ABSTRACT
The history of the independent Slovak Republic is quite short: it dates back to 1993 but has its roots in centuries under the Hungarian monarchy and decades operating as the common state of Czechs and Slovaks. The transition recession which followed the dissolution of trade relations with the Soviet block and price deregulation were not the only problems which the newly established state had to face. After the liberalization of foreign trade, Slovak businesses were confronted with international competition and found themselves unable to keep up with businesses from western Europe, because of their obsolete technology and lack of experience. Sustainable management practices, along with modern management practices in general, are still fairly new in Slovakia. Integration of environmental and societal issues into business decision-making, to the extent that it has happened, is mainly a result of pressures by foreign investors or standards of the European Union, of which Slovakia became a member in 2004.
