Halifax from England to Serbia

The county of Yorkshire in England has a long tradition in sport, especially in football. It is officially recognised by FIFA as being the birthplace of club football, since the world's oldest club, Sheffield FC, was formed there in 1857. The world's first inter-club match took place there on 26 December 1860. Yorkshire was earlier at the heart of the industrial revolution, a series of innovations that subsequently spread around the world, for ever changing our societies.

- History is history, but Yorkshire is still a special and innovative place. Among its hills and valleys you can find many charming towns that have managed the transition to a post-industrial society well, preserving their industrial heritage while shifting to a new, service-oriented economy. I will name two that have especially influenced my life: Halifax, where my husband comes from and which obviously plays a role in our company name, and Sheffield, one of the world's most famous centres of the steel industry. Hit by the economic vacuum left by the sudden decline of that industry in Europe in the 1970s and 80s, it was in a dire state, in many ways fully as difficult as Serbia today. Many thought it hopeless. But it managed to modernise its administration and pioneer a citizen-oriented public service that supported small and medium enterprises to renew economic growth on a different basis - says Sonja Babic-Lythgoe, the director of Halifax Consulting.

Sonja Babic-Lythgoe (Photo: lična arhiva)

- In one of my visits some 15 years ago, I was astonished to find one-stop-shop kiosks equipped with touch screens around the municipal administration quarter, displaying all kinds of essential and interesting information to help citizens and visitors rapidly find what they needed. I also was amazed to find that the administration treated its citizens as human beings, and first of all as clients!

- And I had a dream... I wanted my own country to change and innovate as fast as this region, and I wanted to be part of that movement and help it on its way - she remembers.

- In 2001 we set up Halifax Consulting here in Serbia to work on development programmes. In 2008, after many successful projects in all kinds of subjects, we managed an EU-funded project to translate the first 16,000 pages of EU legislation into Serbian. The success we saw in implementing this project led us to expand and develop our translation section into a separate business unit, which is still expanding today. Its success is based on the work ethic I saw that time – a deep respect for clients and employees alike, and a constant drive to innovate and improve.

- Changes in Serbia have not happened as fast as I dreamed of, but they are happening in spite of all the obstacles and disappointments. I am happy and proud to be part of such a historic change. Einstein said: There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle. I hope I am living it the second way, it's the only way worthwhile - says the director of Halifax.