WUEB Experts Weekly Review: Research, Projects and Academic Successes (27 July – 2 August 2026)

From national brand research to state strategy

WUEB expert: Associate Professor Barbara Mróz-Gorgoń

On 29 July 2026, Prime Minister Donald Tusk appointed Associate Professor Barbara Mróz-Gorgoń as Government Plenipotentiary for the Promotion of the Polish Brand. Her remit includes coordinating the preparation and implementation of the strategy, developing a brand book and shared communication standards, and building a system for monitoring results. The appointment brings together many years of research on the national brand and think-tank experience with work on solutions for public administration.

The topic was widely covered by the media. BizFakty described the importance of a coherent national image for exports, investment and tourism. On Polish Radio Programme Three, the conversation also touched on the role of entrepreneurs. PropertyNews likewise noted the appointment. Coverage by Focus Europe and the West Pomeranian Union of Entrepreneurs and Employers returned to the need for a single narrative and better coordination of dispersed promotional activities.

Sources: badania.uew.pl | BizFakty | Polskie Radio | PropertyNews | Focus Europe | WZP / Lewiatan

Skills that work. WUEB ranks high in the graduate careers survey

Wroclaw University of Economics and Business

WUEB came 16th in the nationwide survey “Polish Academic Schools: careers, work, earnings 2026”, scoring 71.00 points – one place lower than in the previous edition. The Work & Science ranking was based on data from the Graduate Career Tracking System (ELA), the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) and POL-on. It covers 13 indicators, including salary levels, time needed to find a first job, unemployment risk, entrepreneurship and further study. As a result, it describes not declarations but the actual professional paths of graduates.

Source: https://edukacja.rp.pl/nauka-rozwoj-biznes/art44876731-zestawienie-ogolem-ranking-2026

Results table: https://ebooki.rp.pl/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/2026-07-Biznes-nauka-rozwoj-poj_compressed.pdf

Can a siesta become part of the way we work?

WUEB expert: dr Marcin Brol

The heatwave has once again revived the discussion about how the working day is organised. In Radio Wrocław’s “Interview of the Day”, Dr Marcin Brol discussed whether a siesta suits Polish conditions and whether a flexible break in the middle of the day could become part of a future work model. The reference point was the high temperatures and the question of how to organise working time in changing conditions.

Source: https://www.radiowroclaw.pl/articles/view/162715/Rozmowa-Dnia-Doktor-Marcin-Brol-z-Uniwersytetu-Ekonomicznego-o-tym-czy-potrzebna-nam-siesta

Business goes to government, or interventionism in full swing

WUEB expert: Associate Professor Artur Klimek

The starting point for the commentary in “Dziennik Gazeta Prawna” is the US government’s decision to take a 10 per cent stake in Intel by converting part of the CHIPS Act grants into equity. The article raises the broader question of where strategic industrial policy ends and direct state ownership control begins. It is an example of how support for business can shift from regulation and subsidies to the government’s active participation in corporate ownership structures.

Źródło: https://edgp.gazetaprawna.pl/magazyn/artykuly/11282956,przychodzi-biznes-do-rzadu-czyli-interwencjonizm-na-calego.html

A “safe” 15 per cent on a crypto exchange? An Earn programme is not a deposit

WUEB expert: Associate Professor Aleksander Mercik

Earn programmes tempt users with high rates of return, but their mechanism differs fundamentally from a bank deposit. As Associate Professor Aleksander Mercik explains, the user in effect lends funds to the exchange or its counterparties and becomes an unsecured creditor. They are not protected by the Bank Guarantee Fund, and a stablecoin offers no guarantee that capital will be preserved. The promise of 15 per cent should therefore be read as the price of elevated risk, not as confirmation that the product is safe.

Source: https://www.bankier.pl/wiadomosc/Z-dzwigni-pod-rynne-czyli-bezpieczne-15-na-krypto-gieldzie-Rozliczamy-programy-Earn-9174854.html

WUEB on the Student Council to the President of POLSA

WUEB representative: Julia Majewska

Julia Majewska has joined the new Student Council to the President of the Polish Space Agency. The Council’s seventh term comprises 30 members from 19 universities. It is an advisory body that gives opinions on POLSA initiatives, promotes student projects and ESA Education programmes, and supports entrepreneurship and inter-university cooperation in the space sector.

Source: https://forumakademickie.pl/nowy-sklad-rady-studentow-przy-prezesie-polsa/

Not the “richest”, but in the best financial condition

WUEB team led by Dr Małgorzata Gałecka

The Local Government Financial Ranking 2026 measures the financial condition of local government units, not their wealth. Bydgoszcz came first in the category of cities with county status. Prepared by WUEB and the Institute for Eastern Studies Foundation, the ranking draws on data from the Regional Chambers of Audit and on seven indicators covering, among others, own revenue, the operating surplus, investment, debt and the use of EU funds.

Source: https://gloswielkopolski.pl/10-najbogatszych-miast-w-polsce-mialy-najlepsza-kondycje-finansowa-w-2025-roku-mamy-ranking-02-08-2026/ar/c1p2-29013701

Methodology and results: https://uew.pl/ranking-finansowy-samorzadu-terytorialnego-2026/