Specialists say, however, that there are too few examples of
managers who left the business world to manage state structures:
Adrian Baicusi (formerly general manager of Siemens, appointed at
the helm of Transelectrica state-held company, where he stayed for
less than two years), Alexandra Gatej (who left Unilever to be
presidential adviser, a position she resigned from last year) and
Marius Savu (former head of Eli Lilly, currently Director of the
Hospitals Administration in Bucharest).
How can one choose those to turn around companies with tens of
millions of euros in losses?
Each year, BUSINESS Magazin presents 100 success stories of young managers who run businesses or major company divisions. Currently at its sixth edition, the “100 Young Top Managers” catalogue could be a manual for those involved in recruiting executives for the big state-held companies.
According to Doru Voicu, former development manager of CEZ Romania and advisor to the economy minister, managers with experience in the private sector need to go work in the public sector and have their say “aggressively.”
“The transfer of know-how from the private sector to the public sector cannot be done overnight. I think it is the duty of every Romanian manager to help the public sector take steps forward,” Voicu, who currently owns consultancy firm IBCO Energ, told BUSINESS Magazin.
Marius Savu has been director of the Bucharest Hospitals and Medical Services Administration (ASSMB) for two years. What has moving from the private to the public sector meant for him?
“In the private sector, objectives are clearer. (…) The truth is after two years’ experience of working for the state, I would say it’s better to work in the private sector. The major problem facing public sector directors is they have no control over human resources (hiring is frozen, if a nurse leaves I cannot replace her unless six others leave) or over the budget. The allowance of financing by the National Health Insurance House cannot be influenced in any way, with allocations being made based on how old a hospital is rather than based on its performance,” said Savu, who was hired via contest.