Romanian Professionals Share How Bucharest Executive MBA Helped Shape Their Careers and Ambitions

The beauty — and at the same time, the challenge — of the business field lies in its wide range of applicability. From IT and cybersecurity to banking, finance, insurance, FMCG/retail, pharma, and even education, business studies — whether at the undergraduate level or in MBA programs — offer students diverse opportunities for growth and the knowledge needed to succeed in whichever industry they choose to pursue.

Across these different industries — from cybersecurity and IT to banking and tech startups —over 20 professionals from Romania, recently graduates, found the Executive MBA at WU in Vienna to be more than just a career accelerator. It became a launchpad for introspection, strategy, and vision. Whether aiming to grow a startup, lead a division, or simply understand the full complexity of business, the program helped each of them build the confidence and competence to take the next bold step.

Therefore, for them seeking to scale up their careers or transition into entrepreneurship, the Bucharest Executive MBA program offered by WU Executive Academy has become more than just a credential — it’s a transformative experience.

We spoke with four recent graduates who shared how the program influenced their personal and professional journeys.

Eliza Gereanu: A Journey of Growth, Leadership, and Community at WU Executive MBA

Eliza Gereanu, head of the Bucharest EMBA class 2023-2025, was nominated by the CEM of the WU Executive Academy as the WUman Leader Hub Manager for Romania – a role that reflects confidence in her potential to support, connect and represent the alumni community in Romania, especially from a female leadership perspective.

At the close of an intense and transformative chapter, Eliza Gereanu stood before her peers with a message that captured the essence of what the WU Executive MBA experience meant to her—and to many others in the cohort. In a heartfelt speech delivered at the program’s final ceremony, Eliza shared reflections on personal and professional evolution, the power of community, and her vision for the future.

For Eliza, the Executive MBA was more than a prestigious academic milestone. It was a journey that challenged her to stretch beyond her comfort zone and gave her the tools to navigate a rapidly evolving world. From innovation and digital transformation to the rise of artificial intelligence, the program’s rigorous content empowered her and her colleagues to face complexity with confidence.

“Tonight, we celebrate more than just a diploma—we celebrate growth, resilience, connection, and the many steps we took that brought us here.

Completing this Executive MBA is a tremendous achievement. Not only because of the long hours, the demanding assignments, and the complexity of the content—but because of who we’ve become along the way.

This program has empowered us to understand and navigate the ever-changing world around us. We dove deep into the forces reshaping our economies and industries—innovation, the technological revolution, and, of course, artificial intelligence. After this journey, I can say with confidence: we are equipped, and we are ready—for any professional challenge ahead.

But what truly made this experience extraordinary was the diversity—not only in the curriculum but in our cohort. Coming from different sectors, cultures, and backgrounds, we learned just as much from one another as we did from our classes. We debated, collaborated, and sometimes even clashed—but always grew stronger for it.

We refined critical hard skills—finance, marketing, accounting, strategy—but it was the soft skills that left an even deeper impact. Through leadership, negotiation, change management, and the Executive Lab experiences, we developed as human beings. We learned to listen, to lead with empathy, and to adapt with integrity,” she stated.

But it wasn’t just the curriculum that shaped the experience. What Eliza emphasized most was the cohort—the people. Diverse in background, profession, and culture, her peers brought depth to every classroom conversation and project collaboration. The mutual exchange of ideas, experiences, and perspectives became one of the most enriching aspects of the program.

“We learned just as much from one another as we did from our classes,” she noted, highlighting how even disagreements led to growth.

Beyond finance, strategy, and marketing, it was the soft skills that left a lasting impact. Through courses in leadership, negotiation, and change management—as well as immersive Executive Lab experiences—Eliza discovered new dimensions of empathy, adaptability, and purpose.

“This program helped us not just to think like leaders, but to lead with purpose and humanity,” she said.

Culminating this journey, Eliza was honored with a significant recognition. The CEM (Country Executive Manager) of the WU Executive Academy nominated her as the WUman Leader Hub Manager for Romania—a role that reflects trust in her leadership potential and her commitment to fostering the local alumni community, especially through the lens of female leadership.

“This opportunity fills me with excitement and gratitude,” she said. “I look forward to empowering our alumni community, fostering meaningful relationships, and creating synergies that will not only drive change but uplift us all.”

As she steps into this new chapter, Eliza carries with her more than a degree—she brings forward a mindset of lifelong learning, a deep appreciation for connection, and a drive to make an impact. In her own words:

“We leave this chapter with a deep sense of perspective, resilience, and a shared purpose that binds us together.”

From Corporate Security to Entrepreneurship
Gabriel Cusu, Cybersecurity Manager, SLO Cybertech SRL

After gaining experience at global tech giants Dell and Ericsson, Gabriel Cusu decided to strike out on his own. At the end of 2022, he launched his own cybersecurity company. Just a few months later, in early 2023, he landed his first major contract with an industrial company in Luxembourg. The MBA came into play at a pivotal moment.

Gabriel Cusu shared that he he had applied in late spring 2023, unsure of what direction to take next, stressing though that the MBA helped clarify his vision, and that the capstone project, in particular, helped him understand what he is passionate about.

“I work in the cybersecurity field and somewhere in January 2023 I got my first contract to do a cybersecurity program for a large, industrial company in Luxembourg, and so the MBA came somewhat organically because in June when the selection was made, I applied somewhat at the end of April or May, I don’t remember exactly, I wanted to think about what I was doing. If I stay on this path, will I develop the business, how do I move forward? And I did the MBA precisely to give me a direction for the future, to see what I could do and I think this capstone helped me a lot to understand what I like and what I would like to do in the future,” he explained.

“I paid for it from my own business funds, and I see it as an investment in shaping my entrepreneurial future. I enjoy this space and I’d like to grow my business further — although, of course, that depends on the economic climate,” Gabriel said.

Gabriel Cusu, next to his colleagues Craciun Andreea, Emin Melis and Tapi Andrei has as capstone presentation Melis’s Roll-Cakes, a project to develop an artisanal confectionery brand for the corporate employees, based on AI customization, dietary and health needs and sustainability.

“Melis’s Roll-Cakes aims to redefine Romania’s premium dessert market through a fast-paced production and selling concept, based on artisanal craftsmanship, AI-driven personalization, and sustainability. As a high-end confectionery brand, it offers AI-powered customizable desserts tailored to taste, dietary needs, and aesthetics. With a focus on eco-conscious practices and responsible sourcing, the model stands out by delivering high-quality, zero-waste desserts—either personalized within minutes or as signature products on request. The main strength lies in the uniqueness of the concept (…) AI enables real-time menu recommendations, automated quality control and dynamic pricing strategies”, reads the capstone presentation overview.

Shifting from Ops to Strategic Educational Growth
Mihail Mușat, Business Line Director – DevOps, Zitec

For Mihail Mușat, transitioning into a business line director role at Zitec meant moving from project management and training into a position that mimicked the responsibilities of a mini-CEO.

“I currently work at Zitec and after such a mixed experience in the area of ​​education, non-formal, that is, I had years of trainer and coach and then years in which I did project management, management in IT. I arrived at my current workplace where the role per se is a kind of, I call it, mini CEO. Each business liner has its own budget, its own team. Effectively, each business line director has the objective of growing their own business in the context of big business. For me, it was a very sudden transition from the area of ​​project management, training and operational director to having responsibility for growing a business and it seemed to me that now is the ideal time to do an MBA. In November-December, I made the transition to another business liner role in which, practically, the turnover is about 5-6 times higher than what I had before and I realized in this transition process, how much my MBA experience benefited me,” Mușat explained.

The transition into a new line with 5-6 times the previous revenue only underscored how valuable the MBA experience was. “What stood out for me was the international exposure — learning from professors with real-world experience, and diving into case studies across different industries. That zoom-in/zoom-out approach gave me a broader business perspective,” he added.

Together with Elena Pioara and Cătălin Ana, Mihail Mușat, proposed for the MBA capstone Grow Hub, an AI-powered career guidance platform designed to help Romanian teenagers and young adults (aged 15-25) navigate their education and career decisions with clarity and
confidence, based on the fact that “choosing a career is one of the most critical and anxiety-inducing decisions” both for students and for their families. Designed for both students and their parents, Grow Hub bridges the growing gap between traditional school counselling and the real-world expectations of a rapidly evolving job market.

Grow Hub will provide gamified weekly challenges aligned with each user’s career path, among others, while using a tiered subscription model that evolves from B2C, to B2B and seeking government/NGO education grants.

“We target A Bigger Journey. Namely, we focus on what is the career that the student wants to follow. Grow Hub helps you realize how well that career suits you, one by one, because maybe you want a career that you realize afterwards why the drop-out rate in Romania in the first year of college and in the second year is so high. So in Romania, in the first year of college, depending on the year, studies that we consulted, the drop-out is in the 30-40%. So, the basic goal of the project is to reduce the drop-out.

What does a career really mean? And once that becomes clear, here are the university programs best aligned to support that path. Even more than that, through the mentors they’ll interact with during high school—if they begin this journey early—they’ll gain a much better understanding of what that profession actually entails.

For those who start the journey later, during university, the program can help them become more aware of their options and think critically: “Okay, this is my major—what else can I do alongside it to grow?“ Mihail Musat said.

Aiming for Scalable Impact in Cybersecurity
Gabriel Avramescu, Chief Product & Technology Officer, Awakeness AI

With a background in finance and multiple master’s degrees — in cybersecurity, and oil & gas — Gabriel Avramescu has over 14 years of experience in cyber. Still, he felt the MBA was essential for his evolution.

“I did freelancing and even had a company, but managing a real organization is a different story. I also co-founded a startup before the MBA and quickly realized how many skills I lacked,” Avramescu said.

The program opened up his perspective. “It was tough, especially without prior management experience, and the finance modules were a real challenge. But it gave me the foundation to move toward my goal — transitioning into a CEO role, ideally in a small to mid-sized organization.

The MBA opened up a lot of horizons for me. It was quite difficult, for me, at least, especially since I have no experience in the management area. Obviously there were many new things and, including, the finance area, at the level at which I did it, it was a challenge,” he added.

Next to his capstone project fellows, Andrei Condrea, Ciprian Militaru and Carmen Vitan, Gabriel Avramescu came up with a cybersecurity project, Awakeness AI, taking into account that cyber breaches continue to escalate, with human error being responsible for over 74% of in incidents. So, Awakeness AI is an innovative, AI-driven cybersecurity awareness platform designed to revolutionize how organizations tackle human-related cyber risks. It leverages artificial intelligence, behavioral analytics and gamification to create a learning environment tailored to individual employees’ knowledge levels and risk profiles.

The platform targets high-risk, compliance-driven industries such as finance, healthcare, government, and supports remote/hybrid workforce models, addressing current market gaps. The platform is already launched on the market and is looking for investors.

“We started the project out of passion. We are launched on the market, and currently looking for funding. We’ve also received the necessary background to move forward with VCUs.

The platform is suitable both for individuals—who come to us saying, “Look, money was taken from my account,” through all kind of scams —but also for large companies, as well as SMEs. In Romania, there are between 12,000 and 13,000 medium and large enterprises.

Our advantage compared to the big cybersecurity firms on the market is that they haven’t adapted to everything. The smaller, more niche players in cybersecurity, working on more focused solutions, tend to be more adaptable and flexible. In total, there are around 200 sectors targeted by cyber compliance: finance, pharma/hospitals, transportation, energy, internet/communications—industries that are regulated at the European level and required to protect themselves against cyberattacks,” said Gabriel Avramescu.

From Corporate Insight to Broader Vision
Daniel Alexandru Nanu, Regional Director, BCR-Erste Bank

Daniel Nanu chose the WU Executive MBA for its logistical convenience and practical value — many modules take place in Romania, and the cost was partially covered by his employer, BCR. But the benefits went far beyond convenience.

“There are three key takeaways,” Nanu shared, arguing that in a corporation, you rarely get exposure to every department, and from this perspective, the MBA can provide that strategic overview.

He estimates spending around 900 hours over 18 months on the program, and while he doesn’t necessarily aspire to be a CEO, he’s focused on making a meaningful impact in business development. “I might work abroad for a few years to experience a more competitive, diverse environment, but Romania will always be home.”

Daniel Nanu’s SustainFactor project, a fully digital, AI-driven factoring platform, was awarded as the best capstone projects of this cohort, being voted by the jury and also winning the popularity award (voted by the other teams). Nanu, along with his project fellows, Vicentiu Corbu, Diana Iorga and Irina Voiculescu, will also benefit of a voucher offered by the Entrepreneurship Center at WU. This voucher allows the team to participate in the WU “Startup League” Program and work on implementing its entrepreneurial idea.

SustainFactor addresses the acute liquidity challenges faced by Romanian SMEs, especially micro-enterprises in agriculture, local food production or ESG-aligned sectors. The platform offers immediate working capital by converting unpaid invoices into cash while promoting sustainable practices through fee discounts and incentives for ESG-compliant companies. It aims to integrate with Romania’s national e-invoicing system (e-Factura), meaning a paperless and fast-funding process within 24 hours.

“The idea behind InstantFactoring also started as a niche-focused startup—there’s a broad market to explore. The Sustain Factor platform, however, was not developed for BCR.

While banks operate with non-banking financial institutions (IFNs), they don’t typically offer factoring products. There are about 10–12 players in Romania offering factoring services, but none have a fully digital, end-to-end solution. Most are still operating on paper-based systems.

Sometimes, your ideas don’t have to be revolutionary—it’s more about spotting what’s missing in a particular sector. That’s the game: identifying the gap and filling it.

The small and medium entrepreneurship segment in Romania is on an upward trend. These entrepreneurs have a certain drive that many people in the corporate world may have lost.

When it comes to education for entrepreneurs in Romania, there’s a lot of potential. We need to invest more in it. The talent is here, and the drive is even stronger than in other countries—because the better off you are, the less motivated you tend to be to innovate. However, we still lack the necessary skills and a fiscally favorable environment to support growth,” Daniel Nanu pointed out.

Coordinators and professors of the WU’s Executive Bucharest MBA (EMBA) Program

Adriana Georgescu, the Program Manager.

Philip Neil, the Program Director.

Professors:

• Prof. Jesus Crespo – Business, Government, and Macroeconomics.
• Prof. Gunter Stahl – Leadership.
• Prof. Markus Maedler –  Managerial Accounting.
• Prof. Astrid Schornick –  Financial Management.
• Prof. Chuck Kwok –Advanced Financial Management.
• Prof. Georg Jocham – Executive Lab.
• Prof. Miquel Lladó – Strategy.
• Prof. Christian Lüthje –  Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
• Prof. Daniel Corsten –  Operations Management.
• Prof. Carmen Abril – Strategic Marketing Management.
• Prof. Gal Oestreicher-Singer – Business Analytics.
• Prof. Kandarp Mehta – Negotiation and conflict management.
• Prof. Patricia Klarner – Change Management.