{"id":7176,"date":"2015-07-26T09:39:07","date_gmt":"2015-07-26T06:39:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dantestein.ro\/en\/?p=7176"},"modified":"2017-10-06T01:16:03","modified_gmt":"2017-10-05T22:16:03","slug":"romania-needs-a-political-system-oriented-towards-the-business-environment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dantestein.ro\/en\/romania-needs-a-political-system-oriented-towards-the-business-environment\/","title":{"rendered":"Romania needs a political system oriented towards the business environment"},"content":{"rendered":"

We publish here the translation of the interview that Dante Stein has given to the online publication Romania 24 ore<\/a>. You can find the original article here: http:\/\/romania24ore.ro\/la-romania-ha-bisogno-di-un-sistema-politico-business-minded\/#<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Dante Stein is not just a true Italian living and working in Romania for over 15 years but also a Romanian in the making, both formal, i.e. of the citizenship, and human.<\/p>\n

After spending his childhood and adolescence in Italy he left the peninsula at the age of 15 to move with his family in Austria. Then, in 2000 he moved to Romania where, together with his father and brother, he was able to establish and successfully develop one of the largest companies in the country. Following this important experience, he became the adviser of Prime Minister Victor Ponta and created an efficient relationship between the political environment and the business one. Below is an exclusive interview conducted at the premises of \u201eMake-a-Wish<\/a>\u201e, the NGO he runs, where he welcomed us with great warmth and sympathy.<\/p>\n

\u2013 How and when has your Romanian experience started?<\/p>\n

\u2013 The Romanian experience of my family started in 1993, when my father came to Romania as Fiat importer. I arrived a few years later because I was in Indonesia for an adventure I wanted to live while I was young, so I came in the year 2000.<\/p>\n

\u2013 But you are born in Italy \u2026<\/p>\n

\u2013 No. I was born in Israel, but my mother was Italian, she was from Gubbio. My father came from Austria. When I was three years old, we all moved to Italy where I spent my childhood. I left at the age of 15 when my father brought the whole family to Austria. So I have an Austrian passport an now a Romanian one. The Italian passport is about to come out. My grandfather on my father\u2019s side was Romanian, from a small village in Bucovina, which at the moment was on the territory of the Austrian Empire but now is in Ukraine, the city of Cernauti. So it was easy to obtain the Romanian citizenship, of which I\u2019m proud.<\/p>\n

\u201eLife is made of adventures and decisions which have to be taken.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2013 For a long time you played an important role in the management of Autoitalia, the sole Fiat importer in Romania. How was that period?<\/p>\n

\u2013 There were three of us: my father, my brother and me. My father took care of everything because he was the founder, I was in charge of sales and marketing, as my specialization is marketing and my brother was mainly concerned with the financial side. We brought the company, and I\u2019m proud to say this because it\u2019s true, to a turnover of 262 million EUR right before the crisis. Even at European level, 262 million is an important figure. Besides sales, another thing that made us proud, and it still does, is that within the entire Fiat group, we certainly were importer no. 1 and there are about 50-60 importers all over the world. No. 1 concerning the market share, profitability, brand image.<\/p>\n

Then, the crisis came, the banking crisis, the financial crisis, the worst crisis since 1929, which mainly destroyed two industries: the real estate and the car industry. For each normal person, these are the two main expenses that can be done. A computer of 1,000 EUR can always be bought while a 100,000 EUR house or a 40.000 \u2013 60.000 EUR car can only if there is a financing or leasing system in place. After banks faced problems following the American crisis, nobody had money enough to afford such goods. The nicest part is that in 1996-1997 we brought to Romania the car leasing. Until then people here did not know this word: leasing.<\/p>\n

We were giving them cars for 20-30% of the price and they couldn\u2019t believe it was possible. And we were telling them it\u2019s possible, they shouldn\u2019t worry, just give us the documents. It was a time of customer education. But in 2008-2009, the market crashed from about 320.000 units to 75.000. It was crazy! We tried to keep the business alive and then we realized it was better to sell it and maybe it was a wise decision because even today, after four years, the market is still down and there are few units sold.<\/p>\n

\u2013And the sale was it a good business or was it a loss?<\/p>\n

\u2013 It\u2019s no secret, before the crisis we received a 3 digits offer and after the crisis we sold for a 2 digits (millions). The difference is huge. But we\u2019re happy, it\u2019s natural, life is made of adventures and decisions you have to take. For us it was a correct decision because we couldn\u2019t finance the business any longer. If we had known the crisis would end at a certain date, for example July 1, 2017 at 10 o\u2019clock in the morning, maybe we would have continued to invest in keeping the company even without a profit, but not knowing how long the crisis would last\u2026It wasn\u2019t an easy decision. From my point of view, the most difficult thing was to face our employees \u2013 I spoke for the family \u2013 and tell them we took this decision, there is a company that buys Autoitalia, and the message was they should remain as familiar with the new company owners, as they were with us. It wasn\u2019t easy for us and it wasn\u2019t easy for them, there were tears, emotions, it\u2019s normal after 15 years of working together every day.<\/p>\n

\u2013 How many employees did you have?<\/p>\n

\u2013 About 120-130, but together with all dealers in the country we were 800 in all.<\/p>\n

\u2013 And now you know how the market looks like?<\/p>\n

\u2013 Things aren’t going too well because the market is still down \u2026<\/p>\n

\u201eThis is a dialogue that didn\u2019t exist before\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2013 How did your Romanian experience continue after AutoItalia?<\/p>\n

\u2013 Little before we sold AutoItalia, I was called one day by a very nice friend who told me: there is a person whom you should meet because you have a very much alike, similar mentality \u2026 it\u2019s a guy named \u2026 Victor Ponta. And we went and ate at Isoletta, an Italian restaurant, and for the first time I saw a modern, progressive politician who understood how a country should be managed. I told myself: \u201eHe is the first Romanian politician I truly like\u201d. Then I went almost daily at the party\u2019s central headquarters from Kisseleff. During that time the party was in opposition but they initiated a censure motion against Government Ungureanu, they won, Ponta went straight to the Victoria Palace and I became an adviser to the Romanian Prime Minister. If someone had told me this a year before I would have said it\u2019s impossible.<\/p>\n

\u2013 But at the moment of the censor motion were you a member of the PSD Party?<\/p>\n

\u2013 I have always been a member of the Social Democratic Party from Austria and before the censor motion I became a member of the Romanian party. I belong to the Austrian social democracy so it was a natural thing to do. I tried to help him with my experience as a businessman in relation to the business environment, so we created an entity which now is called \u201eCoalitia pentru Dezvoltarea Romaniei\u201d (transl. the Coalition for Developing Romania), which I practically set up. It was relatively easy because I had contacts in the business community. Today it\u2019s a fact that this Coalition functions well. I had 19 meetings with the Prime Minister, intense meetings, were we spoke about business and the government, about country\u2019s problems and how can we do all that is best for Romania. This is essential: now there is a structured dialogue which until now, for 25 years since the revolution it didn\u2019t exist. It is very important to institutionalize this relationship and have a meeting every month with the Prime Minister and tens of meetings with various ministers in order to discuss the technical and functional aspects of the Coalition. After AutoItalia, this is the thing I\u2019m most proud of because it works. The Prime Minister appreciates the idea and the business sector likes the Prime Minister\u2019s pragmatism. They work well together.<\/p>\n

\u201eThe country needs a reform and the Fiscal Code is a reform.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2013 What is your opinion on the Fiscal Code reform and the President\u2019s refusal to enact it?<\/p>\n

\u2013 Here\u2019s the situation. It\u2019s like before we had a 1975 Dacia and now we have a Mercedes but \u2026somebody doesn\u2019t like the colour of the Mercedes! Unfortunately we go back to Basescu\u2019s time, when substance didn\u2019t matter, only who came up with the idea was important and if it didn\u2019t come from the right person, we were automatically against it! This approach is not good for the country. The country needs reform and the Fiscal Code is a reform. Maybe it isn\u2019t perfect but let\u2019s work together on it. I am not an economist, but there are tens of economists in the Coalition who cooperated and worked together. Do you think it\u2019s possible they all agree but the president says no? If there are technical issues \u2013 all right, we are told, we meet and discuss to understand them and solve them \u2026 for the benefit of the country. We leave aside the ideologies and speak together about the technical issues. \u201cYou don\u2019t like the colour? OK. Which colour do you suggest? Another colour. Do you all like it? Yes? Very well!\u201d But don\u2019t tell me you don\u2019t like the colour just because it comes from whom it shouldn\u2019t! I don\u2019t know the president personally, so I don\u2019t want to express an opinion on a person I don\u2019t know, with whom I never discussed. But one thing I disliked was that when the Prime Minister was called at the NAD (transl. National Anticorruption Directorate) on Friday, June 5, Ponta afterwards he went to the Cotroceni Palace to discuss with the President. Thirteen minutes after the Prime Minister left, the President went on television and requested the Prime Minister\u2019s resignation. Now, according to my understanding, as coming from Austria, Germany, Italy or other countries, the President should play a conciliatory role, calming the situation, not inflaming the spirits. The President should be above parties. But in Romania, the current President slowly becomes a player president, just like President B\u0103sescu.<\/p>\n

\u201eThe problem in Romania is that the egos are too big\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2013 But there is a constitutional issue, Romania\u2019s Constitution indeed allows the President to play a somewhat more important role than the constitution of the countries you mentioned \u2026<\/p>\n

\u2013 I agree and fully respect the Constitution. Only that in my opinion Romania\u2019s Constitution should be revised. If all European countries have a system where the President is above parties and these countries function very well, maybe we should consider revising the constitution. If the President has a very strong personality, taking advantage of this unclear stipulation of the Constitution, he can extend his influence all over. As country, we cannot be in a position to depend upon the personality of a president. The Romanian Constitution must inspire itself from so many other countries in the world where the Prime Minister is the Executive Director in charge of the country\u2019s administration and the President is the Head of the Board of Administration, who controls, watches, gives indications but does not intervene in the government\u2019s activity. All governments in this world should be run like a company, but with a clear social responsibility and here, in Romania, is a great need to do this. I\u2019m fully convinced that in the future, with a business oriented management we can become the 14th<\/sup> country of the 28 countries of the European Union. And I believe that Ponta has this vision. I see him every day, he is one of the most pragmatic and swift people, arriving immediately at the core of the problem. Of course, even he can do things better, but the problem in Romania is that the egos are too big. I wish this country peace, quiet, political predictability, because this affects the business environment. If we found a calmer system, more peaceful and predictable, Romania could be the 14th<\/sup> country of the European Union. But the possibility still exists because individually Romanians are extremely creative, with an entrepreneurial mindset and they are people who wish to work. Unfortunately, in the last 25 years, the top management, the different governments have not exploited the great potential of this country.<\/p>\n

\u2013 How did your adviser mandate end?<\/p>\n

\u2013 I was an honorary adviser and then I joined the Board of Administration of Tarom and there was a conflict of interest. Because Law 109 forbade this I decided to divide the two tasks. I was probably the only one who did. Now I only act as private adviser to the Prime Minister.<\/p>\n

\u201eWhat hinders us to have a better management?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2013 You are a member in Board of Administration of Tarom and also of Telekom. Furthermore, you recently became member of the Board of Administration of Po\u0219ta Rom\u00e2n\u0103 (congratulations for this). How do you see the future of these large companies?<\/p>\n

\u2013 I have an ambivalent position. As business man, I should say that the state doesn\u2019t know how to manage businesses. In 1970 there was a similar situation in Italy. So, the state should come out of these companies, sell them for the best possible price and then leave the company to report back concerning their business. This is what my businessman heart tells me. However, as a patriot, because I am a Romanian citizen and I love this country, I believe otherwise: why should we sell the state companies only because we are not able to manage them? What hinders us to have a better management? Personalities exist, we have a law, and the legal framework can be built, then what? Are we, Romanians less intelligent than others? Absolutely not! The best example is Po\u0219ta Rom\u00e2n\u0103. It works. In 2014, for the first time in six years it succeeded to have a positive balance sheet and during the first quarter 2015 it continued to grow. We start now with a wave of investments in order to improve the IT system and all the other things we need, we rebuild the organization chart for Po\u0219ta Rom\u00e2n\u0103, to make it more competitive with other companies. At the end of this process we will have a company to make us all proud instead of selling it cheap to anyone. But for this we need three things: a minister to enable this process, a Board of Administration to apply it and a CEO just as capable. Recently, Alex Petrescu was re-elected as CEO and hopefully Po\u0219ta Rom\u00e2n\u0103 will become a success story.<\/p>\n

With Telekom is a different problem. The Romanian Government holds 46%, therefore is a minority shareholder. We, the Board must simply facilitate the management concerning the legislation and other aspects. As for the state companies, in general, I must say privatization is not always a solution that guarantees success.<\/p>\n

\u201eTo give some joy to sick children\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2013 You are the founder of the organization \u201eMake-A-Wish<\/a>\u201d for Romania. How did everything start, what are the results and future projects?<\/p>\n

\u2013 Make-A-Wish is the largest world organization specialized in fulfilling wishes for children with ages 3 \u2013 18 struggling with fatal conditions. We ask these children to tell us what is their greatest wish and they tell us a lot of things such as: to meet football players, to have an iPhone, to go to the seaside, to fly, to be pilot for one day, to be fireman for one day, to have a washing machine, so that as a child put it, \u201emy mother wouldn\u2019t have to work that much and stay more with me\u201d. We are 10 people, of which Luiza, a great girl, is the CEO. Many times we fulfill the last wish of these sick children who otherwise wouldn\u2019t have had this chance. We try to make the impossible to fulfill their wishes. It\u2019s this child who wants to visit Santa Claus in Norway and we have organized everything for November or December. He will fly there by plane, we shoot everything and Santa Claus is waiting for him, a whole story. The first child who had a wish was C\u0103t\u0103lina, suffering from Hodgkin lymphoma and she wanted to go to a mall. We took her to the mall for a whole day, H&M offered us vouchers in amount of 1,200 EUR, we took her home with a white limo with cameras, that day she was a Hollywood superstar, a princess for a day. Then, a famous Romanian singer came, the little girl was so happy she could barely hold back her tears.<\/p>\n

\u2013 How are these actions financed?<\/p>\n

\u2013 Privately, but there are many companies which, to one degree or another, I closely know, so it\u2019s relatively easy to contact them. Companies are very generous; they understand immediately the situations and are ready to offer hope. Since May, when we started to meet, we collected almost 100.000 EUR for these kids. It\u2019s very good \u2026 these are the beautiful things in life.<\/p>\n

\u2013 Is there a selection process for these children?<\/p>\n

\u2013 Normally, doctors recommend us these children, we are in contact with various hospitals, we speak to them, we have a list of diseases that are authorized and we seek in one or two interviews to understand the child\u2019s wishes and if they can be achieved. Then we check our budget, if we have the funds we need and I must say we always find solutions. Then, we start to build and organize everything to come to \u201cdelivering the wish\u201d, always when there is the whole family the memory stays in the family. It is important to offer these memories to the family. Besides, sometimes these emotions make the disease regress. They are happy, I am happy \u2026<\/p>\n

\u201eThe Italian people saved my father\u2019s life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2013 Recently, the President of the Republic, through the Italian Embassy in Bucharest awarded you the Order of the Star of Italy, rank of Knight. What does this award mean to you?<\/p>\n

\u2013 A great joy! I have a special relationship with Italy, very special. I dedicated this award to the Italian people because the Italian people saved my father, who came in Italy from Austria during the Second World War. When Adolf Hitler started making problems in Europe, my father, like many other families, left Austria, meeting in Italy the allies who were coming from Africa through Sicily. My father stopped in Naples, the Italians welcomed him with open arms, then the allies came and everything went very well. If it weren\u2019t for the Italians \u2026 My father covered the entire peninsula on foot, together with his family, entering through the Piedmont, Genoa, and Mille Terre and then descended further towards Tuscany, Rome, all on foot, with a wagon with three people behind. Finally he arrived in Naples where he was well received. We feel Neapolitan. For me, Naples is the city that touches me the most. My father was the first to become Knight and then Commander, even my wife\u2019s father is a Commander there are three of us in our family. Unfortunately there are about 5-6 years since I last went to Naples which I love so much.<\/p>\n

\u2013 In the end, please send a message to the Italians in Romania \u2026<\/p>\n

\u2013 I\u2019d tell Italians to continue to believe in this country and be part of its civil society in order to contribute to a better country because everybody needs help. We still have so many things to do.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We publish here the translation of the interview that Dante Stein has given to the online publication Romania 24 ore. You can find the original article here: http:\/\/romania24ore.ro\/la-romania-ha-bisogno-di-un-sistema-politico-business-minded\/#
\n 
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