The International Controller Association held its 13th Adriatic Controlling Conference in Slovenia in November 2013. It was the largest such conference to date, with over 200 participants and 50 speakers from 7 countries. The theme was "Beyond Controlling" and explored what additional factors beyond methodologies and systems contribute to business success. A panel of company chairmen suggested factors like trust, leadership, vision, and teamwork. International speakers from the ICV discussed topics like the balanced scorecard, modern budgeting, activity-based costing, and business intelligence. The conference highlighted the importance of both robust management systems and softer factors in controlling.

1. International
Controller Association
In this issue:
 Business in “insignificant" markets
 Beyond Controlling - 13th Adriatic Controlling Conference in Slovenia and the Slovenian Work Group
 Dr. Adrianna Lewandowska—Board Member
ICV Bulletin | December 2013
Dear Readers!
ControllerPrize 2014
And we have December again… Time of summing-up
what you’ve achieved this year. In your private life and in
your company. What did you learn during this year? From
this months’ experience? And exchanging knowledge with
other controllers and CFOs? What are you proud of? Are
you happy with your choices?
And what has your enterprise achieved? Has your team
come up with some interesting ideas and innovative controlling solutions? If yes, don’t miss the challenge of the
Controller Prize! We wait for interesting projects! You can
read more in the Bulletin and on our home pages. And we
will have the pleasure to invite you to participate in other
ICV competitions soon.
And December is also the time of summing-up for the ICV.
Just this weekend the representatives of ICV management
met in Frankfurt to discuss our successes and our plans.
The 2013 was really fantastic for the Association! We had
some attendance – breaking congresses and conferences
(just think of CIA in Poland in April and ACC in Slovenia in
November). And we have had a new member country:
Bosnia and Herzegovina joined us in June! We are now in
the middle of planning next year’s big ICV international
events. A new interesting event should be a meeting in
Prague.
All our members including the new ones can read an interesting article published in the German Controller Magazin
and translated into English. How does the business look
like on the „insignificant” markets? And are they really so
insignificant?
As in every issue you can also meet one of the Board
members. This time it’s going to be… me. :-) I don’t know
what’s in there yet - I will get to know it with you, from the
Bulletin :-)
Much pleasure while reading!
And for it’s the last issue before Christmas, great time with
your families!
Yours
Dr. Adrianna Lewandowska
The ControllerPrize 2014 will be awarded by the ICV for an
exemplary controlling solution. The winner is rewarded with
5,000 €, the prize will be awarded at the 39th Controller Congress on May 19-20, 2014. The selection of the best exemplary
solution will be based on the controller's mission statement
defined by the International Group of Controlling (IGC). More:
http://www.controllerverein.com/Awards.158549.html. Challenge your colleagues in the competition and face the decision
of our competent judges!
Controller Akadamie bigger!
The Controller Akademie family is now bigger: besides CA
controller akademie that you have known for years, its two
“sisters” have been created: CA
management
akademie and CA institute for accounting & finance. Both
are based on the trusted organization and presentation methods of the CA.
More:
www.controllerakademie.de
www.ca-managementakademie.de
www.ca-iaf.de
ICV Board Member
www.controllerverein.com
Publisher: International Controller Association ICV | Poznań Office
Controlling - Creating Future

2. ICV Bulletin | December 2013
Business in “insignificant" markets
By Daniel Pudliszweski und Susanne Schneider
Read the whole article on http://www.controllerverein.com/index.php?PHPSESSID=es3t6kq3c4jqbtvulet4d9fir2&id=168066
The Pareto 80/20 formula, which states that 20% of the most
important markets, customers or products account for 80% of
the success results in the withdrawal from, or the non-entry
into - at first sight - insignificant markets. However, opportunities for activity within these market segments often exist,
not only to generate turnover, but also to realise profits. Only
an adapted approach can lead to success in this context and
its consistent implementation is a controlling task.
 A lack of trained staff and the excessive investment in their
Definition of insignificant markets
Figure 1 shows examples of relevant goods.
The existence of insignificant markets presupposes the existence of different sub-markets. This is only the case if a division of the overall market is possible. Two extremes rule out
different markets: on the one hand, a uniform market may
exist, such as for information on the internet, which is categorically available to the same extent in every place in the
world; on the other hand, products can be so complex that
the production takes place locally, yet can only be performed
through specifically provided specialists, such as in largescale plant engineering, so that here the same providers
equally compete on a global scale. The services considered
in this text sit between these two extremes. That is, products
of a medium complexity which are demanded locally. This
fundamentally concerns most products. They may be machines and products which are produced elsewhere, but require explanation, professional installation or regular maintenance, or that are sold directly to the end consumer in
smaller volumes, as either shipment is uneconomical or not
acceptable to the customer.
Four typical characteristics of insignificant markets can be
noted accordingly.
 On an international scale, the complexity of the uniform
market is too high or too costly to overcome. This includes
language barriers, an insufficient legal framework, if for
example, the necessary legal protection is not granted, or
corruption is thereby preventing implementation.
 Inadequate infrastructure is another point. In many countries, transport and storage options are limited, permanent
and stable power supply is not given, or the protection of
property, sometimes also that of staff, is not guaranteed.
 The number of potential customers is considered too low.
© International Controller Association ICV | Poznań Office
Either the population is simply too low, or the price expectations of the manufacturer and the payment options of the
customer exclude each other.
training and in forging lasting bonds of loyalty between
them and the company are deemed further arguments for
exclusion.
To think only in an international dimension is insufficient in
this context. Such markets also exist in the national sphere.
While the above noted failings may not be present, they are
substituted by other reasons for ruling out an involvement.
 The development of the overall population, in particular
that of people with purchasing power, varies across Germany. While some metropolises report increasing population figures, the rural population is in decline. Particularly
some of the East German regions show dramatic developments. This is linked to an even more substantial decline in
purchasing power.
 Even in a country with excellent infrastructure, such as
Germany, poor accessibility may represent an exclusion
criterion for involvement. If permanent and short-notice
accessibility is required, this can often only be ensured
through a tightly knit net of offices and branches. If distances are too large, and the additional costs are not acknowledged by the customer, the activity becomes uneconomical.
 The relevant regions are often unattractive for the employees. It is almost impossible to find employees who are
willing to relocate. Where a willingness to relocate exists,
this often applies to inexperienced entry-level employees
who by themselves are not able to meet all requirements.
[...]

3. ICV Bulletin | December 2013
Beyond Controlling 13th Adriatic Controlling Conference
in Slovenia
13th ACC Adriatic Controlling Conference was
different in many ways,
but most of all because of
its record-breaking attendance.
There were more than 200 participants, 50 lecturers from Slovenia
and abroad, and they came from 7
different countries.
The conference was organized by the consultancy house
CRMT and leader of the Slovenian ICV working group, Mrs.
Dragica Erčulj as all the years before. This year the conference was given more media attention than before. A lot of
interviews and articles were written before the conference,
published in leading business magazine. And it was worth it.
This year’s topic, Beyond Controlling, tried to find an answer
to the questions: “What is that ‘something more’ in controlling
that makes companies successful, aside from methodologies
and information systems?” How do they respond to the
opportunities and threats that they are confronted with? To
find an answer to that topic also a very interesting managerial panel was organized together with The Managers' Association of Slovenia. The guests at the panel were Chairmans
of the Board from the five different and very successful companies. Some suggested answers were trust, intuition, leadership style, competent coworkers, clear vision, supportive
middle management, team work and also transparent management reporting systems. To have a management information system is a must, so we should not waste of time on
that. We agreed with Mr. Rolf Hichert, also a guest speaker
at the 13th ACC, that trust in people is important: “Most strategic and important decisions we take are not fact-based,
either in private life or in business. Usually we selectively
take all the facts we need to support our preconceived opinion. And in many cases the content of a report is less important than the trust we have in the source or person that reports to us.”
Among the international speakers were also ICV members:
Dr. Herwig Friedag highlighted that there is no BSC without
strategy; Prof. Dr. Martin Tschandl presented topic Modern
Budgeting and the newest ICV Controller Statement; Mr.
Guenther Pichler showed us the benefits of ABC to control
the organization; Mrs. Jasmina Očko talked about developing
a controller's atmosphere in a company during the controlling
implementation; mag.Gabor Adam from Horvath&Partner
talked about evolution of BI. There were also an interesting
presentations of KPMG and PWC (both providers of audit,
tax and advisory services).
After the lunch there were great speakers performing in five
sessions, business cases from practice were shown about
implementation of controlling, using of special methods,
Business Intelligence cases and others.
Together with our guests we spent a great day discussing
how controlling can affect the efficiency, productivity,
innovation and sustainability of a company, not to mention
the guests had an opportunity to exchange experience and
socialize.
Top quality topics, great speakers, a unique opportunity to
learn from the best and »every year something new«
organization make our conference a must-go for controllers,
accountants and chief financials oficers who take care to
continuous improvement their competencies.
13. ACC was held in Bled, which is a small and nice tourist
town at the foot of the Slovenian mountains. It was a day of
practical guidance, knowledge sharing, great meetings with
interesting people from various companies, from different
industries and different countries!
After all, Adriatic
Controlling Conference is an international event with a tradition and high standards.
You are invited to see the atmosphere of the event at http://
youtu.be/L_ULOFzDhYM CRMT 13. Kontroling konferenca,
Bled.
The 14. ACC Adriatic Controlling Conference will take place
on October 16, 2014. You are very wellcome, save the date
today!
Słovenia—not only the Conference!
A day before the conference, on Wednesday's evening, work
group ICV Slovenija organized a meeting as well. We
wanted to take the opportunity to exchange experience with
our colleagues from ICV, work group leaders from Germany
and Austria, while they were in Slovenia as guest speakers
at ACC. Unfortunately, just a few Slovenian ICV members
managed to come and there was just a group of twelve
people. We had a very nice evening, we presented
ourselves, we compare the controllers' activities, present
opportunities and threats, and other important issues and
instruments in controlling.
We were glad to have an opportunity to exchange
experience with more expirienced ICV colleagues from
abroad. Our participant's feedback was that the meeting was
extremely interesting and useful and we should repeat it in
the future. So next year we intend to organize a SloveniaAustria work group meeting.
© International Controller Association ICV | Poznań Office

4. ICV Bulletin | December 2013
The International Controller Association is becoming more and more international. Not because
of increasing number of new member countries and controllers joining the ICV, but also because of increasing number of international events. It’s not only the Adriatic Controlling Conference (see previous page), Conference in Kaliningrad or the International Controller Congress in
Poznan, Poland any more! In 2013 we also had the common meeting of two work groups: WG
Gdańsk and WG Kaliningrad, the 1st Chinese-German Controlling Conference in Shanghai and
the 1st International Controlling Conference in Croatia. And as always the traditional Controller
Congress in Munich!
7th International Controller Congress Poznań 2013
Fierce discussions on how to increase efficiency, how to reduce costs without
reducing potentials, how to deal with the times of the crises — 7th International
Controller Congress is now the past. But we are planning the next one, with
the topic “Innovative Controlling Solutions” and great speakers form Poland
and abroad. If you want to participate in the congress, please look for information on our Homepage!
Next: March 17-18, 2014
38th Controller Controller Munich 2013
The biggest controlling congress in the middle Europe took place in Munich on
April 22-23, 2013. The congress was opened by Siegfried Gänßlen. The CEO
of Hansgrohe SE, and Chairman of the ICV Board welcomed more than 500
participants. In his opening speech he referred to developments of controlling.
During the Congress there were also many possibilities to exchange experiences not only in the conference room, but also over lunches and dinners.
Next: May 19-20, 2014
Polish-Russian ICV Conference 2013
The first Polish-Russian ICV Conference took place in September in Gdańsk.
The main topic was "Business environment supporting and reducing controlling
idea in companies from Kaliningrad Oblast and Poland". The idea was born
some time ago, when Robert Panufnik (Head of the WG Gdańsk) talked to
Valentin Usenkov (Head of the WG Kaliningrad) about good practices of the
WG Poznań organizing workshops with the WG Berlin Brandenburg. Our
towns are close to each other and that's why there is a necessity to organize
such conferences to exchange controlling knowledge in our community.
1st Chinese-German Controlling Conference in Shanghai 2013
More than 250 Chinese CFOs and senior executives in the finance function were joined by German practitioners with an interest in Controlling in China. The first Chinese-German Controller Conference took place in Shanghai on October 26. The event
was organized by the Shanghai National Accounting Institute (SNAI), the International Controller Association (ICV) and the
Controller Akademie, and was financially supported by Skoda, a brand of Shanghai Volkswagen. The German and Chinese
parties each made three presentations and the speakers also all took part in a podium discussion which provided many new
insights and ideas, as was evident in the extremely lively question and answer session that rounded off the event. All who took
part in the conference agreed that the dialogue will continue and that a second Chinese-German Controlling Conference
should be held next year.
1st International Controlling Conference in Croatia 2013
November 5 was a great day for controlling in Croatia, given that the 1 st ICCC
attracted over 150 attendees to the Crystal Ballroom at Westin Hotel Zagreb.
Croatia has finally joined the club of ICV member countries holding annual
international controlling conferences under the auspices of the ICV! There is
no doubt that this conference will inspire many to rethink their possibilities and
make improvements, which is what the conference has aimed to achieve.
Next: November 5, 2014
© International Controller Association ICV | Poznań Office

5. ICV Bulletin | December 2013
In this issue the next caricature of the series presenting the Members of the ICV Board with tongue in
cheek. In this issue we present Dr. Adrianna
Lewandowska, the only woman in the Board.
Your Bulletin Team —in the hope that the Board has
sense of humor...
Her radiant smile is a delight!
This is how I got to know Adrianna Lewandowska 10
years ago. And in all those years, I enjoyed that radiance
over and over again. But it doesn’t stop at the smile; she
has commitment and determination…
Soon after we met at a Balanced Scorecard Workshop, I
told her about my involvement with the ICV. I convinced
her to become involved as well and we devised the plan
to develop ICV work groups in Poland - from scratch. She
called on her friends from her professional and private life
and in less than 2 years, we had brought a total of 6 ICV
work groups in Poland into being.
Sometimes, it was by rather adventurous means. For
some unknown reason, no reservation had been made
for Adrianna in Wrocław, and there simply was no free
room to be had. “I’m sure I can share a room with one of
the participants,” she decided. She then convinced her
room-mate to lead the work group…
Today, there are 11 work groups in Poland, all of which
have been launched through her commitment and many
kept alive by the same. First, she looked after “her” Polish work groups as a regional delegate, then she was
appointed to the ICV Board upon recommendation from
Dr. Deyhle. The focus of her work was PR activities and
the further development of the internationalisation of the
ICV.
Every year, she organises the international Controller
Congress of the ICV in Poznan and these days, she
holds her speeches in English for the first time!
Soon after we met, she graduated and gave up her position as Controller in a German-Polish company – she
wanted to set up as self-employed. We held numerous
BSC workshops together and had a lot of fun with each
other and the other participants. And our mutual clients
had a great deal of success with their transformation
processes.
The subject of strategy never lost its grip on her: Her
consultancy firm Business Discovery dedicates itself in
particular to the area of Polish family companies. Together with her employees she won a huge EU contract
ahead of international competition (project “Value Codes”
with the total value of over EUR 0,8 million), which she
and her team successfully completed in the shortest period of time with flying colours. Several appearances on
Polish TV on programmes about economy have demonstrated that Dr. Adrianna Lewandowska is valued very
© International Controller Association ICV | Poznań Office
highly as a consultant in Poland.
“On the side”, Adrianna also lectures at one of the most
renowned business schools in Poland. Here, her specialist
fields are strategy and family business. This “on the side”
activity takes up a great amount of time, given that she is
very popular amongst her students and the rate of participation in her classes is very high. I have often been allowed to teach there myself and have come to appreciate
the great thirst for knowledge of her prodigies.
Her workload is huge – between her involvement with the
ICV, her consultancy firm Business Discovery and her work
at the Poznan University of Economics – I always wonder
how she manages it all. But she still has a private life…
I will only divulge this much; her daughter Maika, who is
now studying in Vienna, supports her at many events. Family life – Adrianna’s long-time love travels a lot as well – is
often limited to the rare free weekends. Yet, Adrianna still
manages to find the time to learn to dance with her family
and friends and to run in the forest with her dog.
I am glad to say that, aside from our mutual professional
activities, we also regularly spend a weekend together
twice a year, in Poznan or Berlin – to bounce ideas off each
other and to come up with new plans. And to enjoy that
radiant smile…
Herwig Friedag

6. ICV Bulletin | December 2013
ICV Publications
The aim of the ”Ideenwerkstatt” (Dream Factory) of the
ICV is to systematically observe the field of controlling
and recognize major trends. The Dream Factory develops
the “dream cars” - ideas and findings are transformed into
concrete, working products in ICV work groups or other
project groups. The newest issue of the Dream Factory’s
publication is to read on http://www.controllerverein.com/
News.125051.html
The current state of the understanding of controlling and
role of a controller was formulated by the ICV and the IGC
in a policy paper. It’s now available in 11 languages and
the translation works are still on. In English you can read
it
on
http://www.controllerverein.com/
International_Controller_Association_EN.122443.html.
The goal of the project is to formulate the current state of
the understanding of controlling and role of a controller.
Releasing liquidity in your own company is a red-hot
topic. In the recently presented “Guidelines for the sustainable optimization of reserves, receivables and liabilities”, experts from the ICV urgently recommend that controllers dedicate themselves to Working Capital Management. The German publication will be published in English
in March 2014. More: http://www.controllerverein.com/
News.125051.html.
All work groups in non-German speaking countries
Poland
Gdańsk
Robert Panufnik
rpanufnik@gmail.com
Warszawa
Karol Sikora
karol.sikora@icv.pl
Katowice
Anna Jarkulisz
anna.jarkulisz@arcelormittal.com
Wrocław
Honorata Ulatowska
honorata.ulatowska@icv.pl
Kraków
Dorota Gołąb-Bełtowicz
dbeltowicz@bonifratrzy.krakow.pl
Zielona Góra
Małgorzata Lepak
malgorzata.lepak@icv.pl
Lublin
Paweł Rafalski
pawel.rafalski@solet..pl
Romania
Cristina Hodea
cristina.hodea@gmail.com
Łódź
Karolina Zielińska
karolina.zielinska@icv.pl
Russia
Valentin Usenkov
zhoom@mail.ru
Poznań
Dariusz Gulczyński
dariusz.gulczynski@icv.pl
Serbia
Bojan Šćepanović
mcb@eunet.rs
Hungary
Budapest 1
Ervin Nemesdy
nemesdy@mce.hu
Szczecin
Aleksander Socha
aleksander.socha@ramirent.pl
Slovenia
Dragica Erčulj
dragica.erculj@crmt.com
Budapest 2
Andreas Kovacs
akovacs@mcskft.hu
Toruń
Andrzej Derkowski
andrzej.derkowski@neuca.pl
Spain
Ulrich Müller Bosom
ulrich.mueller.bosom@gmail.com
Bosna and Hercegovina
Slavko Simić
bono@blic.net
Bulgaria
Denko Yamboliev
denko@excite.com
Croatia
Jasmina Očko
jasmina.ocko@kognosko.hr
Great Britain
Milena Heim
milena.heim@gmx.net
Estonia
Toomas Haldma
toomas.haldma@ut.ee
Imprint
Publisher and Copyrights:
International Controller Association
Public Relations Committee
Editing
Brigitte Dienstl-Arnegger
Dr. Adrianna Lewandowska
Hans-Peter Sander
Anna Włodarczyk
International Controller Association
ICV Office Poland
Ul.Fredry 7/1
61-809 Poznań PL
Phone/Fax +48 61 853 20 10
Mail: anna.wlodarczyk@icv.pl