Ivan Bjelajac is the Vice President of Business Development at Tenderly and a co-founder of several technology ventures, including the blockchain product development company MVP Workshop. ^{[1] [2]}

Education

Bjelajac earned a Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Belgrade. He later completed an Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) from the COTRUGLI Business School, which he attended from 2016 to 2018. ^{[1] [3]}

Career

Ivan Bjelajac began his career in the technology industry in 2001, initially working as an engineer before transitioning into executive and entrepreneurial roles. He was an early employee at the Serbian tech company Devana Technologies, where he progressed through the ranks to become Chief Operating Officer (COO) and later Chief Executive Officer (CEO). The company's primary product was ManageWP, a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform for WordPress management. In a significant transaction for the regional tech scene, ManageWP was acquired by the global web hosting company GoDaddy. This marked GoDaddy's first acquisition in Europe, after which Bjelajac served as the Operating Director for GoDaddy Europe for two years, which served as a basis for later work with blockchain technology.

After his tenure at GoDaddy, Bjelajac shifted his focus to emerging blockchain technologies. He co-founded and served as CEO of MVP Workshop, one of Europe's early blockchain product research and development companies. The firm specialized in consultancy and development for Web3 projects, focusing on areas such as decentralized finance (DeFi), supply chain management, and asset tokenization. Under his leadership, MVP Workshop worked with prominent projects in the space, including SWARM and Polygon. A notable achievement for the company was the successful execution of the Celsius Network's Initial Coin Offering (ICO) in 2018, which raised $50 million. Bjelajac also served on the Celsius Advisory Board.

Currently, Bjelajac is the Vice President of Business Development and Vice President of Strategy at Tenderly, a development platform that provides tools for Web3 developers, including smart contract monitoring, real-time alerting, and troubleshooting. His role involves aligning the company's workstreams and positioning its products within the developer community. He has also been involved with Polygon Edge, a framework for building Ethereum-compatible blockchain networks.

Throughout his career, Bjelajac has been involved in numerous organizations in leadership and advisory capacities. He is a co-founder of the Digital Forensics Initiative Archibald and the Blockchain Forensics Forum Belgrade. He serves as a Partner and Board Member at Attic42, an organization that assists startup founders with business strategy, fundraising, and go-to-market execution.

Bjelajac is also a board member of the Serbian Venture Network, which organizes the Belgrade Venture Forum, a major venture capital investment event in Southeast Europe. He is a Foundation Council member at Apex Fusion and a Go-To-Market Consultant at Dreamforge. Additionally, he holds a position on the Advisory Board for the Master in Computational Finance program. He has been an active angel investor through the Business Angels group organized by the Digital Serbia Initiative and has served as a startup mentor for programs including Google Launchpad, Founder Institute, StartIT Startup Academy, ICT Hub, and EKOF Startup Centar.

Bjelajac is a co-founder of the Serbian Blockchain Initiative (SBI), an industry network established to support businesses implementing blockchain solutions and connect professionals in the field. He also co-founded Zivojin Misic, a non-governmental organization dedicated to supporting education and entrepreneurship among young people in Serbia. The NGO was funded by reinvesting 10% of Devana Technologies' profits back into the local community.

Bjelajac's contributions to the technology and business sectors have been recognized with several awards.

• In 2018, he was named the EY Innovative Entrepreneur of the Year, an award he shared with his MVP Workshop colleague Malisa Pusonja.
• In 2011, he was listed as one of the "30 under 30" most successful Serbian entrepreneurs.

These recognitions highlight his role in both successful startup exits and pioneering work in the blockchain industry. ^{[2] [4] [1] [3] [5] [6]}

Interviews

Ivan Bjelajac at Startup Grind Belgrade #01

On December 22, 2015, Ivan Bjelajac, then Chief Operating Officer at Devana Technologies, participated in an interview during a session organized by Startup Grind Local in Belgrade. The discussion, conducted by Stefan Vujovic and filmed by Vanja Bejatovic, focused on Bjelajac’s professional background, early entrepreneurial activities, and his observations on the Serbian technology sector.

During the interview, Bjelajac described the Serbian startup environment at the time as still developing. He pointed to the presence of technical expertise but noted gaps in business infrastructure and global positioning. In his view, progress depended on focusing on product value, user-oriented development, and learning through trial and error.

He outlined his progression from programming and technical execution to leadership and operational roles. This transition, according to Bjelajac, was shaped by accumulated experience across various projects. He also addressed how outcomes in early-stage companies are often influenced by team structure and internal communication.

In discussing the broader regional landscape, Bjelajac referred to opportunities for technology companies in the Balkans to introduce practical solutions where legacy systems were insufficient. He suggested that maintaining a clear product focus and responding to user needs were central to long-term viability. ^[7]

Bjelajac on Venture Strategy #02

On December 15, 2022, Ivan Bjelajac, CEO and Co-Founder of MVP Workshop, participated in episode #49 of Chair – Innovation in Dialogue, a series focused on the intersection of technology, leadership, and organizational design. In the interview, Bjelajac discussed topics related to venture building, team structuring, and the operational challenges involved in managing innovation-driven enterprises. His commentary reflected professional experiences accumulated through involvement in initiatives such as GoDaddy, Polygon, and Celsius.

Bjelajac identified time management as a central issue in entrepreneurial decision-making, emphasizing that delays in disengaging from non-viable projects can result in the inefficient use of limited resources. He also reflected on how innovation may be influenced by cognitive mechanisms such as temporarily disregarding current constraints in order to envision alternate possibilities.

The conversation addressed organizational scale and its effects on operational efficiency. According to Bjelajac, companies with around 50–60 employees often encounter a combination of reduced responsiveness and increased internal friction. As an alternative, he described a structure based on multiple small, semi-autonomous teams integrated within a broader ecosystem.

On the subject of technology, Bjelajac offered a pragmatic analysis of blockchain and Web3 systems. He acknowledged blockchain’s capacity to support decentralized, fault-tolerant architectures but suggested that future advancements may offer alternative methods for achieving similar goals. The underlying emphasis was on system resilience, data integrity, and distributed control as guiding principles for future internet infrastructure.

Discussing innovation strategy, Bjelajac outlined a volume-based approach to experimentation, involving broad initial exploration followed by rapid elimination of unproductive directions. This methodology, in his view, supports more effective resource distribution while preserving adaptability to emerging trends.

Leadership dynamics were also addressed, particularly the progression from technical roles to positions of strategic oversight. Bjelajac noted that such transitions require adjustments in mindset and skillset, especially within rapidly evolving technical fields. He also commented on generational factors in technology adoption and innovation culture.

Regarding NFTs, Bjelajac described their current role as culturally driven, primarily associated with digital art. He indicated potential long-term applications in areas such as supply chain transparency, though he noted that these developments may take several years to materialize.

The interview presents Bjelajac’s personal interpretation of various factors influencing technology development and venture strategy. His views highlight the relationship between organizational design, technological adaptability, and structured decision-making in high-variability environments. ^[8]