Radu Tatucu comes from an Arad family with "typical" doctor mom and an engineer dad. Besides parents, a large role in his upbringing came from both his maternal grandmother and his mother's sister, a Romanian language teacher. Being the only child, his parents made great sacrifices so that Radu, though young, might travel and see the world. The whole family saved for him to go at age 13 on a trip three weeks in Western Europe.
My parents raised me with some solid principles and values that I have served as a model in whatever I did in life: honest work, truth, justice, education, respect for others.
When in the 10th grade, he was selected for a scholarship for a year in the UK by the Foundation Open Society/Soros Foundation. There followed the 11th grade and the scholarship was renewed in grade 12. He then applied to universities both in the UK and in the US, and it was accepted at Harvard with a full scholarship. He did not have to think twice and obtained a Masters Degree in Public Policy at Harvard, specializing in economic and political development. And then in London he earned an MBA with specialization Entrepreneurship and Finance at the London School of Business.
In 2008, Radu Tatucu was a co-founder of GRASP started with the idea of promoting Romania by showing the world a different country than that often stereotyped in the Western media.
My greatest satisfaction is that we managed to bring together under the umbrella of GRASP some extraordinary people - in Bucharest, Cluj and Timisoara in London and Boston, Budapest and Brussels, Amsterdam and Paris. I'm sure these wonderful people will have a say in the future development of Romania, whether we talk about business and entrepreneurship, about culture and art, politics and civic involvement.
The fact that he founded and led GRASP for four years helped Radu to develop certain skills (eg qualities organizational work in very diverse teams very, located in several countries and continents, solving various conflicts in a civilized way, and democratic management of multiple stakeholder groups / stakeholders etc.). All these qualities have been and they are very helpful and professional - whatever the job he had at a time.
But more than that, GRASP repeatedly proved that things can be achieved in a professional manner. It's ok to disagree with others and to engage in civil adversarial arguments. That there is a lot of passion and interest to change Romania for the better, I have confirmed what we see happening these days in the streets. People will be responsible for their own destiny and that thieves, endemic corruption, the promotion of non-values, arrogance and promoting private interests at the expense of the public must stop.
Young people gathered under the umbrella of GRASP at the second conference of the organization in Boston in 2009 with a thematic focus on "Romania 2020". About 100 Romanian students and young professionals from 15 countries discussed objectives would like in 2020 and what could be done to fulfill this vision. Several initiatves were agreed to:
"Diaspora Vote" by proposing the introduction of electronic voting in 2010 for Romanians Abroad (at the time, virtually all political actors ignore the role of the Diaspora and not taking seriously such a proposal);
"Mentoring for Success" that young professionals mentor students in Romania;
"Your Start-up Idea" and "Tandem" project for young entrepreneurs;
"Young Diplo" - Romanian youth projects interested in a career in diplomacy and international relations;
"Dear Romania: Write Our Future" photography project in which participants write their hands or their vision for the message to Romania.
Radu Tatucu works at the World Bank but always returns to his roots.
The main reason I stayed anchored in the Romanian society is very simple: I firmly believe in 'Project Romania'. I believe that Romania has all the essentials to become a truly developed country. What does this mean? From my point of view, it means a country (the list is not exhaustive) where:
- those who work hard are respected and have a future and a better life
- our children have a better future than we
- politicians really serve the public good to private interests do not hijack petty
- corruption, theft, lies and arrogance are the exception, not the rule
- young people want to go abroad not for lack of prospects, but to accumulate relevant experience that they can use upon return
- doctors, teachers and other social categories are observed at their true value.
Radu Tatucu greatly admires Robert F. Kennedy, for his tireless struggle for social justice and Ion Ratiu for his the promotion and defense of democracy in Romania "while we were still in the Stone Age in terms of democracy."
I was privileged to have several extraordinary mentors: teachers of mathematics and English in high school, a professor of political science in college, one of the managers of mine from the World Bank, a serial entrepreneur, a professor at masters a chief executive of a large non-governmental organization. From each I learned something, but I think the three most important things are a work ethic healthy, a systematic way of addressing any issue, however difficult it may be, and optimism in applying a constructive approach wherever possible.
I challenged Radu to share their experience of life and give young people some tips:
"There is no substitute for hard work. Thomas Edison said that genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. I would paraphrase and say that success is the same: 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. I was privileged to have wonderful mentors, from secondary school, college and subsequently in each job. Not only did I learn enormously from my mentors, but I find it extremely useful and reassuring to me consult with them in the most important moments of my professional course.
Curiosity. I've always had a natural curiousity - I liked to know more about subjects that I find interesting. Why? What? But if? On the other hand, it is possible to ...? are some of the questions that I frequently ask. This curiosity followed in what I experienced in so many areas - from economic consulting and strategy in public policy and international development to work in a global corporation like Amazon, Social entrepreneurship and environment NGOs .
Failure is often a step forward. People in general are scared of failure and treats that taboo, but very few professional failures are actually "fatal". In my case, most failures actually gave me a tremendous opportunity for learning and development and I have opened various opportunities that you do not consider before."
Also from Radu, young people could learn and cultivate their passions. And not just to grow but to learn something from each one. Radul's passions are, among others, traveling, skiing, debates, classical dance. Travelling open one's mind, arguments and debates helps judgments ordering, but as such can it contribute to the development of one's dancing or skiing?
Ballroom dancing has aided in my teamwork spirit. As the famous proverb says: "It Takes Two to Tango." So it is in life. Most times it takes two or more people to achieve something. I do not believe in the myth of the lone wolf or providential leader. Fantastic skiing gives me the feeling of total freedom. In those minutes you go down the slope. I feel very free and I like to let my imagination roam unfettered, but is also an excellent chance to recharge my batteries."
Another passion of Radu is social entrepreneurship. And this passion has grown for several years with the same keen interest. He came to realize that a social entrepreneur must change a whole system - and this is a true fascination.
I am passionate about social entrepreneurship as we have seen repeatedly how there are certain key societal issues that it addresses a social entrepreneur better than a government or a business makes 100% profit. More reasonable idea of the profits of a business that benefits not only the contractor but also the community in which it belongs (and often do that particular business to be successful). GRASP Many of the projects that we have initiated or that I attended can be assigned to this category of social business and have the potential to change things for the better if they are scaled.
Radu, who has lived many years abroad, says Romania from overseas is perceived quite well. We are an emerging economy with great potential and current our geo-political situation makes gives Romania considerable weight balance in the region. Young Romanian who have a chance to study in Europe and in North America and Southeast Asia are faced with prejudices: In the worst case I addressed the ignorance of those could not place Romania on a map or had no idea about the current general status of Romania, i.e, that we are EU and NATO members.
Although we are not in the rankings of the best universities in the world globally (or when we are at the place we are down 300), Romania exports more brains. What is the explanation? Do keep quality or branding? He says a man passed through prestigious schools of the world:
Romanian education system has islands of excellence competitive, but the system overall does not think it can be characterized as a competitive one. The reason why still exported relatively more gray matter has to do more with teachers very committed and pupils or students passionate work hard to deliver results and less overall system. In most international charts are far behind, but not surprising, given the lack of serious investment in education in the last 25 years.
If you do not invest in education at least 5-6% of GDP, the situation will only deteriorate further. Realistically, to reduce the gap caused by lack of investment in the last 25 years, it should be invested in education 10-12% of GDP for the next 25 years. But for this it needs a mature political class and the vision to realize that massive investments in education, even if they will not yield results until the next election, are absolutely essential for Romania in 2040 to be a developed country with a advanced economy and a high standard of living for the vast majority of its citizens. Otherwise, the risk that further attract foreign investments based on cheap labor and raw material export.
The bridge between Radu and Romania was not built solely on family ties or projects that were implicitly but also his wife, Diana. Although both are from Arad, they met Costinesti in 2000 and remained together and until they married in 2007. They had maintained a long distance relationship with Radu in the US or UK, and Diana in Romania. Since then, however, they are together and have a son, Philip, Luke, five and a half months. How does Radu Tatucu view the future?
Diana is a mainstay fantastic for me in everything I do and I am extremely grateful for this, and our son brings enormous happiness every day. I want to believe that my son will grow up in a society which, although suffered deeply while 70 years (45 communism and 25 in this hybrid cancerous neo-communism / capitalism crony's, that is about healed. A society where meritocracy and equal opportunities triumph over nepotism. A society where common sense and work well done prevail against arrogance and half-measures. A society where politicians understand that they are elected to serve the public good, not to pursue personal interests. All of us have an obligation to contribute in one way or another to this recovery and I am determined to make a contribution on my part.