VOL. 30. NUMBER 21
NOVEMBER 18 – DECEMBER 1, 2022
HUF 1,850 | EUR 5 | USD 6 | GBP 4
HUNGARY’S PRACTICAL BUSINESS BI-WEEKLY SINCE 1992 | WWW.BBJ.HU
SPECIAL REPORT INSIDE THIS ISSUE
SSCs & BSCs SSCs Mature Into GBSs as They Provide Higher Added-Value Functions As shared services centers have graduated to business services centers and now, increasingly, to global business services centers, the industry’s evolution has seen Hungary maintain its role as an essential player at the regional level. 14
Helping Drive Success of the Office Market Whether you call them SSCs, BSCs, or GBCs, and what they do business process outsourcing or being a center of excellence, there is no doubt this alphabet soup of a sector has had a profound impact on the office market. 15
Penny for Your Thoughts
SOCIALITE
El Greco Show: Unexpectedly Transformative Walking up the steps to the entrance of the Museum of Fine Arts to visit the El Greco exhibition, David Holzer realizes he has seen more world-class public displays of work by great artists in Budapest than anywhere else. 21
NEWS
Record-breaking Fall, but not in a Good Way The inflation rate is above 20% for the first time in 25 years, and there was negative GDP growth on a monthly basis in the third quarter for the first time since the spring of 2020. 3
BUSINESS
The Budapest Business Journal talks with Penny Hungary CEO Florian Jens Naegele about the 2022 business year, today’s “genuinely challenging period,” charity plans for Christmas and 2023 investments. 8 BUSINESS
HIPA Boss Vows to be There Come ‘Rain or Shine’ In his first interview with the BBJ since taking over at the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency, CEO István Joó talks about policy continuity, efforts to support businesses in the face of the energy crisis, and to make the Hungarian economy crisis-proof. 9