Jazztopad began with a unique debate , "Business in culture - culture in business".

This is the second time the NFM has organized the debate Business in culture - culture in business

Cultural institutions such as the National Forum of Music have a mission. It is to create community and draw attention to the values that art brings. What does business have to do with it?

The worlds of business and culture are separate, seemingly unconnected by any bridges, but the common goal of cultural people and entrepreneurs is to create them.

Among the participants in the debate were representatives of the cultural and business sectors. Among them:

• Andrzej Kosendiak - director of the National Forum of Music,
• Dorota Mroczkowska - owner of DOTI Manufaktura,
• Wojciech Normand - vice president of the board of Deichmann-Obuwie,
• Marzena Perka-Skorzycka - chief operating officer of the 1st branch of BNY Mellon Bank (European Bank).
• Radoslaw Wozniak - chairman of the board of the European Leasing Fund SA.

Why combine culture and business? Does such cooperation between business and culture pay off at all, asked one of the guests at the debate. He was the director of the Ossolinski National Institute in Wroclaw - Lukasz Kaminski.

For our company, this is one of the most important issues for an employee to want to stay in the company. Access to culture is one of the values that works like this. It is also a value that attracts new employees. We - through such cultural programs - also provide new employees who bring themselves to Wroclaw with the opportunity to get to know the city better. As a result, they get used to it faster.

Marzena Perka-Skorzycka - Chief Operating Officer of BNY Mellon Bank Branch I

The company supports film and music festivals by funding prizes in competitions, among other things. The BNY Melon representative stressed that support for cultural institutions helps develop these venues, taking them to a high level. One example is the NFM, for example.

- We have never treated this cooperation as an investment. It's more of a social responsibility. Profit is not an end in itself. A company should serve customers, support suppliers and employees," summed up the cooperation with cultural institutions Wojciech Normand, vice president of the board of Deichmann-Obuwie.

He admitted that not only can his company's employees go to concerts, but choirs are also invited to the company, which is also an unusual experience.

Many companies fund art programs, awards at festivals and workshops

- High culture communicates through emotions, and in our company we make sure that there are as many emotions as possible," admitted Radoslaw Wozniak, CEO of the European Leasing Fund SA.

Connecting the worlds of culture and business brings many benefits to both sides. It is therefore worth focusing on long-term solutions, as there is a need to find systemic solutions to support cultural institutions and young artists.

During the second edition of the debate, the topic of how important it is to build partnerships and lasting relations between the worlds of culture and business, based on mutual communication, was raised. The space for building bridges is huge. At the same time, investing in art is not reserved only for large corporations, small and medium-sized enterprises can also join cooperation with cultural institutions.

At the end of the debate there was a rhetorical question from one of the listeners, who summed up the meeting with the words: - Could we be successful entrepreneurs if it were not for the sensitivity and experience that culture gives us?