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Maja Crnjak
Episode · #113

PSIHOLOGIJA USPJEHA Maja Crnjak

Guest Maja CrnjakHosted by Tanja PuretaMay 3, 2026
About this episode
What you'll hear in this conversation

For many, a career in human resources means a constant shift, moving between companies and industries to gain breadth. Maja Crnjak, Director of HR at Erste Bank, offers a different perspective: fifteen years in the same field, the same company. Her entry into HR, she explains, "just happened," not a planned move, yet it became a path where the work itself has evolved considerably. She argues that for today's talent, the draw is less about the industry — be it banking or pharma — and more about a company's reputation and the purpose of the work. This conversation explores how a large, complex organization like Erste navigates constant change, fosters a sense of fairness across nearly three thousand employees, and reclaims its purpose in a shifting public perception.

Insights from the conversation
What to take from this episode
01
When asked if banking is "in trend," Maja Crnjak states that candidates today "choose the company, the brand, and the purpose of the job" over the industry itself. The specific industry label matters less than a company's reputation and the perceived meaning of the work when attracting modern talent.
02
Maja, an economist by training, has spent 15 years in HR, explaining she didn't plan it but "it just happened" due to company needs, and the field itself "has changed so much." A long tenure in one specialized field isn't stagnation if the field itself is dynamic and the role constantly evolves, offering internal variety.
03
With nearly three thousand employees from diverse backgrounds — IT specialists, mathematicians, psychologists, economists — Maja states that HR "can't go with a 'one size fits all' approach." In a highly diverse organization, HR's challenge is to balance the unique needs and development interests of different groups while maintaining a sense of organizational fairness.
04
Maja highlights the "constant change" as a key challenge, noting that business cases often neglect the "human element" and people's natural discomfort with transitions. HR's role is to "sweeten" these changes. Effective change management requires HR to explicitly address the human side of transitions, supporting the organization by making changes more palatable rather than just implementing business decisions.
05
On the "slippery topic" of organizational fairness, Maja's internal measure is whether she and her team "can look all employees in the eye every day." True organizational fairness isn't about achieving universal subjective satisfaction, but about having transparent processes, tools, and internal calibrations that allow leaders to justify their actions openly.
06
Maja acknowledges that banking has received a "blemish on its image" in recent years, making it uncomfortable for employees. Erste's response was to "highlight our roots" and the 200-year history of helping people. When an industry's public image suffers, reconnecting with its foundational purpose and positive historical narrative can restore employee pride and external perception.
07
The host praises Erste for conducting regular employee surveys on satisfaction, climate, culture, and fairness, which Maja sees as crucial for her team to truly "look people in the eye." Implementing regular, open feedback mechanisms is a commitment to accountability, providing the data needed to understand employee sentiment and genuinely act on the promise of fairness.
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