Forum SFPO 2011 is a business conference organised for the second consecutive year by the Slovenian Foundation for Business Excellence (SFPO). We are aware of European guidelines in the field of science, research, innovation and their ambitious goals to reduce the differences between Europe on one side and USA and Japan on the other. For this purpose the connecting thread of this forum will be the story of Slovenian knowledge, its origin, how it is interwoven with practical work and the systematic conversion into globally competitive products with a high added value. Forum SFPO 2011, whose motto is "Knowledge for the economy", is divided into topics which are connected to the practical value of scientific achievements in the field of economy, into presentations of some technological breakthroughs in top Slovenian companies, into presentations of original approaches to developing a competitive position in international surroundings, and into the "experiment show".
The Forum will feature speakers who will show selflessly to the Slovenian public that we have something to be proud of and that knowledge can help us get out of any crisis. We will take a look at the origin, connecting and usage of knowledge from the viewpoint of:
• the leading Slovenian institutes (the Jožef Stefan Institute and the National Institute of Chemistry),
• large business systems (Kolektor and Domel)
• small yet dynamic companies (Cosylab and Uniki)

The forum will also include the oldest Slovenian innovator, Peter Florjančič (93 years old), who will present his oldest and most recent invention and warn the participants of the joys and traps of being involved in innovations. On the other hand, we will also be showing why and how the House of Experiments is thrilling young and not so young people with innovative revelations of basic natural laws, which are the basis for creating any added value to innovative products or services. At the end, three groups of students will present and demonstrate their first-class and internationally acclaimed achievements.
After last year's excellent experience, we are bringing back the "hot chair", from which the debate after the experts' lectures will be steered by Prof. Marko Jaklič, PhD, from the Faculty of Economics in Ljubljana. He says: "The transition of Slovenia to a new development model will definitely not be easy. This decade will be vital in showing if we as a society or as the main protagonists in this society will be able to adapt and create a society of knowledge together. I see certain positive shifts in Slovenian society, which may leave us feeling optimistic." It is exactly these shifts that we will try to bring forwards at the Forum SFPO.