credit insurance market, expanding its product portfolio with innovative credit management solutions and product enhancements.

9th Germany Trade & Invest
Germany Trade & Invest is the economic development agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. The organization promotes Germany as a business and technology location and supports companies based in Germany with global market information. It provides up-to-the-minute foreign trade information to local businesses seeking to expand in international markets via a team of industry analysts spread across the globe that compiles constantly updated country reports. It also secures and creates jobs in Germany, placing a special focus on the economic development promotion of the new federal states (eastern Germany) and Berlin. Germany Trade & Invest has offered the highest levels of German foreign trade expertise under one roof since 2009.

10th The Hotel Cascais Miragem
The Hotel Cascais Miragem Health & Spa is a five star conference resort, located on the Lisbon Coast, in front of the Atlantic Ocean, the beach of Cascais, walking distance from shops and museums. The hotel is located 15 minutes from Sintra and 25 minutes from the international airport and Lisbon. The 192 guestrooms include 15 Suites with breathtaking views of the Ocean and Bay of Cascais. The hotel’s conference centre has a total capacity of 1800 people, divided between 18 meeting rooms, the largest one for 650 people in theatre style. The Hotel also features a Spa & Health Centre by Holmes Place with over 3000 m², poolside terrace, restaurants and bars.

Now in its 6th year the New European Economy Awards were established to celebrate excellence, achievement and best practice in the international finance and commerce milieu.

Created to identify and celebrate the leading service providers across the Europe and beyond, the NEE Awards are presented to industry leaders, individuals, teams and organisations that represent the benchmark of success in financial services and related industries

The NEE awards panel is chaired by Editor Michael Ansner and assesses a broad range of criteria via some of the most experienced operators in business and journalism. The panel have been briefed to maintain independence and avoid the usual award pitfalls of bias.

Rather than the usual sequence of back-slapping, the NEE Awards have a more salient objective – to celebrate good service, irrespective of the size and scope of the recipient candidate. It is our mission to spread the word and eradicate the humdrum obstacles of international business and champion innovative service providers across worldwide commerce.

The NEE awards are an independent programme designed to recognise and promote excellence. Our panel of experts will consider criteria like company size, service quality, depth and breadth of practice, commitment and reputation. It’s our mission to create an inclusive and truthful picture of quality service providers rather than a landscape dominated by large global network blue-chips.

Of course, our aim is not to positively discriminate in favour of smaller firms, but provide recognition for quality of service from end users. As such, the key virtues for voters to consider are innovation, originality and quality of product, as well as evidence of market development and excellence in client representation.

We believe that it’s important to build confidence within our network and create trust more readily between users and providers – and your votes are helping to smooth out the creases and bring the New European business community closer together.

Now in its third year the New European Economy Awards were established to celebrate excellence, achievement and best practice in the international finance and commerce milieu.

Created to identify and celebrate the leading service providers across the Europe and beyond, the NEE Awards are presented to industry leaders, individuals, teams and organisations that represent the benchmark of success in financial services and related industries

The NEE awards panel is chaired by Editor Michael Ansner and assesses a broad range of criteria via some of the most experienced operators in business and journalism. The panel have been briefed to maintain independence and avoid the usual award pitfalls of bias.

Rather than the usual sequence of back-slapping, the NEE Awards have a more salient objective – to celebrate good service, irrespective of the size and scope of the recipient candidate. It is our mission to spread the word and eradicate the humdrum obstacles of international business and champion innovative service providers across worldwide commerce.

The NEE awards are an independent programme designed to recognise and promote excellence. Our panel of experts will consider criteria like company size, service quality, depth and breadth of practice, commitment and reputation. It’s our mission to create an inclusive and truthful picture of quality service providers rather than a landscape dominated by large global network blue-chips.

Of course, our aim is not to positively discriminate in favour of smaller firms, but provide recognition for quality of service from end users. As such, the key virtues for voters to consider are innovation, originality and quality of product, as well as evidence of market development and excellence in client representation.

Now that the categories have been announced votes are invited from users of the site – as well as being requested via email blasts from the New European Economy database of over 40,000 industry decision-makers.

We believe that it’s important to build confidence within our network and create trust more readily between users and providers – and your votes are helping to smooth out the creases and bring the New European business community closer together.

New European Economy Business Awards Winners

Best Corporate Card – Diners Club
Diners Club Global Vision management information system gives users immediate access to what your staff is spending on travel and expenses. It’s absolutely secure and available worldwide 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

“Many large corporations spend a significant portion of their budgets on accommodation each year, but more and more companies are looking at ways to control their expenses spend,” says Diners Club EVP, Tom Edgerton. “We provide our corporate clients with very sophisticated on-line MIS tools which can highlight, for example, non-compliance in class of travel or size of car or staying with non-approved hotel chains.”

To increase infallibility and accuracy, Diners Club’s unbeatable interface factors in fluctuations and variables like airfares as well as logistics for management visits with regular updates. Extensive configuration options also enable to tailor the expense management system to company specifications, facilitating better control over the expense process.

“They’re practical tools based on real-world client experience – and they’re proving hugely popular,” says Edgerton.

We agree they’re the best in the business and that’s why the award is theirs.

Best Caribbean Financial Centre – Nevis Financial Services
The sugar plantations that first brought investors to Nevis are long gone, but investors still flock here for the island’s modern day industry – offshore financial services.

Occupying just 36-square-miles of land in the Caribbean Sea, the tiny island of Nevis would fit into Greater London over 100 times – but its stock in trade has far more in common with London’s Square mile. This tropical paradise in the Lesser Antilles punches way above its weight when it comes to business matters – and more to the point, the savvy internationally investors who put their money where their money works best for them.

“Nevis is recognized for its superior value by private investors, says the island’s Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Laurie Lawrence. “It offers a full range of services and products, including asset management and protection, company formation and administration, insurance, foundations, mutual funds administration, offshore banking, investment management, and trust services.”

Indeed, the main attraction of Nevis and nearby Saint Kitts is that investors can maximize on their corporate and personal wealth management portfolios with the support of competent registered agents, attorneys, accountants, a range of banking institutions and asset management companies – and here comes the most important bit – swathed in the balmy breeze of a tropical paradise.

It comes with the blessings of the IMF, World Bank and OECD. You can add ours to that list as well…

Most Innovative Investment Agency – NRW Invest
You expect investment agency CEOs to be confident about their patch – often bleeding into the margins of overstatement. But you could never level that charge with Petra Wassner, CEO of NRW.INVEST. When she explains that her region’s economy accounts for almost a quarter of Germany’s gross domestic product, you know that it isn’t embellishment.

“Our federal state generally reflects the overall economic situation in Germany,” she says – and it’s correct. According to official figures, 28.4 % of all foreign investments are concentrated in North Rhine-Westphalia, weighing in at EUR185 billion. On top of the more recognisable names there are more 13,000 foreign companies operating their German or European HQs from NRW. They aren’t here by chance, and they aren’t likely to drift away once the debt crisis abates, indeed the existing gravity here is likely to bring more.

“We continue to see traditional investor countries such as the USA and Japan at a high level and we are now the leading location for the Chinese economy in Europe,” Wassner says. “Following locations by companies such as Huawei and Sany Heavy Industry we can assume that the investment volume and the employment market effect will increase with Chinese investments in the future.”

For NRW.Invest that’s a job well done.

Best DMC – Tsar Events
With a reputation as one of the World’s Most Beautiful cities, Saint Petersburg is the city of Pushkin and Dostoevsky, Tchaikovsky – and the birthplace of the Russian Revolution. It’s also the best new location for meetings and incentives – thanks to the innovative organisational talents of Tsar Events.

The city is filled with architectural gems and communist-era relics from Russia’s recent past. Imagine holding a congress for 1,000 inside the gorgeous neo-classical Smolny Cathedral; Exclusive out-of-hours admission to the Hermitage – the Tsars’ Winter Palace; or even a sit-down lunch for up to 600 people inside the Artillery museum served by waiting staff in full military attire.

Obviously it would be impossible for an outsider to access, but Saint Petersburg based fixers Tsar Events have brimming contacts books and the key to the city’s finest venues. As the only Destination Management Certified Professionals in Russia, they can organise all your company’s requirements – hotels, venues, entertainment, and travel.

Best Destination – Croatia
Anyone who’s familiar with Italian cuisine will find the food here strangely familiar – there’s pasta, prosciutto, olive oil, rosemary in abundance, and straightforward adherence to seasonality. You could almost be in Italy.

Croatia’s province of Istria is the new Tuscany – is as much a part of the Mediterranean’s Olive Oil Belt as Tuscany, Andalucía, or Provence. It’s just that most people don’t realise it.

Istria is a land that inspired James Joyce and Jules Verne, and National Geographic Traveller has also taken note and added to the collective consciousness of Croatia’s cool by listing listed Istria in their 20 Top Destinations for 2012. The list includes cities, countries and natural landmarks which according to National Geographic, deserve the title of the most wanted places on the planet.

Meanwhile, another part of Croatia that’s basking in the warm glow of media praise – namely the island of Hvar, an increasingly popular destination for tourists, which makes Conde Nast Traveller’s lists of top 10 islands.

Croatia still offers excellent value for money when compared to other Mediterranean destinations. And with fabulous new hotels like Radisson Blu in Split and Hotel Lone in Istria Croatia offers superb opportunities for business travellers and bona fide tourists alike in the run up to EU accession.

Best Eurasian Airline
Currently operating a fleet of 25 aircraft on 27 different international destinations, Air Astana is going from strength to strength. As Kazakhstan’s leading international carrier, the airline continues to experience strong traffic growth on its Asian network. As a result, the airline is planning to boost frequencies on existing long haul scheduled services from Almaty to Bangkok, Delhi and Kuala Lumpur from December, as well as launch a new scheduled service to Hong Kong in early 2012 and initiate a winter season only service to Ho Chi Minch City, Vietnam in late 2012.

“Expanding political, business and tourism links between Kazakhstan and Asia continue to drive strong traffic growth on services to the region, with increased feed from Central Asia into the expanding Almaty hub also making a significant contribution.” said Peter Foster, President of Air Astana. “Immediate frequency increases on existing services and the launch of new services to Hong Kong and Ho Chi Minh City in 2012, reflect the fact that Asia is playing an increasingly important part in the strategic long-term development of Air Astana.”

All long-haul services will be operated by Boeing 757 / 767 aircraft, with the Business class cabin featuring lie-flat beds and KCTV personal in-flight entertainment system. In short, it’s an operator that really is going places…

Most Innovative Coaching Programme
Business leadership and coaching courses might seem like frivolity, but it could mean the difference between success and insolvency. After all, making money in the good times is easy – but maintaining momentum during a downturn often requires a little corporate soul searching.

“Companies are being expected to do more or achieve more with less,” Says Ed Modell, President of the International Coaching Federation. “They have a very limited budget for professional development programmes, but this is exactly when professional coaching can be vital to an organisation.”

“The ICF found that companies that use or have used professional coaching for business reasons have seen a median return on investment of seven times their initial investment. Organisations typically see gains in teamwork, communication, employee performance, and enhancement of leadership skills.”

In fact, the ICF determined professional coaching produces at least $1.5 billion (USD) in worldwide revenues. We rate them enough to give them an award; you should seek out the ICF’s services…

Congratulations go out to the winners, heartened cheers to the runners up, and a huge thank you to all readers who participated