Jasmina Ocko is the Croatian ICV work group leader. She has a master's degree in accounting and works as a controlling consultant in her own company in Croatia. She has been a member of ICV for about a year. She organizes 3 workshops per year to promote controlling in Croatia and invites other professionals to join. She enjoys the group brainstorming sessions that produce innovative ideas. While administrative tasks are less interesting to her, she finds promoting controlling important.

1. Name: Jasmina Ocko
Place of birth: Zagreb, Croatia
Education: gained a master’s degree in Accounting, Auditing and Finances from
the Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Zagreb; attended Controller
Akademie in Gauting, Germany
Current Profession: controlling consultant in Kognosko Consultancy, my own
company
Your function in the ICV: Croatian ICV work group leader
For how long have you been a member/an operative member? A year
Your ICV-team consists of (names and tasks): I have been sending open
invitations to workshops, i.e. I have been inviting all those that I believe might be

2. interested in this type of work. This is why the two workshops held so far were
attended by approximately 30 participants, out of which 10 became members
either having already played a significant role in organising ICV workshops or are
yet to do so.
How many hours a day/a week/a month or a year do you spend working for the
ICV? I plan to organise 3 workshops a year. Each workshop requires a few days of
preparation.
What are your main duties and responsibilities in the ICV? A month before each
workshop I meet with my closest team members to agree on a plan and distribute
the topics to be dealt with. We meet once more some ten days before the
workshop in order to link the distributed sections. Personally, I work on preparing
my section which normally consists of an hour-and-a-half long presentation and a
three-hour long case study. In the days following the workshop I also address
email questions or comments on the problem solving task. J
What do you like about your work for the ICV, what could you easily leave behind?
Considering that I also work as a controlling coach, what I truly like is group
brainstorming sessions and the brilliant ideas resulting from it. An individual
thinking about a problem cannot possibly arrive at such ideas. This is what I am
most enthused by.
I find finding adequately equipped premises for the workshops free of charge
most difficult (I am eternally grateful to friends and colleagues for all their help!).
I could also easily leave behind the administrative work concerning registrations,
evaluation questionnaires, etc.
What made you ambitious to work for the ICV? Controlling is underdeveloped in
Croatia. I believe that the insight that a lot has been done on its development in
Europe will be useful. ICV is direct proof of this.
How does the ICV benefit from you – and how do you benefit from the ICV?
Through my extensive and long-standing experience as both a consultant and
coach, I am well networked with managers and controllers in Croatia. I am,
therefore, convinced that the number of those who want to participate in ICV
workshops will continually grow in the future. I believe that I can contribute to
ICV becoming richer for one more country and new members. On the other hand,
my involvement in ICV helps me in my efforts to promote the idea of the
necessity of controlling in the everyday life of Croatian companies. I need the
story that I am telling about the necessity of controlling to have a background –
proof that the same ideas are advocated and employed in the most developed
countries of Europe.
In the eastern European countries there are more women in positions with
responsibility within the ICV, compared to western European ICV work groups.
Why do you think it is like that? In western countries it is entirely normal for
controllers to enter top management after a few years of work in controlling. It is
an actual career step. This is, I believe, the reason why men prevail in the world
of controlling, including ICV. In Eastern Europe, however, controlling is not as
developed, and is often and sadly a discreet function within accountancy and
finances, i.e. jobs mostly done by women. This is the way I see it, which,
naturally, does not actually have to be the case.

3. What could men in the ICV learn from women in the ICV, what could a man in any
organization learn from YOU? I do not think that gender division is key. Everybody
can learn something of somebody else, provided s/he is interested.
If you think of the ICV: just tell us one word or one sentence or one thing you do
immediately think of! The first thing that comes to mind is a great chance to meet
like-minded people and to network. However, the second thing that also comes to
mind – something that I frequently associate with ICV – is that it would be very
useful to have a prompter administration.
If the ICV would fulfill you a wish straight ahead, no matter what – what would it
be? That controlling in Croatia becomes self-understood.
Are there any other organizations related to your profession that you do support
with your active work? No.
In Germany there is a dictum saying that a working woman always has to be
twice as good to achieve the same level of appreciation that a man receives for
the same performance. What do you think about it – would you agree with it? I
believe that in Croatia ambitious and above all hard-working women do achieve
great results and do get into positions of power. However, I also believe that it is
more difficult for women because in addition to their careers a significant part of
private-life-related chores is still only done by them. This is why most of them
give up. But those that manage to persevere in Croatia have as much chance of
success as men do. Moreover, many business people find working with women
intriguing.