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Maja Markulin Klarić
Episode · #147

POSLOVNA ŽENA Maja Markulin Klarić

Guest Maja Markulin KlarićHosted by Dražen TomićMay 3, 2026
About this episode
What you'll hear in this conversation

The conversation with Maja Markulin Klarić begins with a familiar tension: how professional women manage demanding careers and family life in a world that often expects 24/7 availability. As Director of Digital Innovations at Kombis, a major IT company, Klarić navigates this landscape daily, but her insights are not just from a corporate perspective. She brings a rare dual experience, having also run her own IT business. This conversation explores the subtle differences between these two worlds, the reality of the 'glass ceiling' in a global context, and the choices that define a career path. Readers will leave with a sharper understanding of how individual agency and organizational culture intersect to shape professional opportunities for women today.

Insights from the conversation
What to take from this episode
01
Maja Markulin Klarić describes entrepreneurship as 'working twenty-three hours a day and finding that one hour for all other life needs.' This stark reality isn't a complaint; it's an observation that the intense, all-consuming nature of running your own business builds a breadth of knowledge and resilience that corporate roles rarely offer.
02
A global survey on women's management capabilities revealed a stark divide: 92% in Scandinavian countries believe women can be successful managers, compared to 68% in Turkey who hold the opposite view. This isn't just a statistical curiosity; it shows that the 'glass ceiling' is less a universal barrier and more a reflection of deeply ingrained cultural attitudes that vary wildly across geographies.
03
In a 24/7 digital world, Maja Markulin Klarić frames constant availability as 'a matter of personal choice to pick up the phone, check email, respond at certain times,' noting her company doesn't impose it. The insight is that while technology enables perpetual connection, the true boundary isn't set by the gadget, but by the individual's discipline and the company's culture of non-imposition.
04
The daily reality for women, particularly those with children, is the challenge of balancing professional duties with 'what awaits them in the afternoon hours.' This isn't a vague notion of work-life balance; it's the specific, constant negotiation between a demanding career and the societal expectation of managing a second shift of family responsibilities.
05
Maja Markulin Klarić states she 'didn't have any extremely unpleasant experiences related to the topic of the glass ceiling' and doesn't observe it in her current company. This specific personal experience shows that while the phenomenon exists, its presence is not universal, underscoring how specific organizational cultures can either perpetuate or dismantle such barriers to women's career progression.
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