Business and economic outlook - 2016 Edition

“Business and economic outlook”
Business and
economic outlook
Romanian companies
vs. foreign companies
Romania 2016

About the survey
“Business and economic
outlook”
“Business and economic outlook” is a
survey that explores the perceptions
of top executives from major
companies operating in Romania
regarding the business outlook for
2016.
This report is based on an online survey of
421 C-suite level executives from
companies in various sectors, who provided
a perspective on how the domestic business
environment is perceived at the beginning of
2016 in Romania. This is an analysis of the
split between the aggregated results for
Romanian-owned companies and foreign-
owned companies operating in Romania.
40%
foreign companies
60%
domestic companies
421
respondents
14
industries
45
CEO of
foreign companies
86
CEO of Romanian
companies

Business and
economic outlook
Our research reflects companies
focus on sustainable growth in an
favorable economic environment
as perceived so by both local
entrepreneurs and investors.

Indicate the main three
elements that you think
will define success in
your industry in 2016?
(only 3 responses)
31% of Romanian-owned
companies define their success by the
number of years in the market
61% of foreign companies define
their success by their market share
In 2016, Romanian-owned companies primarily
measures their success through customer
satisfaction (82%). Second in the rank are the
financial results (65%), followed by brand
awareness (54%) and market share (52%). Foreign
companies in Romania (FDI) measure their
success by customer satisfaction (85%), financial
results (71%) and market share (61%).Total respondents: 421
(Skipped this question: 0)
1%
65%
52%
54%
12%
31%
4%
82%
4%
71%
61%
48%
14%
18%
3%
85%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Other elements
Financial results
Market share
Brand awareness
Number of employees
Number of years on the
market
Going public (IPO)
Customer satisfaction
FDI Romanian

What is your level of
confidence regarding the
economic direction of
Romania? (one answer)
companies are very confident in the
local business environment
17% foreign companies are very
confident in the Romanian business
environment
Romanian-owned companies (66%) are more
confident than foreign-owned companies operating
in Romania (FDIs) with 61% regarding the current
economic direction of the country. The good
economic prospects and macroeconomic indicators
injected the local companies with optimism into the
positive economic evolution of the country.
Total respondents: 421
5%
34%
48%
11%
2%
5%
29%
48%
17%
1%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
Not at all confident
Somehow confident
Confident
Very confident
Extremely confident
FDI Romanian

How much do you expect
your turnover to grow in
2016? (one answer)
companies predict 20-30% growth in
turnover for 2016
14% of foreign companies
predict 20-30% growth in turnover for
2016
42% of the Romanian-owned companies foresee a
significant growth of +10% to more than +30% for
their turnover in 2016 compared with 39% of the
FDIs, while 53% of FDI companies expect a growth
rate of +1% to +10% in 2016. A small percentage
of Romanian-owned companies (7%) and FDI
companies (8%) expect negative evolutions.
1%
1%
2%
3%
18%
33%
24%
11%
7%
4%
4%
23%
30%
20%
14%
5%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40%
-20% to - 30%
-10% to -20%
-5% to -10%
-1% to -5%
0%
+1% to +5%
+5% to +10%
+10% to +20%
+20% to +30%
Exceeding 30%
FDI Romanian

your profit to grow in
2016? (one answer)
companies predict 10-20% profit
growth in 2016
predict 10-20% profit growth in 2016
34% of the Romanian companies foresee a
significant growth of +10% to more than +30% for
their company’s profit in 2016 compared with
30%% of the FDIs, while 58% of Romanian
companies expect a profit growth rate of +1% to
+10% in 2016, compared with 56% of FDIs. Still, a
marginal percentage of RO and FDI companies
expect negative evolutions.Total respondents: 411
1%
1%
2%
4%
28%
30%
20%
10%
4%
2%
1%
11%
30%
26%
16%
9%
5%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40%
Exceeding -30%
-20% to 30%
-10% to -20%
-5% to -10%
-1% to -5%
0%
+1% to +5%
+5% to +10%
+10% to +20%
+20% to +30%
Exceeding 30%
FDI Romanian

your investments
to grow in 2016? (one answer)
companies will increase their
investments by 5-10% in 2016
26% of foreign companies will
increase their investments by 1-5% in
2016
significant growth of +10% to +31% for their
company’s investments in 2015 compared with
28% of the FDIs, while 39% of Romanian
companies expect an investment growth rate of
+1% to +10% in 2015, compared with 55% of FDIs.
Still, a marginal percentage of RO and FDI
companies expect negative evolutions.Total respondents: 411
1%
1%
1%
12%
25%
28%
20%
5%
7%
2%
1%
1%
21%
26%
17%
22%
6%
4%
0% 10% 20% 30%
Exceeding -30%
-20% to -30%
-10% to -20%
-5% to -10%
-1% to -5%
0%
+1% to +5%
+5% to +10%
+10% to +20%
+20% to +30%
Exceeding 30%
FDI Romanian

your number of employees
to grow in 2016? (one answer)
9% of Romanian-owned companies
expect an increase in the number of
employees by 10-20% in 2016
12% of foreign companies expect
an increase in the number of employees
by 10-20% in 2016
significant growth rate of +10% to +30% for their
company’s number of employees in 2016
compared with 21% of the FDIs, while 56% of
Romanian companies expect a number of
employees growth rate of +1% to +10% in 2016,
compared with 50% of FDIs. Still, a 7% percentage
of RO and 12% of FDI companies expect negative
evolutions.Total respondents: 411
2%
5%
22%
39%
17%
9%
3%
3%
1%
3%
8%
17%
29%
21%
12%
5%
4%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
Exceeding -30%
-20% to -30%
-10% to -20%
-5% to -10%
-1% to -5%
0%
+1% to +5%
+5% to +10%
+10% to +20%
+20% to +30%
Exceeding 30%
FDI Romanian

How much you expect the
salary level in your
company to grow in 2016?
(one answer)
companies expect salaries increase by
1-5% in 2016.
49% of foreign companies expect
salaries increase by 1-5% in 2016.
significant growth rate of +10% to exceeding 20%
for their company’s salary level in 2016, compared
with only 7% of the FDIs, while 75% of Romanian
companies expect a salary growth rate of +1% to
+10% in 2016, compared with 77% of FDIs. Still,
10% of RO companies and 16% of FDI companies
expect a stagnation of salary level.Total respondents: 411
1%
10%
42%
33%
12%
2%
16%
49%
28%
7%
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6
Exceeding -20%
-10% to -20%
-5% to -10%
-1% to -5%
0%
+1% to +5%
+5% to +10%
+10% to +20%
Exceeding 20%
FDI Romanian

How confident do you
feel regarding the growth
of your industry for the
next 12 months? (one answer)
companies are very confident
regarding the growth of their industry
20% of foreign companies are
very confident regarding the growth of
their industry
64% of the Romanian respondent companies are
“confident” or “somewhat confident” regarding the
growth of their industry in 2016 compared with 55%
of FDIs, while 45% of Romanian companies are
“slightly confident” or “not at all confident”
compared with the 36% of FDIs.
13%
32%
41%
14%
10%
26%
44%
20%
0% 20% 40% 60%
Not at all
confident
Slightly
confident
Somewhat
confident
Very
confident
FDI Romanian

How confident do you feel
regarding the growth of
your company for the next
12 months? (one answer)
companies are slightly confident
regarding the growth of their companies
in the next 12 months
20% of foreign companies are
slightly confident regarding the growth of
their companies in the next 12 months
78% of the Romanian respondent companies are
“confident” or “somewhat confident” regarding the
growth of their company in 2016 compared with
76% of the FDIs, while 19% of Romanian
companies are “slightly confident” regarding the
growth of their company compared with 20% of the
FDIs .
3%
19%
44%
34%
4%
20%
40%
36%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
Not at all confident
Slightly confident
Somewhat confident
Very confident
FDI Romanian

Please select the main
strength of your
competitors in Romania.
(one answer)
companies consider the main strength
of their competitors is low cost
consider the main strength of their
competitors is low cost
Domestic companies consider the 3 main strengths
of their competitors to be the following ones: low
cost and strong brand awareness (30% each), and
partnerships (19%). FDIs consider the top 3 main
strengths of their competitors to be: low cost (39%),
strong brand awareness (29%), and distribution
channel (14%).
30%
30%
19%
15%
6%
39%
29%
13%
14%
5%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
Low cost
Strong brand awareness (trust)
Partnerships
Distribution channels
R&D
FDI Romanian

To what extent do you
expect your customers'
demand to change in the
next 12 months? (one answer)
companies expect the customers’
demand to grow
66% dof foreign companies expect
the customers’ demand to grow
66% of the Romanian companies expect mainly
their customer’ demand to “somewhat increase” in
the next 12 months in 2016 compared with 56% of
the FDIs which mainly expect it to “somewhat
increase”. At the same time, 31% of Romanian
companies expect their customers’ demand to
“stay the same” or “decrease” compared with 40%
of the FDIs .Total respondents: 399
1%
4%
27%
66%
2%
6%
34%
56%
4%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%
Decrease
dramatically
Somewhat
decrease
Stay the
same
Somewhat
increase
Increase
dramatically
FDI Romanian

On a scale from 1 to 5 asses
the importance of innovation
for the performance of your
company? (1 – no importance, 5 – very high
importance) (one answer)
companies say that innovation have a
high importance for their success
32% foreign companiessuccesul lor
say that innovation have a high
importance for their success
For 73% of the Romanian respondent companies
innovation is of “very high importance” or “high
importance” for the successful performance of their
companies compared with 76% of the FDIs, while
for 26% of Romanian companies innovation is of
“medium importance” or “low importance”
compared with 23% of the FDIs .
1%
7%
19%
36%
37%
1%
5%
18%
44%
32%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
No
importance
Low
importance
Medium
importance
High
importance
Very high
importance
FDI Romanian

What was your company’s
primary strategy for
financing its investments
in the past year? (one answer)
companies used bank loans for financing
investments
23% of foreign companies used
bank loans for financing investments
When it comes to financing investments in 2015,
42% of Romanian companies used mostly bank
loans vs. 23% of FDIs; intercompany loans, own
resources and reinvested profit used by 39% of
Romanian companies vs. 51% of FDIs, followed by
no investments 11% each for RO and FDI
companies. Share capital was used by 4% of
Romanian companies vs. 9% of FDIs on decrease
compared to the edition of similar period in 2015.
2%
11%
4%
2%
42%
39%
2%
11%
9%
4%
23%
51%
0% 20% 40% 60%
Other
No investments
Our company used share
capital increase to finance its
investments
Our company used venture
capital to finance its
investments
Our company used bank loans
to finance its investments
Our company used
intercompany loans, own
resources, or reinvested profit
to finance its investments
FDI Romanian

What’s your company's
preferred strategy for
financing its investments
in the next 12 months?
(one answer)
8% of Romanian-owned companies
have no investments planned in 2016
12% of foreign companies have
no investments planned in 2016
For the Romanian companies the main strategy for
financing investments in 2016 appears to be
through bank loans 42% vs. 23% for FDIs. The
intercompany loans, own resources and reinvested
profit with 39% Romanian companies vs 57% for
FDIs comes second as a strategy in financing
investments . Noteworthy the relative high
percentage of companies which don’t intend to
make investments 8% Romanian companies vs
12% FDIs.Total respondents: 339
3%
8%
1%
7%
42%
39%
1%
12%
2%
5%
23%
57%
0% 15% 30% 45% 60%
Other
No investments
Venture capital
Share capital increase
Bank loans
Intercompany loans, own
resources, or reinvested profit
FDI Romanian

What was the reaction of
your company to the
business environment in
the past year? (one answer)
companies they increased their
productivity in 2015
22% of foreign companies they
increased their productivity in 2015
Romanian businesses reacted to the pressures
coming from the business environment by
increasing productivity (32% RO vs 22% FDIs), by
reducing costs (21% RO vs. 20% FDIs), or by
releasing new products (17% RO vs. 22% FDIs).
1%
1%
2%
2%
7%
4%
13%
17%
21%
32%
1%
1%
6%
1%
8%
19%
22%
20%
22%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40%
Other reaction
Reduced capital investment
Reduced market coverage
Mergers & Acquisitions
Attraction of EU funds
Talent acquisition
Restructure of the
organization
New products
Cost reduction
Productivity increase
FDI Romanian

Which of the following
actions will your company
take to increase sales?
(multiple answers)
companies românești vor să introducă
noi produse/servicii pe piață
63% dintre companiile străine vor
să introducă noi produse/servicii pe
piață
For the Romanian companies the top 3 actions
to increase sales in 2016 will be: 56% to
introduce new products/services, 36% to increase
investment in marketing and sales, and 33% to
open new distribution channels. For FDIs the top
3 actions to increase sales will be: 63% to
introduce new products/services, 33% to enter new
geographic markets and 28% to increase
investment in marketing and sales.Total respondents: 339
1%
32%
56%
36%
20%
33%
5%
10%
11%
1%
33%
63%
28%
17%
27%
10%
7%
10%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%
Other
Enter new geographic markets for
existing products/services
Introducing new products and/ or
services for existing client and to
attract new clients
Increase investment in marketing
and sales
Adapting existing product/service for
new geographic markets
Opening new distribution channels/
reorganizing distribution to use
multiple channels
Merging with and/or acquiring
competitors to increase market
share
Increase prices
Cutting prices
FDI Romanian

In case of stagnation/
decline in the market what
will be the steps your
company will pursue in
the next 12 months?
(multiple answers)
companies intend to transform the
market through innovation
40% of foreign companies intend
to transform the market through
innovation
Romanian companies said that in case of
market stagnation/decline 56% would stay on
the market until is stable again in order to
secure it and increase the trust level, and 36%
would transform the market through innovative
approaches. For FDIs 56% would also stay on the
market, while 14% would seek to grow through
M&A.Total respondents: 339
56%
5%
37%
11%
9%
1%
56%
7%
40%
14%
6%
2%
0% 15% 30% 45% 60%
Stay on the market until is
stable again in order to
secure it and increase the
trust level
Leave the market and seek
new ones
Transform the market
through innovative
approaches
Grow on the market through
M&A (Mergers &
Acquisitions)
Seek external funding to
secure our position on the
market
A state of stagnation in the
current market is impossible
FDI Romanian

Demographics
The results of this survey are
based on the 421 answers
received to our 25 questions
questionnaire from top
executives of companies
operating in between 27 January
and 12 February 2016.

Is your company
Romanian owned and
controlled? (single answer)
255 of respondent companies are
Romanian-owned
166 of respondent companies are
foreign companies (FDI’s)
60%
40%
Yes
No

What is your company's
revenue for 2015?
(single answer)
8% of respondents are Romanian-
owned companies with over 100
million euro revenue
20% of foreign respondents are
foreign companies with over 100
millions euro revenue
17%
37%
31%
7%
8%
10%
34%
22%
14%
20%
0% 20% 40%
Less than 1 M EUR
1 - 10 M EUR
10 - 50 M EUR
50 - 100 M EUR
100 M EUR+
FDI Romanian

What is the main industry
you operate in? (single answer)
17% of respondents are
Romanian-owned companies which
operate in production
26% of respondets are foreign
companies which operate in
production
8%
2%
2%
3%
3%
3%
5%
5%
4%
10%
9%
6%
9%
14%
17%
8%
2%
1%
2%
2%
3%
1%
4%
8%
4%
8%
12%
9%
10%
26%
0% 10% 20% 30%
Other
Publishing & Printing
R&D / New Technology
Pharmaceuticals / Healthcare
Telecommunication / Media
Chemicals
Tourism
Transportation
Power / Energy / Mining
Construction / Real Estate
Information Technology
Food & Beverages / Agriculture
Services
Retail & Wholesale Trade
Industry / Manufacturing
FDI Romanian

What does best describe
your job title? (single answer)
34% of respondents are CEO or
managing directors of Romanian-
owned companies
27% of respondents are CEO or
managing directors of foreign
companies
7%
2%
3%
5%
6%
6%
6%
16%
15%
34%
5%
5%
5%
3%
4%
5%
14%
14%
18%
27%
0% 20% 40%
Other
CIO/Technology director
Head of business unit
Other C-level executive
Board member
SVP/VP/Director
CFO/Treasurer/Controller
Head of department
Manager
CEO/President/Managing
director
FDI Romania

Business and
economic outlook
Top 5 conclusions
Romanian-owned companies
vs. foreign companies
Romania 2016

Top 5 conclusions
“Business and economic
outlook”
This is a survey that explores the
perceptions of top executives from major
companies operating in Romania
regarding the business outlook for 2016.
In 2016, Romanian owned companies
primarily measures their success through
customer satisfaction (82%). Second in
the rank are the financial results (65%),
followed by brand awareness (54%) and
market share (52%). Foreign companies
in Romania (FDI) measure their success
by customer satisfaction (85%), financial
results (71%) and market share (61%).
42% of the Romanian-owned companies foresee a
significant growth of +10% to more than +30% for their
company’s turnover in 2016 compared with 39% of the
FDIs, while 51% of Romanian companies expect a
growth rate of +1% to +10% in 2016, compared with 53%
of FDIs. Still, a small percentage of Romanian-owned
companies (7%) and FDI companies (8%) expect
negative evolutions.
14% of the Romanian respondent companies foresee a
significant growth rate of +10% to exceeding 20% for
their company’s salary level in 2016, compared with only
7% of the FDIs, while 75% of Romanian companies
expect a salary growth rate of +1% to +10% in 2016,
compared with 77% of FDIs. Still, 10% of RO companies
and 16% of FDI companies expect a stagnation of salary
level.
15% of the Romanian companies foresee a significant
growth rate of +10 to +30% for their company’s number
of employees in 2016 compared with 21% of the FDIs,
while 56% of Romanian companies expect a number of
employees growth rate of +1 to +10% in 2016, compared
with 50% of FDIs. Still, a 7% percentage of RO and 12%
of FDI companies expect negative evolutions.
Romanian companies said that in case of market
stagnation/decline 56% would stay on the market until is
stable again in order to secure it and increase the trust
level, and 36% would transform the market through
innovative approaches. For FDIs 56% would also stay on
the market, while 14% would seek to grow through M&A.
1.
5.
2.
3.
4.

Doingbusiness.ro srl
Kompass Romania srl
4-6 Prof. Ion Bogdan Street, 4th Floor
District 1, 010539, Bucharest
Phone. +40 21 317 03 90 | Fax +40 21 317 03 93
office@kompass.ro; office@doingbusiness.ro;
www.doingbusiness.ro; www.kompass.com;
www.kompass.ro

Business and economic outlook - 2016 Edition

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