Fast (re)action. I need to master switching contexts while working with stakeholders, quickly and with precision – that's the realm of financial markets and trading in a nutshell.

Curiosity and the push to understand what happens behind the scenes, to really get to the depth of things.

It's what helped me expand my tech skills on the job, as I have a financial background, not a technical one per se.

I contribute with the expertise I bring and got to learn the skills I lacked. That's a rewarding mix and it made things run smoothly.

At one point I spotted some technical flaws in one of the trading platform components that could have caused some misleading transactions. So, potential financial losses averted. It definitely felt good.

I usually take things with a grain of salt, ask relentless questions, and my attention to detail is a trademark. Add to that empathy and the ability to look at things from someone else's perspective.

My colleagues are smart and supportive, fun to be around, always positive.

Dealing with incidents or major outbreaks during Asia hours (nighttime in Europe) was overwhelming at first. A few iterations later, confidence and knowledge built up.

It's comforting to know that anything can be sorted out when it comes to “software and machines”, if you're collected enough to work with the moving parts.

It matters to me that despite the challenges any given day can bring, the work environment is favourable. I don't leave it negatively charged.

I like to move, usually by playing a tennis match, and I value spending time with loved ones. The moment I leave the office, my mind is free.

The people. I like being around my colleagues, they’re fun, I admire them and can learn from them. I also thrive on challenges, on puzzles to be solved, just to prove to myself that I can accomplish something (I consider to be) very difficult.

ING’s award-winning FX trading platform would not work properly. Transactions that are not executed immediately or flawlessly could create huge liabilities for ING.

I’d say it was finishing a script and rewriting FX trade booking rules aided by that script. It was both challenging and rewarding.

While still a rookie in my role at ING Hubs, we had a critical incident (P1) and needed to get services back up again faster than a speeding bullet. I panicked. Unsurprisingly, it didn’t help with understanding what was at fault. A colleague stepped in to help and we solved the issue.
My takeaway from this was to first relax – breath work, happy thoughts, fluffy clouds, whatever action, or visualization it takes to chill out. Only then can I start looking at pieces of evidence at a pace where my reasoning ability can keep up.

I don’t take work home with me and I’m not expected to work outside of office hours. I unwind by staying active, moving my body, sharing laughs with my wife.

I’m a bit of a maverick, I say ‘’yes’’ to projects at stages when the tasks and scope of the project are still (partly) unknown.
My colleagues are very generous with their knowledge, they’re always willing to share and I appreciate that.

Opportunities left and right. I have options, I’m not in a career dead-end. To me that’s the most important aspect of a job.

People don't always realise that as a software developer I often encounter new challenges, and they require creative solutions. Building high-quality products that make things easier for other people is a process. It's not all predictable and exact all the time.

Both require vision and innovation. I always aim to blend the technical aspects of coding with a creative mindset to produce unique applications.

I consume a lot of art (music, movies), I draw, paint, sing and play the piano. Art adds colour, it exposes us to fresh perspectives, and that infuses every aspect of our lives. Even in our line of work, why not?

All my achievements, big or small, add to the person I'm becoming, so I choose to celebrate all of it.

Helping and guiding others is one of the things that brings me joy.

If I were to name something that felt like a win, it would be a project where a colleague and I suggested an implementation approach that got accepted and remains in use to this day.

It's where I can be myself, speak my mind, find understanding and support. I'm given the opportunity to explore diverse duties beyond my job description and I grab it every chance I get.

We don't have a minimum office attendance rate, and we love the option to work from home. But we do come in, I for one enjoy being with my colleagues, we get involved in all sorts of activities organised bythe company and do volunteer work.

These matter to me, they keep me engaged in the community and align with my own values.

I bring massive supplies of positive vibes, enthusiasm, and high energy. I encourage my colleagues, contribute with ideas and solutions, and also create the space for them to be themselves.

They are helpful, open minded and passionate about the work, which I find inspiring.

I prioritise self-care and make room for my passions. Given my active nature, I sometimes opt for gym sessions and get a lot out of it in terms of mental and physical well-being.

My team and my line of work are my main drivers. I’ve been working with data for over 10 years, I enjoy the work and the company, by which I mean my squad, PartyLitx.

My activity includes adding, copying, and transforming data from all over the organisation for reporting purposes. That’s how I explain it, adding that I cannot get them the preferential ING loan rates they hope for..

Successful delivery is the standard, so it’s not something that stands out to me. What really makes me proud is seeing that the tools and documentations I create are used and valued.

The challenging part comes in when we need to implement something that’s not fully owned by our team, so we need to connect with other support teams. The job always gets done, but the process can sometimes be lengthy.

It’s true that I’m based in Cluj, while the rest of my team is in Bucharest and in India. This allows me to be independent, but at the same time I can get in touch with my team in a heartbeat.

The quality of the relationships formed cancels out the distance. Knowing that we make ourselves available to each other, that we have each other’s backs and that we can share a laugh, that’s more than enough.
I also get along really well with the rest of the Cluj based team. We don’t work on the same projects, but we share an office and gather for boardgame/pizza/movie nights. It’s the best of both worlds, really.

My wife and I usually walk our dogs together, enjoy a nice wine, and other times I get completely immersed into “insert newest game name here.”

The option to work from home makes it easy to take care of real-life matters when needed, and I always make sure that my tasks are done at the end of the day.

The work-life balance at ING Hubs is among the best I’ve seen in my career.

No, but chef, professional basketball player, wrestler, “science person” were. Anything but sitting at a desk and working on the computer. Until I discovered it does not have to be just that.

It’s my first fulltime job, so I’m very motivated to sharpen my skills. The sheer diversity and sometimes randomness in my calendar also help. I’ll be working for a new feature for a couple of hours, then have a meeting about teaching programming to high school students in one or our CSR initiatives, circle back to working on the feature, and end the day by structuring the speech for my next presentation. Variety is the spice of life.

Cookies, and I’m not trying to be funny. I like baking and bring sweets from time to time. I also advocate speaking our minds and live by ‘’a little bit of humour can go a long way’’, even in a tense meeting. Or especially then.

In my junior years, I was working with a colleague on a feature, and he had to leave the project in the middle of development.
What I learned is that I can do some of my best work under pressure. I got to see my first feature go live in production and meet the deadline, against all odds. It ended up being the good kind of challenging.

I usually have something in mind for the end of the workday, be it cleaning, groceries, gaming, or some social activity. A chill night in is also something I look forward to from time to time.

I’m going to be honest – why stop know? – reaching a better work-life balance is still on my list. But I have people around me who embody that, I try to learn from them, and I also get a heads up if I overdo it, which is great. It keeps me in check.

If I wanted to make a change to my lifestyle, I could easily find ways to accommodate it. The flexibility of our working conditions and the culture help with that.

I am a very curious individual. I like looking into things that most people would skip. For me, it’s the joy of accumulating knowledge and sharing it with whoever needs it or wants to hear it.

I think it’s a bit hard to wrap your head around how real fraud is and how we’re actively fighting it. Fraudsters refine their methods all the time and we do the same on the prevention side.

People believe I write code all day long to satisfy the business, and the vision or the reasoning behind it get overlooked. The fact is that ING promises safe services to customers, and I participate in the efforts of living up to that promise.

I add to the overall energy. I own up to being the youngest on my team and I might try to liven a gloomy Monday or contribute to the good vibes in some other way.

That they’d drop everything to help colleagues who come to us. To me that’s proof they’re not here only as employees, but as mates. They show me what an actual team should be like, and I look up to them.

It came from the interaction with the amazing people on the business side. Their take on some of the challenges we encountered was crucial in different ways. I thought I got the axiom ‘’there are more sides to a story’’, but I only understood it on an intellectual level. Now I’ve experienced and it will stay with me.

The first thing that comes to mind isn’t related to my job description, but it is an opportunity I could access through ING Hubs. I volunteer in PepinTEEN, a programme we develop with Școala de Valori. I get to teach high schoolers basic web technologies, and there’s nothing more satisfying than seeing their faces light up when they get something they first struggled to grasp.

Not yet, and it’s exactly because I don’t have a lot of professional experience. When there’s a challenge I face, it still runs through my mind long after I close my laptop.
But I think ING Hubs is a good place for me to pick-up good work-life balance practices. It’s something that’s encouraged and I’m still learning.

Dancing is my all-time hobby and something I look forward to every day. I’m part of a folk-dance group, we rehearse and enter events together.

Dancer and guardian both have correspondents in Romanian folklore. Călușarii are seen as a sort of guardians against dark spirits (ielele), among others. Their performance has healing connotations, and their dance is ritualistic, aimed at making communities safer. Let’s say I’m a modern version of that.

That I spend eight hours a day in front of a screen.

Millions of ING clients wouldn’t receive communications from the bank, including spam alerts, log in codes, reminders to pay the mortgage, etc.

A rewarding moment I recall well is when I created a script that reduced the time needed for a specific task from one day (manual work) to less than two minutes (automated).

In terms of people, the connections I’ve built here are big drivers for me. I like the feeling of being helpful to others and that of amplifying the good vibes around the office.
What I like most about our community is that anyone who needs help will find it. At least one other colleague will be around and willing to give undivided attention to the task at hand.

I like going out, spending time with friends. Having the office in the city centre allows me to meet up with people ten minutes after I close my laptop, so that’s a plus.

In terms of balance, I’d say I have a pretty good handle on it. Once I leave the office, work life stops. It’s a good way of keeping things separate.

I wanted to be either an actor or a tennis player. Nowadays I only take the stage when doing presentations, but I do give my all on the tennis table.

We’ll have to wait and see. What I know is that I’m in a place where I can grow, I can explore, find out what’s really for me and pursue it. ING Hubs is where you can really do your thing.

It blends my expertise in software development and my passion for fitness, suggesting that I excel inboth coding and mentoring. I couldn't be happier with the name.

It's the one I had my eyes on since childhood, yes, so mission accomplished. Software development has been a passion for a long time now and I'm lucky to do what I love.

There could be significant consequences for consumers. We primarily handle authentication, so any lack or inefficiency can impact users' experience, keep them locked out of their applications, unable to access financial services and personal information. Reliability is key in gaining and maintaining customer trust.

It's my eagerness to tackle challenging asks, innovate, build solutions. There's always something fresh in the mix. It's meaningful to me that I get to witness the impact of my work and that learning opportunities are not in short supply.

We're a dedicated bunch, I appreciate my colleagues' creativity, support, and openness to sharing knowledge. Everyone pulls their weight as we work on our common goals and that's golden – it creates a sense of fairness and contributes to our success.

It can be for some, I guess, for me it's something I experience at ING Hubs Romania. It transpires from the management style and the culture, but also from very palpable benefits: flexible working conditions, wellness programmes, agreement around setting boundaries and priorities. This creates a positive and inclusive work environment.

I either head to the gym for a workout session, take a walk to unwind and clear my head or maybe catch up on a favourite series. But exercising regularly is what really keeps my focus and stamina in check.

Being on a path that enables me to develop both technical and soft skills is what drives me most. There’s enthusiasm in delivering good code as a software developer, but my job is not solitary. I work closely with people who contribute to my growth and that really pushes me in the best of ways.

My colleagues are really into their work, into what they do, and also great communicators. Any issues that appear are discussed calmly, no heavy undertones. Mentoring also comes off as a natural and stress-free.
I grew a lot by paying attention to their way of thinking and of working.

It feels empowering to be part of a group where communication, respect, evolution, and knowledge sharing are very much encouraged.

I play a part in developing quality products and interact with colleagues from all over the world in the process, that’s a great mix for me.

It may sound cliché, but I start with a deep breath. It’s something that grounds me and clears my head enough to switch into a contained problem-solving mode.

After "the storm passes", I write down what I learned. Truthfully looking at things and gaining understanding help me integrate the experience and grow from it.

My eagerness to make sense of or to repair broken things. When I was little, I would reassemble the pieces of our remote control to have it work again.

I’m also good in teams, I thrive on the feeling of belonging, on the connections that form. So, becoming an engineer makes sense to me, and so does my scrum master role, which I love.

I’m often told that my enthusiasm is contagious, and I think that my best quality is infusing positive energy into my team.

The recipe I’ve come up with is that happiness is achieved by doing things you love and by regularly adding to those. So, despite my eagerness to get things done at work, sometimes even after hours, I’m very intentional about creating space for the things that bring me joy.

It’s several things, training at the gym followed by a long walk, watching a movie or catching up on a series. One thing I never skip is reading a bit of psychology or a thriller.

From the outside, it can look like sitting in front of a computer for hours on a row, doing repetitive tasks.
Coding is a big part of it, but I also work on presentations, attend meetings, host events. I have fun with my colleagues, and they've also become my friends. Luckily, we have many opportunities to engage with other teams, our community and beyond.

Yes, it opens the door to exciting perspectives, both technical and social. We attend talks with internal or external speakers, participate in hackathons, CSR activities or workshops, go to parties. These are all value adding in one way or another.

Well, I don't know if it was my dream in the beginning or my mother's, but as a child I wanted to be a TV host.

Is it related to what I do now? In part, I get to lead presentations, meetups on the topics I master, and to an audience I know and like: my colleagues. That's a continuous source of energy and satisfaction.

We wouldn't be able to offer customers a reliable core banking system, and the core part says it all. It is used in many ING applications that deal with payments and accounts services.

I'd say that switching projects can be demanding. You have to start over, learn new things, meet new colleagues and strike a balance in the new dynamics.

But you know what? It's also what keeps me on my feet and helped me mature as a professional. I can now navigate a wider technical landscape and I'm much more adaptable. In the end it's a win.

I am easy to get along with, but my team makes it easy. They're real team players with unique personalities. I'd say we cover the full spectrum, and we thrive in diversity. I contribute by making them laugh and by ordering delicious food to fuel us through the day.

I work with loads of data. We take it from internal or external sources, clean it and work on it until it becomes actionable information for the business. So, it's crucial that it's accurate.

"No, I won't search the database for your ex-girlfriend's phone number. I don't know how to make websites, but I can reinstall your operating system if you ask nicely."

We all know that a team's to-do can vary. When activity is low, I like to not rush my lunch, for instance. When we have a tight deadline, I'll gladly spend a few extra hours to reach it. It balances out. Being responsible and doing your job well is what matters at the end of the day, and I'm happy to be part of a culture that sees that.

It is, I fondly remember one project about designing a banking onboarding form for new customers. Compared to previous versions, this one would only print the pages that needed to be signed. It benefited the customer in terms of time spent on onboarding and helped save loads of paper. I felt a huge sense of accomplishment to deliver the project and see the adoption rate go up.

Believe it or not, I've wanted to either be a programmer or an airplane pilot since I was 5 or 6. I ended up working in IT and having a big fear of flying. So, at least one worked out well.

I try to spend a lot of time outdoors, but if I stay in, I watch movies or play real time strategy video games. I also started to enjoy cooking but it's too soon to tell if it's going to be a hit.