BCR: Acting for community impact

Andreea Voinea, executive director of the HR division at BCR, talked to Business Review about the lender’s people strategy and how the company become a desirable employer for all generations of workers.

By Anda Sebesi

How would you describe your HR policy?

We hire for character and values; we train for skills and emotional health. Financial Health and Fit for Change are the main pillars of our HR strategy. Our priority is to invest in each of our colleagues’ financial health, as well as to become a generator of financial health in their communities. We train them to be antifragile in the face of constant changes: to not only be resilient in unstable times, but to actually thrive. These are valuable lessons that go beyond a particular career path: they have a positive impact on life. We live in an era of tech, AI, smart data, and digital transformation. But my deepest belief is that people are the golden key for any business field, no matter how digital it might be or become. My motto is that banking is a business for people that is created by people and enhanced by data & technology.

What were the main initiatives the bank dedicated to its employees last year?

Learning supermarket. Over the past year, my colleagues have been focused on taking our learning and development ecosystem to the next level, so that our people could develop new skills that are of critical importance today. I am proud of our “learn anytime, anywhere, and on any device approach,” with topics our colleagues can take ”off the shelf,” just like in a virtual learning supermarket.

Convenience. We focused on making things simple and convenient, starting with a fully digital hiring process and continuing with the employee experience, which is also mostly digital.

Consistency. One of the most important aspects refers to the consistency of our remuneration strategy, aimed at building Financial Health for our colleagues. We offer a wide range of flexible benefits to be activated by each of our colleagues in their own way, based on their needs, interests, and values.

Community. We are building communities for our people to thrive in and to better connect to their values. We have the Gen Z Community, the Magic Advisors Community, the Digital Experts League, the “Scoala de Bani” Teachers Community, and many others. At BCR, we have a strong community spirit, with lots of our colleagues being involved in volunteering activities. In the past five years, we have had 600,000 people participating in our volunteering projects, led by the Money School (Scoala de Bani).

What is your strategy in terms of attracting and retaining talent in your company?

We want to attract Gen Z, but also people with a growth mindset, no matter their age. Our main focus is on retaining the talent that we have. The L&D philosophy that guides us is “power to the people.” Each employee at BCR holds the remote control for their development: they can choose the subjects that suit them and the pace of learning. On the other hand, this year we are working on redefining our candidate experience journey. Listening more, caring more, being more open—these are the simple ingredients of our company narrative. It is more than a strategy: it is a sound way of living.