IT - ICT Cortex

Numbers confirm: IT has the potential to become a strategic sector for the development of Montenegro

The potential of the IT industry is receiving increasing public attention, and Montenegro is becoming an important country for IT investments. The actual extent of this potential was demonstrated by the numbers presented at today’s press conference organized by ICT Cortex and the Chamber of Economy of Montenegro, where the results of an ICT research study were presented. Montenegro is experiencing growth in the ICT sector in terms of the number of companies, employees, as well as revenues and profits. This was shown by the analysis of the IT sector in Montenegro conducted by the consulting firm “CEED Consulting” for the needs of the ICT Cortex cluster, under the auspices of the Reconomy program. One particularly interesting finding from the research is that the export of computer services increased to a record 21% in 2022, compared to only 3% in 2017. “The growth in the number of companies has been influenced by the war in Ukraine. Despite the crisis, the IT sector is experiencing growth in all observed parameters, and the IT industry has also seen revenue growth. The analysis showed that companies are facing a shortage of qualified workforce,” said Jovana Vujačić from the company “CEED Consulting.” Among the 70 surveyed companies, the following interesting data stand out: Nina Drakić, the President of the Chamber of Economy of Montenegro, stated that, in addition to tourism, agriculture, and energy, the IT sector is recognized as a strategic sector. “The IT sector had the highest growth last year, which indicates its potential,” said Drakić. Statistics show that the number of registered companies in the ICT sector has been steadily increasing on an annual basis. In the previous year, 1,497 companies were registered, and from the beginning of this year until April, 313 companies have been registered. “In the last five years, the structure of the ICT sector has changed. Statistics show that the IT sector accounts for 84% of the ICT sector. Compared to other sectors, the ICT sector deserves to be a priority economic branch,” said Nada Rakočević, Secretary of the Committee of Information and Communication Technology Associations within the Chamber of Commerce of Montenegro. She further highlighted key figures, pointing out a nearly 70% increase in the number of companies and a 44% increase in employment. The ICT Cortex cluster announced that revenues in the ICT industry reached 602.432.407 million euros last year. “Net profit increased by over 100% compared to 2019. With the growth of ICT companies, the number of employees also increased by 30% last year compared to 2021,” said Milena Aković from the ICT Cortex cluster. She emphasized the need to highlight the significance and potential of the IT industry, which should become a strategic sector. Vladan Tabaš, the CEO of Čikom company and the President of the Board of Directors of ICT Cortex, stated that the IT sector is growing rapidly, but the level of digital transformation in society is not satisfactory. “IT has advanced to a great extent, but the digital transformation in Montenegro is slow. We are entering the digital world, and perhaps the turning point was the COVID-19 pandemic. The obstacle is our educational system, which does not provide the necessary workforce. We need skilled professionals, and therefore, we appeal for significant changes in Montenegro’s educational system,” said Tabaš.

Cortex analyzes the ICT industry, achieves record numbers

Based on the ICT analysis and research conducted by CEED Consulting, we can conclude that the ICT sector is one of the fastest-growing, at least in the context of Montenegro. This is evident from the rapid increase in the number of companies involved in this activity, their impressive financial revenues, and the growing interest of people in our community in this field. ICT Cortex, a cluster with a primary focus on education, internationalization, and digital transformation, has analyzed the business performance of the Montenegrin ICT sector. The criteria for ranking success were total revenues, net results, the number of employees, and the number of companies. An important contribution to the analysis was made by the research conducted by the consulting company CEED Consulting. Additionally, BI Consulting, with its portal BInfo.me, was a significant source of data on specific industry codes. ICT Sector in Montenegro This analysis covered 1,049 companies that were part of the Montenegrin ICT sector in 2022 alone. However, to make the analysis comprehensive, the period from 2019 to 2022 was considered, tracking the trends of growth or decline in the three specific groupings of the ICT sector: IT services and products, telecommunications, and trade of IT equipment. Regarding the revenues generated in the ICT field during the previous year, the figures were more than impressive. The total revenue for the ICT sector in 2022 amounted to as much as 602 million euros, which is 23 percent higher than in 2021. The majority of the revenue comes from the telecommunications sector, followed by IT services and products, and trade of IT equipment. Net earnings have also significantly increased over the past four years, with a growth rate of 102 percent compared to 2019. Some of the companies that particularly stood out in terms of revenue in the previous period and made significant contributions to the revenue growth in the Montenegrin ICT sector are M-tel, Crnogorski Telekom, One, Kodio, Comtrade, and Coinis. Below, you can see the individual contributions of each of the mentioned areas to the information and communication technology sector. IT Services and Products Regarding the IT sector, we analyzed 725 companies actively operating in the local and international markets. The largest number of these companies are engaged in computer programming and consulting activities in the field of information technology, while specialized areas such as computer game development and software publishing are represented in a smaller number. It is worth noting that this field has seen a significant increase in the number of companies, with a growth rate of 46 percent compared to 2021 and a remarkable 109 percent compared to 2019. Companies in the IT services and products sector have made the most progress in the past four years when considering parameters such as total revenue, net results, and the number of employees. Total revenues increased by 45 percent compared to 2021, net results increased by 87 percent, and compared to 2019, the same parameter increased by an impressive 450 percent. The number of employees adequately follows the revenue growth, as indicated by the fact that over 3,400 workers have been employed in the IT products and services sector, which is 61 percent more than the previous year and a remarkable 161 percent increase compared to four years ago. When looking at the specific specialization, the largest number of companies are engaged in computer programming and IT consulting activities. Some of the companies that achieved the best results are Epam Systems Montenegro, Domen, Data Design, Čikom, and Logate. Telecommunications In the field of telecommunications, we analyzed 66 companies operating in our market. Over 60 percent of them are registered under the activity code “other telecommunications activities,” while a smaller number are involved in satellite and wireless communications, as well as cable telecommunications. Here, we have a slightly different picture compared to the IT sector. The growth rate of the number of companies over the past four years is only 1.5 percent, indicating that the telecommunications sector is relatively stable, with few changes in the number of firms in the previous period, averaging 64. Companies in the telecommunications sector have traditionally continued to generate impressive revenues. However, these revenues do not show significant fluctuations like those observed in the IT sector. The total revenue of Montenegrin companies engaged in telecommunications activities amounted to 266 million euros, which is nearly six percent higher than in 2019. Net results also did not experience significant growth, with an increase of less than 2 percent compared to 2021 and a decrease of nearly 17 percent compared to four years ago, indicating that the overall profit in this sector was significantly higher in 2019 than it is today. The three traditional telecommunications providers operating in our market, namely M-tel, Crnogorski Telekom, and ONE, achieved the best results in this field. Significant results were also achieved by companies such as Telemach, Ericsson AB, the Agency for Electronic Communications and Postal Services, and Network Communication. The total number of employees in this sector is 1,973, with as much as 65 percent of them employed in the three leading companies in the telecommunications sector (M-tel, Crnogorski Telekom, and ONE). This number is nearly 14 percent higher than in 2019. Trade of Computer Equipment Regarding the sector related to the trade of computer equipment, it should be highlighted that the total revenue in 2022 amounted to nearly 121 million euros, which is 33 percent higher than the previous year. Compared to 2019, this represents a 54 percent increase, while net profit for the same period has increased by 107 percent, reaching almost 6 million euros. The majority of companies in this field are primarily engaged in the wholesale trade of computers, computer equipment, and software, while a smaller number focus on the retail trade of telecommunications equipment, audio, and video equipment, as well as the wholesale trade of electronic and telecommunications parts. The number of employees in this sector increased by 16 percent in the previous year, reaching 664, which is a significant advancement, especially

Montenegrin AI Association – MAIA: From Data Science to Practical Applications

Applications Our goal is to raise people’s awareness about artificial intelligence, and we are delighted to have seen a large number of AI enthusiasts at our MeetUps who want to learn, educate themselves, and advance in this field, or to inform themselves about ways in which they can improve their businesses. One of the most significant topics of today that is slowly but surely becoming an essential part of our lives is artificial intelligence. We spoke with representatives of the Montenegrin AI Association – MAIA, now an honorary member of the ICT cluster Cortex, Itana, and Nikola Bulatović, whose organization aims to research, promote, and implement artificial intelligence in everyday life. Artificial intelligence represents an inexhaustible source of possibilities for improving our world, and MAIA focuses on finding ways in which this technology can enhance people’s lives in our community. The members of this organization have established themselves as leaders in the field of artificial intelligence, and their innovative approach enables the creation of a new paradigm in this area. Learn about how MAIA was created, what their views on artificial intelligence are, what challenges they face, what impact artificial intelligence will have on our daily functioning and many other useful pieces of information related to this topic in the following text. From a spontaneous idea to concrete action When asked how they came up with the idea to establish an organization whose focus is on researching and implementing artificial intelligence, Nikola emphasizes that the initiative came about in a fairly spontaneous way: “Given that we are engaged in similar research topics, we came up with the idea of uniting the AI (artificial intelligence) community in Montenegro. Our acquaintances with colleagues who are very successful in artificial intelligence research contributed to this, and we decided to start by gathering a small number of people and founding an NGO whose topic would be the development of this field.“ According to our interlocutors, at the very beginning, they focused on building the AI community. Their Slack group gathered a significant number of members in a very short period, who engaged in artificial intelligence, which also contributed to the inclusion of people from different spheres who began to give numerous ideas and suggestions, which was essentially the goal: to unify the AI community under one roof. Artificial intelligence development: “a kind of magic” that has existed for over 40 years As for the concept of artificial intelligence itself, our interlocutors state that it does not represent “some kind of magic“, but that there are scientific research and methods that can be used to prove whether a particular AI system has provided a solution to a specific question. Artificial intelligence as a science has been developing for decades and is by no means a new field. According to them, the revolutionary advancement of AI is thanks to the long-term accelerated progress of electronic computer chips and computer hardware, as well as working environments with which we can easily experiment with algorithms for processing large amounts of data: “The current breakthrough of artificial intelligence has been built up over the past fifty years. The neural networks we use today were created in the 1990s, but could not be applied in practical applications because we did not have computers on which we could run an artificial intelligence system designed for widespread use. Due to the development of computer technology and the expansion of the large amount of data we generate on a daily basis, it was not until 2010 and later that conditions were created for artificial intelligence to become applicable. Only then do we have the opportunity to program artificial intelligence algorithms without having to use supercomputers. Thanks to all of the above, we now have tools that can process large amounts of information much faster, more efficiently, and meaningfully than we could before. Instead of processing a huge amount of data that someone had to analyze manually or using a computer, we can now replace the entire process with an AI algorithm that will analyze the data and extract useful information from it without the need for human intervention“, said Nikola. The concept of AI is not so complicated, as Itana explains, emphasizing that the entire concept of artificial intelligence can be defined simply as the science of data: “People who are typically engaged in this activity will simply say “data science“, which means the science of data, machine learning, or some other form of learning. The fact is that the mention of artificial intelligence opens up a variety of different debates. We can view this phenomenon as an umbrella, under which fall machine learning, deep learning, reinforcement learning, recommendation systems, and all other areas that can contribute with their data.” Focus on education and application of artificial intelligence In addition to wanting to gather people with similar interests and contribute to the development of the aforementioned phenomenon, Itana and Nikola particularly emphasize that in the near future, they will focus on organizing educational programs, MeetUps, and conferences that will be accessible and, as they believe, beneficial to the wider community. Additionally, one of the focuses of their future activities will also be on scientific research with specific projects as their topic: “None of us is an expert who knows everything absolutely, but we are here to learn from each other, which was ultimately one of our main goals. Of course, new focuses are added for the next period, such as expanding our community, organizing events of various types, research, and so on. Also, one of our priorities, which we cannot currently realize, but hope to achieve in a few years, is scientific research on concrete projects, where our engineers and scientists can work on practical applications. Primarily, we would like it to be in Montenegro, meaning that we would like to implement some of the AI solutions that would improve life in our community. Precisely because most of us come from the world of science, we would like to apply the knowledge

Montenegrin ICT Startups presented their innovations at the largest IT exhibition in Lisbon

In the previous weeks, Lisbon was the epicenter of technological innovation. Over 70 thousand participants from 161 countries, 2696 startups, 1050 speakers, and 1081 investors gathered at the largest technology conference in Europe – Web Summit. Thanks to the Capital City and ICT Cortex, Montenegrin startups also had the opportunity to present their innovations at this event. Listen to the statement of Džemal Lekić, director of CIS, about the project implemented for the second time by the capital and ICT Cortex. The biggest attention was attracted by the startup Spectro Solutions, which presented an intelligent fire detection service, which entered the shortlist of 105 startups, out of a total of 2,696, and presented itself to potential investors as part of the Siemens Pitching competition. It is software based on artificial intelligence algorithms that functions as an upgrade to any type of monitoring tool, making it intelligent in the way of providing feedback to the client about the situation on the ground being recorded, in terms of fire. The goal of the software is a reliable, fast, and affordable form of early fire detection. Behind the idea and the first version of the software is a five-member team of young startups: engineers, programmers, and managers, who have already established the first digital AI assistant for monitoring fires on the Luštica peninsula. Read about all the activities Spektro participated in at the Web Summit from Ana Ašanin’s statement. Medpack, a startup that aims to increase proper adherence to therapy, and thus the long-term quality of life of the patient, also had a notable performance at this IT fair. Medpack consists of an application and a smart box. With the help of the application, the user will define his schedule, and which medicine is in which compartment. It is envisaged that the application will contain a database of drugs available on the user’s market, which would facilitate the creation of a schedule and help users to take the drug correctly, and would inform the patient and his doctor or guardian if a drug is not taken correctly (too long, too often or in a way that can be harmful). Also, it is planned that the application learns from the user’s habits and accordingly modifies his schedule. See what the impressions of the members of the Medpack team from Lisbon are. The representatives of the Fintech startup Flash were also part of the Montenegrin startup delegation. Flash connects banks, merchants, and customers through a single platform, increasing their efficiency while reducing costs. With the Flash mobile application, clients can make cardless and cashless payments at merchants, in stores, or online. Clients can centrally manage all their bank accounts, transfer funds, request a loan or return of funds from another client, share an account with another client or define a payment at a specific time based only on a phone number. Flash is the beginning of the digital banking revolution and aims to transform traditional payment approaches. Milica Gazivoda shared her impressions from the Web Summit. At the Web Summit, the startup Guidi was also presented – a platform designed to enable a completely new way of visiting famous places. The app is used to correspond with historical figures and characters specific to each location, while a fictitious guide talks about history from his point of view making the experience more personal and real. Guidi helps users experience the era and tourist destination they are visiting. According to their team members, Guidi is actually a virtual friend from the past. In the video, learn more about this start-up and listen to their impressions from the Web Summit. The digital accountant is another Montenegrin startup that presented itself at the Web Summit. It is a solution that improves business through the digital transformation of administrative and accounting business processes in companies. The platform enables a simple exchange of documents between the company and the accountant by taking a photo of the document at the time of its creation via a mobile application or by uploading it directly to the Tiramisu ERP information system. With any of these actions, the accountant receives a notification and validates the structured data from the document for further postings, which will automatically be reflected in the reports on the company’s operations that are available live in the system to their owner. In the video, listen to Zoran Mastilović from the company Data Design about their participation in the Web Summit. Montenegro also had a startup in the field of the green economy – Prezla, a startup that aims to raise awareness towards reducing food waste, a healthier environment, and a happier society. Their team developed an application that connects everyone who has surplus food (hotels, supermarkets, restaurants) with those who want to buy that food for themselves or those who want to donate it to others. With one move, the user can influence the solution of the pressing problems of food waste, environmental pollution, and the increasing growth of the malnourished part of society. The company Oykos Development presented its startup, Dixi Digital, at the Web Summit. Dixi digital is a social network where all users earn money. All content, interactions, and time spent on this social network are a direct source of income for users – both creators and audiences. In the video, you can learn more about this startup from the founder of Dixi Digital and the CEO of Oykos development, Filip Anđelić. Startup Flourish is at the Web Summit for the second time, this year as a BETA startup. Flourish is a smart assistant for the development of the emotional intelligence of employees, a software solution that develops and maintains emotional intelligence through personalized educational exercises. Jasna Pejović, co-founder and CEO of Flourish, spoke more about the Flourish startup and their second participation at the Web Summit. In addition to startups, the Montenegrin delegation at the Web Summit also included representatives of the executive office of the Montenegrin ICT cluster Cortex, who had the opportunity to learn

Job opportunity: Apply for the open position of PM for education!

The ICT Cortex cluster was founded with the idea of creating new business opportunities and contributing to the digital transformation of Montenegro through synergistic action, cooperation with our member companies, and presenting our country as an important destination for IT investments. Our executive office communicates daily with members of 35 member companies, as well as with representatives of public institutions, to create new values in the fields of technology, internationalization, talent development, and innovation. That is why we are always looking for great people who can bring new energy to our team, making us even better and more efficient! Who are we looking for? Project manager for education programs and Cortex Academy! Required qualifications and experience: College education (minimum Bachelor) Good knowledge of the English language Minimum of three years of work experience What do we expect from you? Experience and expertise in leadership, project management Effective planning and organization Willingness to take initiative Adaptability to challenging circumstances and risks Developed negotiation and communication skills Responsible, detailed, and dedicated attitude toward work Ability to effectively solve problems and make decisions Ability to prioritize Enthusiasm and creativity Team spirit, directness, and openness Stress tolerance and coping well under pressure Knowledge of project management software is desirable, but not necessary Knowledge of the innovation ecosystem and digital transformation process in Montenegro is desirable, but not necessary. What will your job be? Planning and implementation of project activities Monitoring and control of project activities Communication with all partners (schools, professors, companies, representatives of the public and private sectors) and project users (pupils, students, citizens), field visits PR activities and participation in panels and conferences Formation of the budget and its monitoring and control Planning and scheduling project deadlines Control and supervision of quality and procurement process Risk management and project control to reduce potential negative events Constant monitoring and reporting of project progress to all stakeholders, especially management Monitoring activities on the critical path to avoid project delays Taking corrective and preventive actions to get the project back on track Project quality assurance Responsibility for the successful implementation of the project Project evaluation and assessment of results Searching for donors and securing additional funds for projects We offer you: The opportunity to change society for the better, set standards and trends in the educational and academic sector of Montenegro An opportunity to meet all key stakeholders from the field of education, innovation, and IT sector in Montenegro, the region, and Europe This an exceptional opportunity to be the source of information, knowledge, contacts, and world trends The chance to constantly grow, develop and get out of your comfort zone Access to all courses and pieces of training by the most eminent local and global experts/organizations Daily contact and the opportunity to learn from professionals who have decades of experience in business, marketing, strategic planning, education, project management, IT An innovative work environment that includes the most successful Montenegrin IT companies and the most important partners of the innovation ecosystem The opportunity to visit the best technology festivals and the most developed innovative organizations in the world The opportunity to present your knowledge, experience, and results at various conferences and in public performances Financial conditions that are very stimulating for Montenegrin conditions Participation in the housing security program allows you to save at least 30% of the investment for the apartment Working on the latest equipment (MacBook, iPad, iPhone) A dynamic, dedicated, and innovative team – our employees say that one month of work at ICT Cortex is like 5 months of work elsewhere At Cortex, we do not waste paper, but use numerous modern tools for functioning every day, among others: Slack, Google Meet, JIRA, Confluence, Google Sheets/Doc/Forms. Use the opportunity to become part of the team and contribute innovative ideas to the development of the ICT Cortex cluster, but also the wider community! Send CV to contact@ictcortex.me Deadline for applications 01.07.2022. We are waiting for you!

Job opportunity: Apply for the Office Manager position!

ICT Cortex signed Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports

Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports Prof. Ph.D. Vesna Bratić and the Chief project officer in the ICT Cortex, Ferida Mandić, signed a Memorandum of Understanding today on the premises of the Ministry. On this occasion, Minister Bratić announced that the Strategy for Digitization of the Education System envisages the establishment of cooperation with the economy in order to promote IT occupations, order to encourage students to choose occupations that are promising, which are the needs of the labor market, and which are currently in short supply, as well as cooperation on the development and improvement of the digital competence of students and teachers. “The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture, and Sports and the cluster of IT companies, ICT Cortex, defines cooperation in these fields. More precisely, this memorandum defines cooperation with secondary vocational schools in which the educational program Electrical Technician for the development of mobile and web applications or other educational programs in the field of IT is implemented; cooperation with secondary vocational schools in the form of organization of practical classes at the employer for students and training at the employer for teachers; cooperation with schools dealing with general secondary education in the field of student and teacher education; organization of competitions in the field of information and communication technologies in cooperation with competent institutions, the Center for Vocational Education and the Examination Center; promotion of qualifications, typical occupations and career opportunities in the field of IT among elementary and high school students; raising awareness of the needs and possibilities of education in the field of IT; creation of self-guided programming courses for the “Digital School”; creation of programs in the field of IT for professional training of teachers, as well as cooperation during the celebration of the International Day of Safe Internet and the International Day of Girls in IT”, Minister Bratić explained. The director of projects in the ICT Cortex cluster, Ferida Mandić, stated that the Cortex Academy is currently the most important project of the ICT Cortex cluster and that it represents the largest ICT education program in Montenegro. She pointed out that the courses are intended for different categories of participants, with an emphasis on young people, students, and high school students, and that for the first cycle of the Cortex Academy, as many as 1,292 applications were received, while the training started in February. “What makes us very happy is that there was great interest from high school students, especially from 6 municipalities: Bijelo Polje, Berane, Nikšić, Pljevlja, Rožaje, and Podgorica. We have 300 students from 10 schools who are now attending courses to acquire theoretical knowledge, and then they will do internships in one of the 13 member companies of ICT Cortex. That is why we are extremely glad to have signed this agreement with the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports, through which we will jointly implement activities within the Cortex Academy project, but also on all other projects in the field of education, over the next five years, all with the aim of that educational programs follow the needs of the labor market”, said Mandić.

Solving the problem of lack of personnel in the ICT industry through cooperation

Montenegro lacks about 500 IT experts and it is necessary, with the cooperation of the state, the education system, and the economy, to develop that staff, because information and communication technologies are an exceptional development opportunity for the state and society. This was announced by the representatives of the Ministry of Public Administration, Digital Society and Media, the University of Montenegro, and ICT Cortex, who today signed the Agreement on Cooperation on the Implementation of Education Programs and Projects in the IT Sector. The Minister of Public Administration, Digital Society and Media, Tamara Srzentić, said that the lack of qualified staff in the ICT industry is one of the main threats to successful digitization in our country. “It is estimated that Montenegro lacks about 500 IT experts at the moment, while in Europe this number has reached one million, and therefore it must be addressed from the point of view of formal and informal education. With this project, we plan to establish educational modules following the needs of the market and the IT industry and enable their successful implementation. Our ultimate goal is to build a regional center of excellence for the improvement of digital skills, and we believe that this is only possible if the academic private and public sectors join forces,” said Srzentić. The Rector of the University of Montenegro, Vladimir Božović, said that the meaning of the signed Agreement is exceptional, primarily in terms of how the European Union sees the third dimension of the University in terms of innovation and development. “All the more, I am glad that ICT Cortex, as a leading cluster group in the domain of information and communication technologies, recognized the University as that base. To develop the entire sector, to develop information and communication technologies, we need to develop staff, and the University is called upon first when it comes to that. Through the concepts elaborated in this Agreement, we will certainly continue to do so for the benefit of not only the three entities, which at this moment have found a common interest but for the benefit of the entire society,” said Božović. He believes that the development of information and communication technologies is an exceptional development opportunity for the country, and the University, as he added, is a pillar of that development. The executive director of ICT Cortex, Tarik Zaimović, pointed out that the IT industry has had a systemic problem with personnel for a long time. “In the last few years, various representative offices of foreign companies have started to open here. We believe that this industry has the potential to employ several thousand people in the next three to four years. We believe that the IT industry should be one of the pillars of industries, such as tourism and agriculture,” said Zaimović. According to him, the IT sector currently accounts for about 3.5 percent of GDP, and in the total amount for this year, it will contribute about 20 percent. “But we cannot support this exponential growth without staff. We believe that the University of Montenegro is the right partner for the implementation of this project, and the support of the state is also very important. Problems should be solved systemically. This is one of how we can permanently and systematically solve the staffing problem, not completely because it is not possible, but our goal is to produce as many staff as possible and to keep that stuff in Montenegro, as well as to increase the quality of education. This is a real example of how the state, the education system, and the economy should cooperate, and we will do everything to support this project. We have a very ambitious vision which, we hope, will result in concrete results,” said Zaimović.

MeetUp vol 7: Business talks with Oracle International

We are organizing Cortex meetup Vol 7 this Thursday, January 20, starting at 6 p.m. This year’s first edition of the meetup is reserved for our friends from Oracle International: Julij Bozic, ROMASL Cloud director Oracle Jovana Vidakovic, CX senior sales executive Oracle Robert Korosec, Account Cloud Engineer Oracle Nihad Velagic, Managing director Core doo Amar Dedovic, Tech Cloud Senior sales executive Oracle The topics they will talk about, which can certainly be interesting to you, are: Cloud Infrastructure Intelligence Advisor Customer Experience the potential of cooperation with Montenegrin IT companies If you are interested in following the event online, register with the link. For additional information, please feel free to contact us by email: contact@ictcortex.me

Animated Cortex logo – from idea to realization

Visual identity significantly affects the first impression of any organization. Brands that have a carefully designed and standardized visual identity appear more serious, professional, and easy to recognize and remember. Having in mind the mission of our organization, to be the leaders of the digital transformation of Montenegro, and at the same time to be a link with the international market, the task of developing a logo that will be a mark of the Montenegrin IT market, carried a serious dose of responsibility. We decided to use our greatest strength – the synergy effect that comes from connecting the best cluster experts in this field! This time we united the teams of Fleka and Bild studios, which, in addition to daily communication and joint work, created two great solutions. Taking into account the opinions of all founding members of the cluster, in the end, we decided on an animated logo signed by the designer from the ranks of Bild studio – Davor Golubović. In order to bring you as close as possible to the concept of our logo, we will look at each unit separately. Also, below you will have the opportunity to read the experiences of the designers themselves in this creative process. Why Cortex? We wanted to use the name to indicate that we are a connecting point of the members and that our existence protects their interests and strengthens the IT sector. This is why CORTEX – is a membrane of the brain that connects the whole brain and holds information about language, senses, and feelings. When pronouncing, he also draws on CoreTech. 1. Anatomy The ICT Cortex logo consists of two parts that are inseparable, but at the same time well developed even as functionally independent components. Special attention is paid to the typography itself, which is a combination of technology font and human hand. You will notice that the upper part of the Cortex print has a humanistic character, so the finer and more natural ends of the letters are written by hand, while the lower ends are geometric, more stable, and sharper. A strong contrast that is compatible shows that, although different, only together can we make changes. The fluidity of the logo actually represents the life that is constantly in motion, changing and evolving. Let us now pay attention to the other motifs that our logo contains: Lambda The wavelength is marked by the Greek alphabet letter lambda. Apart from the fact that, in addition to frequency, it is a descriptive unit of waves, and thus also brain waves, it has the role of representing the mathematical, precise dimension of the logo. “Thought” As a decorative upper part of the letter “x,” there is a form that draws association to thought. Unlike lambda, it is a product of thinking, and therefore the starting point for creativity and ideas. 2. Flexibility of form The flexibility of the shape creates the added value of the logo. An indefinite form that is constantly changing opens up opportunities for “intentional” forms to achieve a certain emotional reaction (seriousness, playfulness, calmness). Also, the logo dynamic indicates how as a cluster we are actually an organization ready to adapt in line with digital trends. 3. Application The ICT Cortex logo will be animated in 80% of application cases, especially when it comes to digital channels. However, when it comes to traditional channels of communication, such as the media and the press, the logo will be static, but certainly in its well-recognized form and shape. The advantages of the animated logo are that it provides opportunities for experimenting and further creative development. And how did it all look from the designer’s point of view? Miloš, what are the impressions of collaborating with colleagues from Bild, and how much did you all contribute to the synergy effect and elaboration of ideas? “Working with colleagues from the profession, from other companies is always a good opportunity for quality discussions within multidisciplinary teams. Internal company procedures and culture have a great influence on the way we work, so it is always good to have an exchange of expert opinions outside the existing environment, which can often contribute to a better end result. This was also the case here, where the designers were able to give each other constructive criticism in more iterations, to make the final proposals even better. ” Miloš Milošević, CEO & Product Design Lead, Fleka Ksenija, how challenging was it to create a logo like this and how did the whole collaboration with Flek go? “Working with stains? The answer is simple – cooperation has changed the competition and improved the process. Perhaps the best side of the project is that the designers of the two houses that have been working in this field for the last 10+ years have connected, and the fun (for us, the designers) was guaranteed. What I will definitely remember about the project and the collaboration is that at some point I tried to undermine Bild’s solution, since at that time it seemed like “wow, but how” for the given deadlines, to which the designers responded with fire. On Judgment Day in front of the Cortex team, we came out quite satisfied, presenting two diametrical solutions, which, to the satisfaction of the whole team, are signed by Davor Golubović (Bild Studio) and Vuk Bojanić (Fleka) and thus made it difficult for the client to choose. “ Ksenija Planić, Creative Director, Bild Studio Davor, how did you come up with the idea for the animated logo, and what inspired you the most? “The logo was created as a product of thinking about what a brand is in the digital age, the nature of the materials on which it is applied, and the perceptions of the brand through the logo. A logo as a bearer of a brand is a trademark by which the material to which it is applied is branded or, in direct translation. Traditionally, these are physical, static materials such as paper, wood,

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