Who Are the Finalists of the 25th Annual Award for Responsible Business

This year’s Via Bona Slovakia Award received 59 project nominations from 51 small, medium, and large companies. The finalist projects once again demonstrate that responsible business in Slovakia takes many forms — from workplace diversity and environmental innovations to meaningful community support. The winners in the seven categories will be announced during a gala evening hosted by the Pontis Foundation on June 17 at design factory in Jarovce. 

RESPONSIBLE LARGE COMPANY

Deutsche Telekom IT Solutions Slovakia 

Deutsche Telekom IT Solutions Slovakia (DTITSO) provides comprehensive solutions in information and communication technologies and business processes outsourcing. With over four thousand employees in Slovakia, DTITSO is a leader in IT services. The company focuses on innovation, quality, and transparency in all its processes, continuously investing in new technologies and service improvements. Environmentally, its priorities include minimizing its carbon footprint, promoting recycling, and using renewable energy sources. The company emphasizes diversity and inclusion, creating an environment with equal opportunities for all. It actively supports local communities and participates in various charitable and volunteer activities, contributing to the development of the Eastern Slovak region. 

Kaufland 

Kaufland is one of the largest retail chains in Slovakia, employing more than 8,200 people. The company is actively engaged in sustainability, emphasizing energy and natural resource savings and waste reduction. It also focuses on promoting healthy lifestyle and preventing obesity and overweight, especially among children, through its “Kaufland for a Healthy Diet” program, which encourages children to consume more fruits and vegetables. In 2024, it launched an internal campaign against workplace bias titled “Let’s Not Label.” Through its long-term partnerships, Kaufland supports various community and cultural initiatives. It consistently ranks among the most trustworthy brands in Slovakia. 

Veolia Energia Slovensko 

Veolia Energia Slovensko is a leader in heat and energy supply in Slovakia, also providing comprehensive services in building energy efficiency and water management. The company, which has been operating for more than 30 years, supplies heat to over 90 thousand households in 29 cities. In addition to heat production and distribution, Veolia is involved in renewable energy and recycling, aiming to minimize its carbon footprint and support ecological transformation. The company invests in innovative energy efficiency solutions, contributing to reducing energy consumption and improving quality of life for the residents. Through the Veolia Slovensko Foundation, the corporation supports local communities and promotes long-term volunteering among its employees. 

RESPONSIBLE SMALL/MEDIUM COMPANY

DeutschMann Internationale Spedition 

The forwarding company DeutschMann Internationale Spedition, based in Trebišov, provides comprehensive transport solutions worldwide. It specializes in transport services outsourcing, cost optimization, and increased flexibility for its global clients. The company emphasizes fairness, honesty, stability, transparency, and adherence to ethical standards. Its core value is helping —the clients, the employees, and communities alike. As much as 79% of its workforce participates in volunteer activities. In 2024, the company organized the 5th edition of the “DeutschMann for Seniors” event for 150 seniors from Trebišov and the surrounding area and regularly hosts concerts and promotes “offline” time for the public. It also prioritizes employee education and development through its own academy focusing on both hard and soft skills. 

DYNAMIK 

DYNAMIK is a family-owned construction company operating in the Slovak market since 1990. It specializes in comprehensive preparation of construction projects, development, implementation, and general contracting. Its core business is complemented by a building material store with a bathroom showroom and its own concrete plant. The company is guided by values of transparent, long-term sustainable, and responsible business, emphasizing quality work, flexibility, and individually tailored solutions for each client. It invests in green technologies such as renewable energy and energy efficiency in its projects to minimize the carbon footprint. Based on a life cycle analysis of concrete, it identifies and improves the environmental aspects of its production and use. In 2024, the corporation voluntarily prepared and published its 2023 Sustainability Report. 

MannaFactory 

MannaFactory is a registered social enterprise specializing in gastronomy services, catering, and coffee shops. The company focuses on sustainability and eco-friendly solutions in the food industry. Its main goal is to create stable jobs for employees with disabilities in a respectful environment. The company runs corporate cafés at IBM and Swiss Re, employing people with disabilities who also participate in food preparation in its Bratislava kitchen. It also actively supports local producers and uses a zero-waste model, contributing to environmental protection. In collaboration with the local coffee roaster Grow, they created a sustainable, zero-waste coffee cycle that ends with pressing the leftover coffee grounds into tablets with meadow flowers seeds. The company also engages in helping Ukrainian families and families in deep social need. 

INCLUSIVE EMPLOYER AWARD 

IKEA Bratislava
with the Safe Work Environment for All project

In 2024, IKEA Bratislava launched a series of initiatives focusing on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). These include lectures on DEI topics for all the company team leaders and supporting the creation of internal diversity groups focused on designing specific measures. Volunteer days and other aid initiatives have contributed to the help for the NGOs focused on inclusion. The company has intensified its efforts to support people with disabilities, the LGBTQ+ community, and refugees. IKEA regularly evaluates its progress through internal surveys. 

MannaFactory
with the Employing Disadvantaged Groups project

A registered social enterprise MannaFactory created an innovative corporate coffee shop model which successfully operates at IBM and Swiss Re. This concept links social inclusion with the business environment. People with disabilities are fully integrated into the work process, in service and food preparation, with work conditions adapted to their individual needs. The goal is to create a sustainable employment model that provides stable income, development opportunities, and further integration for people with disabilities into the society. 

Wolf Syrups and HANY Ulič
with the Employing Marginalized Roma Women project

Based in the Poloniny region, this company has had a long-term focus on creating job opportunities in a region with low employment rate, especially for women. For newly created positions, the company has set a goal of hiring Roma women, who now make up 28% of the total workforce. These women showed to be loyal and productive employees. Stable employment in the place of their residence makes their life situation easier and contributes to their social inclusion. The project is built on open communication and principles of equality, where all employees are treated as equals without prejudice. 

CLIMATE RESPONSIBILITY AWARD

ENERGIA REAL
with the Complex Energy Efficiency of an Apartment Building project

ENERGIA REAL carried out a deep energy renewal of an apartment building in Bratislava, including the installation of the ERcuper® technology that captures and recycles escaping heat from the building’s wastewater and ventilation air. This project reduced the building’s external heat and energy consumption by 96%, resulting in significant financial and environmental savings. Besides lowering costs for hot water and heating, the project also helps reduce CO₂ emissions. 

Kaufland
with the Kaufland on the Road to Zero Waste project 

Through this project, Kaufland has committed to significantly reduce the mixed waste and maximize recycling. Currently, it recycles an average of more than 94% of its own waste. Key activities include recycling contaminated plastic packaging via insects and using reusable packaging for fruits and vegetables. Kaufland continuously improves its processes, trains its employees, and increases the share of recycled materials. The aim is to minimize the waste ending up in landfills or incinerators. 

Parkan Crudes
with the Sustainable Insect Protein Production project

Parkan Crudes focuses on sustainable insect protein production for poultry using food waste from supermarkets. This model replaces traditional protein sources like soy and fishmeal, reducing natural resource consumption and CO₂ emissions in agriculture. Its main activities include processing waste into insect protein, researching its effectiveness in poultry feed, and analyzing environmental impacts. The project supports the circular economy, reduces food waste, and contributes to sustainable agriculture. 

POSITIVE CHANGE IN THE COMMUNITY AWARD

Accenture
with the Pro Bono Projects

Accenture leverages its technological and consulting expertise to support nonprofit organizations through pro bono projects. In 2024, the company provided NGO‘s with free services worth more than 196 thousand euros, which equals 5,800 hours of volunteer work. Among the most notable projects was the implementation of a CRM system for VAGUS, which helps to better manage data on homeless people, and the Omama app for the Way Out program, which enables improved support for families in need. The company’s long-term assistance through strategic pro bono partnerships thus contributes to real changes in the community. 

Kaufland
with the Kaufland for a Healthy Diet project 

The project promotes healthy eating habits among children, focusing on increasing the consumption of fruits and vegetables in schools. Since 2018, Kaufland has provided schools with almost a thousand tons of fresh groceries. In addition, the company organizes workshops and cooking classes to help children build a positive relationship with food and healthier eating, while also teaching them how to prevent food waste. More than 42 thousand children participate in these activities each month. The project significantly contributes to preventing children’s obesity and long-term dietary habit changes in Slovakia, which is especially important for low-income families who otherwise cannot provide their children with access to fruits and vegetables. 

Tesco
with the Period Poverty: Supporting Dignified Menstruation project 

Tesco decided to address the issue of period poverty in Slovakia through an extensive initiative. The company has long reduced the price of its own-brand menstrual products by the value of VAT, making them more accessible to a wider range of women. The chain also introduced discounts on menstrual products for employees and placed period boxes in stores. In 2024, Tesco launched an educational campaign to raise awareness about this issue, which also includes providing free menstrual products at schools and workplaces. The long-term goal is to set a public debate about period poverty and reduce the financial burden of women who face this challenge. 

SOCIAL INNOVATION AWARD

ČSOB
with the Digital Smart Grant project

ČSOB launched the Digital Smart Grant for schools, civic associations, NGOs, and municipalities, focusing on supporting innovative digital projects. This grant program offers funding to improve digital literacy and foster innovation in areas such as cybersecurity, digital content creation, and IT infrastructure. The aim is to support projects that deliver meaningful solutions. In 2024, the initiative received more than 345 applications, with 200 thousand euros distributed among 16 projects. 

Lab.cafe
with the Where Ideas Take Shape project 

Lab.cafe is a dynamic space — a community hub — for education, experimentation, and creation. It was established in response to the lack of accessible spaces for creative people in Slovakia. It combines a makerspace, coworking area, and a café. Its goal is to allow the public, regardless of experience, to learn hands-on, develop new ideas, and to access technologies which would otherwise be unavailable to them. It offers access to modern manufacturing technologies such as 3D printing, CNC milling, and laser cutting. It builds a community of creative minds and supports startups and innovators in testing their ideas, while also organizing workshops for the public, schools, and companies. 

Readmio
with An App Full of Fairytales project 

Readmio is a digital publisher of children’s literature that combines traditional storytelling with modern technology. The app was developed in response to declining reading literacy and decreasing interest in reading among children. It offers interactive educational stories with sound effects that respond to the reader’s voice, making reading aloud more engaging for children. In addition to creating original stories, the company focuses on translations and expansion into different languages, as well as collaborating with schools to develop reading literacy. 

RESPONSIBLE CAMPAIGN AWARD 

dm drogerie markt
with the Campaign for Women’s Health project  

The aim of the campaign was to destigmatize the topic of menstruation and women’s health – subjects that are still rarely discussed in Slovakia. Through this campaign, dm educated the public via the web, social media, and ambassadors, organized dm ON TOUR events, and supported civic associations fighting against period poverty and eating disorders. The campaign also featured a traveling art installation and free access to menstrual products in stores. The campaign reached a wide audience — 6 million views in the app, nearly 4.5 million impressions on social media, and more than three thousand event attendees. Interest in the topic of period poverty also increased at schools and among civic associations. 

Orange Slovakia
with the Influendcérky project 

The campaign addresses the issue of cyberbullying among children and young people. It features powerful emotional stories from mothers of well-known influencers who shared their daughters’ real experiences with hateful online comments. Through this campaign, Orange introduced its awareness program beznastrah.online (safely.online), which aims to help parents protect their children in the online space. The campaign was especially successful online, with 1.8 million video views in the first 48 hours and a 420% increase in website traffic. Public discussions with experts on digital safety, which became a permanent part of the program, were an important feature as well. 

O2 Slovakia
with the 400 Meters on a Screen is Too Much project 

In response to alarming data on children’s excessive mobile phone use, O2 Slovakia launched an awareness campaign highlighting digital passivity and its consequences. The campaign linked the theme of physical activity and screen time, presenting it through an emotional video and the website www.400m.sk. Five educational videos with psychologists were produced as part of the campaign, and parents could enroll their children in the O2 Sports Academy of Matej Tóth. The campaign reached over 833 thousand people on social media, and the website was visited by more than 57 thousand unique users. In brand tracking, the attribute “Socially Responsible Brand” increased by 10%, confirming the brand’s positive perception by the public.