ABSL 12th ANNUAL CONFERENCE

Nord Events Centre, Bucharest, Romania | 13th of November 2024

ABOUT
THE EVENT

ABSL invites you to the 12th Annual Conference, the largest event for Romanian Business Services Industry that brings together more than 600 professionals with common goals: to discover the latest trends, find new courses for a successful future, seek answers to current concerns and network.

The business services landscape is constantly evolving, due to globalization, technological revolutions, and geopolitical environments and events. Organizations must adapt in order to remain relevant and competitive faced with significant challenges that required quick adaptation: from Generative AI tools, shifts in organizational culture and people practices, to fiscal changes, and global economics.

The centres of excellence developed in the last two years bring solid expertise in areas such as IT, finance and accounting, HR, procurement, still making Romania a preferred destination for high-value-added services. Moreover, these centres are established as a driving force for introducing new business models, initiating, and developing new products and service offerings, and leading general innovation.

The business services sector will see a rapid and diverse expansion of services as it provides more advanced and more bespoke services to their organizations, helping them gain a competitive edge. They will drive not only digital transformation for the organization but will be seen as an incubator for new technology and its application possibilities.

In short, key strategies and objectives for many business services companies will remain digital transformation, standardization, expansion of value-added services and broadening the scope of activities, as well as becoming a strategic partner for environmental, social, and governance compliance in years to come.

Our conference will bring into focus what the status of business services sector is at national and international level, what the future holds, how to innovate the business models, as well as how to integrate new aspects necessary for an equitable progress (cybersecurity, ethics, ESG regulations).

Join us in finding out how to stay ahead amidst the constant shifts and challenges, and how to chart new courses for the business services industry of tomorrow.

Agenda

REGISTRATION & WELCOME COFFEE

PLENARY SESSION 1

Conference Opening

Cosmin Stan
ABSL 12th Annual Conference Moderator

Welcome Remarks

Ciprian Dan
President of ABSL

PwC presentation unveils the findings of the 12th annual survey conducted among business services sector companies, highlighting key trends related to business evolution, workforce dynamics, AI adoption and ESG compliance. Join us as we explore the current state of the industry and discuss how companies are positioning themselves for a rapidly changing future. 

Francesca Postolache
Partner, PwC
Oana Munteanu
Director People & Organisation, PwC

Today’s top executives have a common major concern: how to best equip their teams to leverage the emergence of Gen AI, so thus to maintain or increase their competitive edge in the market.

Join us to explore the latest examples of how Gen AI is transforming the way employees work and take a closer look at why upskilling needs to be everyone’s top priority.

Adina Vochin
Technology Executive, Accenture

An exploration of how fully remote work can unintentionally lead to isolation, diminished engagement, and a sense of workplace disconnect and why hybrid and in-office models help restore a sense of community and improve overall well-being. Key topics include the importance of maintaining distinct spatial boundaries between work and home life, how physical separation supports mental clarity, and the lasting mental health benefits of the traditional office space. This session will underscore why the office remains essential for balanced, sustainable health and productivity in an evolving work landscape.

Maria Florea
Head of Office Advisory, iO Partners
Lavinia Țânculescu-Popa
Director Human Capital Consulting, The Wings

Traditional Shared Service Centers (SSCs) were mainly focused on cost reduction and efficiency through process standardization and consolidation. Today, SSCs are embracing a new role within the organizations, shifting from back-office mindset into driving innovation to become strategic partners for their organizations, and embarking new capabilities and service offers, such as Compliance.

Societe Generale Global Solution Center mission as partner of choice of Societe Generale Group has been driving and succeeded to be a game changer building the new Era of compliance innovative capabilities & service offers.

Anna Nowak
Head of CPLE, Societe Generale Global Solution Centre

COFFEE BREAK

PLENARY SESSION 2

As we progress further into the age of technology, large organizations are setting the pace. With businesses expanding and operations growing increasingly complex, managing access in a tidy and predictable way — especially with hundreds or thousands of employees — can be daunting. Let’s explore modern access management concepts and patterns that can empower users to utilize data in a safe, seamless, and compliant manner.

Vlad Herescu
Engineering Manager, Identity and Access Management, Booking Holdings Romania

Designing workplaces that nurture people and foster moments of delight and joy requires an intentional effort to truly understand what leads to wellbeing. Gyms and healthy food at work are great benefits and part of the equation, but wellbeing runs deeper than that. New research out of the Wellbeing Research Centre indicates interventions in the work experience itself can make the biggest difference. There is compelling evidence that joy pays dividends. Greater physical and emotional wellbeing led to reduced costs, sick time and turnover.

Steelcase researchers explored various aspects of wellbeing to better understand how physical places can shape behaviors and signal that organizations care about creating the conditions for people to feel better. Six dimensions make up someone’s physical, cognitive and emotional wellbeing — meaning, authenticity, belonging, optimism, mindfulness and vitality. All of these dimensions need to be integrated into the physical workplace and work experience to lead to moments of joy and employee wellbeing.

Natalia Pokorska
Sales Director – Poland, Romania & Bulgaria at Steelcase

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Tim Harford

The Art of Adapting

We’re told to be agile, to learn from our mistakes – but that’s easy to say and hard to do. In a world where the threats and the new opportunities from geopolitics and new AI technologies are obvious, how can we adapt and why is it so difficult?
Tim Harford presents a range of vivid stories, compelling behavioural science, and practical advice as he discusses the art of adapting.

LUNCH

PLENARY SESSION 3

Deloitte presents a new report on Romania’s SSC sector, offering a comparative analysis within the Central European (CE) SSC landscape. Discover Romania’s competitive positioning through macroeconomic insights, salary and rent benchmarks, grants and incentives (G&I), and more

Tomas Husner
Director, Deloitte GBS Advisory

How can sustainability and energy-saving innovations drive future business success?

Key highlights include:

  • Design and Energy Efficiency: Discover how innovative building designs and energy-efficient solutions contribute to sustainability goals.
  • Reporting Tools: Learn about the advanced tools, designed to simplify, and enhance non-financial reporting processes.
  • Practical Insights: Gain valuable, actionable insights on how to integrate ESG principles effectively within your business operations.
Monika Chacińska
Environmental Manager, Skanska Commercial Development in CEE

The presentation will explore the critical role of wellbeing in both personal and professional life. We’ll discuss the impact of workplace burnout, the importance of self-care, and practical strategies to help you thrive, not just survive, in today’s fast-paced world. You’ll learn how to cultivate a healthier relationship with yourself, enabling greater resilience, balance, and success in your career and beyond.

Raluca Binder
Head of Corporate Account Management,
Reteaua de Sanatate REGINA MARIA
Alice Donea
Psychotherapist,
Reteaua de Sanatate REGINA MARIA

The landscape of employment relations is undergoing a profound shift driven by digital advancements, evolving cultural norms, and adaptive human resource policies. The digital revolution has empowered employees with greater flexibility and autonomy, fundamentally changing how and where work is done. Cultural trends are giving rise to the “new employee”—a workforce that values adaptability, inclusivity, and a balanced approach to work and life. Meanwhile, HR policies are striving to bridge the gap between traditional practices and future-forward approaches, aiming to maintain productivity while supporting the needs of this evolving workforce.

Catalin Micu
Partner, Zamfirescu Racoți Vasile & Partners

COFFEE BREAK

BREAKOUT SESSIONS HR

How to drive retention and enhance employee engagement in today’s challenging world?  The session will provide a practical view on how Accenture uses a people-centric lens and a wide range of strategies to build an engaging and resilient workplace. We will talk about how to use the right data to guide people processes and initiatives and how to build a culture based on inclusion, psychological safety and development as relevant drivers of engagement.

Iuliana Horsia
HR Partner Lead, Accenture

In this session, we will explore how to use AI and machine learning to enhance onboarding by connecting key players and learning with practical application, in order to increase retention and improve time to productivity. The presentation will cover several key topics:

  1. Leveraging AI and Machine Learning: We will discuss how to generate customized content for various onboarding needs and how predictive modeling can optimize knowledge extraction and transfer across departments and teams.
  2. Practical Application: This segment will showcase real-world examples of how AI and machine learning are transforming onboarding processes in our industry. Participants will discover practical ways to use these technologies to transform static content into engaging digital journeys.
Vlad Grigoriu
Co-founder & CEO, Code of Talent

Payroll input and output data consists of a great amount of relevant information for both HR and business decisions. The ultimate purpose of HR people is to automate the reporting process, not only for the payroll area, but for all HR areas. However, a realistic maturity assessment of the payroll and HR reporting capabilities is needed for setting the improvement objectives and steps. We are to detail a case study of i) performing HR data reporting capabilities assessment, ii) set realistic improvement objectives and steps, iii) agreed reporting automated solution for payroll data.

Andreea Ilinca
Manager Business Processes Solutions, Deloitte Romania

The presentation delves into crafting a cohesive and blended Employer Branding strategy. We started with an Employer Branding workshop that brought both business and HR people on the same table, having a common understanding of the concept, which begins internally and resonates externally. The strategy highlights the use of the invaluable internal expertise to develop a compelling Employee Value Proposition (EVP), while advocating for a multi-channel promotion strategy, with notable participation in events like Dev Talks in Romania (the biggest IT conference in Romania). Ipsos in Romania stays active on the main Social Media platforms, with constant posting regarding both business and people news, performs active management of reviews on Undelucram (which is a kind of Trip Advisor for the companies). We considered it crucial to have a critical mass that supports these efforts, thus we created a community, Brand Ambassadors, which keeps up spreading, in an authentic manner, the organizational culture. The achievement of the Great Place to Work certification, in June 2024, serves as a testament to the consolidated efforts and confirms that we are going into the right direction.

Ramona Borzea
Talent Acquisition Director, Ipsos Interactive Services
Virgil Brumaru
PM Director, Ipsos Interactive Services

Discover how Michelin CBS transformed team dynamics by fostering psychological safety. This session will explore the journey from creating “Safe Space” workshops to deploying the Fearless Organizational Scan (FOS) to diagnose and measure safety levels. Learn about the tools and data-driven strategies that helped teams develop action plans for improvement. Gain insights into practical, research-backed methods to boost engagement, trust, and collaboration in any organization.

Dorin Enache
Training Manager, Michelin Romania

Reward transparency has become a crucial topic in today’s evolving workforce, enhanced not only by regulatory pressure, but also by workforce preferences dynamics. Pro-active reward communication and education can support a culture of trust and equity, ensuring that reward policies and procedures are transparent and fair, while improving employee engagement, retention and productivity. We will reveal reward transparency maturity in the existing market and look at practical examples of reward communication strategy and implementation.

Gabriela Batir
Senior Manager People & Organisation, PwC
Andra Florina Ilie
Manager People & Organisation, PwC

DIY (Do It Yourself) Career is a simple, intuitive and authentic SG GSC framework, hosted by EXP (an internal people Portal), enabling employees to accelerate their career journey towards achieving their aspirations, basically “OWN YOUR CAREER” policy in SG GSC. “Owning Your Career” may seem a daunting task, that is why we have created this very simple narrative called DIY CAREER (3 steps framework):

  • Dream It Yourself is about identifying your dream role and making a commitment towards it.
  • Design It Yourself is about identifying the path to your dream role, identifying the skills you want to build and the experiences you want to collect on the way.
  • Develop It Yourself is about action; it is about starting your career evolution journey be it in terms of upskilling and/or mobility.

Join us for an interactive session to find out more about this topic and why it’s important for people to have a simple, digital and meaningful CAREER experience, when navigating towards their future.

Raluca Frasineanu
HR Program Officer, Societe Generale Global Solution Centre

Since last year, our company has embarked on a journey that goes beyond business goals and performance metrics. Every October, we set aside a day to celebrate Diversity & Inclusion, raising awareness and fighting discrimination. In 2023, we focused on the Roma community, welcoming Catalina Olteanu, who shared her powerful story of resilience. This year, we turned our attention to gender equality, collaborating with Centrul Filia and featuring Miruna Pantel, an expert in gender equality. These events are not just corporate checkmarks; they are heartfelt efforts to create an inclusive space where everyone feels seen and heard. Join us in building a future where empathy is our guiding principle.

Alina Stefanescu
People Manager, TotalEnergies Global Services Bucharest

BREAKOUT SESSIONS TECHNOLOGY

This presentation will be one of the first times you will see translations done by custom AI models and humans, implemented in a company with more than 80 years on the market, and how it can be done from scratch. If you’re not convinced you can do this, please let me go through my slides so you know what’s in it for you and learn how to do this in the following topics:

  • AI Translation: when and how HP uses AI to translate content, aiming to save costs and improve quality.
  • Content Types: Amazing slide that includes translations for datasheets, product lifecycle, and various marketing materials.
  • Implementation: Modernized infrastructure and retrained models to handle AI technology.
  • Measuring Success: my best slide ever showing translation accuracy measured using BLEU, COMET and BERT metrics (who knows about them gets a cookie).
  • Lessons Learned: How a team of 6 can iterate patiently and involve SMEs for quick solutions.

Feel free to ask me for more help or ideas, remember to do that in the Q&A, that’s the FIRE round!

Alexandru Leafa
Manager of Global NPI Innovation, HP Inc

Future GBS organizations already embedded RPA and AI in practical solutioning of GBS business challenges and complementary use them to address process optimizations. We successfully worked on various implementations with GBSs, based on integrated framework approach and will also highlight some practical examples of RPA/AI solutions to optimize processes and address business needs.

Maria Boldor
Managing Director & Partner, Horvath Romania
Ruxandra Gaita
Executive Advisor, Horvath Romania

We launched a project to fully automate the management of commercial incentives by using advanced technologies such as Corporate Data Lake, Salesforce.com, and Robotic Process Automation (RPA). This initiative has positively influenced more than 1,200 employees, providing smoother operations, complete payment traceability, and increased job satisfaction. By adopting a data-driven approach, the Corporate Data Lake consolidated all commercial incentives data, integrating it into the Salesforce.com platform. RPA facilitated the automation of tasks previously performed manually, connecting Salesforce.com with the ERP system to ensure faster and error-free operations. This presentation will showcase our dedication to leveraging modern technology to transform business processes, delivering significant benefits in operational efficiency, employee and customer satisfaction.

Iani Canciu
Business Support Manager, Michelin Romania

We will demonstrate how PwC uses some of the latest technologies to help the finance professional work smarter, from high volume recurring operations to complex and data heavy tasks, operational, reporting or controlling. Whether you’re looking for a bespoke solution, or the building blocks to drive change within your organization, the finance process does not have to be a pain. We invite you to a quick showing of both internal and external use cases and projects that our professionals have been involved with and their impact.

Cristian Cortez
Senior Manager Assurance, PwC
Andrei Dragotoiu
Manager Assurance, PwC

Join us for an engaging session on an innovative AI-powered code completion tool developed by GitHub and OpenAI. This session will showcase how technology can enhance the coding experience by offering intelligent suggestions for lines and blocks of code as you type. We’ll explore real use cases and discuss the tangible benefits this tool brings to software development teams, including improved code quality, increased velocity, enhanced unit testing, and a better overall developer experience. Don’t miss this opportunity to engage in a rich exchange of best practices and insights, emphasizing the critical importance of staying updated with emerging technologies. In a rapidly evolving professional landscape, understanding how to leverage AI tools not only enhances individual productivity but also drives team innovation and success. Join us to discover how keeping pace with technological advancements can empower you and your organization to thrive in an increasingly competitive environment.

Andreea Onicescu
IT Tech Leader,
Societe Generale Global Solution Centre
Liviu Rachisanu
Head of Retail & Private Banking IT,
Societe Generale Global Solution Centre

BREAKOUT SESSIONS BUSINESS

With businesses increasingly relying on third-party service providers, demonstrating your commitment to security, reliability, and compliance is crucial for earning client trust. Deloitte Romania’s presentation will guide service providers through the essentials of SOC reports. Key takeaways include: understanding SOC reports (overview of SOC 1, SOC 2, and SOC 3 reports, key differences and when each report is needed), building client trust (why clients demand SOC reports, the role of SOC reports in mitigating third-party risk), enhancing competitive edge (how providing SOC reports can differentiate your services, using SOC compliance as a marketing tool to attract new clients), as well as real-world success stories (examples of service providers successfully leveraging SOC reports, overcoming common challenges and achieving SOC certification).

Andrei Stan
Director Audit and Assurance, Deloitte Romania

This presentation will focus on our commitment to performance and sustainability, emphasizing economic performance and environmental sustainability. We’ll discuss the optimization of old tire stocks through Hard Excess Liquidation campaigns, which led to impressive results: 301,000 excess tires sold in 2023, generating €20.80 million, and 123,000 tires sold in 2024, adding €10.86 million. By avoiding the cutting of 423,000 tires, we significantly reduced CO2 emissions. The Process Road Map outlines steps, challenges, and benefits, highlighting reduced inventory, improved profitability, and achieving the Zero Scraping objective. We’ll also cover increased customer satisfaction, automation opportunities, and CBS Bucharest’s logistics capabilities.

Vlad Mihai Rosu
Hard Excess Manager, Michelin Romania

Implementing Microsoft Copilot in business enhances productivity by automating routine tasks and providing data-driven insights for informed decision-making. It improves customer service with AI-driven responses, reduces operational costs, and integrates seamlessly with Microsoft applications. Copilot helps manage risks, scales with your business needs, and facilitates better team collaboration. It offers real-time support, ensuring quick issue resolution and positions your business at the forefront of innovation, keeping you competitive in a rapidly evolving market.

Orsi Antal
Sr. Supplier Delivery Manager, Microsoft

Join us for an informative session on Playwright, the open-source library designed to automate tests for web applications using simple Java code. Discover how this tool can significantly reduce manual testing efforts while enhancing the overall quality of your testing processes through AI and automation. By adopting the right tools, your business can achieve higher efficiency, cost savings, and an edge in delivering robust and reliable applications. With impressive metrics like 560 contributors, 64.2k stars, 3.5k forks, and over 103k public repositories utilizing it, this tool is becoming more appealing to the developers’ community. We’ll explore real-world use cases that showcase how to effectively use Playwright to optimize your testing workflow, reduce manual tasks, and enhance the quality of your applications. And this translates to increased efficiency & quality for your business, optimization of processes and staying ahead in a competitive market.

Cristina Barbu
IT Delivery Manager, Societe Generale Global Solution Centre

Join us for an insightful presentation where we share our firsthand experiences and lessons learned from a significant migration we supported together with one of our key partners. As Romania serves as a major delivery hub in the CEE region, our team was at the forefront of this transition, impacting every system—from the omnichannel platform managing user conversations to the admin tools overseeing orders and delivery estimates. Moreover, we transformed our approach from one multiskilled team to three dedicated teams, expanding our workforce by 1.5 times in just 60 days! In this session, we’ll explore:

  • Effective Project Management: How a dedicated team ensured meticulous planning and successful ramp-up within two months.
  • Collaborative Brainstorming: The power of involving all relevant support team members to achieve critical project milestones.
  • Clear Communication: The importance of understanding our partner’s expectations and timelines for a smooth migration.

We’ll also discuss the challenges we faced, including:

  • The aggressive ramp-up timeline and the need for close collaboration between operations and recruitment.
  • Managing unexpected resource needs and technical challenges that arose during the initial migration phase.
Alexandra Fus
Business Development Consultant, Valoris Center

In their relentless hunt for transformation and operational excellence, GBS practitioners are facing various challenges from adoption of digital to process modernisation and change management. This presentation focuses on three examples of organisations which engaged on a RACE for transformation and achieved exceptional results.

Dorin Ioanas
Corporate VP – Finance and Accounting Practice, WNS Global Services

WHY YOU SHOULD JOIN

Keynote Speaker

Tim Harford

Award- winning Financial Times columnist, host of the Cautionary Tales podcast, and author of The Data Detective and The Undercover Economist, is the Keynote Speakers at ABSL Annual Conference. Sometimes called ‘Britain’s Malcolm Gladwell’, Tim is a behavioural economist who offers a distinctive blend of storytelling, humour and intelligence. He has written eight books, and his latest, The Data Detective, uses new research in science and psychology to set out ten strategies for using statistics to erase our biases and replace them with new ideas that use virtues like patience, curiosity, and good sense to better understand ourselves and the world.

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Speakers

Orsi Antal

Sr. Supplier Delivery Manager, Microsoft

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Cristina Barbu

IT Delivery Manager, Societe Generale Global Solution Centre

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Gabriela Batir

Senior Manager People & Organisation, PwC

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Raluca Binder

Head of Corporate Account Management, Reteaua de Sanatate REGINA MARIA

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Maria Boldor

Managing Director & Partner, Horvath Romania

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Ramona Borzea

Talent Acquisition Director, Ipsos Interactive Services

Virgil Brumaru

PM Director, Ipsos Interactive Services

Iani Canciu

Business Support Manager, Michelin Romania

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Monika Chacińska

Environmental Manager, Skanska Commercial Development in CEE

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Cristian Cortez

Senior Manager Assurance, PwC

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Alice Donea

Psychotherapist, Reteaua de Sanatate REGINA MARIA

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Andrei Dragotoiu

Manager Assurance, PwC

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Dorin Enache

Training Manager, Michelin Romania

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Maria Florea

Head of Office Advisory, iO Partners

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Raluca Frasineanu

HR Program Officer, Societe Generale Global Solution Centre

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Alexandra Fus

Business Development Consultant, Valoris Center

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Ruxandra Gaita

Executive Advisor, Horvath Romania

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Vlad Herescu

Engineering Manager, Identity and Access Management, Booking Holdings Romania

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Iuliana Horsia

HR Partner Lead, Accenture

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Andra Florina Ilie

Manager People & Organisation, PwC

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Andreea Ilinca

Manager Business Processes Solutions, Deloitte Romania

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Dorin Ioanas

Corporate VP – Finance and Accounting Practice, WNS Global Services

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Tomas Husner

Partner, Zamfirescu Racoți Vasile & Partners

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Alexandru Leafa

Manager of Global NPI Innovation, HP Inc

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Cătălin Micu

Partner, Zamfirescu Racoți Vasile & Partners

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Oana Munteanu

People & Organisation Director, PwC

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Anna Novak

Head of CPLE, Societe Generale Global Solution Centre

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Andreea Onicescu

IT Tech Leader, Societe Generale Global Solution Centre

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Natalia Pokorska

Sales Director – Poland, Romania & Bulgaria at Steelcase

 

Francesca Postolache

Partner, PwC

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Liviu Rachisanu

Head of Retail & Private Banking IT, Societe Generale Global Solution Centre

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Vlad Mihai Rosu

Hard Excess Manager, Michelin Romania

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Andrei Stan

Director Audit and Assurance, Deloitte Romania

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Cosmin Stan

Event Moderator

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Alina Stefanescu

People Manager, TotalEnergies Global Services Bucharest

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Lavinia Țânculescu-Popa

Director Human Capital Consulting, The Wings

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Adina Vochin

Technology Executive, Accenture

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WHY BECOME
A CONFERENCE PARTNER

Event Partners come to ABSL 12th Annual Conference to display their latest products and services and to explore business opportunities. Being a partner of our conference will give you the opportunity to:

If your company is part of ABSL, you can benefit of discounted partnership packages.

STRATEGIC PARTNERS

EVENT PARTNERS

Platinum partners
Gold partners
Silver partners

REGISTRATION & TICKETS*

*Tickets are limited according to the hall capacity & first come, first served basis

1 ticket

250 € + VAT

3 tickets bundle

500 € + VAT

FREE FOR ABSL MEMBERS & PARTNERS (according to the membership type).

Check here the membership type of your company: https://www.absl.ro/members/

Discuss with your company representative about participation and register afterwards.

ABSL CONFERENCES AT A GLANCE

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