Florin Manoloiu is the Chief Operating Officer at Exenne Technologies, a professional with nearly a decade of experience in the digital transformation of Romania’s construction sector, being directly involved in the digitization of processes in over 200 companies in the industry. He coordinates complex commercial and operational strategies based on innovation, data analysis, and the development of sustainable partnerships.

C&B: If we were to look at a narrative thread of your career, what were the key moments that defined you?
Florin Manoloiu: Looking back, my career has not been linear but rather a progressive construction, where each stage was about learning and laid a brick in the foundation of what I am today. I would highlight four defining moments:
• Volunteering at BEST (Board of European Students of Technology): This was the “school” that shaped me before the job. There, I learned about collaboration, organizing large-scale events, and the dynamics of an international team.
• Experience in FMCG (Danone): Here, I had a “wake-up call” about what a career really means, beyond the romantic view I had as a student. I realized that “not everything that flies can be eaten” and that before being friends, we need to deliver results. It is a tough school that drives you toward performance, where I learned the importance of strategic marketing, working with large volumes, and extreme organization.
• Transition to Engineering and Technical Sales (Linde Gas & Schneider Electric): This stage refined my B2B negotiation skills, but the fundamental lesson was about responsibility. I learned that you are the only one responsible for the results of your work and that talent alone is not enough to achieve remarkable results. This was also where I had my first lessons as a segment leader.
• Joining Exenne Technologies (2016): Moving from a corporation to tech entrepreneurship was a moment of full maturation. Here, I could apply everything I had learned, building strategies from scratch and having a direct impact on the digitization of an entire industry. The daily lesson here is that without grit—perseverance and passion—you cannot build anything.

C&B: What has been the most difficult moment in your journey so far, and how did you overcome it?
Florin Manoloiu: The most challenging moment was undoubtedly realizing that your product is perceived as good only to the extent that the market trusts you. My dreams of being associated with a company scaling overnight collided with the construction sector’s resistance to change. After a year, even though our numbers were almost doubling, I felt like I was trying to break down a 2-meter-thick wall with a 5 cm drill. I overcame this by understanding that the path is long and that the secret ingredient is trust. When you persevere, listen openly, and innovate, trust follows. In construction—a field addressing the fundamental human need for shelter—trust is more important than anything else.

C&B: Is there a dream or ambition that has always guided you, regardless of obstacles?
Florin Manoloiu: Yes, my constant ambition has been to understand how the world works. To do that, you must constantly expose yourself to the stress of leaving your comfort zone. I strongly believe that if you are the smartest person in the room, you shouldn’t stay in that room too long. You need to seek environments that challenge you to grow.

C&B: What were you like at the beginning of your journey, and how do you feel you have transformed to date?
Florin Manoloiu: At the start, I was an enthusiastic executor with a romantic vision of business. I believed that all interests in the market naturally converge so that everyone benefits. Today, my perspective is much more nuanced. Yes, we all want what’s best, but “best” can vary for each person, or timing can be wrong. Therefore, my focus has shifted to deep understanding and aligning interests, because without this alignment, you risk doing Sisyphean work.

C&B: If we met with your team or collaborators, what do you think they would say about you?
Florin Manoloiu: I would like them to see me as an analytical person open to ideas. However, I think they would say that for me, efficiency is a “religion,” with all the pros and cons that come with it. Beyond perceptions, what is visible in interactions with me is that:
• I enjoy precise, structured discussions.
• I always ask, “what impact could this have?” and on which data that impact is based.

C&B: What is the most important decision you have made that changed your trajectory?
Florin Manoloiu: The decision to join Exenne Technologies in January 2016. It was a bet on myself—to leave a comfortable position at Schneider Electric to contribute to the growth of a Romanian software product. It meant moving from the stability of a multinational to the direct responsibility of delivering performance to be able to pay the team’s salaries.

C&B: What role does innovation play in Exenne’s strategy, and how do you integrate new technologies into your products?
Florin Manoloiu: Innovation is not just a department at Exenne; it is our very reason for being. In the traditionally conservative construction industry, we bring automation and innovation with a precise goal: reducing time wasted on repetitive tasks so that professionals can focus on what truly matters.

C&B: What is the main differentiator that sets Exenne apart from other companies in the industry?
Florin Manoloiu: Our differentiator is the symbiosis between technology and contextual understanding. We do not just offer software (eDevize); we identify needs that the market does not yet know how to name and develop solutions to address them. I always tell my team: a discussion that starts with presenting product functionalities is a “lost” discussion. Our thinking must always be centered on the needs of the person in front of us; only then do we learn and develop quality products.

C&B: What does a typical day look like for you now, and what moments bring you the most satisfaction?
Florin Manoloiu: A typical day is a balanced mix of analysis/introspection and human interaction:
• Morning: Dedicated to growth projects I lead and actions needed to push them forward.
• Afternoon: Meetings, discussions, and interactions with the team and partners.
• Evening: Introspection and prioritization of tasks for the next morning.

C&B: What values or principles guide you in what you do, and how do you apply them daily?
Florin Manoloiu: I follow three simple but essential principles:

1. Integrity: Promises made to partners or colleagues are sacred.
2. Data-driven decisions: I try to eliminate subjectivity. If the numbers don’t support an idea, we reevaluate it.
3. Continuous learning: The market changes, technology changes. If we don’t learn daily, we fall behind.

C&B: What are the core values underpinning the organizational culture at Exenne Technologies?
Florin Manoloiu: Exenne’s culture is based on:
• Customer Orientation: Everything we develop must solve a real user problem.
• Transparency: We communicate openly, both internally and with clients.
• Pragmatism: We do not innovate for the sake of innovation, but for efficiency and profitability—both ours and our clients’.
• Accountability: The most important thing is identifying what we could have done better in a situation, not looking for excuses.

C&B: If you were to give a message to those following your example, what would it be?
Florin Manoloiu: Don’t look for the easy path and let go of corporate romanticism in favor of pragmatism. Talent is important, but without grit and perseverance, it is useless. Seek environments where you are not the smartest person in the room, because only there will you truly grow. And, last but not least, base your decisions on data but execute them with integrity toward people. Efficiency without direction is just noise, and ambition without work is just a dream.

Florin Manoloiu’s story demonstrates that success does not happen overnight but through perseverance, continuous learning, and trust in the team. His experience shows how innovation and authentic leadership can completely transform a traditional industry.

The post Florin Manoloiu: From corporate to tech entrepreneurship in construction appeared first on careers-business.com.

Irina Ditu, entrepreneur and beauty enthusiast, celebrates in 2025 ten years of entrepreneurship and says she loves every single day of her life. After years of challenges and trials, Irina is in love with her business: Homesign, a real estate, design & build agency. Her motto is buy, design, rent with us.

C&B: How would you describe yourself in a single sentence, in order to spark curiosity in those who don’t know you yet?
Irina Ditu: “The greatest adventure is to live the life of your dreams” – I believe that in life you can be or become whoever you want, and it’s only up to you to fulfill your dreams. I am calm and warm, ambitious and perfectionist, creative and brutally honest, I don’t like things done halfway and if I have something to tell you, you can be sure I will. I also love numbers, as I believe that’s the only way to efficiently measure progress and success. Entrepreneurship is the only job that truly represents me and allows me to be authentic.

C&B: If we were to look at the storyline of your career or business, what were the key moments that defined you?
Irina Ditu: In 2015, right after finishing university, my mentor advised me to open my first business in web design and graphic design. That’s how I started my entrepreneurial journey.
Then, in 2017, being in love with my creative side, with growth potential, and also with the opportunity to access non-reimbursable funds, I applied for Start Up Nation and received funding to create a print workshop and an interior design office in Dorobanți. Those were some beautiful but also tough years, full of valuable lessons.
After the pandemic, in December 2020, I decided to close the workshop and accept that a stage of my life was coming to an end.
Of course, it didn’t take long for me to bounce back after failure, to start over, and return stronger on the market through the integrated service concept offered by Homesign – buy, design, rent with us.

C&B: What has been the most difficult moment in your journey so far, and how did you overcome it?
Irina Ditu: The hardest moment was closing the workshop in Dorobanți, where I had invested all my resources: time, money, health, relationships, and having to accept failure as part of the success that would come a few years later.
Mentally it was very hard to get past that moment. The year 2021 was the toughest year of my life – I had to gather myself and start again from zero.
I managed not to give up, supported by my loved ones and with patience. Together with new business partners, I began working on the Homesign concept.
Then, in 2022, at exactly 30 years old, I realized that the wisest teacher is failure, and it is part of success. You can’t have success without failure.

C&B: Is there a dream or ambition that has always guided you, regardless of obstacles?
Irina Ditu: I’ve always believed that my place is in entrepreneurship, that I create myself, that I decide what I do with my life no matter the obstacles, and that alongside the right people, I will succeed again. I just need patience.

C&B: How did you look at the beginning of the road and how do you feel you have transformed until now?
Irina Ditu: At the beginning, I was a naïve, dreamy girl, eager to learn and achieve great things. Today I am me, Irina, a woman, an entrepreneur with 10 years of experience in design and real estate, who has learned to say NO, who trusts her judgment, and acts as she believes is right, for herself and for others.

C&B: If we were to meet your team or collaborators, what do you think they would say about you?
Irina Ditu: I think opinions would be divided – no one is perfect. They would probably say that I am demanding, honest, and involved. Most collaborators and clients are people with whom I share a history, and I assume they are satisfied with me, since they have continued the collaboration or recommended me to their close ones.

C&B: What is the most important decision you have made that changed your trajectory?
Irina Ditu: Closing the workshop, moving from Dorobanți to the North, accepting failure, and starting over. After all the lessons I had learned, the perfect moment came to put them into practice through Homesign.

C&B: How did you build your leadership style or the way you make decisions? Was it a natural or learned process?
Irina Ditu: It was a natural process. I’ve always wanted to work in a team and to lead a team. I am endlessly curious and empathetic, I care about what motivates those around me, I like to help, I am involved. I also believe that sales and leadership are directly connected to psychology and personal development, topics I explore through my readings.

C&B: What do you think differentiates your business or your professional approach from the rest of the industry?
Irina Ditu: I believe people make the difference, and the unique concept of a real estate agency that creates and delivers turnkey design projects are key elements that define Homesign.

C&B: What does a typical day look like for you now, and what moments bring you the greatest satisfaction?
Irina Ditu: My mornings begin in harmony with my life partner, then around 9:30 I start my activity in the field, with client meetings and team meetings. There are days when I finish work late, at 8 or 9 PM, but the satisfaction is huge when I close collaborations with great people, no matter the hour. The freedom to make my own schedule is the greatest satisfaction, always.

C&B: What values or principles guide you in what you do, and how do you apply them daily?
Irina Ditu: Values such as discipline, self-learning, honesty, positivity, success-orientation, and respect are the foundation stones of Homesign, and you need to resonate with them in order to thrive in our team. In addition, patience is essential. The real estate market is competitive, just like design & build.
We manage to successfully apply these values through systems, an organized workflow – CRM, to-do list, calendar, database – and through monthly monitoring. Numbers bring clarity.

C&B: How did you come up with the idea to open this business and give it this name?
Irina Ditu: Homesign comes from two English words: home and sign (signature), and it perfectly reflects our activity. The business is a concept I created from scratch: visual identity, graphics, marketing, website.
The idea came as I advanced as a real estate agent, with patience and small steps, until I named the business Homesign – buy, design, rent with us!

C&B: If you were to send a message to people who follow your example, what would it be?
Irina Ditu: Never stop dreaming, embrace lessons and failure as your best friends, and always find the good in every situation – focus on the positive. Being a good human in business is the most honorable thing you can do.

Irina Ditu’s journey proves that entrepreneurship is about courage, patience, and resilience. With Homesign, she turned past lessons into a success story in real estate, design, and build.

The post Irina Ditu: 10 Years of Entrepreneurship – Challenges, Lessons, and Success with Homesign appeared first on careers-business.com.