Local services
Debrecen’s economy will grow sixfold by 2030. However, it is still a challenge to know how Debrecen can prepare for the tremendous growth and 20,000 new workers in the coming years in terms of housing and infrastructure.
Experts see the development and employment of the Hungarian workforce in the reform of the educational structure not only in the region but also nationwide. These topics were highlighted at the Business Fest 2024 business festival in Debrecen.
For the first time this year, one of the biggest business festivals in the country, Business Fest, was held in Debrecen. The event featured more than 100 speakers in 9 rooms, discussing the most pressing issues facing the region, from the extraordinary growth in the workforce in the coming years and how to manage it effectively to what the Hungarian labour market structure should look like.
“We brought the first Business Fest outside Budapest to Debrecen because we believe there is plenty of life outside Budapest. It’s not by chance that the Business Fest was entitled ‘The most dynamic region’ because we believe that the heart of Hungary beats in Debrecen today,” Gergely Tóth, founder of the Business Fest, said.
In the morning programme, Ádám Csepeti, Deputy State Secretary for Strategic Affairs Coordination at the Prime Minister’s Office, Gábor Szőcs, Deputy State Secretary for Macroeconomic and European Affairs at the Ministry of Finance and Dávid Jakab, Head of Government Relations at WHC, discussed in a panel discussion how to adequately address the loss of European competitiveness in the Hungarian market. The experts see the development of the Hungarian labour market in reforming the educational structure, focusing on the promotion and recruitment of marketable professions.
One of the most important topics of the event was supplying the 20,000 workers coming to the region, which was discussed by Deputy Mayor Lajos Barcsa, Head of the Cabinet of the Debrecen Vocational Training Centre Nóra Rácz, founder of Starge Éva Gombás and Viktor Göltl, Managing Director of WHC.
In their panel discussion, they said that in the coming years, both the Debrecen city government and the vocational education and training sector will work to develop the right workforce, modernise fixed-route transport, and coordinate property prices as the extraordinary influx of workers continues to flow into the area.
“If we draw a 50-60 kilometre radius around Debrecen, we can employ about 60,000 citizens, and in the next few years, 20,000 will be needed to fill the region’s labour needs. Then comes the reality: the skills and skills shortage means the number of workers will significantly reduce. It is not an easy situation for the region. Still, it is a great decade ahead, and the population and the labour market will benefit from this opportunity,” Viktor Göltl stressed.
With around 20,000 new jobs created in Debrecen in recent years, this business boom is challenging the city’s development, with transport and housing being key issues. These areas need to be put on a growth path so that the city becomes not only an industrial but also a business centre. According to Deputy Mayor Lajos Barcsa, the business event can help. “If these economic players see that Debrecen is a very prosperous city with a prosperous economy – business is practically booming – then it can be said that the service industry players will also see that Debrecen is a growing city,” the deputy mayor pointed out.
In the afternoon, the focus was on blue-collar workers. Szilvia Gyarmati, Head of WHC’s Physical Hiring and Placement Division, discussed with Gyöngyi Kántor, HR Director of Master Good, Katalin Sághegyi Kissné, HR Manager of Melecs EWS GmbH, and Andrea Kelemen, HR Fest Agenda Creator, whether it is worth hiring remote, third-country workers. Based on WHC’s partner experience, these workers’ lower turnover and higher work ethic can significantly improve production efficiency and productivity. They can be a recommended solution when the domestic workforce is insufficient.
Debrecen has several assets that can be exploited to become a business hub. CEO of EDC Debrecen Zoltán Pécskay highlighted the well-developed business infrastructure and the local skilled workforce, among others, and presented on this. “Debrecen is an economic powerhouse: it has a large, stable, modern economic base, which is, by the way, being developed. Investment is underway and will materialise and take off here in 1-2 years. The other is that Debrecen is an educational centre; Debrecen has the centuries-old advantage of being a school town,” he said.
The event also discussed how different generations work together in the same workplace. As atypical employment becomes more widespread, it is expected to see three or four generations represented in the same workplace, and different techniques are needed to successfully reach them, as reported by the Area Manager of WHC Cooperative Services, Ádám Rontó. As his presentation showed, the older generation uses methods similar to those of the younger generation. Still, they are more attracted to traditional solutions, so a growing emphasis is on a personalised approach that transcends generational differences. The WHC Group has professionally sponsored HR Fest and other events since 2019.
Source and photo credit: debrecen.hu
