I have an educational background in business administration and philosophy and during the last three years I've been in charge with marketing in what has grown to be a 175 people family business producing fresh pastry products in Timisoara, Romania.
My (and my sister's ) involvement in the business coincided with growth and increased financial results for the company but also considerable personal satisfactions. Due to the ownership aspect, I inevitably got involved with all aspects of the company and I felt that if we are to survive and thrive in the long term we need to consider broader issues concerning our role in our community, the implicit message that goes to the customers together with the products, and nonetheless, the way we relate to our environment and how we can influence others about it.
In line with our company's needs, my first placement was at the Cleaner Production Centre, Hungary, which proved to be very useful as they were studying particularly SMEs' and how they tackle environmental issues and resource efficiency. I got to use their project's tools on our company and produced a report about where we stand and where we still need to work. I was also exposed to good practice studies of companies our size around Europe. Since coming back we have been tacking concrete measures, but the full effects of this exposure will be seen in the long run.
My second placement was with a Frankfurt start-up company dealing with crowdfund investing in energy efficiency equipment for SMEs'. I got to work on their Horizon 2020 finance proposal for Europe expansion, which I deeply enjoyed. I've stayed in contact with them and I still contribute with my input for Romania and other countries while they keep me up to date with the progress. For me it's very important to see and understand the end result.. and my contribution to it.''