The “100 Most Powerful Women in Business Catalogue” – the 2021 edition. Women at the front of the line in business: Anca Vlad

Anca Vlad, founder and president of Fildas Catena

* The most important lesson I have learned during the pandemic: The pandemic has shown us the fragility of the world we live in and it has demonstrated that, from now on, any healthcare crisis will be a problem of the world, rather than just of certain groups, that we have to learn to communicate and to accept the expertise.

* The most important decision I have made over the past year: The most important decision made by all the entrepreneurs I know was to put the lives and health of the teams first, the entire activity of the company being reorganized around this desideratum. Our colleagues’ safety has inspired confidence to the communities in which they carry out their activity, and people have come to understand the simple gestures which protect them.

* How I kept my colleagues motivated over the past year: Regarding my colleagues’ motivation, it has remained, just as in the case of the medical profession: the desire to help and to do their work better. Pharmacists, pharmacy assistants, all our colleagues understood that this is a time of great challenges, they supported and encouraged one another. My energy and my colleagues’ energy has come from this collective resoluteness, this determination of all of us not to surrender to the fear, to the unknown.

* Work-from-home or work-from-office? Work-from-home has been possible for a limited number of group employees, as most of them are in direct contact with the public, in warehouses or on the road, providing for the company’s logistics. The professional activity carried out from home is recommended when the profession allows it – thus the risk of contamination specific for closed premises is reduced – except that, in the services and healthcare sector, this is not possible.

* The person who most inspired me during this period: Persons whom I have greatly admired and respected, such as our great ladies of art criticism, Doina Păuleanu and Ruxandra Garofeanu, as well as journalist and caricaturist Octavian Andronic, have passed away in this period. It is a tremendous loss, and I have realized the extent to which these very optimistic people, who were so cultured and with whom I thought we would build numerous projects in the future, have inspired me.

* Power vs. femininity: I believe that there is no difference between women and men in terms of power and energy, the force to overcome the hard times. But I have greatly admired the women who have had so many additional tasks during this period, especially related to the “online school”, new issues related to family supplies, the care and safety of the home and of the family members, the provision of masks and disinfectants, all the new rules. Through all these, they have remained warm, smiling, fearless, practical-minded, and optimistic.