Loading...Pentalog launched its first delivery center in Romania with the opening in Brasov, back in 1999, just in time for the release of The Matrix. It was also a leap of faith for the founders in the tumultuous years of the dot com crisis.
Twenty-two years later, we have The Matrix Resurrections while Brasov has grown to become one of the most important production centers of Pentalog worldwide and the company’s headquarters in Romania, employing over 300 tech, digital, and admin specialists.
Although we have grown so much in the past years, hiring and working remotely, we kept our core values and focus: encouraging software innovation, taking the initiative, and providing opportunities for continuous learning.
I invite you to read our story and celebrate this milestone along with my colleagues and partners – the ones who deserve the credit for our success.
Pentalog, not Pentagon
Just six years after creating Pentalog in France in 1993, the five founders decided to open a Romanian branch for developing a company product from scratch. Although the local business landscape was uninspiring, the potential was there.
The Transylvania University of Brasov, with its technical fields’ programs such as industrial engineering, computer science, or mathematics was producing tens of well-trained IT specialists every year who were eager to kick off their brand-new careers.
Five young people, myself included, along with Eric Gouin (an adventurous French developer at that time), set off on an incredible professional journey in January 2000. Every day, we would anxiously go to the office in a residential building where neighbors called us rather Pentagon than Pentalog. It was just the beginning.
We were learning, experimenting, and developing our product, with some success. In 2003, we pivoted to delivering IT services for customers in Europe, and then expanded globally by launching 16 offices in 8 countries across three continents.
Historical milestones and achievements characterize our company’s journey.
A Company with a Purpose
Today, Pentalog is a global leader in digital services, and the Brasov office is still one of its main engines. We strove to be more than just another IT company from the beginning. We wanted to make an impact on the community, so we began by attracting talented professionals to help us launch an ambitious plan:
- Initiating educational projects for middle school, high school, and university students;
- Hosting IT and training events for tech enthusiasts;
- Supporting various social causes and NGOs, among others.
For us, there is nothing more rewarding than helping others as much as ourselves to evolve professionally and build a successful career. Our PentaHumans have a significant role in educating younger generations through various projects:
- Summer internship programs, made possible in partnership with Transylvania University;
- Supported university courses;
- Summer experience – internship programs for high school students;
- Annual industry discovery projects for students, in collaboration with AIESEC;
- BRIGHTHUB program dedicated to the young entrepreneurs of tomorrow;
- The Hour of Code international initiative that promotes IT among primary, middle and high school students;
- Workshops and presentations during Scoala Altfel, the Romanian national program promoting informal education;
- PentaStagiu, the most sought-after training program in Romania, fully online since 2020.
Motivated by our colleagues’ efforts and our core values, we have also invested in the education of the minds of tomorrow by:
- Partnering up with Fondul Stiintescu, a financing program that supports STEAM education;
- Joining Generatia Tech 2021 and offering 100 free IT scholarships for students from Brasov.
Originally Brewed in Brasov
Creating great digital products with passion isn’t just about technical excellence. It’s also about knowledge sharing and investing in the tech and business communities.
“Never Stop Learning”: a motto that drives us further and keeps our community engaged.
At Pentalog, our way of giving back is through a series of tech and business events featuring technical experts and thought leaders. We aim to support continuous learning and career development, as well as business innovation and growth.
- Knowledge sharing events
Pentalog Brasov is the first out of four branches launched in Romania and the agency that created some of Pentalog’s popular brands.
One of them is PentaBAR, now spread across all our Pentalog agencies and present online since 2020. A platform to share knowledge with the IT community, providing the opportunity for professional development in a friendly environment.
In 2016 we had the first tech event under this name and since then, hundreds of such gatherings took place to encourage knowledge sharing inside and outside the company.
Check out the latest PentaBAR tech events and get inspiration for your next project.
The Lunch & Learn program has been implemented in Pentalog offices worldwide. My colleagues enjoy these learning sessions even during the pandemic, with weekly online editions about the human mind.
- Sports activities
Pentalog created the PentaSport concept and organized several sports events to promote a healthy lifestyle. Such an original initiative is PentaOpen – a yearly tennis tournament in Brasov.
With such a beautiful city and inviting nature all-around, many of my colleagues feel more determined to go hiking, practice trail running, and mountain biking – through PentaBike. All these sporting activities are a way to stay active and remain connected as colleagues.
We enjoy a healthy lifestyle by engaging in well-being programs and sport activities.
During COVID-19, through the PentaSport Summer Challenge, Pentalog employees worldwide raised 12,500 Euros for social causes by practicing various sports. In both 2020 and 2021, our Brasov agency was among the top performers, with the highest number of colleagues engaged in sports activities.
- Volunteering for social causes
Volunteering has always been a way of knowing our community, and giving back will always be part of our DNA. All our colleagues around the world are involved in one way or another in volunteering, but the Brasov subsidiary is where the Good deeds group first started and grew every day.
Throughout the years, especially in December – which turned into the Generosity Month at Pentalog – we get involved in different actions supporting education, health, and the environment. Whether it’s planting trees, cleaning up the surroundings, organizing a local market for fundraising purposes, or supporting the Romanian Curling Federation, we can be sure our colleagues will be there to lend a hand.
The SuperPentaHumans in Brasov support the local communities by getting involved in social initiatives.
They are our inspiration from within the company, coming up with more ways to support the community than I could have ever imagined. To make this a global movement, in 2022, Pentalog wants to organize an international volunteering group that will inspire PentaHumans to join the giving back initiatives.
SkillValue, Born in Brasov
SkillValue, Pentalog’s assessment platform, first started in Brasov as a spin-off from our core entity. From a hand of recruiters that made up the entire SkillValue company back in 2008, it grew into an HR-based subsidiary that helps startups, software editors, grow-ups or big companies evolve and expand their business.
Pentalog uses the SkillValue tech assessment, ensuring an ideal pairing between our innovative Unicorn-level clients and top-notch technical talent.
Choose your project right now & join our Pentalog team.
A Place for Growth and Continuous Learning
We invest in our employees’ successful career development. As living proof stand many top and middle managers who began their career at Pentalog and became some of the most influential leaders: Monica Jiman (CCSO Pentalog Europe & Asia), Eric Gouin (COO & Performance Manager), Cornel Fatulescu (Chief Platform Officer), Sebastian Lupu (Project Directors’ Manager), Serghei Goloborodico (Sales & Account Manager), to name a few.
For me, Pentalog Brasov is a mindset melting pot within a learning organization where employees can experiment with ideas and learn from their projects and each other. The secret to some of our best projects and client relationships is the try and fail process that we perfected along the way until we obtained results.
PentaHumans also have access to Pentalog Academy, an internal platform that offers a tailored learning experience to each of our employees. Here, my colleagues can access 330+ micro-courses and other e-learning platforms like Mindtools, O’Reilly, Pluralsight, Raywenderlich, or FrontendMasters.
Some other growth opportunities include:
- Mentorship programs offering an overview of future career possibilities;
- Access to a clearly defined roadmap;
- A rotation plan that ensures career progression and the possibility for our colleagues to choose their projects;
- Foreign language classes with French, German and English teachers.
#TogetherWeRock
We started with a handful of tech specialists more than 20 years ago, and in time grew within the community as one of the most recognized and active IT companies in Brasov.
With no self-modesty, I can attest that Pentalog is the ideal place for human adventure and a journey where you can find the perfect balance between personal and professional, which will lead to a great career.
I would like Pentalog Brasov to continue nurturing our knowledge-sharing culture and acts of goodwill within the community in the years to come. I also look forward to growing Pentalog globally in 2022, with 1000+ new people, who are as focused on delivering excellence and continuous learning as we are.
Let’s grow together! Find projects that best suit you & your career.
