My name is Silviu Dragomir, I am the CEO of EUCOM GROUP, a language service provider for multinational companies based inside and outside Romania. Our company focuses on personalized foreign language trainings for employees and language assessment solutions. We have more than 200 specialists working with us at present, excepting the internal, administrative and business staff.
How did you start your career? Which were your first steps? How did you envision your career?
I started my career in SALES in 2000, as an ordinary salesperson. After a while, I became SALES MANAGER in the automotive industry. Meanwhile, an idea started to emerge in my mind, that of becoming an entrepreneur and creating my own company. This is how EUCOM GROUP was born back in 2002.
What were your key career moments (those that had an impact on your professional journey)?
First, it was the moment I left a comfortable and secure position in a company that I was familiar with and decided to become self-employed. It was a key decision in my life, because it made me realize that I had to rely on myself and that the smallest of my mistakes could have a negative impact on the people around me. Therefore, I understood that, in order to be successful, one needs to keep on learning.
Secondly, when our annual turnover exceeded 1M, I understood that, in order grow a successful business, I must let others take some of the responsibilities that by then had only been carried out by me. Training other people to do what you are doing can be a very rewarding thing, because they will always appreciate when you entitle them to do something.
What are the best three most valuable career lessons you have learned?
First, never stop improving. Most of the entrepreneurs usually start their career from scratch, with no external help, but with a piercing, innovative idea in mind and a “CAN DO” attitude.
Secondly, one should keep in mind that we’re always learning, that everything can be a resource of learning, whether it is a success or a failure.
Thirdly, create a team that believes in the same values as you do. If you have understanding and commitment, it will be easier for every business player to participate in the actions required to obtain profit. The most important thing in doing business is thrust. If you’ve reached this point, you’re on the right track.
Why did you choose this business sector? What were top 3 reasons for choosing EUCOM?
I chose this business sector as there was a lack of qualitative, efficient and innovative linguistic solutions. We are always trying to create win-win situations. Moreover, we are constantly doing our best in order to innovate, adapt and personalize. I mean, people nowadays want to be able to adapt the eventual learning solutions to their own timetables.
This is how we created the Agile Learning platform for linguistic trainings, involving, on the one hand, time spent with a highly qualified trainer once a week, but also, on the other hand, time spent individually on a digital learning platform containing useful information available anytime, anywhere. We have a great team ready to put into practice all sorts of ideas and concepts, and to make sure they become real and applicable. Our trainers are dedicated and motivated to obtain a maximum degree of satisfaction from their students and from our clients. We’re constantly asking for feedback from the employers and from the learners themselves, and this is how we improve.
What are your/your company’s plans for 2020?
Well, this year I am planning to continue sharing some of my responsibilities to my colleagues in order to expand the company. Thus, we will all have the chance to learn, to meet new people and to create new strategic partnerships.
What do you think would be the keywords of the year for managers in the Business Services industry? Automation? Cutting costs?
Ha, ha! That’s a very good question! Thanks for asking. I’ll create an acronym for you. This would be AI-E. Adaptability, Innovation and Energy. First, I would group the first two, since we’ve reached a stage when the AI is in every sector of the society, which is great! (laughs) And then it comes the basis, the thing that we all need in order to support our research, our development, our present and future business projects.
Tell us a little bit about your private life. Tell us about your passions, family. What do you do to relax?
Some would say I’m quite of a rebel, but I consider myself just as interesting as everybody else. I practice a lot of sports – I play basketball with my friends and I totally enjoy 4×4 off road adventures. I love travelling and photography. I have a car which has been my best companion when exploring the highest peaks of the Carpathian Mountains.
I’m trying to spend as much time as possible with my two children, because I think the children of today are our future tomorrow. I’m spending a lot of time with my wife, and I feel that she completes me in everything that I do, business included. It’s nice to know that you can go home in the evening and find out that some of the greatest ideas or projects come to life in the kitchen, while we’re cooking, or in the living room, when we’re playing with our children.
If you were starting now your career, knowing the present and near future opportunities, what would you do? What career would you pursue?
If I were to start over, I wouldn’t change anything. I would do it all over again, from the very beginning.
What are the top 3 skills that you would develop?
Communication skills are on top of everything else, I think. Delegating skills, as this is the key to the third skill, which is represented by relationship building skills.
What would you do and what would you avoid doing? – practical advice to young professionals.
I would always follow my dreams, no matter how hard it would get. I would avoid limiting my vision. Creating boundaries around our vision can endanger our eventual success, leading thus to failure or to lack of confidence in your own self, so there’s no reason we should consider the limits. We must allow ourselves to dream, to consider the possibilities, and not the boundaries. This is what can make you great and this is what I understand from being an influencer or a businessman – someone having a positive impact on other people’s lives.