Beata Drzazga on the courage that builds a business
Interviewer: Marcin Andrzejewski
Photos: Lidia Skuza
Over the course of 25 years, she has built a healthcare business and continues to develop new ventures, invest in real estate, expand beyond Poland to other continents, and make decisions that can’t be captured in an Excel spreadsheet. Today, she says it plainly: an entrepreneur’s greatest limitation isn’t always capital. Sometimes it’s their own ability to let go of control, trust people, and accept risk. In this interview with Beata Drzazga, we discuss why diversification isn’t about collecting companies, why intuition can be as important a tool as numbers, and why women shouldn’t wait for someone to invite them to the business table. Her story isn’t about making their first million—it’s about courage, humanity, and the positive rebellion that drives them to keep going.
You’ve built a healthcare business, ventured into real estate, international ventures, and other projects. At first glance, these are very different worlds. What do they have in common?
Management skills driven by passion. Vision and consistency are also key. These are usually not immediately apparent. People only begin to wonder what’s behind a given venture once something big has emerged. You can operate in different industries, but the mechanisms for building an organization remain similar. You need to know where you’re headed, be able to make decisions, and above all, be able to work with people. An idea alone isn’t enough. You also need to build an organization around it that can implement it.
There’s a lot of talk in business about diversification. You’ve been putting it into practice for years. How do you recognize the right moment to enter a new industry, and when should you say, “This is too much?”
First, you need to ask yourself a very honest question: Do I truly love the process enough to be able to control it all? The second question is: Can I find people I can trust and who can run the company even when I’m not there?
Investing in multiple companies is one thing, but operationally managing several businesses simultaneously is quite another. You can own shares in up to a hundred companies, but if you want to be operationally involved, it won’t work because human capabilities are limited.
You can run one company with complete focus, another with very close supervision, and perhaps a third as well. With subsequent companies, everything begins to depend on the quality of the managers.
And one more thing: scaling can’t mean sacrificing quality. You can expand your company to new cities, provinces, or countries, but you must constantly check whether the organization can keep up. Scale only makes sense if it doesn’t destroy the values on which you built your business.
So an entrepreneur’s biggest limitation isn’t always capital. Sometimes it’s the organization’s ability to function without it?
Absolutely. At some point, people become the biggest challenge. You need to find managers who understand your vision, can make decisions, and whom you can trust.
At Betameda, I was very focused on operations. In other ventures, I could operate more as an investment. It’s a completely different model. When you manage an organization employing hundreds or thousands of people, the responsibility and level of commitment are incomparable.
Therefore, diversification cannot be about collecting companies. It must be a conscious decision about where I am needed operationally and where my role can be more of an owner or investor.
You often say that business has no gender. Yet women still sometimes act as if they have to prove they deserve a seat at the table, instead of simply sitting down. Why?
Too often, they ask themselves, “Am I good enough?” And very often, they are excellent. The problem isn’t a lack of competence, but a lack of confidence in their own abilities.
Men are more likely to make decisions and move forward. They don’t always have all the knowledge, they’re not always 100% prepared, but they assume they’ll learn some things along the way. And in this respect, it’s worth emulating them.
In business, you’ll never know everything. You’ll never eliminate all risk. If you wait until everything is certain, you might never get started.
What’s needed is a positive rebellion. You tell yourself: I have a plan, I know what I want, I’ve checked everything I could, and I’m in. Life will do the rest.
Assertiveness is not a lack of culture, just as empathy is not a weakness.
What was more difficult for you: making your first million or having the courage to take further risky decisions when you had much more to lose?
Both, just for different reasons. Interestingly, I don’t actually remember the moment I thought, “I’ve made my first million.” It wasn’t a goal for me. I was so focused on the company, the patients, the employees, my vision, and my mission, that the money stayed in the business. I didn’t separate them in my mind: this was mine, and that was still the company’s.
I remember a completely different moment, however. I won the competition and signed a contract with the National Health Fund (NFZ) for nearly two million złoty per year. Of course, this money was earmarked for services, staff, and all operating costs, but I remember leaving the office after signing the contract, getting on the tram, and just couldn’t believe it had actually happened.
Then I thought something very simple: “Now I can go into a store and buy myself a Raffaello without wondering if it’s not a luxury.”
It’s extraordinary because instead of a story about a luxury car or your first expensive watch, we have a Raffaello box. Was that when you first felt financial freedom?
I guess so. And only now, when you ask me about it, do I realize how important that moment was.
I also remember something else – the first employee paychecks. It was 2002. I went to the bank, withdrew about 30,000 złoty, and brought the money back in a shopping bag. Many people didn’t have bank accounts back then. Doctors and nurses would come to me for their paychecks; full-time pay was 1,200 złoty back then.
I remember a woman I paid about 900 złoty for her part-time job. She burst into tears and said, “Oh my God, Beata, that much?” I gave her another 200 złoty, from the bottom of my heart. I still picture that to this day, how wonderful it is to help someone.
These are the moments that stick. I don’t remember my first million, but I do remember the emotion of someone I could pay for their work. And I think that says a lot about what business has always meant to me.
Your story shows that you don’t need ideal starting conditions to build a large organization. What ultimately determines success: talent, courage, or mental toughness?
Everything together. Mental toughness is incredibly important, but it’s also built along the way. When you start acting boldly, life begins to test you. You get hit in the head, you get back up, and you become stronger.
Difficult situations come, injustices, disappointments, and sometimes betrayal from people you trusted. It hurts, but it also toughens you. It’s not about never falling. It’s about learning to get back up and not letting another experience rob you of your ability to act.
You can’t build an entrepreneur solely based on books and business plans. Some competencies are acquired only when reality says, “I’m checking.”
In the world of management, we love numbers, models, KPIs, Excel, and analytics. You also speak strongly about intuition. After 25 years in business, are you able to trust it more than you used to?
Absolutely. Today I know that intuition is one of the tools of management. Of course, we need data, numbers, analysis, and Excel. But when you manage people for many years, you start to notice things that aren’t shown in tables.
If you feel something isn’t right in a relationship, don’t ignore it. If a business path looks logical on paper, but you feel something isn’t adding up, stop and re-evaluate it.
For years, intuition was treated as something unprofessional. Today, we increasingly understand that experience builds the ability to instantly recognize patterns. I listen to my intuition very carefully.
Humans are a key part of your management approach. But doesn’t empathy become dangerous when tough decisions need to be made?
Empathy doesn’t mean a lack of decisiveness. You can be demanding and still treat someone with respect. There used to be a belief that employees should fear their bosses, that people should be managed through fear. I find this approach primitive.
Assertiveness isn’t a lack of manners, just as empathy isn’t a weakness. You can set very high standards, make difficult decisions, and enforce results without diminishing the other person’s dignity.
Business is, after all, made by people. We can have the best strategy in the world, but ultimately, someone has to be willing to implement it with us.
You’re also surrounded by very young entrepreneurs these days. What do you most envy about them, in a positive sense, and what do you most fear?
I envy them for having everything still ahead of them. They have access to technology, knowledge, and opportunities that we couldn’t even dream of at the beginning.
I see very young people who, thanks to their technological expertise, are able to build companies of enormous value. It’s fascinating.
I also see the flip side. Young people today look at people who have spent 20 or 30 years building companies, see the end result, and might think, “How can I possibly live up to them?” Social media showcases success, but rarely reveals the price tag behind it.
I’m also afraid that some young people realize how difficult running a business is, how many responsibilities, risks, and problems it entails, and they say, “I don’t want that” – and they have the right to do so, because entrepreneurship requires curiosity and courage.
You should try. If it doesn’t work out, you should tell yourself, “Never mind. I’ll learn from it and move on.”
Your activities increasingly extend beyond business. You’re involved in animal welfare initiatives, among other things. Does your definition of entrepreneurial responsibility change with your success?
I think this is the responsibility not only of an entrepreneur, but of a human being. I strongly believe that you can judge a person by how they treat animals.
Animals depend on us and cannot stand up for their rights on their own. Success brings recognition and the ability to reach more people. If you have a voice, I believe you should sometimes use it on behalf of those who cannot defend themselves.
After 25 years since Betamed’s creation, you could be focusing on the fruits of what you’ve built. Meanwhile, you’re building structures again, recruiting people, and starting a new chapter. What are you building today?
I bought a third of the shares in the Entrepreneurship Club and I feel like I’m starting a bit like I did in Betameda.
We’re building a structure, hiring directors, managers, and employees to create a team alongside my existing, excellent employees. I personally participate in recruitment and look for people I call gems.
Those with whom, from the very first conversation, you feel common values, energy and the belief that together we can create something special.
I want to build a team that will truly support entrepreneurs. Not just through contacts and knowledge, but also through simple human kindness. I want entrepreneurs to feel like someone wants their companies to grow, that they have people around them who truly support them.
I feel like I’m starting another very important stage that will bring people joy and development.
Finally, I’d like you to forget all the numbers, companies, and successes for a moment. If Beata Drzazga from 2026 could sit across from a young Beata who’s just deciding to start her first company, what would she tell her?
I would say: don’t stray from this path. Don’t give up on your idea. Give people what you intended to give them. And remember that all the difficult things you encounter are part of life and business. They don’t just affect you.
You will fall, you will suffer, people will hurt you sometimes. You will make decisions that others will not understand, but get back up and never turn back.
I would also tell young Beata something she perhaps most needed to hear at the time: I’m so proud of you. Thank you for being brave. Thank you for being rebellious, for wanting more from life, for continuing despite everything. I love you for that.
Perhaps courage is the word that best summarizes this whole story.
Courage and rebellion. Positive rebellion. Don’t be afraid and move forward.
Source: Tygrysy Biznesu