Oksana Korolyova, RUUKKI Ukraine
- Name: Oksana Korolyova
- Position: Director of Donetsk Branch of the RUUKKI Ukraina
Please, give a brief overview of your operations in Ukraine.
The RUUKKI started it’s activity in Ukraine in 1997. Now the RUUKKI supplies different types of metal, low and high profiles, cassettes, sandwich panels, runs and special steel constructions. Our chain of subsidiaries in big Ukrainian cities provides a wide range of services and products for our clients before and after sales.
For 14 years of rather successful activity in Ukraine the company remains competitive due to client-oriented ways of working, a large range of products and services, as well as speed and reliability that underlie our model. We focus on so-called growing markets of Central and Eastern Europe, where the RUUKKI’s strength lies in the unique concept, which assumes the deliveries from all our plants, which are based in different European countries. In other markets we focus on highly advanced special products of selective consumer industries.
The financial crisis had a serious effect a on companies worldwide. Could you explain how the crisis has affected your operations in Ukraine?
Despite a lot of negative factors, which crisis brings, yet there is a positive aspect: the crisis leads companies to optimize costs and be more client-oriented. As a result, in short term, the consumer gets benefits, having the opportunity to buy goods and services of European quality at the lowest prices. In the long term the company also gets an advantage: the customer loyalty, authority of quality and trust appear. As for RUUKKI, during the financial crisis we managed to expand our activities and focus on new opportunities. It's like a "second wind" in sports.
Many people are suspicious of multi-national companies, believing that they are simply here to exploit Ukraine for profit. How would you respond to such a criticism?
Certainly, the issue of multinational companies is very relevant in the era of globalization, but the views at this question diverge significantly. I think the positive aspects of the multinational companies functioning in the country prevail over negative effects.
The majority of European companies in Ukraine, as well as RUUKKI, are financially reliable and responsible partners, which try to achieve goals by means of ethical and socially fair business activity and loyalty to the long-term cooperation with clients and subcontractors. They provide work places for many Ukrainians offering them opportunities for personal development and professional growth.
Besides, the multinational company combines the local experience and professionalism with the high quality of international level products and services. And, of course, the inflow of new progressive technologies, which are developed and give results in other countries, is extremely important for the developing Ukrainian markets (for example, the implementation of energy efficiency system, etc.) Besides, the inflow of foreign investment is a worthy alternative of reaching the European level of economical development for Ukraine.
If you could make some reforms to the industry in Ukraine, what would they be and why?
Today the problem of environmental protection is critically important for Ukraine. And it’s very pleasant for me to realize, that RUUKKI’s top-management not only understand that fact, but also take concrete actions of environment protection.
RUUKKI uses ISO 14001(the international standard of ecological management systems creation) to increase the effectiveness of environment protection problems solving. The control of reaching the ecological goals is laid on every employee.
Ecological risk-management in RUUKKI is based on systematical attention to environment protection problems. Practically it means that, for example, during the manufacture modernisation process or new process building, ecological risks of a plant are estimated as a part of process development, and the best ecological technology is received in accordance with the environment protection legislation.
As a manager, what skills are most important in your job?
The most important factor of manager’s success is the ability to be opened to new knowledge. It is the only way you can constantly keep up with time and wild changes, that are going through the global world today, and constant world economical space evolution. Besides, the ability to find a common language with different people, both with the guidance and subordinates, and to be able to respect both yours and your colleagues time and effort are the elements of effective management.
It is important while leading a business in the most efficient way, using a sharp mind, new methods of decision making and organizational skills, to remain a human, above all.
