The Women of Coca-Cola HBC Romania: inspiring growth and nurturing potential

Being a leader is a constant challenge in every organization, especially during the last few years when trends and behaviors changed at accelerating pace. Generations gaps began to be more evident and career paths mean different things for employees. And when above all daily challenges, we face a pandemic that transforms our working habits, remaining an inspirational and trustful leader is the key to keep a team united and motivated.

“I have tremendous appreciation and respect for my team’s work, they are all amazing people. In our industry, innovation and creativity stand as a solid base for our success. Thus, in order to maximize my team’s potential, I must lead in a way that ensures everyone to speak freely, have their views heard and be inspired. There are two key aspects that build the solid base for a team: the organizational culture of the company and the general working environment created within each team. Adapting to external changes becomes easier when team members trust each other and work together for a common purpose. My advice for future leaders is to focus on people’s talents and skills.

Discover their strengths and guide them to achieve their potential. When you are empowering them, their confidence and motivation will grow. To do so, you need to be able to learn, un-learn and re-learn. We are all work in progress and each experience is a lesson”, Mihaela Hoffman, Marketing Manager at Coca-Cola HBC Romania.

Coca-Cola HBC Romania is the leader of the beverage industry in Romania and its success relies on its people. Their stories are writing the company’s history and drive its growth. In such competitive industry, leaders play an essential role.

“For my team, I believe autonomy is the key for performance and growth. Our organizational culture is built on trust, appreciation, diversity and inclusion. My leadership approach is building a solid and trustful environment inside my team, where each member is an expert in his area. When they feel empowered and confident on their skills and knowledge, there is more room for creativity and valuable ideas. And because we are on a continuously learning journey, I like to challenge my team with debate. Some of the best ideas come when least expected. I believe an essential strength of a leader is the ability to trust its team. Trusting them and their capabilities to make decisions requires offering them space. Trust means to sometimes let go of control. Micromanagement is losing relevance, while empowerment had become the fuel for growth.” Alice Nichita, Public Affairs and Communication Manager at Coca-Cola HBC Romania.

Coca-Cola HBC Romania ranked as the local sustainable leader for 5 years in a row, according to the independent study by The Azores and the company’s commitments for the years to come are very ambitious. When it comes to gender balance, their commitment is for 50% of its management positions to be held by women, by 2025. In 2020, this percentage was at 46%. Alice Nichita and Mihaela Hoffman offered two examples of the company’s vision on growing their teams and achieving full potential. And when organizational culture is built on authenticity, appreciation, diversity and inclusion, inspiring and empowering those around you gets much easier.