Marcela Stancu, Genesis Property: Creating a united community of people was both the biggest challenge and opportunity in the past years

In an enlightening conversation with Business Review, Marcela Stancu, the Community Director at Genesis Property, unveils her unique leadership approach and the dynamic strides her company has made under her guidance. Genesis Property, known for its innovative business campuses like YUNITY Park and West Gate Business District, benefits greatly from Stancu’s combined transformational and operational leadership style. She focuses on enhancing well-being and fostering a strong sense of community both within her team and across the company’s extensive networks.

What is your leadership style and how does it help your company to perform?

My leadership style is a combination of transformational and operational, focused on people’s well-being. I provide a clear vision and inspire my team from Genesis Property to strive for excellence by creating a high-quality work environment and demonstrating commitment to building communities.

As a leader, I encourage people to go beyond their comfort zones and innovate. I really believe that, through enthusiasm and passion, I can motivate and support people to be the best version of themselves, and this heightened engagement leads to increased productivity, creativity and well-being. The same principles apply within the communities we are building in the business campuses developed by Genesis Property, a company created by Liviu Tudor – YUNITY Park and West Gate Business District. From my role, I focus on creating connections between people, on empowering them to develop and on providing them interactions and experiences that contribute to their well-being.

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Moreover, as a leader it is crucial to focus on people’s growth and development, both personal and professional. This means creating opportunities for training and career advancement to ensure a skilled and motivated workforce, but also designing interactions that help them connect with others and direct their free time towards well-being and self-improvement.

What are your main achievements in 2023 from your position within the company you work for?

In 2023, I prioritised the well-being and professional growth of both people within Genesis Property and within employers located in our business campuses. By understanding their real needs, we create a supportive environment that fosters loyalty and trust.

By promoting a culture of collaboration and interaction, we help build a strong sense of community in our networks. The spaces in YUNITY Park have helped us to create this community, where people come and share knowledge, help each other and spend time together, participating at events or actions with major social impact.

Through our community, we motivate and engage people to be more creative and to communicate more, directly contributing to a great workplace environment. We foster a culture that values growth and innovation, that helps us and our partners stay competitive and adapt to changing market contexts. Moreover, I have a contribution to a supportive and empowering leadership that leads to higher job satisfaction and lower turnover rates, with enhanced team dynamics and higher quality outcomes.

What were the main challenges last year for the business sector you operate and how did you manage to overpass them?

Creating a united community of people returning to the office was both the biggest challenge and opportunity in the past years. Returning to the office has been a slow process that we have managed to give a greater dynamic to, with positive effects on the working environment.

We managed to attract more people to work from their office, especially after the transformation of YUNITY Park into a business campus that anticipates people’s needs and expectations and provides innovative spaces and experiences. At the end of last year, we  announced the completion of the second phase of YUNITY Park’s transformation, following a 20 million euros investment. Today, the campus is a full ecosystem for people’s lives in the office and beyond, providing facilities and benefits for their development and wellbeing in a strong connection with nature.

YUNITY Park features an urban forest spanning 1,000 square metres, contributing to the absorption of over 5 tons of CO₂ annually. At the same time, the campus stands around a public realm with 2,000 metres of pedestrian pathways and tiered promenade, an open-air amphitheatre with a capacity of 1,500 people, cascading water mirrors and creative meeting spaces. This way, we seamlessly integrate people’s needs when it comes to the diversity and dynamics of working areas, the integration of nature with the built environment and the opportunities to care for their health and well-being.