Business Review Issue 20/2012 June 4 - 10

Employment: Irina Petrescu, Gi Group lawyer, urged Romanian workers to change their mentality regarding temporary work, while speaking to an audience of market players at Business Review’s Focus on Employment event last week »page 6

TAX EVASION

POOR COLLECTION, VAT FRAUD AND UNOFFICIAL LABOR LIE BEHIND THE COUNTRY’S HIGH RATE OF FISCAL EVASION, SAY LOCAL TAX SPECIALISTS

ROMANIA’S PREMIERE BUSINESS WEEKLY

June 4 - 10, 2012 / VOLUME 16, NUMBER 20

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UNCORKING GROWTH NEWS

NEWS

TALENT

FILM

Palatial project

Just what the doctor ordered?

Stress test

Chasing Jason

Work-life balance – what is it? Do you have it? And how can you get it? Experts share their insight with Business Review » page 12

Hard man Jason Statham is pursued by gangsters in generic action flick Safe, where there is no danger of having to think » page 13

Palas Iasi, the most expensive Romanian real estate development outside Bucharest, opened its doors last week » page 4

The e-prescription system has come into force – but some players say local physicians are not ready » page 5

Courtesy of Cramele Recas

After a couple of sour years, the local wine market has a nose for profit as exports rise and Romanian drinkers continue to choose posh plonk for their tables »pages 10-11

www.business-review.ro Business Review | June 4 - 10, 2012

NEWS 3

NEWS in brief term as minister, in May 1999, November 1999 and April 2000, Muresan issued several reports granting the Constanta county-based company SC Sun Oil SRL Râmnicul de Jos a loan of 5,000 tons of oil from the state reserve. The investigators established that the three defendants caused damages of nearly ROL 30 million to the Ministry of Agriculture.

ENERGY E.ON to invest RON 350 mln in Romania this year German utility provider E.ON will invest RON 350 million (around EUR 78 million) in upgrading the gas and power distribution networks in 2012 and may also open a business service center in ClujNapoca that will create 600 jobs. The company plans to invest RON 180 million (EUR 40 million) this year in the gas network and RON 156 million (EUR 35 million) in power infrastructure. It will modernize 160 km of the gas network in ClujNapoca through to 2015 at a cost of RON 90 million (EUR 20 million). In Iasi, the utility provider wants to extend the gas network by 4 km and modernize 1 km, and will also develop the power infrastructure for RON 7.8 million (EUR 1.7 million).

HEALTH Healthcare Ministry and pharma industry form clawback workgroup The Healthcare Ministry has set up a working group that comprises public authorities and pharma industry representatives to provide a new clawback taxation mechanism by June 15. The workgroup includes members of the Ministry of Public Finance, Ministry of Healthcare, the national insurance house CNAS, as well as the association of international pharmaceuticals producers (ARPIM) and the association of generic pharmaceuticals producers (APMGR). The clawback tax is now on its third version since 2009 and represents 33.6 percent of the total subsidized sales of pharmaceuticals.

HR Manpower: Nearly half of Romanian bosses find it hard to fill key positions Nearly half of employers in Romania (45 percent) are finding it difficult to find suitable candidates for key positions in their organization, which is above the global average, according to a survey by Manpower Group concerning the deficit of talent.

The positions that are the most difficult to fill include engineers, skilled workers, and sales representatives.

INDUSTRY ArcelorMittal Galati invests EUR 8 million in support equipment Steel mill ArcelorMittal Galati has invested EUR 8 million in an overhead crane and new support beams at the Steel Melting Shop (SMS), which has a transportation capacity of 300 tons and is now operational. The project is part of a larger modernization program at the Galati SMS that includes the replacement of the old support beams and the power supply system.

REAL ESTATE Cinema multiplex to open in Cocor by yearend

PICTURE of the week ‘Stop horsing around with our money’: animal owners protest A couple of ponies, several goats, one horse and a cow were paraded on the sidewalk in front of the Ministry of Agriculture as participants in a meeting organized by the Association For Preventing Fiscal Abuses, last week. Garbis Kehaiyan, owner of an animal farm near Bucharest and president of the association, led the protest in front of the Agency of Payments and Intervention for Agriculture (APIA) against the misuse of EU funds for pastures by local mayoralties. The funds – around EUR 300 per hectare – end up going to the local administration, instead of getting to the animal owners, says Kehaiyan.

MACRO S&P keeps Romania’s BB+ rating on stable outlook Ratings firm Standards & Poor’s affirmed last Friday its BB+/B long- and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings for Romania. The agency says that the macroeconomic figures are starting to improve, although low prosperity and the exposure to foreign parent banks may threaten the economy. GDP is expected to grow by 1.2 percent and should increase by an annual average rate of 3.5 percent in the medium term, supported by the increased use of EU funds and a recovery in foreign direct investment.

X-TB: RON/EUR to remain at 4.55-4.57 until yearend The RON/EUR exchange rate will close the year at 4.55-4.57, if Greece remains in the Euro zone, said Claudiu Cazacu, chief analyst at X-Trade Brokers, last week. On Tuesday, the rate stood at 4.4639. The RON has depreciated by 1 percent since the start of May and has fallen by 3.2 percent in the year to date.

MEDIA Telecom sector is top online ad investor The telecom sector invested the most in

online advertising last year, followed at a safe distance by the financial and car sectors. The online advertising market in Romania reached RON 91.8 million (EUR 21.7 million) last year, according to the most recent Romanian Online Advertising Study carried out by IAB Romania and PwC Romania. The value of the online advertising market in the second half of 2011 grew by 8.8 percent compared to Q1, 2011, but was down by 5.6 percent compared to Q2, 2010.

Social networks can change your brain, survey finds A possible connection has been traced between the number of friends a person has on social networks and certain parts of the brain, according to a survey carried out by BUPA International and released on the Romanian market by MediHelp International. More precisely, it was discovered that people who have many friends on Facebook have more grey matter in three parts of the brain, responsible for memory, balance and the visual sense.

POLITICS Former minister of agriculture sentenced to seven years Former minister of agriculture Ioan Avram Muresan was sentenced to seven years in prison for embezzlement. The sentence cannot be appealed. During his

The fifth floor of the Cocor store in downtown Bucharest will host a cinema multiplex, which will be opened by the end of this year, Cocor representatives have announced. The cinema will have five screens. The move is part of a plan to modernize the store by adding a 3,000sqm entertainment area which will be located on the fifth floor. In addition to the cinema, it will also feature a food court, a play area, bowling alleys and billiards.

SOCIAL UNICEF: A quarter of Romanian children are poor Over a quarter of the children in Romania are living below the poverty threshold, according to a report by UNICEF. The US is in the same situation, with 23.1 percent of children living in precarious conditions.

At the opposite pole is Iceland, where only 4.7 percent of children are ranked as poor. In France, the proportion is 8.8 percent of children, meaning 1.3 million, of whom half are living in inadequate conditions and approximately 20,000 do not have a stable home.

TELECOM PostMaster estimates 10 percent increase in turnover Romanian PostMaster, the largest private distributor of unaddressed mail and operator of private postal services, reported a net profit of RON 2.2 million (EUR 492 million) in 2011 and expects a similar result this year, while its turnover is expected to gain 10 percent to EUR 11 million in 2012. The company plans to invest EUR 1 million in acquiring transportation vehicles, software and sorting equipment.

NOD forecasts 25 percent share of laptop market Network One Distribution (NOD), formerly Asesoft Distribution, estimates it will maintain a 25 percent share of the local laptop market this year, similar to the figure in 2011. The company also announced that it was expecting a 10 percent growth in the sales of Dell laptops on the Romanian market this year, as a result of the increased demand from clients in the SME sector. Through its partnership with Dell, which started in 2008, NOD has sold approximately 100,000 Dell laptops, especially the Inspiron and XPS ranges.

www.business-review.ro Business Review | June 4 - 10, 2012

4 NEWS INSURANCE

REAL ESTATE

EUR 265 million Palas Iasi opens its doors

The EUR 265 million Palas Iasi complex took more than four years to build

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he most expensive local real estate project outside Bucharest, worth EUR 265 million, was opened last week in Iasi, eastern Romania. The Palas Iasi urban ensemble was developed and is owned by Iulius Group, controlled by local businessman Iulian Dascalu.

The project, which took more than four years to build, consists of a 54,200sqm shopping mall, three class A office buildings covering 20,000 sqm, a residential tower with 75 apartments, a future spa and two four-star hotels. The architectural ensemble brands itself as the first lifestyle center in Romania and has a total built surface of 270,000 sqm. It also features a five storey-underground parking lot and a multiplex operated by Village Cinemas which should be inaugurated in September. The project created some 4,000 jobs.

Palas Iasi is located in downtown Iasi and was developed through a publicprivate partnership with the local city council. As a novelty, the complex is anchored by a 50,000-sqm public garden, which required a EUR 2.5 million investment.

The facility includes a shopping street with 25 outlets and is located in the immediate neighborhood of the city’s flagship Palace of Culture.

Out of the entire investment required by the project, EUR 213.5 million took the form of loans from Unicredit Tiriac Bank, Emporiki Bank and Banca Italo-Romena.

Dascalu says the project is a long-term investment and estimates that the money will be recovered in about 15 to 20 years.

Palas Mall is the fifth shopping mall opened by Iulius Group. The other four, which are branded Iulius Mall, are located in Timisoara, Cluj-Napoca, Iasi

and Suceava. Last year the malls reported a combined turnover of EUR 41.4 million, down by about EUR 150,000 against the previous year.

The owner expects Palas Iasi to have traffic of 9 million visitors this year from Iasi and the entire Moldova region, and to report revenues of EUR 6.5 million, EUR 5 million coming from retail rents and the rest from the office segment.

Next year the figure should increase to EUR 12 million, with EUR 8.9 million being generated by retail rents.

As for future plans, Dascalu says he has no intention of selling any of the projects he owns and for now the priority will be to consolidate the business. Next year the businessman wants to invest EUR 12 million in the first phase of an office building in Cluj-Napoca near the mall he owns in the city.

Tenants in the Palas Mall include H&M, Massimo Dutti, Zara, Pull&Bear, Bershka, Stradivarius, Camaieu, Oysho, Tommy Hilfiger, Subway, C&A, Stefanel, Swarovski, New Look, Douglas, Humanic, LC Waikiki, Hervis Sports, Nikon – Yellow Store, Levi’s, Motivi, Oodji, L’Occitane, Sephora, Intersport, Ecco, Il Passo, Deichmann, Sony Center, KFC Drive Thru and Pizza Hut Deliver, among a total of 195 stores.

The complex’s grocery retailer is Auchan, which has opened its first local Auchan City hypermarket here with a sales area of 5,300 sqm. This is the retailer’s tenth local store.

Present at the opening event, Patrick Espasa, the general manager of Auchan Romania, reconfirmed the company’s plans to reach 15 outlets in 2015.

The next opening will be this year in Bucharest. ∫ Simona Bazavan

Omniasig VIG gross written premiums drop 18 percent in Q1

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mniasig Vienna Insurance Group’s (VIG) volume of gross written premiums fell by 18.8 percent to RON 282 (EUR 64 million) in the first quarter of this year due to underperforming sectors linked to insurance such as leasing, auto, banking and real estate, said company officials. The number of paid claims rose by 27 percent y-o-y to RON 282 million (EUR 64.3 million) in Q1.

Omniasig VIG is the company formed by the merger by absorption of Omniasig and BCR Asigurari, which was completed this May. The results in Q1 were drawn up from the two companies and the new insurer plans to reach RON 1.2 billion (EUR 268 million) in gross written premiums by yearend.

“The main objective of the new Omniasig firm is to reach and maintain the leading position on the general insurance market in Romania,” said Mihai Tecau, president of the Omniasig VIG directorate.

The company is managed through a dualist system that includes a supervisory board and a directorate.

Franz Fuchs, member of the managing board at VIG, said Romania remains a core market for the Austrian insurer, although the profit delivered today is lower than expected given the large investment made in the country. VIG holds a 30 percent market share in non-life and will reach 28 percent in life, according to Fuchs, who is also a member of the supervisory board at Omniasig VIG. VIG gross written premiums in Romania fell by 5 percent y-o-y to EUR 502.9 million in 2011, meaning a loss of EUR 12.8 million. In Q1 2012, the volume of gross writ-

Franz Fuchs, VIG board member ten premiums decreased by 7.4 percent yo-y to EUR 134.5 million, while losses amounted to EUR 2.7 million. Fuchs said the loss in Romania was part of a significant restructuring process that was started last year. VIG holds majority stakes in the newly merged Omniasig, BCR Asigurari de Viata and Asirom.

“The growth perspective in the country is still positive. There are undeveloped products in health insurance,” Fuchs told BR. He added that Romania doesn’t have a healthcare insurance market yet, but a big market of individuals and doctors managing their treatments.

The Romanian insurance market rose by 0.35 percent to RON 2.1 billion (EUR 479.5 million) in Q1, according to the Insurance Supervisory Commission (CSA).

Gross written premiums for general and life insurance stood at RON 7.9 billion (EUR 1.8 billion), according to the CSA.. ∫ Ovidiu Posirca

INVESTMENT

Bosch to invest EUR 120 million in Romania by 2013

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he German Bosch Group will invest EUR 120 million by 2013 in a new car component factory in Cluj and extending manufacturing facilities at its Blaj factory, almost doubling the number of employees to 2,000, after local sales rose 18 percent to EUR 188 million last year.

Bosch will make a EUR 77 million greenfield investment in the Cluj plant, covering 38,000 sqm. The production of electronic command units for the automotive industry will start in mid-2013 and employ 340 people in production and development. The plant will be expanded by 2018, when around 1,600 people will be working there. The firm will also produce speed sensors for the automotive industry in Blaj, following an investment of EUR 43 million, which will expand the Blaj factory by 21,000 sqm, adding new capacities.

Around 570 people currently work at the Blaj plant, which manufactures linear technology used in mechanical engineering.

Expansion works will add 300 jobs.

Building works at the Blaj center started in March and at the Cluj-Napoca plant in May. Romania has granted Bosch state aid to carry out the construction. The company said it wouldn’t have invested in

Romania without the state aid.

The auto industry generates around 60 percent of Bosch’s turnover in Romania and worldwide, according to Brigitte Eble, general director of Robert Bosch and group representative in Romania. The company estimates that sales in Romania will fall by 6 percent to EUR 176 million in 2012 due to Renault’s decision to move some processes to manufacturing lines to Russia and Morocco. Renault has a plant in Mioveni, Pitesti, where the Dacia model is produced.

“Renault hasn't built factories only in Romania, but has developed plants with some delay in Morocco and Russia. In the first stage only car components manufactured in Romania were assembled in these plants. In the second stage these factories were extended and technologically upgraded so those initial components didn’t need to be produced in Romania,” said Eble.

Bosch operates a BPO center in Timisoara, which has 580 employees. It is active in the small appliances market, industrial technology and construction equipment. The group’s worldwide sales amounted to EUR 51.5 billion in 2011, and it employs over 300,000 people. ∫ Ovidiu Posirca

www.business-review.ro Business Review | June 4 - 10, 2012

NEWS 5 RETAIL

HEALTHCARE

Electronic prescriptions trial begins

Bucharest has room for two more large shopping malls, says Sonae Sierra

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Prescriptive remedy: doctors are starting to use the new online service

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omania’s e-prescription service became operational at the start of this month for a trial period and will become compulsory in July. By the end of the year it will be working in parallel with offline prescription, the National House of Health Insurance has announced.

However, industry pundits question whether Romania is ready for e-prescription.

To begin with, e-prescription has some uncontestable advantages, in the view of some health pundits who discussed the issue at the seventh E-Health Congress in Bucharest.

One important benefit is that it acts as a system of checks and balances, cutting down on the high level of fraud that exists at the moment.

“Health money is not protected; there is currently no internal control system to stop fraud. False prescriptions and the reporting of false services amounts to EUR 400-500 million a year, and we must close this circle of fraud,” said Nicolae Lucian Duta, former president of the National House of Health Insurance.

He also pointed out that when the platform is fully functional, including the patient’s electronic file, “Romania will join the European countries with very up-todate e-health mechanisms.”

Another advantage is that “e-prescription could guide doctors when prescribing medicines,” indicated Adrian Pana, consultant for health policies. He cited the results of a study carried out in Western Romania which found that in 30 percent of prescriptions there was significant incompatibility among the prescribed medicines, while the doses were up to three times higher than allowed.

However, various questions have been raised regarding the ability of the system to perform, as well as the barriers that doctors will face along the way. In the first half of the year, the consumption of medication in Romania reached RON 2.93 billion.

This was up 21.6 percent against the same period of 2011, but down 12.7 percent on the second half of last year.

The consumption of pharmaceuticals in Romania is estimated to see an 8.9 percent growth this year.

The question is whether e-prescription can deal with this volume?

“This IT system is ready to deal with tens of thousands of simultaneous sessions and see a doubling in its volume of activity, which we believe will happen over the next five years. This is a 21st-cen-

tury system and at least in the following period we do not expect it to need improvement,” said Dr. Dorin Ionescu, general manager of the National House of Health Insurance. He explained that the system was tested for 10,000 simultaneous users, which exceeds the current capacity of the health system and therefore there should be no problems related to its functioning.

But the simplest things could prove to be a burden. More than one third of family doctors are working in rural Romania and lack access to the internet. Out of 12,000 family doctors in Romania, 3,800 have their practices in villages, some of which lack access to the internet and even electricity, which could impede the implementation of e-prescription.

Doctors in these areas will be able to use offline reporting, Ionescu said. In the meantime, the government is striving to bring broadband internet to all city halls.

Moreover, e-prescription will generate supplementary expenses for family doctors – connected to the price of the internet subscription and the acquisition of a printer and the necessary stationary items – pointed out Sandra Adalgiza Alexiu, secretary of the National Association of Family Medicine.

The necessary investment could amount to over RON 500, and it is not yet clear which funds will cover it, she said.

Additionally, if family doctors do not comply with e-prescription, they will get a warning in the first month, while the next month, their monthly bonus of RON 100 will be cut by 10 percent, and they must pay for the prescriptions they have issued from their own pockets.

“On the other hand, the CNAS does not pay any penalties if the system is not working,” pointed out Alexiu.

Even though, she said, she agrees with the introduction of e-prescription, doctors should be “encouraged to implement this project, since sanctions defy common sense. When this system was introduced in the United States, doctors adhered to it gradually, and while penalties existed, they amounted to 1.5 percent of the doctor’s salary,” she added.

The IT system was the work of Siveco Romania and is part of an integrated platform which also includes the patient’s electronic card. The entire system cost about EUR 9 million and was financed from non-reimbursable European funds. ∫ Otilia Haraga

omania is expected to extend its existing GLA (Gross Lettable Area) by about 300,000 sqm to a total of roughly 3.3 million sqm this year, but, even so, its shopping center penetration lags far behind the European average, according to the Success Formulas for Shopping Centers in Romania report, put together by PwC and Sonae Sierra Romania.

“Romania does have room for more shopping malls. If you compare Bucharest with cities like Warsaw, it is far behind them in terms of retail stock. There is room for two more large malls and smaller neighborhood ones in the capital,” said Ingo Nissen, managing director of Sonae Sierra Romania. And Bucharest is not alone. There are other cities in Romania with potential for shopping center development such as Timisoara, Sibiu and Brasov, while others like Arad and Iasi are saturated. Overall, investments in retail space will intensify over the next five years, he thinks.

The European market suggests that there is a strong correlation between a country’s GDP and its GLA, with countries with higher GDP per capita also having a higher shopping center penetration. Romania ranks 12th in Europe in terms of expected growth of retail space, but only 27th in terms of available shopping center space per 1,000 inhabitants, which reflects a still very low degree of modern

shopping center space penetration, according to the PwC and Sonae Sierra analysis.

The report argues that even at the current GDP level, the GLA per capita is somewhat lower in Romania than it should be. This means that the overall medium- and long-term potential is even bigger, because of the expected gradual alignment of its GDP with peer countries.

The local mall market continues to be in an “opening” phase and as a result remains very fragmented. The report shows that out of 40 top-ranking shopping centers analyzed, 5 account for approximately 38 percent of the total turnover, but only for 21 percent of the GLA. Moreover, the largest share of modern retail space in Romania – about half – is located in Bucharest.

According to the report, the decisive criteria in differentiating best in class from the average pool of shopping centers are professional management, the completeness and diversity of the tenant mix and marketing and online presence.

Competition has been historically low, ensuring financial success in most cases, despite a relatively low focus on relevant success criteria such as location, accessibility for all means of transport, tenant mix, management experience, catering and leisure components and marketing. ∫ Simona Bazavan

www.business-review.ro Business Review | June 4 - 10, 2012

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Employers need to show flexibility on tough market The new government has made a commitment to create 1 million new jobs in Romania, in line with European directives that stipulate certain targets for member states. Pundits at the Business Review event Focus on Employment discussed relevant issues such as changes to the legal framework, taxation, temporary work and layoffs. ∫ OTILIA HARAGA

All photos: Mihai Constantineanu

In looking at the 1 million figure, one must take into consideration that this government has “a limited term but a great deal of obligations,” said Iolanda Staniloiu, spokesperson for the Ministry of Labor, adding that the new executive must also respect the pledges Romania took before financial institutions. “There cannot be a huge amount of changes during this short term of six months. This is why making very big promises would be irresponsible.”

As for the ministry of which she spoke on behalf, Staniloiu said it has experienced “one of the highest turnovers of ministers of all and this has made its mark on its policies.”

Under the strategy Europe 2020 to which Romania has signed up, the country must reach an employment rate of 65 percent in 2013, and 70 percent in 2020.

To reach this target, the Ministry of Labor is working on a national plan for jobs.

A first draft has already reached the ministry, and in a relatively short time span – it could be a week or a month – it will be put up for public debate, said Staniloiu.

Pundits present at the Focus on Employment event agreed that the labor market will suffer various changes ranging from the modifications that will be made to the Labor Code to the way Romanians view the concept of temporary work.

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Temporary measures According to Irina Petrescu, lawyer at GI Group, temporary work has been seen locally as the leasing of personnel. Moreover, she added, it is also confused with contracts that are signed for a limited timeframe.

“Romanians must change their mentalities when it comes to temporary work.

Most employees want to sign an indefinite work contract,” said Petrescu. In other countries, temporary work is very widely used, since it is an instrument that is much more flexible and beneficial for the employer. “In the United States, the mentality is totally different: today you work in one place, tomorrow in another.”

France is another of the countries that make extensive use of temporary work, according to Marilena Balabuti, chief officer in the legislation department at the Territorial Labor Inspectorate (ITM) Bucharest.

The Labor Code bends to the view of the Romanian employee and stipulates the possibility of indefinite work contracts between the prospective employee and temporary work agents. The banking sector is the field that makes the greatest use of temps. However, paradoxically, there

1. Panel members at Focus on Employment 2. Iolanda Staniloiu, spokesperson for the Ministry of Labor 3. Madalina Balan, managing partner, HART Human Resource Consulting 4. Mitel Spataru, tax manager, FinExpert 5. Irina Petrescu, lawyer, Gi Group 6. Andrei Brasoveanu, managing partner, Ciurtin Brasoveanu & Partners 7. Marilena Balabuti, chief officer legislation department, ITM Bucharest were voices at the event that complained that temporary employees find it harder to secure a bank loan.

One of the reasons for the banks’ reticence is that “since 2003, the banking system has seen the highest growth rate of fraud in history,” said Andrei Brasoveanu, managing partner at Ciurtin Brasoveanu & Partners. “For this reason, no bank will consider a contract as sufficient proof; they will ask for additional documents.”

The annual growth in the amount of work-related litigation over the past three years has been 15-20 percent, said Brasoveanu.

He rejected the rumors on the market that when employees take action against their employers in a court of law, they always win as “mere myth.” “From my personal experience, I can say the success rate of employees who sue their employers is 60 percent. This only goes to

show that 40 percent of employers make redundancies without being sufficiently prepared and cautious enough to respect the law,” added Brasoveanu.

He said the Labor Code spelt out all the necessary steps an employer must take when making people redundant.

Some of the most frequent mistakes bosses make include not communicating the layoff decision to the employee, not informing the employees of the essential conditions of the labor contract, not mentioning that employees have the right to contest the decision in court, not respecting the legal notice period or the terms of the collective layoff procedure and others.

The domains that offer the most opportunities for retraining include agriculture, following the back-to-basics trend, says Mirela Iordan, human resources director at Pfizer Romania. However, it is

also true that the top management in companies is not very open to hiring retrained personnel since they seek specialized and experienced workers. Meanwhile, an employee who starts a job in a new field sometimes recalibrates his or her salary package.

Work in Romania is taxed at a rather high level, this is why some companies prefer to use PFA (sole trader) contracts or civil contracts, said Mitel Spataru, tax manager at FinExpert. However, in some situations this is risky, so he urged employers to pay close attention and make sure these types of contracts are appropriate for the respective work relation.

Stanton Chase survey: Profitability - best way to rate top sales execs Responsiveness to and the ability to keep up with the fast changing demands of the

www.business-review.ro Business Review | June 4 - 10, 2012

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7 2 PARTNER CONTENT

Are the banks financing “green” projects?

Almost never, without PPA contracts

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1. Dr. Mirela Iordan, Human Resources Director, Pfizer Romania 2. Charlie Crocker, managing partner Gi Group 3. Irina Petrescu, lawyer, Gi Group 4. Camelia Maria, team leader personnel administration, Vodafone Romania qualities such as attention to detail, a commercial approach and emotional intelligence were cited by 14 percent of respondents.

Shortage of talent in sales is most obvious when firms are seeking to fill customer relationship management positions (18 percent of cases), category management (17 percent) and key account management (16 percent). Next come positions in logistics/supply chain (13 percent) and customer service (13 percent) as well as trade marketing (12 percent) and export sales (10 percent).What the top management of an organization values the most in salespeople is the ability to increase sales (27 percent) and ensure high margins (25 percent).

Things such as developing a portfolio of value-added products and services (14 percent), expanding the customer base (14 percent), ensuring targeted leadership of the sales team (13 percent) and attracting the right talent (6 percent) are considered secondary. Organizations seek leadership, integrity, planning and organizing from their top sales executives.

To conclude, most top sales executives are somewhat optimistic when it comes to employment prospects over the next year (58 percent of cases) while 32 percent are optimistic and 10 percent are not at all optimistic. Furthermore, 52 percent of respondents feel their role will be strengthened in the current financial climate, 32 percent believe it will not be affected and only 16 percent think it will be weakened.

Some 42 percent of respondents expect Romania to see the first signs of economic recovery in 12 months while 35 percent believe it will come over the next 24 months.

otilia.haraga@business-review.ro

“Are the banks really financing green investments nowadays?”

“Only a small number of them” is the answer. Bankers are defensive, for several different reasons and if a “green” investor goes to a bank today, he will have to be ready for: l Financing between 50 and 70% of the total project value (LTV). l A special 10 – 15% guarantee for the construction period or other types of guarantees (there is a solution for this). l Questions regarding the expertise of the EPC, the quality of materials etc. l Control of every detail pertaining to his project. l (The most important of all) PPA contracts for at least 5 years, in order for the bank to secure a stable income in the years to come.

Even if you agree with all their demands and your project is perfect, without a PPA you will find it almost impossible to proceed (except if you provide other guarantees).

Are the bankers to blame for this approach? Not really. After their experience with previous investment sectors, they want to be 100% sure that they will not finance projects that will simply… increase their portfolio of non-performing loans.

No financing for “hopes” and “estimations” If you want to create a firm business plan for your investment, you need to answer this simple question: “What is the guarantee that your cash flow will be exactly the one you mention in your plan?” If the reply starts with “I am hoping that”, “I think …” or “I estimate…”, it will not even be taken into consideration.

The only firm solution to this problem is to sign Power Purchase Agreements for the energy you will produce and also similar contracts for your green certificates.

In Real Estate we would call them “forward purchase agreements”, as you enter into an agreement with a big company in advance that it will buy your energy and green certificates once they are available.

Is it simple to find them?

In theory it is not. There are companies that do this, so you can go and talk to them. But the reality is always different. There are so many parameters to take into consideration, with the main one being: Do you assume a level of risk, in order to maximize your potential income, or do you go for the safest (but with a lower price) solution?

Your bank will prefer the safest option, but this means that you will not get the “super high prices” you expect (and several people promised to you). At this stage you will have to choose: Will you go for a fixed (and still very good) income and receive financing or assume the risk to get a higher price, risking a negative answer from your bank?

PPA contracts: The “go / no go” element of your investment If you want financing, you need to find PPA contracts. Even if everything else is perfect, this will be the “go / no go” element that will determine the future of your project and whether it will be constructed or not.

These agreements have many advantages. They will protect not only the bank, but also yourself from future negative surprises.

PS. My company facilitates the finding of a proper PPA contract and it represents several investors in this segment. There is a range of prices but nothing “fixed for everyone”. Everything is customized according to many different parameters.

Ilias Papageorgiadis CEO of MORE Green Energy info@more-group.eu

ADVERTORIAL

marketplace are the top priorities of sales executives at the moment, according to a national sales survey for 2012 released by Stanton Chase during the Business Review Focus on Employment event last week.

More than 210 senior executives across all sectors responded to the questionnaire, regarding the conditions and challenges in this volatile job market.

The survey, entitled The Employment Reality for Sales Executives in Romania, indicates that top executives in this domain feel they have been most affected in recent years by competition pressures (in 34 percent of cases), globalization of the supply chain (23 percent) and globalization of the consumer market (23 percent), while saying they were least affected by technological advancement (20 percent).

Furthermore, respondents to the survey feel the effectiveness of a top sales executive can be measured by his or her degree of profitability (25 percent), the sales alignment with the business strategy (23 percent) and customer satisfaction (22 percent), and to a lesser extent by revenues (12 percent) and the increase of sales (11 percent).

In order for a top sales executive to be successful, he or she must have, first of all, strategic and customer orientation, while attributes such as results orientation and strong product background plus marketing comprehension and previous experience are deemed less important.

The must-have qualities a top sales executive should posses in order to achieve success are superior communication, listening and negotiation skills (as indicated by 27 percent of respondents), confidence, commitment and ability to work in high-pressure situations (21 percent) and margin control best mix for business and consumer (20 percent). Complementary

As hundreds of investors are checking the possibility of investing in the Romanian Renewable Energy sector, the most important challenge they have to face is the fiIlias Papageorgiadis nancing of their projects. And the question I constantly hear is…

www.business-review.ro Business Review | June 4 - 10, 2012

8 MONEY

Fiscal evasion remains interminable issue in Romania Poor tax collection, VAT fraud and unreported labor are the main causes of fiscal evasion in Romania, which is set to reach EUR 18 billion this year, or 15 percent of GDP. So say specialists including representatives of the Ministry of Public Finance and the National Bank of Romania. BR asked the experts how this long-standing problem can be remedied.

∫ OVIDIU POSIRCA Romania has a low tax collection rate of 32 to 33 percent of GDP, which is 10 percent below the EU average due to the complexity of the tax system and the compliance burden that makes investors avoid the country, while local players turn to tax planning and (lawful) tax avoidance schemes and tax evasion, according to Daniel Anghel, partner, fiscal consultancy at PwC Romania.

Romania ranks 154th for time spent paying taxes as it takes 222 hours per year to make 113 payments, according to the 2012 Doing Business Report by the World Bank and IFC. The tax to GDP in Romania is around 27 percent, which is the lowest in the EU apart from Latvia and comparable to Slovakia and Bulgaria, according to Alin Chitu, tax senior manager at Tuca Zbarcea & Asociatii. He adds that around one quarter of the total tax revenue comes from VAT, while social contributions account for 35 percent.

"As estimation, probably the tax evasion accounts for around percent of GDP if we compare the tax to GDP ratio in Romania with EU 27 average and adjust the result with fact that the level of direct taxes is among the lowest in Romania," explained Chitu.

The national fiscal administration agency, ANAF, whose remit it is to tackle fiscal evasion, is fighting on two fronts: addressing areas prone to fiscal evasion such as agri-food, tobacco, alcohol and oil products, while modernizing its own structure, which is vulnerable to corruption.

Taxman mans up Serban Popa was appointed president of ANAF this April and set as the main priority the fight against powerful tax-evading groups with financial muscle that can wield influence in the higher ranks of ANAF. “The fight with these groups is a priority. We will restructure the agency to face these challenges,” said Popa.

The World Bank will grant a EUR 75 million loan to support the modernization of ANAF through to 2016. Restructuring the fiscal authority at a regional level and improving the quality of its employees are some of the key objectives, along with upgrading the IT&C infrastructure.

The fiscal agency, which had 27,026 employees in December 2011, administers 7.95 million taxpayers, out of which 6.2 million were individuals.

The largest share of employees is included in the fiscal administration, while

Alin Chitu, tax senior manager, Tuca Zbarcea & Asociatii Tax

Ramona Jurubita, tax partner, KMPG

Daniel Anghel, partner, fiscal consultancy, PwC Romania

the customs authority and the financial guard have a combined 4,000 people.

There are on average 294 taxpayers for one ANAF employee. The agency has been restructured, shedding 13.6 percent of employees since 2008. However, the budgetary revenue collected rose by 10.7 percent to RON 157.5 billion (EUR 37.1 billion) in 2011, which is 28.8 percent of GDP. Sums and assets seized by the fiscal controller amounted to EUR 66 million (15.2 million) last year, in sectors with high risk of evasion such as intra-communitary transactions, tobacco products and cereals. Losses in the monitored sectors amounted to RON 1.1 billion (EUR 294 million).

ANAF was urged by former PM Mihai Razvan Ungureanu to curb fiscal evasion by at least 1.5 percent of GDP in 60 days, and Sorin Blejnar, head of the authority, was fired after reporting he had managed to collect only EUR 850 million, which is 1 percent of GDP. Depoliticizing ANAF and naming the president of the agency in a similar way to the appointment of the central bank governor and investing him or her with equivalent power could develop the professional body, according to Chitu of Tuca Zbarcea & Asociatii Tax. “From our discussions with tax inspectors we understand that their salaries were reduced by 50 to 60 percent and that the remuneration scheme does not allow incentives for high performers. Thus from a personal perspective it may be argued that the tax inspectors do not have the

proper motivation to tackle fraud,” said Chitu.

food is sold without invoices: bread, milk, meat,” PM Victor Ponta said last week in a broadcasted appearance. Officials say this would reduce VAT fraud in the sector by 20 percent and increase budget revenues by 35 percent or EUR 350 million.

Fiscal evasion is widely found in the FMCG sector, especially in the fruit and vegetable trade, tobacco and alcoholic beverages, and the unjustified increase in VAT boosted evasion, according to Ionut Bohalteanu, partner at law firm Musat & Asociatii – Tax Advisory. He argues for the continuous training of fiscal inspectors and ANAF employees and the establishment of clearer fiscal legislation, which prevents “creative” interpretations, as well making the fiscal amnesty fully functional, as ways to bring tax evasion down.

“VAT evasion is found mainly in the construction sector, it used to be found in transactions with grain, and it may appear in any chain transaction where more intermediaries are involved,” said Adrian Tempau, indirect tax manager (VAT) at Deloitte Tax. He added that transactions with intangibles are hard to prove as effectively rendered so the money can be moved into a loss-making entity or into an offshore account.

Lowering the paid taxes and setting up an integrated IT system that supports the electronic submission of all tax returns are some of the measures to tackle evasion put forward by Tempau.

Chitu of Tuca Zbarcea & Asociatii Tax said that enlarging the VAT reverse mechanism and increasing tax audits would increase tax collection, pointing to agricul-

High evasion on VAT ANAF collected RON 47.9 billion (around EUR 11 billion) from VAT last year, which is an increase of 22 percent on 2010. A recent study on taxation trends in the EU-27 found that only half of the theoretical VAT revenues were collected in member states in 2010, with Romania having the fifth lowest VAT revenue ratio of 43 percent, followed by Latvia, Spain, Italy and Greece.

VAT fraud stood at RON 17.8 billion (EUR 4.4 billion) in 2010, which was 3.6 percent of GDP, according to the think tank Fiscal Council.

Overall fiscal evasion from VAT, CAS (social contributions) and income tax stood at RON 53.6 billion (EUR 12.7 billion) which was 10.3 percent of GDP in 2010, while the gross added value in the unreported economy stood at RON 112 billion (EUR 26.7 billion), representing 21.5 percent of GDP. “Increasing VAT efficiency and broadening the VAT tax base, through the removal of exemptions and reduced rates currently applied to a wide range of goods and services, could substantially help increase revenues and reduce economic distortions in vulnerable economic sectors such as agriculture,” said the PwC partner.

Daniel Constantin, minister of agriculture and development, estimated tax evasion in the agricultural sector at EUR 2.5 billion.

“We want to oblige producers to issue invoices, because now 80 percent of the

www.business-review.ro Business Review | June 4 - 10, 2012

MONEY 9

Ionut Bohalteanu, partner, Musat & Asociatii – Tax Advisory

Raluca Bontas, senior manager global employment services, Deloitte Tax

Adrian Teampau, indirect tax manager (VAT), Deloitte Tax

ture and the processing sectors as areas with rampant evasion.

The reverse charge mechanism for cereals and other products brought additional resources of EUR 50 million to the public coffers last year.

Ramona Jurubita, tax partner at KPMG, said the Romanian tax authorities need to focus more heavily on collection and address taxpayers with a high risk of tax evasion, instead of targeting honest taxpayers to raise easy money for the budget.

“We have seen many cases where good taxpayers won in Court against the deci-

sions taken by the tax authorities and the state had to pay even higher amounts in damages,” said Jurubita.

since 2009, when Romania slipped into recession.

The fiscal evasion resulting from the avoidance of tax income and social security contributions (CAS) amounted to RON 30.8 billion (EUR 7.3 billion) in 2010, growing by 5.9 percent since 2009, or 30.2 percent since 2008, when Romania still had a booming economy.

Chitu of Tuca Zbarcea & Asociatii said reducing social contributions would be useful, but more jobs could become official if the taxable basis were capped at an acceptable level of three or four months’

Unreported labor bomb There were 6.6 million people working in Romania last year, but only 4.2 million were officially employed, while unregistered labor made up 35.3 percent of the market, according to the Fiscal Council.

The number of unreported workers increased by 4 percent year-on-year to around 2.3 million.

This figure has soared by 30 percent

minimum salary.

This year, the gross minimum wage is RON 700 (around EUR 161). A hike of 14 percent to around EUR 140 is planned for 2013.

“On one hand decreasing the level of social charges directly impacts the associated labor costs which obviously should no longer represent a rationale for illegal employment, particularly for entrepreneurs who struggle to keep their business running,” said Raluca Bonta, senior manager in global employer services at Deloitte Tax. Bohalteanu at Musat & Asociatii – Tax Advisory said the lowering of CAS alone would lead to the legal employment of unreported workers. Increasing fines for employees that don’t sign labor contracts and more efficient inspections by the labor authority (ITM) and of fiscal methodology are some of the solutions that could bring unreported labor down.

Romania enforced a new Labor Code last year that aims to bring more flexibility to employment relations. In addition, bosses that use informal unemployment can face one or two years in prison or criminal fines if they employ more than five people without legal contracts.

But there is a long way to go until the market gets back to where it was.

“One year after the entry into force of Romania’s new Labor Code, the economy has recovered only 100,000 jobs of the 650,000 or more lost during the crisis,” said Anghel at PwC.

ovidiu.posirca@business-review.ro

10 FOCUS

www.business-review.ro Business Review | June 4 - 10, 2012

Wine market to toast growth this year Following a couple of years which saw the local wine market shrink to about EUR 350 million, Romanian winemakers are more optimistic about 2012, forecasting a total growth of between 5 and 10 percent. Moreover, rising exports and an increase in local consumers’ appetite for premium varieties are further reasons for players to raise a glass to their future health. ∫ SIMONA BAZAVAN It is hard to sell quality Romanian wine abroad when so little is known about it or, even worse, it is often associated with a bad country image, complain local winemakers.

Nevertheless, in the past couple of years Romanian wine producers, especially the increasing number of newly established small wineries specialized in premium varieties, have had no choice but to turn to exports against a decreasing domestic market.

But now the situation is changing.

Local consumption is expected to pick up this year, in particular that of premium quality wine, producers agree, and Romanian winemakers are voicing bolder plans for exports.

“After two or three years during which the market was relatively flat, this year it will see a slight increase, generated, rather surprisingly, by the premium segment. The only segment where we don’t see a positive outlook is that of imports,” Ciprian Rosca, commercial director at Cramele Recas, told BR. Another local producer, Halewood Romania, estimates that the market reached some EUR 400 million in 2011 and this year it will grow by between 5 and10 percent. “We expect to see an increase in consumers’ preference for quality wines,” Adriana Grecu, marketing and export director of Cramele Halewood, told BR. However, not everyone agrees that 2012 will turn out to be a year of growth for the local wine industry. “I personally believe that the Romanian wine market is dropping in both value and volume. The good news is that the premium segment is growing,” Aurelia Visinescu, co-owner of Domeniile Sahateni, told BR, adding that despite this outlook, her firm hopes to see a 60 percent increase in the value of sales this year.

“What we’re seeing is a migration of consumers from the mainstream segment to the low end following the decrease in purchasing power. At the same time there has been an increase in premium consumption as consumers mature,” she added.

Romanians acquire a nose for premium wine An important change last year was that while, overall, Romanian consumers didn’t spend more on wine than in 2010, more of them chose quality products,

Grape expectations: winemakers are optimistic about the prospects of premium varieties said representatives of the Vine and Wine National Employers’ Union (PNVV). According to the PNVV, in 2011 Romanian winemakers reported sales increases of between 9 and 20 percent for wines priced above RON 12 (approximately EUR 2.8) per 0.75 liter bottle.

And this trend is expected to continue throughout 2012, producers say.

The most encouraging signs come from the premium segment, stressed Rosca. In his opinion, this is only normal as local consumers are reaching a certain maturity and are refining their choices.

Moreover, in recent years wine has been getting more attention.

Specialized events dedicated to its promotion are being organized, such as wine tastings supervised by sommeliers and food and wine pairings, which contributes to the popularity of premium wines among local drinkers, he said.

As for premium wines’ share of the total market, if defined as those varieties priced between RON 40 and RON 75 per 0.75 liter bottle, then their share represents less than 5 percent of the entire market, while the super-premium segment of wines priced above RON 70 is insignificant, said Rosca.

“The number of wine consumers has gone up and they are more preoccupied by the quality of the wine they drink and are becoming more selective. While a few years back, imported varieties were most popular, now demand for Romanian premium wines has gone up and so has the range,” Ioana Micu, executive manager of Amb Wine, which has recently launched the Liliac brand of premium wines, told BR. The Austrian investor is latest newcomer on the market and estimates sales of about EUR 180,000 for this year.

Romanian consumers are also beginning to show a clearer orientation towards brand and producer, said Grecu. “Semidry wines have gained ground against semi-sweet and sweet varieties. However, white wines continue to be preferred.

Last year Romanian drank more quality wines, which leads us to believe that the trend will continue in 2012,” she added.

Uncorking external markets Romania has the required ingredients to brand itself and become globally known as a wine producer, but has so far failed to do so. However, this has begun to change in the past few years, albeit slowly and through the effort of individual producers rather than through a coherent national strategy in this direction.

“The general image abroad is that Romania produces cheap and bad quality

FOCUS 11

www.business-review.ro Business Review | June 4 - 10, 2012

wine. This may have been true some years ago but since then several smaller wineries have appeared that produce high quality varieties which can easily compete with wine produced by renowned wine-producing countries such as France, Italy and Spain,” Mircea Niculescu, sales director at WineRo, told BR. Foreign consumers generally expect Romanian wines to be cheap and of average quality but in spite of this, their reputation has certainly gone up in the past year, although not enough, said Micu.

“First of all it is important to start with promoting Romania as a wine-producing country, so we can then move on to promote regions and the individual producers there. As an individual brand it is very hard to enter foreign markets,” she said.

“Romanian wines are starting to enjoy greater fame abroad. I was quite surprised to discover how much the interest of importers in local varieties has grown.

This is the result of privatization in this industry, the considerable increase in quality following investments in both wineries and vineyards using EU funds,” explained Visinescu.

Among the hurdles to exporting she mentions the almost total lack of subsidy, both for production and for stimulating exports, from which many competing countries benefit, and also the lack of a coherent national strategy. “But probably the greatest setback is Romania’s negative image abroad, especially in Europe,” she stressed.

Despite these problems, and the fact that the domestic market is expected to grow, local producers say they want to intensify their international presence.

Domeniile Sahateni targets growth both on the internal market and

“The number of wine consumers has gone up and they are more interested in the quality of what they drink and more selective. While a few years back, imported varieties were most popular, now demand for Romanian premium wines has gone up” Ioana Micu, executive manager of Amb Wine of exports but estimates that, overall, exports will grow their share compared to last year and generate more than 50 percent of the company’s sales in 2012.

After having exported so far mainly to Asia and Europe, this year the company plans to enter the US market.

The winemaker reported a turnover of EUR 1.2 million last year and hopes to grow it to EUR 2 million in 2012.

Elsewhere, Cramele Recas estimates it will increase sold volumes on the local market by about 12 to 15 percent and post an even greater boost in exports.

Overall, exports will generate about 18 to 20 percent of the wine producer’s sales this year, 3 to 4 percent up on 2011, says the firm.

Over the coming years the company wants to boost exports to the USA and focus on the HoReCa segment in the UK. Cramele Recas reported a turnover of EUR 18 million last year, up 25 percent y-o-y, and hopes to see it rise by another 20 to 22 percent in 2012.

Halewood, meanwhile, plans to maintain a balance between exports and the internal market, but last year reported volume increases in the UK, Germany, China, Poland and Holland.

WineRo, which locally produces the Aliman wines and also imports the Enira brand produced in Bulgaria, released its first wines in 2009 and says that this year it will focus on extending its product portfolio on the domestic market and start exports. WineRo will also release a variety for the large retail networks. Amb Wine wants exports to make up 40 percent of its total sales within in the next few years, up from 25 percent this year.

All in all, the local wine industry has been getting a lot of attention in the past few years from local and foreign investors as well as high-profile local businesspeople like Jean Valvis. Even the central bank’s governor has set up a winery of his own.

How the mighty have fallen Despite the positive outlook, the economic context has taken its toll on the wine industry too. Murfatlar, the largest wine producer in Romania, entered voluntary insolvency this March.

The announcement came as a surprise but Murfatlar representatives said that the step was necessary due to cash flow problems.

“The main consequence of the slow financial recovery rate – a general characteristic of the business environment at present – is that it makes it difficult to pay off outstanding debts,” said Cosmin Popescu, the company’s GM. Popescu said the insolvency procedure would not affect the winemaker’s objectives and development plans. “Murfatlar Romania will develop its existing business lines, counting both on the development of the Crama Murfatlar network of wine stores, as well as the launch of new products,” he added.

After reporting RON 140 million (approximately EUR 33 million) of sales in 2010, Murfatlar saw its turnover hike to RON 180 million (approximately EUR 42.5 million) last year. The growth came from expanding the network of wine stores to 125 outlets.

This year, too, the company predicts its sales will go up. “We hope to surpass the RON 200 million benchmark. The growth will come from the maturing of the Crama Murfatlar network but also from another project which will bear fruit this year,” said the GM. Last year the company invested EUR 550,000 in opening a new winery for premium varieties which will bear the signature of Razvan Macici, a Romanian oenologist famous for being the cellar master of the Nederburg winery in South Africa.

Since 2007, Murfatlar has invested EUR 15.6 million, including EU funds, in replanting 975 hectares of grapevine.

EUR 2.1 million was spent last year, and another EUR 1.8 million will be invested this year – 20 percent of which will come from the company’s own funds.

simona.bazavan@business-review.ro

www.business-review.ro Business Review | June 4 - 10, 2012

12 TALENT

Romanians fight to attain work-life balance Achieving the elusive work-life balance has been a preoccupation of many workers in recent years. But how do we define what it is and, more important, how can we then achieve it? Business Review talked to specialists to find out. on the back of that with less effort than usual,” adds Burghel.

∫ ANDA SEBESI More and more businesspeople in Romania are saying that their work-life balance has improved, according to the work-life index launched by Regus this month. Although they are working harder than ever, people are enjoying their jobs and over 40 percent of respondents believe that they have enough time to spend at home or doing their own thing.

Researchers found that the local index posted an increase of 14 percent regarding work-life balance between 2010 and 2012 (to 116 at present, below the global average of 124). The study also found that the majority of employees enjoy their work more (79 percent) while 86 percent of them say that they achieve more at work than in 2010, confirming the connection between work-life balance and productivity.

The index measures job satisfaction indicators and respondents’ view of their general work-life balance along with current practices like working hours and commuting, as part of a global survey that was conducted on 16,000 professionals from more than 80 countries.

Experts say that companies that intend to retain and hire the best talent cannot afford to ignore the value of those elements that maintain work-life balance while the economy recovers and the labor market becomes more dynamic. In addition, many businesses now concentrate on results, which has made them reject traditional work practices in favor of increasing their efficiency by offering more flexibility to their employees. “Allowing employees to work in their preferred way is recognized as a significant additional factor in promoting productivity and wellness,” says Ramona Iacob, market team leader at Regus.

What is the work-life balance…?

Dana Burghel, executive, team coach and work-life balance coach at Oblio Learning, says that work-life balance is when you love your job and life partner equally. She thinks that the lack of such balance leads to 10-14 hours of work, the belief that there is never enough time, that you need to work harder and harder and you can see your family only at weekends.

“The line between work-life balance and a lack thereof is variable. The way we see this balance depends a lot on our interests, current preoccupations, life and stage of our development,” says Bianca Moraru Demeter, project manager at Professional. She adds that it is crucial for each of us to ask ourselves what we want to achieve and to consciously assume all

Crisis threatens the balance

Sleeping on the job: professional pressures often get on top of workers when you want a successful career and a perfect family life. “It is possible to do it but it is a temporary balance. As we change our perceptions of a successful career or a happy family we create a new definition of this balance,” says the Professional representative. She adds that work-life balance has a positive effect on one’s professional results and performance and also on family life. “This is an issue that has become a concern for companies too and some of them are trying to support their employees,” adds Demeter. She warns that work-life balance ...and how do we achieve it? supports performance as long as it doesThe first step in achieving work-life baln’t produce extensive inertia. “Many of us ance is to be aware of your current situthink that climbing the career ladder is ation. Everyone has the same amount of the only version of success and profestime; it is the energy we invest that difsional and financial satisfaction. We can’t ferentiates us from others. “Working ignore that family problems affect our with athletes in coaching programs I noprofessional performances and we can’t ticed that it is crucial to manage your own forget that the time invested in achieving energy. If you manage to understand career or financial objectives affects our and be more careful at your body you will personal life,” adds Demeter. have better results with less effort,” says Elsewhere, Burghel thinks that workBurghel. In her opinion another step is to life balance improves both the professtart to learn how to use the “stop” button and stop using the “fast forward” sional and personal life. “Although it may seem that we are giving less at work, one. “Achieving balance requires us to often ‘less is more’. We are less stressed consider all the aspects of our lives: and more attentive, involved and cheerphysical, mental, emotional and spirituful,” she says. In her opinion, such a balal. I always start in work-life balance ance helps free us of perception that programs (and not only them) with an analysis of the current situation of all “time passes too quickly”, when we realize that instead of time, energy is our these areas in order to see where we need to change something,” says Burghel. most precious resource. “Results go from less stress and better communication to Specialists say that it is very difficult achieved or exceeded business goals and to achieve a perfect work-life balance the risks and consequences of our decision. “A significant issue is to avoid absolute parameters. Setting the balance often depends on the way we understand the terms ‘perfect’, ‘good’ or ‘satisfying’.

Achieving the perfect work-life balance is an ongoing process and we must not forget that performance, in one’s personal and professional life, involves both advantages and disadvantages. Often we tend to focus solely on absolute advantages,” says Demeter.

The current economic crisis has influenced people’s work-life balance a lot by creating an emotional and mental imbalance. Thoughts like “I could lose my job” or “I could lose my customers” have an impact on all areas of life. “I noticed that this downturn has driven us toward two ‘extremes’. Either it bedeviled us so we care so much about our job or business that we can’t place store in people, or it oriented us toward family, personal development courses, coaching or a much better job,” says Burghel.

Generally promotion comes with more responsibilities at work, managing teams and more complex objectives to achieve. These involve more time spent at work and can make it difficult to switch off at home. “From this perspective we can say that managers are more exposed to potential imbalance. However this can also happen to someone who holds an executive position and wants to distinguish him or herself,” adds the Professional representative.

The entrepreneur’s perspective For Florin Scarlat, general manager at Bit Solutions, work-life balance is when you are in one of the two states and you are completely dedicated to it. This means that when you are with your family work comes second, and while you are at work you operate at maximum efficiency. “I am an entrepreneur and I have a very stressful life from all perspectives. Generally in business and especially in entrepreneurship if you don’t manage to step outside your problems they will overcome you and you won’t be able to move on,” says Scarlat. He adds that while at first it was very hard for him to find a work-life balance, in time he understood that he needed to delegate more.

But Daniela Tudor, chief inspired officer at Buticul de Inspiratie, argues that it is difficult to separate the professional and personal very clearly when you do things that you like. “From this perspective I don’t think that this makes sense when you are an entrepreneur because business is part of your personal life,” says Tudor. She adds that she has managed to achieve a work-life balance through a necessary yet difficult process of introspection. “I don’t believe in the ‘I don’t have time’ excuse. We all have the same time but the challenge is to decide what you do with it,” she concludes.

anda.sebesi@business-review.ro

www.business-review.ro Business Review | June 4 - 10, 2012

CITY 13

FILM REVIEW

Safe ∫ DEBBIE STOWE Director: Boaz Yakin Starring: Jason Statham, Catherine Chan On at: Cinema City Cotroceni, Cinema City Sun Plaza, Grand Cinema Digiplex Baneasa, Hollywood Multiplex, Movieplex Cinema, The Light Cinema One of those facts that sometimes come up in the news that prove that we are truly going to hell in a handcart is this: films starring Jason Statham have taken a billion dollars at the box office. What a frightening comment on our values.

No doubt set to dump more piles of cash onto the heap is action flick Safe, in which Jason portrays a philosophy professor with self-esteem issues… okay, you got me. He actually plays a former NYPD cop turned cage fighter. But this Raging Bull of our times is robbed of everything he has in revenge by a violent gambling syndicate after he fails to fix a fight as agreed and is now living rough on the mean streets of New York.

Meanwhile, Chinese Triads have kidnapped an 11-year-old Chinese math prodigy (no racial stereotyping there) so she can

A Safe pair of hands: if you need a movie hard man, Jason’s your billion-dollar man

remember safe (take note) codes without the Triads having to risk writing them down. But Russian gangsters are trying to kidnap her too to get the codes for themselves. And corrupt NYPD cops are also trying to get hold of the poor kid, to prevent a turf war that will create problems for the mayor who’s paying them off. Or something.

Listen, it’s real simple. We know the Chinese are bad because they wantonly kill

people, and of course because they’re Chinese. We know the Russians are bad because they wantonly kill people, and of course because they’re Russian. And we know the corrupt cops are bad because they wantonly kill people and – as it could get confusing otherwise – because the screenwriter has them say racist things like “that chink girl” and “they all look the same to me”.

Boo!And we know that Jason is great because, deploying an accent that’s Brooklyn meets Basildon, he shoots, punches and chops those shifty Easterners into kingdom come to try and protect the 11-year-old Chinese math prodigy.

In case it’s too subtle for you, there are extra loud sound effects of Chinese/Russian bones snapping and death grunts in Chinese/Russian accents to make things clear.

And important plot points are also repeated two or three times to make sure they don’t get past the audience. Example: gangster who has just killed Jason Statham’s wife and is planning to frame him for the murder: “You killed your wife. I didn’t kill her. You killed her.” Okay, thank you screenwriter. We understand the point you are trying to make. We may have helped Jason Statham make a billion dollars for big studios but we’re not entirely brainless.

So, we’ve got dozens if not hundreds of brutal murders, a plotline that a child – and not necessarily an 11-year-old Chinese math genius, a normal child – could predict and Jason playing the same role he’s played in every single film he’s ever made. And, for more highbrow viewers open to subtleties, we have… a pun! Because the 11-year-old Chinese math genius knows the numbers to a… safe… and Jason is trying to keep her… safe. Ta da!

Does it work as an action film? It works.

It’s dumb but it’s slick and entertaining. And on rolls the Statham-mobile to its second billion.

www.business-review.ro Business Review | May 8 - June 3, 2012

14 CITY CULTURAL EVENTS AGENDA EXHIBITIONS Annual Architecture of Bucharest Until June 16 Sala Dalles, Stirbei Palace, Un Arte, Carturesti Library, Universitatii Subway passage The tenth Annual Architecture of Bucharest is an urban event organized by the local architecture community where members of the public interested in the impact of architecture on the face of the city can come together.

This year’s concept is eco-architecture.

The event will have three main sections: the competition of projects, ecoarchitecture conferences, and the urban-cultural route.

MUSIC Nabucco June 7, 19.00 Bucharest National Opera The story of the clash between the Israelites and the Babylonians led by Nabucco, whose daughter falls in love with an Israeli officer, will feature Stefan Ignat (Nabucco), Gabriel Nastase (Izmail), Silvia Sorina Munteanu (Abigaille) and Oana Andra (Fenena) and will be led by Iurie Florea.

Symphonic concert – Frederic Chopin and Robert Schumann June 10, 19.00 George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra The George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra will present a symphonic concert conducted by Horia Andreescu.

The two-hour show will include Frederic Chopin’s Second Concerto for piano and orchestra and Robert Schumann’s Symphony No.3.

Mon Amour jazz show and French Poetry June 5, 20.30 Tete-a-Tete Coffee Art & Chill Tete-a-Tete Coffee Art & Chill invites the public to a French night featuring jazz music courtesy of Aylin Cadir (vocalist), Ciprian Pop (guitar), Adrian Flautistu (contrabass) and Alex Triscariu (bassoon), a recital of the poetry of Baudelaire, Prevert, Verlaine, Ronsard, Desnos and Aragon by famous actors Adelaida Zamfira, Ana-Ioana Macaria and Istvan Teglas and also a painting exhibition by Gina Ster, Telling the trees (Povestind copacilor).

Festival features over 30 activities, including all main art and craft forms from music, dance, theatre, book releases, film, photography and fashion to street performances.

In a multicultural, dynamic and surprising environment, the audience will be introduced to works, performances, initiatives and interesting individuals from no fewer than 11 countries. Musical acts will include the famous Antwerp Gipsy-Ska Orkestra’s and Lulo Reinhardt, for the first time in Romania, among other bands.

Bucharest Music Film Festival June 8-17, 11.00-23.00 George Enescu Square The seventh Bucharest Music Film Festival is an event for classical music lovers that features dance sessions and projections of musical concerts from all over the world. The Bucharest Sinfonia Orchestra, Bucharest Chamber Orchestra, National Radio Orchestra, Artmusik Quartet, Bucharest Brass Orchestra, Angely’s Orchestra and many others are scheduled to perform.

FILM Premiers Prometheus Opens June 8 A team of explorers discover a clue to the origins of mankind on Earth, leading them on a journey to the darkest corners of the universe.

There, they must fight a terrifying battle to save the future of the human race.

Director: Ridley Scott Starring: Noomi Rapace, Logan Marshall-Green, Michael Fassbender On at: Movieplex Cinema Plaza, The Light Cinema, Hollywood Multiplex, Grand Cinema Digiplex, Glendale Studio, Cinema City Cotroceni, Cinema City Sun Plaza, Samsung IMAX.

International Romani Art Festival June 7-10 Uranus Gardens The four-day International Romani Art

Transylvania International Film Festival Until June 10 Cluj-Napoca The eleventh Transylvania International Film Festival (TIFF) in Cluj-Napoca will feature 241 films from 46 countries with over 800 guests. This “cultural feast” includes special projections, national, international and world premieres, along with workshops, master-classes given by high-profile guests from the film industry, concerts, exhibitions, book, DVD and magazine launches.

ISSN No. 1453 - 729X

FOUNDING EDITOR Bill Avery EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Simona Fodor SENIOR JOURNALIST Otilia Haraga JOURNALISTS Simona Bazavan, Ovidiu Posirca, Oana Vasiliu COPY EDITOR Debbie Stowe COLLABORATORS Anda Sebesi ART DIRECTOR Alexandru Oriean PHOTO EDITOR: Mihai Constantineanu PHOTOGRAPHER Laurentiu Obae LAYOUT Beatrice Gheorghiu

WHO’S NEWS Business Review welcomes information for Who’s News from readers. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity. Get in touch at simona.bazavan@business-review.ro

Lucian Bila

Robert Rekkers

has been appointed CEO of Appnor MSP. He is replacing Dragos Manac, who will be in charge of business development on foreign markets as of this month. Bila, 47, has extensive experience in sales and telecommunications.

For the last 12 years he has occupied the position of sales manager at INES Group. Before that he worked for kpnQwest Romania as sales and marketing manager, and for Proteus Zass Romania as sales manager.

former general director of Banca Transilvania, will join the board of administration of agribusiness Agricover, in July in the capacity of non-executive member, company representatives have announced.

Rekkers was at the helm of Banca Transilvania between 2002 and 2011. He has extensive experience in the banking industry. The Dutchman’s previously held positions include country manager of ABN AMRO Bank in Columbia and Romania.

BUSINESS AGENDA June 5 10:00 VISA Europe and Junior Achievement Romania organize an event to mark the launch of a financial education program at the Central Universitary Library. By invitation only.

June 7 10:00-18:00 The English Bar organizes through the Honorable Society of the Inner Temple the Law and Ethics Conference at the Central Universitary Library. By invitation only.

11:00 E-Boda organizes an event to mark the launch of a new tablet at Charme restaurant & hotel. By invitation only.

June 11 19:00 Cannes Lions Romania and IAA organize the second edition of RUN Project Romanian Agencies for Cannes at IAA House. By invitation only.

June 11 -12 Bancpost organizes the delegation and business forum Go International, entitled Greece-Romania: At the Confluence of Regional Commercial Synergies, at JW Marriott Hotel.

The event is supported by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Romania and the Hellenic-Romanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

PUBLISHER Anca Ionita EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR George Moise SALES & EVENTS DIRECTOR Oana Molodoi MARKETING MANAGER Ana-Maria Stanca SALES & EVENTS Ana-Maria Nedelcu RESEARCH & SUBSCRIPTION Lili Voineag PRODUCTION Dan Mitroi DISTRIBUTION Eugen Musat

June 13 AvocatNet.ro awards gala 2012, which rewards the best performing law firms and consultancy firms during 2011, is organized at Crystal Palace Ballrooms.

By invitation only.

June 16 - 17 Think Leadership, an event addressing professionals with 4 to 7 years of experience in finance, marketing, sales, logistics and human resources, is organized at InterContinental Hotel.

June 20 ∫EVENT 09:00 BR organizes the second edition of the International Investment Forum – Focus on Tourism & Hospitality at Howard Johnson Grand Plaza Hotel.

Find out more at http://business-review.ro/br-events/ June 21 18:30-20:30 Sheffield EMBA organizes BEING Better in Business at the Hilton Hotel. Free entrance; please confirm your seat at avasile@city.academic.gr. Find out more at www.citysheffield.ro.

June 27 ∫EVENT 18:00 BR organizes the fourth edition of the American Investors Forum at Ramada Plaza Bucharest. Find our more at http://business-review.ro/br-events/

PUBLISHER Block Notes Media ADDRESS No. 10 Italiana St., 2nd floor, ap. 3 Bucharest, Romania LANDLINE Editorial: 031.040.09.32 Office: 031.040.09.31 EMAILS Editorial: editorial@business-review.ro Sales: sales@business-review.ro Events: events@business-review.ro