Board of Directors

President of Concordia

Dan Șucu is the President of Concordia, on behalf of the Federation of Employers of Trade Networks, and founder of the Mobexpert Group, the most important furniture manufacturer and retailer in Romania.

Dan Șucu is the president of Concordia, on behalf of the Federation of Employers of Trade Networks, and founder of the Mobexpert Group, the most important furniture manufacturer and retailer in Romania.

Dan founded the company in 1993, and the first thing he did was to sell a house, a family inheritance, to buy a furniture truck from France. Today, one in 10 Romanians has a Mobexpert furniture item in their home, and its network has over 30 hypermarkets and shops. The Mobexpert Group has 2,400 employees and an annual turnover of approximately 200 million euros and owns eight furniture factories that produce for the Romanian market and export.

Honorary President

Steven van Groningen is the president of the Concordia Employers’ Confederation and a founding member of the Romanian Board of Banking Employers.

A Dutch citizen, van Groningen has run banks in Hungary, Russia for the past 25 years and since 2002 has become president and CEO of Raiffeisen Bank S.A. Romania. He is actively involved, among others, in the Aspen Romania Institute, Hospice Casa Speranței or the Council of Foreign Investors and a member of the board of directors of Fondul Proprietatea. He is the first president and one of the founders of United Way Romania and currently holds the role of general secretary of United Way Netherlands. Van Groningen is a former performance rower, participant in the Olympic Games, competitor in the Ironman triathlon and still very active in sports life.

Vice-president of Concordia

Radu Căprău is the vice-president of Concordia, on behalf of the Oil and Gas Employers’ Federation, and a member of the OMV Petrom Board of Directors responsible for Downstream Oil A graduate of the University of Economic Studies in Brașov, Radu built a career in sales, and in 2000, he joined OMV in 2000, in the position of Area Manager for OMV Romania.

Radu Căprău is the vice-president of Concordia, on behalf of the Oil and Gas Employers’ Federation, and a member of the OMV Petrom Board of Directors responsible for Downstream Oil
A graduate of the University of Economic Studies in Brașov, Radu built a career in sales, and in 2000, he joined OMV in 2000, in the position of Area Manager for OMV Romania.
Since then, he has held various management positions in the OMV Group, in Bulgaria being responsible for Retail, Romania: Head of Avanti International, later taking over Downstream Supply and Sales together with the management of OPM and Petrom Aviation. In 2018, he became Head of Crude Supply and Trading in Vienna.

Vice-president of Concordia

Mihai Matei is vice president of Concordia and the President of the Employers’ Association of the Software and Services Industry.

Mihai Matei is a member of the Concordia Board of Directors and the President of the Employers’ Association of the Software and Services Industry.
Mihai graduated from the Faculty of Automation and Computers at the Polytechnic University of Bucharest, and in 2005 he founded Essensys Software, of which he is CEO. With over 20 years of experience in the IT field, he is the main author of the first software procurement guide for public institutions in Romania and a prominent voice of the profile industry in the country. Mihai is also one of the founders of the NGO Geeks for Democracy, where he coordinates the Fund for Democracy and other civic projects.

Vice-president of Concordia

Ondrej Safar is the country manager of CEZ Romania.

An electrical engineer and graduate of the Technical University of Prague, Ondrej Safar is well acquainted with the Balkan energy markets. Until mid-2018, Mr Safar headed Sepaș Enerji, a Turkish member company of the CEZ Group, previously coordinating Group operations in Bulgaria and Romania.

He joined the CEZ team in April 2004. In November 2005, he was on his way to Oltenia to join CEZ Group colleagues in Romania. During a 7-year mandate, he was in charge of the actual construction of the Fântânele-Cogealac Wind Farm, as well as the management of renewable energy production facilities – hydro and wind, or the coordination of CEZ Sales.

As of 1 August 2018, Ondrej Safar took over CEZ’s activity in Romania, becoming the new Country Manager and President of the Board of Directors of CEZ Romania.

Vice-president of Concordia

Sergiu Manea is the president of FinBan and the CEO of Banca Comerciale Române (BCR), the largest financial group in Romania, including universal banking operations (retail, corporate & investment banking, treasury and capital markets), as well as leasing, private pensions and home banking businesses.

Sergiu became CEO of BCR in October 2015. Under his leadership, BCR entered a transformation process, marked by a new milestone with the launch of George, the first smart banking platform in Romania. During Sergiu’s tenure, BCR has positioned itself as a promoter of creating prosperity through education, by setting up the largest financial education program in Romania, the School of Money, as well as the entrepreneurial education platform BCR School of Business.

Sergiu Manea graduated from the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest in 1995, and later obtained a Master’s degree in Finance at DOFIN Bucharest. He started his career through a series of positions held in leading financial institutions such as BRD, ING Bank Romania, Citibank Romania and Bank Austria Creditanstalt.

Since 2000, he has held several roles in Financial Markets at ABN AMRO Bucharest and London, and between 2005 and 2010 he was Managing Director, Head of EEMEA Markets, Unicredit Markets & Investment Banking at Bank Austria. Sergiu was then Managing Partner of Ithuba Capital, a private investment advisory firm based in Vienna, Austria, after which he joined BCR, where he held the position of Executive Vice President Treasury, Capital Markets&Group Large Corporates.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Călin Ile is vice president of Concordia and honorary president of the Romanian Hotel Industry Federation.

Călin Ile is a member of the Concordia Board of Directors and president of the Romanian Hotel Industry Federation.
Călin graduated from the Faculty of Tourism within ASE in 1995 and two years later he became executive director of the Continental Hotel in Bucharest. Later, he joined the ACCOR group, with which he opened the first hotel in Romania, then helped strengthen the company’s network and reputation in Romania. In 2011, the HTB Tourism Hospitality Forum named him the Hotelier of the Year 2011, the first award of this type given to a Romanian manager. Since 2015 he is the president of FIHR- Romanian Hoteliers Association, the first employer organization of Romanian tourism, established in April 1990. FIHR has as a priority the development of education, both by supporting vocational education dedicated to new entrants and for the continuous training of professionals. FIHR is one of the most active tourism organizations, engaged in a constructive dialogue with public authorities, but also in a process of continuous communication with customers and partners.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Franck Neel is the president of the Oil and Gas Employers’ Federation and a member of the board of OMV Petrom, responsible for Downstream Gas.

Franck Neel is the president of the Oil and Gas Employers’ Federation and a member of the board of OMV Petrom, responsible for Downstream Gas.
Franck studied energy at the University of Rouen, where he obtained a degree in engineering, and then a master’s degree in mechanical engineering at Cranfield University in the United Kingdom. He started his career at Gaz de France where he spent 7 years in the engineering department and later in the Marketing and Sales department, holding various positions in countries such as France, the Czech Republic, Hungary, the Netherlands, Italy and the United Kingdom. He worked for the Engie Group for 25 years, and from July 2018 he came to Romania to join OMV Petrom.

Former President of Concordia, Honorary member

Adrian Manolache is a honorary member of Concordia and Secretary General of the Association of Large Romanian Commercial Networks (AMRCR). Adrian is a commercial lawyer, a member of the Bucharest Bar since 2000, and studied the Economic Foundations of Competition Law at King’s College London. Its mission is to help entrepreneurs and managers to build and maintain healthy businesses from a legal point of view in Romania. For Adrian, the successful client-lawyer relationship is based on trust, just like any other partnership in someone’s life, and in this respect compromises do not find a place.

Adrian Manolache is honorary member of Concordia and Secretary General of the Association of Large Romanian Commercial Networks (AMRCR).

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Tiberiu Dănețiu is a member of the Concordia Board of Directors, on behalf of the Federation of Employers of Trade Networks, and marketing director of Auchan Romania, a company he joined in 2005.

A graduate of the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest, Tiberiu obtained a doctorate from the same university, with a thesis in Business Administration. He was part of the university environment, teaching in the faculty that trained him, until marketing and retail innovation took the forefront of his activities.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Doina Ciomag is a member of the Board of Directors of Concordia and former Executive Director of the Council of Foreign Investors – FIC.

Doina graduated from the Academy of Economic Studies (ASE Bucharest), with a specialty in trade and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Washington, Seattle. Experience and professional career are in the field of advocacy and management consulting. Between 1991-1996, Doina was a Senior Consultant at Roland Berger & Partner, later having two collaborations with Larive (being responsible for the Eurobalance investment fund) and with Deloitte & Touche.
Doina started working in the Council of Foreign Investors since its establishment in 1997. After more than 20 years, FIC is recognized as one of the most respected and influential business associations in Romania, whose positions and recommendations are always motivated and thorough.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Constantin Isac is a member of the Concordia Board of Directors and the President of the Employers’ Federation of Romanian Carriers (FPTR).

He graduated from the Faculty of Transportation at the Bucharest Polytechnic Institute in 1983 and dedicated his entire career to this field. Initially in the construction of motor vehicles (ARO Câmpulung), then with their operation, for almost 40 years he managed road transport processes of goods of all categories, from the simplest, as general goods, courier, to the most special and complex, transport of valuables, dangerous or oversized goods. He has been active in the associative employers’ structures since 2003, when, as President-General Manager of SC Transchim SA for a period of over 11 years, he was elected a member of the Board of Directors of UNTRR, an association founded in 1990, which now brings together more than 13,000 members.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Julia Leferman is a member of the Concordia Board of Directors and the President of the Romanian Brewers’ Association (BR).

Julia has over 20 years of experience in advocacy and management consulting, accumulated in important public institutions and in private consulting.
Before joining the Romanian Brewers, she held the position of Public Affairs Director at Grayling Romania, she was an economic policy advisor for the President of the Chamber of Deputies, a director of the Representation and PR department at the Romanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and a legislative advisor on European legislation in the Chancellery of the Prime Minister.
She has a degree in political science and international relations from the University of Bucharest, a master’s degree in European and International Business Law from the University of Paris I Pantheon Sorbonne and a degree in Circular Economy and Sustainability Strategies from Cambridge University Judge Business School.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

With a long experience in consultancy, government relations, communication and crisis management, Alice Nichita holds the position of Corporate Affairs and Sustainability Director within Coca-Cola HBC Romania.

In her role, she focuses on creating the proper premises for sustainable business growth by building a strong corporate identity and supporting local communities. With strong expertise and knowledge in public affairs, she currently is the President of Romanian Soft Drinks Association (ANBR). ANBR is the representative association of the soft drinks industry in Romania, contributing through professionalism and ethics to ensure the long-term sustainability of this industry. She is also President of Soft Drinks for Sustainability Association and Vice President of Packaging and Environment Association and Mineral Water Federation.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Cătălina Dodu is Partner, Cybersecurity Leader EY South Cluster and Consulting Service Line Leader, and Member of the Board of Directors of the Association of Software and Services Industry (ANIS).

With a degree in Cybersecurity, she started her career as a programmer in a small automotive distribution company. He wanted to do programming, so he became Bitdefender’s 22nd employee. Next came Siemens and ATOS, where she has worked since 2011. She’s a Global Women in Tech Strategic Advisor and a man committed to all things sustainable business development.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Marius Ștefănescu is a member of the Concordia Board and President of the Patronage of the Foreign Labour Force (PFMS).

Marius Ștefănescu is a graduate of the Faculty of Management, with over 15 years of experience in the business environment, as an M&A consultant, active investor and entrepreneur, Marius Ștefănescu is Co-founder of the group of companies International Work Finder, Eco Synergy, Stratos, Stratos Aviation companies that have as their objects of activity the import of workforce from non-EU countries, environmental consulting and aviation.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Judith Kiss is a member of Concordia’s Board of Directors on behalf of the Romanian Insurance Industry Employers’ Association (PIAR) and Director of Human Resources, Logistics and BCP Groupama, which she joined in 2015.

Judith has over 20 years of professional experience, during which time she has managed HR, logistics, BCP and public relations departments of major national and multinational companies in areas such as FMCG, retail, security services and IT.
In 2009, Judith graduated from the MBA program at ASE-CNAM Paris and is certified in Human Resources Management through the postgraduate program at Asebuss and the Master in Communication and Human Resources Management at SNSPA.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Aurelia Puiu is Legal Manager Ethics, Compliance and Litigation at Renault Group and member of the Board of Directors of the Federation of Employers in the Automotive Industry (FPIA).

Aurelia Puiu started her career in 2002 in the Civil and Commercial Departments of a prestigious law firm in Bucharest. She has provided legal advice and representation in the areas of Commercial Law, Real Estate, Corporate Acquisitions.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Simona Istrate is a member of the Board of Directors of Concordia and President of the Employers’ Organization of Private Railway Companies in Romania (OPSFPR).

Simona Istrate has a bachelor’s degree in legal sciences and a master’s degree in criminal sciences. She has a rich experience in the field of central public administration, acquired in the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, where she coordinated the Legal Department and the Directorate of Rail Transportation. He also has experience in the management of state-owned companies, as he was a member of the Board of Directors of the National Railroad Passenger Transport Company “C.F.R. Călători” – S.A. and of the National Railroad Company “CFR” – S.A.

Since 2020 he has been an advisor to Grampet Grup S.A. and member of the Board of Directors of REVA S.A.

Since August 1, 2023, he is President of the Employers’ Organization of Private Railway Companies in Romania, which represents 15 freight railway companies, accounting for more than 60% of the total volume of rail freight.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Daniela Dărăban was appointed Executive Director of the Federation of Associations of Energy Utility Companies (ACUE) in 2021, out of the members’ desire to ensure the most effective representation of the industry’s interests in the context of the significant transformations brought about by the energy transition.

Daniela Dărăban previously worked at GSK Pharma Romania as Corporate Affairs & Communication Head and member of the Board.
Before joining GSK in 2019, Daniela Dărăban was, for eight years (2011-2019), Public and Government Relations Director for ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Romania. Daniela Dărăban has also worked in the public sector, serving as Public Relations and Communication Advisor to the President of ANRE (2010), Minister of Finance (2009); Minister of Economy and Energy (2006-2008). Daniela Dărăban graduated from the Faculty of Political and Administrative Studies, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Mario Crețu is Director for Institutional Affairs at Carrefour Romania and a member of the Board of Directors of the Concordia Employers’ Confederation.

He has been Director of Institutional Affairs at Carrefour Romania for over 4 years, coinciding with his presence at AMRCR, and also coordinates the company’s environmental activities.

Mario is a graduate of the University of Bucharest – Political Science and Administration, with a Master in Law and Community Affairs from the National School of Political and Administrative Sciences. Mario’s professional experience includes more than 12 years in the press (Antena 3 and Agerpres), one year at the World Trade Center Bucharest in the corporate affairs area, about three years in public administration (advisor to the Minister of Health and director of the European Affairs Department of the Ministry of Health), about three years as advisor to the CEO of Romgaz and responsible for corporate affairs and spokesperson of the company, and since February 2019 he has been working for Carrefour.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Mihaela Lupu started her career within UniCredit Group in August 1998, in HVB Bank Romania S.A., in the position of Financial Analyst, becoming in 2004 Coordinator of the Financial Control Department.

Mihaela Lupu started her career within UniCredit Group in August 1998, in HVB Bank Romania S.A., in the position of Financial Analyst, becoming in 2004 Coordinator of the Financial Control Department.

Since 2007, Mihaela was promoted to Head of Financial Control Department in UniCredit Tiriac Bank, becoming in 2010 Planning and Control Director. The experience gained in these management positions and her leadership qualities recommended her in 2013 for appointment to the position of CFO and member of the UniCredit Bank Board of Directors in Romania. Since 2017, Mihaela Lupu has accepted new challenges within the Group, successively assuming the position of Head of Group Planning, Capital Management & Strategic ALM. From 2021 to October 2023, Mihaela Lupu held the role of Chief Financial Officer for Central Europe (CE&EE), being appointed CEO UniCredit Bank Romania on October 16, 2023.

Mihaela Lupu holds a degree in economics, having graduated from the Academy of Economic Sciences in Bucharest, as well as the Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS).

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Mihai Bordeanu is CEO Dacia & Head of Country for Renault Group activities in Romania.

His journey in the Renault Group family began in 2010, when he took up the position of Marketing Director at Renault Commercial Roumanie for the Dacia and Renault brands. In 2014 he started his international professional journey as Marketing Director of Groupe Renault for the United Kingdom, Ireland, Cyprus and Malta (“Northern Territory”); in 2016 he became Marketing Director for the Eurasia region and since 2019, VP Marketing Dacia worldwide.

Mihai graduated from the Faculty of Cybernetics at the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest and attended general management programs in specialized organizations such as London Business School and CEDEP (INSEAD).

He is also the President of ACAROM (Romanian Automobile Manufacturers Association), and an active member of PAR – Romanian Auto Partnership – a working group dedicated to the promotion and development of the automotive industry.

Member of Concordia’s Board of Directors

Dumitru Blaga is a member of Concordia’s Board of Directors and President of the Romanian Furniture Manufacturers Association, since November 2, 2023, after two four-year terms as Vice-President of the Association.

With 35 years of experience in the furniture industry, passing through all functions from production to management, Dumitru Blaga is the general manager and administrator of SIMEX, an internationally recognized furniture brand. The luxury furniture produced in Simleu Silvaniei, in Transylvania, under the SIMEX brand, is sold today not only in Romania and in the developed countries of Europe, but also in the United States, furnishing homes and palaces, hotels and offices.