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30 I Companies & Markets bne May 2020
Romania’s IT industry is thriving under lockdown
Iulian Ernst in Bucharest
Several major Romanian technology and business process outsourcing (BPO) companies say they are expanding during the lockdown imposed in the country over the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The technology and BPO sectors have generated the highest number of jobs since the lockdown was imposed, simply because this sector can cope best with working from home. Separately, the demand for digital products has increased significantly since a large part of the world is experiencing the same lockdown and has to adjust working and living to online instruments.
Biggest Romanian online store hires 1,000
Regional online retailer eMAG plans to hire 1,000 people in response to the sharp increase in online sales determined by the social restrictions imposed to limit the spreading of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Stanciu’s company is thus hiring at a time when one-fifth of the country’s workforce has been sent home with their labour contracts either suspended or terminated. eMag is hiring in the technology sector, but also in the logistics sector, and not for a short time but under permanent contracts.
“We plan to employ 1,000 people in the coming period in warehouses, traditional courier, fast courier. These are permanent jobs. We want to invest,” said eMag CEO Iulian Stanciu in an interview with Ziarul Financiar daily.
eMag boasts a 30% rise in direct sales, while sales on the marketplace operated by eMag (sales of other retailers using eMag’s platform) soared by 40%, Stanciu said.
"Laptop sales have exploded – they are double from a normal period. This IT market had been numb for about 10 years, was going slightly down, and all of a sudden everyone was discovering productivity," eMag’s CEO explained.
eMag will launch a new line of products, food goods, starting next week.
Romania’s largest BPO firm seeks to employ 450
"CGS Romania will continue hiring as the demand for support services is growing,” said Vladimir Sterescu, country manager at CGS Romania, the biggest outsourcing firm in Romania.
CGS will implement from the very beginning a teleworking system, starting with the recruitment process, then with the training, and then during the actual work period, he explained.
Sterescu added that the company is hiring in particular to address the new contracts signed during this period, but also as a result of the existing customers needing more services.
The fact that many businesses have moved online, and many companies have support centres in Asia, which is strongly affected by the pandemic situation, has pushed up the demand for outsourcing services.
As a result, CGS Romania is involved in various customer support, technical support, but also back-office projects.
Israeli software producer boosts its Romanian office
DriveNets, an Israeli software producer specialised in software for networks, will double the number of employees in Bucharest, to 100 people by the end of 2020, the company
has announced.
The Center of Excellence in Bucharest is developed by DriveNets and by its local partner Tellence Technologies. During this period, the company estimates that the need for large-scale low-cost network solutions is increasing, with the COVID-19 pandemic, which creates an unprecedented increase in traffic.
DriveNets managers said that they are impressed by the very talented Romanian engineers who have quickly adapted and have learned the business model becoming part of the team.
“Tellence is a valuable partner for us and we are confident that our international team is now leveraging technology that will support how service providers build their networks on a larger
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