AmCham Young Professionals program was overall a fantastic experience. The program offers its participants an excellent opportunity to meet new people and establish business connections with talented and ambitious individuals. I was impressed by the level of enthusiasm and determination of the participants to make the most out of the opportunities provided by the program. I am confident that I do not speak just for myself when I say that thanks to the program I have established both personal as well as business connections that will only grow stronger in the years to come.
The formal program itself enables its participants to gain knowledge and experience pertinent to the modern business environment in an interesting and interactive way at workshops and lectures. The quality of lectures and workshops exceeded my expectations and it would be unfair to the rest of the lecturers and presenters if I tried to pick out the one that impressed me the most. Even though in some topics presented I had already had more experience and knowledge than in the others, each session proved to be both interesting as well as useful in terms of clearly presented implications for everyday business practice.
Another privilege I was able to experience was the selection process for AmCham Top Potential of the Year 2013. When selected for the final I did not know what to expect and decided to enjoy it, not take it as a competition. The “speed dating” experience, with ten proven and experienced interviewers, was challenging but enjoyable. And after the selection of five super finalists the game became even more fun with the task to make a one minute long movie about ourselves. This experience was something completely new for me. But, undoubtedly, the pinnacle of the program was the final event, where certainly none of the finalists had expected we would be required to prove ourselves that far »out of the box« by singing, dancing, drawing and acting. The event achieved its goal because I am sure I speak for all the super finalists when I say we had a great time and, after summarizing the feedback I received, I am safe to say that the audience did not suffer too much. To be the one selected as the 3rd generation Top Potential was simply just the icing on the cake.
The Top Potential award did not go unnoticed among my friends, colleagues and superiors. It certainly is an honor and in a way a big responsibility, because »a potential« is something that needs to be developed and improve in many ways to achieve true success. And, as a sort of a representative of an entire generation after winning the award, I can promise that we will do everything in our power to achieve it.
In the end I would like to thank Ajša, Maja and the rest of the AmCham team for putting a lot of effort and enthusiasm in the program and I certainly must not forget our colleague, Uroš Žust, whom I believe we all need to thank that the informal gatherings were at least as frequent, pleasant, and successful as the formal part of the program.
Blaž Jakič, Zavarovalnica Triglav, Top Potential of The Year 2013