News written by Natalia Masiarová

One little black mark with the US authorities and you can end up… at Rockaway perhaps! Investment manager David Swaim, who has both Slovak and American blood in his veins, has an interesting career path behind him, during which both conscious decisions and unplanned events played a role. “I wanted to stay in the US – and I’ve been living in Prague seven years now. I returned to the States to finish my MBA – and left for Warsaw. I planned to work only for start-ups – and in the end I enjoy being in an investment group.”

From co-founder of a Czech-Australian consulting company specializing in global companies with digital innovations and transformations to the CEO of the technology division at Mind2FLO. This too is part of the story of Andrej Hájek, the new head of the FLO technology division who wants to accomplish explosive growth once again. In this issue of the Insider, you’ll find out what values and principles accompany him in his professional and personal life:

A professional soccer player, an actuary, a consulting manager. Max Palko could have become all of these, but – luckily for the Rockaway team – life led him elsewhere and finally led him to the position of investment manager with us. “In my current position, I’m learning something new every day and have the desire to improve constantly. For the time being I’m not stagnating – and I like that,” says Max, who has been part of the ventures team for almost five years now, and is giving a good name to not only the investment company, but also to the Rockaway Academy programme for graduates, which he was part of a couple of years back.

As Head of Brand and Communication he dedicates his time at work to ensuring that travel has a good name. And when he comes home from the office… as the blogger known as Exoguru, he devotes his time to the same thing! In short, Michal Bošela is the right man for the job at Invia, the largest internet travel agency – he sees his profession both as a mission and a hobby. And as someone who has already experienced much at Invia, he is a great inspiration to many people…

Everyone we’ve presented in our Rockaway Insider over the past two and a half years likes and is fulfilled by their work – but Heureka Group COO Michal Vodák could be the spokesman for this inspiring group! His charming drive is infectious, but he’s also able to talk about travel or discovering exotic flavours with the same enthusiasm. At the Heureka Group, Michal is in charge of the largest department – Commerce – which includes Brand Marketing, Performance Marketing, the Business Department, Customer Care, Yield Management, and Business Development. What’s the most important thing at work, in his opinion, and what’s his dream? Have a look at the new Insider…

“When I first read her CV, one thing was immediately clear to me: we have to get her into Rockaway as soon as possible!” That’s how Eva Livora from HR remembers the moment when the current Senior Legal Counsel Lucie Kubínyiová was coming in to Rockaway for meetings with the legal department to “get to know each other”, when both sides were exploring whether Lucie would make a good team member. Today, she’s been a permanent and reliable part of Rockaway for almost a half-year, and nobody doubts that back then our HR department made the right choice in picking a candidate.

A human touch, friendship, team spirit, mutual motivation – nothing could characterize Lenka Dvořáková’s mindset more when it comes to work. For ten years she worked on audits at KPMG, she spent two years as Head of Controlling and Reporting at the INVIA Group, and is now jumping into a world where numbers and spreadsheets merge with music: “I don’t know how everything will work out, but if I don’t try, I’ll never find out,” says the new financial director of the Colours of Ostrava festival with a smile. And it’s no coincidence that she was recently selected for the #finwomen project – a list of 131 inspiring women working in finance. A new year, new challenges, and lots of new faces – another round of the Rockaway Insider newsletter is here, and in the first issue we’re introducing Lenka.

“Having a plan and knowing where to start keeps me calm,” says Karin regarding her strategy for when things start getting tough at work. As COO of the Rockaway Ventures Fund, since the beginning of summer 2022 she has been in charge of keeping it running efficiently, communicating with investors and third parties, cash flow management, and reporting to investors. What does Karin do to balance out her busy schedule, and what does she value most about Rockaway? You’ll find the answers in this edition of the Insider.