An interview with Ronald Oort

Thu | 01.09.2016

Other

1. Dear Ronald, please introduce yourself shortly to all our members.

Ronald Oort, Chief Risk Officer for ING Romania. I was born and raised in the Netherlands, but have been privileged to have worked in different countries with different cultures in varying professional settings.I have over 20 years of experience within ING Bank, working in offices located in cities like Amsterdam, Warsaw, Sao Paolo and Bucharest (since 2014).  

2. When did you find out about the NRCC and its activities and what triggered you to join & stay involved in the board, being at your 3rd mandate now?

I believe it was in the first week when I arrived in Bucharest when I went to the New Year’s drink at the Dutch Embassy and met with Robin van Rozen (the former president of the NRCC), 6 months later I joined the board of the NRCC. I stay involved mainly because of my fellow members in the board and the executive team because of their drive to have a positive contribution to the Dutch and Romanian business community.

3. Why should a company join NRCC? What is the added value of the Chamber now, after 10 years of activity?

The NRCC provides for a lot of opportunities to network in the broadest sense of the word – not only from a social perspective and to get business contacts but also dedicated workshops and activities which can really bring added value to your company and network.  

4. You have been working for ING Bank for 20 years now, in different offices around the world. How was coming to Romania in 2014, both on business and personal side?

To be honest I wasn’t really sure what to expect. I had lived in Poland for 3 years before coming to Romania and had heard I should not think that Romania would be similar. After coming here, I actually found more similarities culturally wise with Brazil where I also lived than with Poland. The warmth and openness of the people made me feel at home right away and after traveling around the country I was (and still am!) totally amazed by the beauty of the country. Romanians sometimes tend to forget how many great things are going for them in this amazing country! On the business side, we have been very fortunate as ING to have been very successful over the past years, but apart from that I have also been involved in some activities not directly related to the bank and really believe that the entrepreneurship in this country is starting to blossom. The passion of especially young people to start their own business and to take ownership of their own destiny is really a privilege to see.    

5. Romania moves closer to getting emerging market status on FTSE index. What main economic opportunities can you foresee?

I truly hope that over the coming years we as a country are able to move from a predominately consumption driven growth to a more investment driven growth. I think that if we as a country, both private and public sector, start to invest much more in infrastructure, education and more value added industry sectors I think Romania will be able to consolidate a very long term sustainable growth path.

6. In the end, please a message to our members

I thank you for the opportunity you have given me to be part of the board of the NRCC and hope you will stay active and join us in our many activities and also be vocal in what you expect from us so that we can do our best to serve you as best as possible. See you at the next Network drink! 

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