Cristi Cucu (Teamogy): “Companies are also starting to realize that without digitization, acceleration, and information sharing, they will simply be left behind by the competition”

Three years ago, BR spoke with Cristi Cucu about Teamogy – a system for managing companies, daily collaboration and communication of people, and sharing information. In companies, it addresses the agenda from contact management, job budgeting and their management, resource planning and time reporting, financial management, and profitability of the entire company. 

By Romanita Oprea

We recently met with Cristi Cucu, Country Manager, again in order to find out how Teamogy is currently helping companies in Romania, who are their most common clients, what are the most common challenges that companies face in their daily lives, and so on. 

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What has changed about Teamogy since we last talked? 

I think a lot has happened in the meantime. I will not talk about the new features in the system now, but especially about the situation on the market. Especially about the fact that more and more companies in Romania are starting to realize the need to solve things efficiently, easily share information and have data constantly available. This is why we are successful with Teamogy not only in advertising and PR agencies, but also in architectural and design firms, consulting firms and generally in service-oriented companies. And I am very happy about that.

How has the team in Romania evolved?

Our team is constantly growing. We have primarily expanded the team with consultants who advise companies on how to properly implement the new system in line with the needs of each individual client. All consultants are trained and collaborate with colleagues from other countries, sharing and improving valuable international know-how. Now we would like to focus even more on local marketing activities. Here we still have reserves and it’s a pity, because we are sure that many companies, if they knew about Teamogy, would use it as an excellent solution and improvement of the company and team functioning.

How has the pandemic impacted you and the results of it are still visible?

The pandemic had a major impact on our presence on Romanian Market. People were initially reluctant in investing money in digitalising their businesses but now we are seeing that due to how easy Teamogy is to onboard and work with, more and more business owners are coming to us. Companies are also starting to realize that without digitization, acceleration, and information sharing, they will simply be left behind by the competition. And we strive to show companies the way to solve things in a digitized and simplified way.

Is your business strategy different for the Romanian market than other countries you are active in and why?

The approach is in many ways consistent in all countries where we operate. In initial talks with companies, we always compare the client’s current situation and what benefits Teamogy would bring to a specific company. This is individual, so the client always sees the specific benefits of Teamogy for their company and what specifically will improve after you start using Teamogy.

We also provide potential clients with an assisted implementation of the system, where they have the opportunity to see how Teamogy is used by other companies of the same focus. Last but not least, the client onboarding process is the same. It is very easy and fast to use. 

So, are there any differences?

Yes, of course. Otherwise, it would be too easy. Differences in business strategy arise because markets are at different stages of companies’ digitalisation. In some places we are still converting most clients from Microsoft or Google “spreadsheet solutions”, in some countries various sub-applications are already widely used. In such cases, by switching to Teamogy, the client simplifies his daily work, he does not have to link data from a redundant number of systems inefficiently. In most markets there are clients who already perceive that the new way of working gives them a competitive advantage. They have most of their information in one system, well data-linked, they don’t waste time on unnecessary administration, and they are even more professional for their customers – not only in their business, but also in business administration. 

 Teamogy helps them grow as a business and employees become more loyal after having such a system in place.

What are the fields / industries that you are most suitable for and why?

Teamogy is specialized for companies in the professional services area such as marketing studios, design studios, architectural companies, consultancy companies, lawyers, and many others. The reason for this is that this type of companies sell hours to their clients and Teamogy helps them manage the hours spent on different projects, thus having a better overview over the profitability of each project. Of course, there are other important benefits. For example, all finances are simply under control (client invoices and supplier invoices), excellent document management, team collaboration supported by chat directly in the system with the ability to link communication to specific projects or tasks. Last but not least, complete management and control of the company’s overheads.

That sounds interesting. Is Teamogy adapted to the Romanian market in any way? You say that it deals with finance, budgeting and so on… And I can imagine that this can be important for companies.

Yes, that’s true. The whole team works with Teamogy, from client service people to realization people to management and the financial team. And Romania has its own specifics, such as the fact that we often think in business in euros, but our domestic currency is LEI.

I admit that it took some effort, but I can now say with confidence that Teamogy is well-prepared for the Romanian market. It is localized into Romanian, works comfortably with the EUR and LEI currencies. In addition, Teamogy is connected to the national company register or the Romanian central bank, so it automatically downloads the current rates. Or we have just completed the connection with the Saga accounting system. Thus, we can truly offer Romanian companies a helper that respects Romanian customs and needs, and also brings know-how from the effective work of companies and teams around the world.

How has the advance of AI helped Teamogy and how do you think it will help change people’s perceptions? Why?

So far, AI is mainly used in Teamogy’s development team and for some marketing activities. A big opportunity and challenge is to involve AI as an “advisor” directly in the system in future Teamogy versions, for example in the form of another “virtual user”. He will be able to answer various questions when using the system. 

In general, I think that the perception of AI, its further development is perceived very differently. Therefore, each client should always determine for himself whether he wants to have an AI service in Teamogy or not.

What are the main myths about Teamogy that you can debunk and how?

The main myth about Teamogy (and not only about Teamogy, but about new systems in general) is that employees won’t get used to the system because they got used to doing things a certain way. In the case of some systems, this is certainly true.The truth is that our onboarding system is so well set up that by the end of the onboarding process all employees will be trained to use the system, we will assist them when going live, and we offer support throughout our collaboration. Also, the more Teamogy is used the easier it gets, thus employees will be much more effective in their work.

Yes, of course, there is a short learning curve at the beginning. However, Teamogy is a system that will help a company for many years. We have confirmation from our clients that they are happy and praise this investment a few weeks after launch.

What do you consider to be Teamogy’s competition in 2023 and / or how do you approach it?

Probably the strongest competitor is a solution developed by the client himself over the last few years. He devoted a lot of time to it and has a positive attitude towards this solution for logical reasons. Clients are usually reluctant to leave such a solution, but it will happen.

The competitors, who propose partial solutions are Teamwork, Asana, Monday and others. All these systems are great in their area, but also different from Teamogy. Some of the competitors offer great partial solutions, others offer a comprehensive solution, but which is not that easy to onboard and use. Teamogy is a comprehensive solution which covers most companies’ needs, is easy to onboard and use. And especially, Teamogy is tuned for local Romania needs. And I think that’s what you expect from a system you want to use for ages. 

Can you elaborate how Teamogy benefits new users?

Absolutely. One of the key advantages of Teamogy is its intuitive and user-friendly interface. We’ve designed it in such a way that a typical employee can learn to navigate and use it effectively within a few hours. This significantly reduces the onboarding period, which can take months with larger solutions. With Teamogy, you’re up and running in just a few days, bigger companies 2 – 4weeks at most.

What feedback have you received from clients who have integrated Teamogy into their operations?

Our clients have shared some very positive feedback. They’ve told us that integrating Teamogyhas made their companies appear even more professional to their clients and team members.Moreover, our clients often feel they have full control over their business, leading to peace of mind. They appreciate not wasting time on unnecessary tasks and feel they’ve made the right decision in choosing Teamogy for efficient, modern, online, and comfortable work, accessible anytime, anywhere.

What are your business goals for 2023-2024?

We believe that Teamogy has the potential to improve the performance of any company in Romania. That is why we want to bring Teamogy to every company in Romania. 

But seriously… We want to raise awareness about Teamogy in other industries and show companies that digitalization is not a complex process and that they should not be afraid of it. On the contrary, a smartly chosen solution, implemented correctly, can help a company to simplify and accelerate its business.

Yes, we will continue to expand our team, especially with more onboarding, training, and system support specialists. We are very excited and curious to see how the Romanian market will continue to develop. And of course, we want to be an active part of this development.