Branko Kovacevic, president of the Supervisory Board at Electric Power Industry of Serbia - Koca

Professions of teachers or professors are in pedagogy though occupations with high humanistic orientation and for Branko Kovacevic, dean at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering in Belgrade and former rector at the University of Belgrade, it can firstly be said that he is patient teacher, very fond of students.

He was appointed president of the Supervisory Board at the Electric Power Industry of Serbia in November 2014 when the company was in serious reforms to strengthen its business and his objective is, as he says for eKapija, that EPS becomes stronger and more profitable since entire Serbia would benefit from it.

He was born June 29, 1951 in Belgrade. He graduated at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering in 1975, we finished his BS in 1980 with an average grade 10 and four years after that, he obtained his PhD degree. After graduating, he worked at the Laboratory for computer techniques at the Mihajlo Pupin Institute and in the Laboratory for rocket systems of the Military and Technical Institute in Belgrade.

EPS needs fixing up

Speaking about why he accepted the position of the president of the Supervisory Board at EPS, Kovacevic says for eKapija that he thinks EPS is a very important company, maybe the most important one which has ever been set up in Serbia and that therefore he accepted it. He outlines EPS is first all of all important for younger generations in Serbia.

- EPS is now where Telekom was 10 years ago. It is necessary to make it a shareholder company. It has a number of problems in functioning, 14 legal entities and each one of them is “a state within a state”. It is necessary to fix all that if we want to make EPS a company which generates money and, both for itself and its owner and owner is a state. EPS can pay much more funds to budget than, i.e. savings though salaries and pensions made-Kovacevic says.

It has been determined that EPS becomes a professional organization, he claims and adds that until July 1, 2015 “easier stage” was on which implied development of documents, regulations, statute and similar infrastructure. Now it should be implemented and there come problems from someone and here when you give something to someone then it is a heresy to take it away from him”.

Team work as a basis for good result

When asked whether he would define himself as a strict manager whose word cannot be questioned, he neglects.

- I have always thought it should be a matter of an agreement. When a plan is made and objective is set, it should be mutual and everyone should move in that direction. If we play a s a team, we all have to want the same thing and when we agree on something, someone has one and someone another opinion, we should work how majority decides. I think force cannot make result and that first of all there must be agreement between team members - he explains.

Speaking about his six-year arrangement at the position of a rector at the University in Belgrade, Kovacevic outlines that the University is a system of 100.000 people and that EPS is double smaller in size and that one man cannot communicate directly with that number of people.

When reminded that students think very high of him and that he is known as “Koca” if they have a mutual discussion. He adds his students also make a team.

Good organization and good associates

When asked how me manages his daily commitments, he replies that it is important to organize personal time and that it is necessary to have good associates.

- You always have to choose associates you trust and whom you can work with since every work today is a team work and there is no more "renaissance artists and scientists". Work must be done in teams and work and responsibility mush be shared, there has to be trust in a team and good atmosphere which, in a way, is both professional and friendly– Kovacevic says.

Speaking about his experience as a manager, a collocutor of eKapija explains that he started managerial position when he was 35 and when he for the first time became a vise dean of the faculty. Then when he was 38, he became president of the Assembly of University.

Idea, sense, work and talent are important

For a young man who would like to create professional and academic career as his is, Kovacevic advises that a young man must have an idea first.

Sead Saitovic

Elektroprivreda Srbije ad Beograd

ETF Beograd

Univerzitet u Beogradu

Branko Kovačević

Branko Kovačević resume

universirt professor

president of the Supervisory Board

president of the Supervisory Board at Electric Power Industry of Serbia

Supervisory Board Supervisory Board EPS

EPS

Electric Power Industry of Serbia

Telekom Srbije

Telekom

International Monetary Fund

IMF

Government of Serbia

Univesrity in Tripoli

University in Belgrade

Međunarodni monetarni fond

MMF