Opole is one of the smaller Polish cities that are increasingly attractive for international businesses. Especially BSS (Business Support Services) investors seem to be interested in this destination, according to an article by PROProgressio CEO Wiktor Doktór on Emerging Europe. Because Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), Shared Services Centers (SSC), and Research and Development (R&D) Centers are major avenues for foreign direct investment (FDI) in Poland, Opole has the potential to attract more investors in addition to still appealing to leisure visitors who find it full of charm.
Earlier in February, International Automotive Components (IAC) broke ground in Opole for a greenfield plant, which will manufacture tailored instrument panels for premium passenger cars. According to the news, although initially built to provide premium customized instrument panels, the plant has been designed to support future growth by supplying other interiors products to vehicle manufacturers in the region, as many international OEMs are establishing, or already have plants within 100 to 450 km from IAC Opole.
Capgemini opened a second office in Opole in September 2016:
“Four years ago we provided basic support IT infrastructure in Capgemini’s Opole center. Now we focus on developing our clients’ IT processes and we offer our services in the field of fragmented structure management as well as cloud management services. Meanwhile, our center in Opole is extending the number of foreign languages that it can operate in on a daily basis – as well as German it also conducts projects in English and Dutch,” explained Marcin Nowak, the managing director for Capgemini cloud infrastructure services Eastern Europe.
These are two recent examples to support the potential for business tourism in Opole, which also has several business hotels to cater to this special segment of visitors. The modern domEXPO Opole is perfect to host exhibitions and trade fairs.
Although in recent years the Opole region has lost an estimated 10% of its population because of migration, the town still has the potential and infrastructure to encourage foreign investment and business development. Local authorities are taking active steps in encouraging growth, but the process is lengthy and time-consuming. By 2025, business process outsourcing (BPO) centers will provide between 300,000 and 450,000 new jobs according to a McKinsey report cited by Emerging Europe in support of the idea that Poland is an attractive FDI destination with the smaller cities like Lublin, Olsztyn, Rzeszów and Opole offering better incentives than bigger destinations.
Business development is already a strong focus in the city, where a formerly abandoned warehouse on Ozimskiej is now renovated by Fortress Invest to be converted into office spaces in a modern business park.