Copyright Clearance Center’s more than 30-member Romanian team is located in the historic city of Cluj. The team is focused on handling large quantities of content and metadata from some of the largest publishers in the world, while simultaneously creating new solutions that best meet the clients’ changing needs. It is an interesting, challenging, and dynamic place to work–a truly 21st century European environment.
We recently caught up with Raul Has, Regional Manager of the Cluj Office. In our conversation, we learned more about his unique experience and the culture of working in a high-tech environment in the heart of Eastern Europe.
- Hi Raul, please tell us a little bit about your professional background
My name is Raul Has and I have recently joined CCC as the Regional Manager of the Cluj office.
I started out my professional career as a stockbroker, building a client base from scratch. Not long after, I became a licensed trader on the local stock exchange as well as the Vienna Stock Exchange. After spending a few months in London, where I completed a course for certification, I was tasked with building–from the ground up!—the Short-Term Investment Department, which I led for several years.
After that experience, I spent the next seven years managing multiple teams within Wolters Kluwer Financial Services, being part of various software product projects.
When I was offered this job at CCC, the most appealing aspect for me was the global nature of the business and the organization itself. This translates into a natural opportunity to work with colleagues across geographies, time-zones and cultures as well as bringing focus to an inclusive work culture in the Cluj office.
- What is it like working for CCC in the Cluj office?
I must say that this has been a rewarding experience from all points of view. I truly enjoy coming to work in such a socially-aware, culturally-friendly atmosphere. In the four months since I started, I have met a talented, enthusiastic and results-driven group of people who take pride in what they do and are willing to go above and beyond to deliver outstanding results.
When it comes to creating a great place to work, in my experience it starts with the attitude you have when you show up at the office. Hence, I always try to keep a positive attitude, to show how much I enjoy and appreciate the contribution I am able to make to the overall effort. It may sound crazy, but it is true: Every day I come to work with a smile on my face. I have always been close to my teams and strive to make their work easier and more motivating so that together we can achieve the best possible results for our clients and the organization.
- What is the corporate culture like in the Cluj office?
Our office is absolutely people- and performance-centric; we maintain a key focus on the human capital in each department.
I feel fortunate to be surrounded by great individuals that are diligent about their jobs and that are generous in sharing knowledge. The environment we all appreciate is one where you always have a voice in your team no matter where you are in the reporting structure. We strive to create a culture of openness so that our colleagues are inspired and encouraged to continue learning new skills.
Top management is approachable by every employee. They not only take time to listen to concerns but also to get fully immersed in conversations and the daily work of all layers of the company. Speaking for myself, I genuinely feel that when I offer my opinion, it is heard and that ideas can make a constructive difference.
I have great pleasure in working with my colleagues, who are not only very knowledgeable but more than happy to share their experience in a spirit of mutual benefit.
- Last June, your team participated in the company-wide We Not Me day with activities at the Ethnographic Park Romulus Vuia with the involvement of the Romanian ornithological society. What activities did you choose, and what were the most important learnings you and the team took away from the event? Would you do it again in 2020?
I am very privileged to be part of CCC, a company that adheres to corporate social responsibility in a way that extends our roles and responsibilities toward our communities. Only together, as a team, can we contribute positively to our society and environment.
The team recounted how, last year during our company event and together with Tracey and Babis, they built a large number of wooden bird houses that offer protection from predators and also provide a safe environment to create nests.
As we all know, trees are an important part of every community and essential to the ecosystems in which they are found. That’s why, this year, our We Not Me project is centered around a tree planting reforestation campaign, allowing us to have our own “CCC forest” (just a nickname due to licensing purposes 😉). The core purpose of our campaign is to inspire people to plant trees, nurture a culture of care toward the environment and re-establish our connection with nature. I am greatly looking forward to seeing our project come to life.
- If you had one thing to share with a prospective employee, to encourage them to come work with CCC at the Cluj office— or anywhere in Europe — what would that be?
CCC is a great place to grow and develop both professionally and personally. I’ve found in CCC an organization centered on building great products and a top-notch customer experience, while enhancing business processes, and an agenda of constantly learning and developing its people as the way to deliver high-quality products and services. It is, I believe, an organization with clear goals and with focus on speed and quality in reaching them. Considering the pace of change in technology and business, I see a complete lack of complacency and — more importantly —an openness to innovation in order to succeed.
A point of interest: The Cluj office is located in a medium-sized university town, Cluj-Napoca, known as The Heart of Transylvania. The city is recognized as a growing IT center and talent pool where smart people build exciting products for companies all over the world. Being a development center, as CCC is, rather than an outsourcing company, brings benefits around stability of products and projects, and a constant and consistent relationship with stakeholders and colleagues from other centers. We are a very welcoming bunch, and are always looking forward to meeting new colleagues.
