An extensive socio-economic research was conducted within the CRITBIZ program, targeting the creative and IT industries in the North-West region, areas funded under the program. The two sectors show an increase of 24.9% between 2009 and 2016 in the region.
Sectors as very dynamic, with visible momentum. The companies are concentrated around Cluj and Oradea, but also Satu Mare and Baia Mare – pointed out Kiss Dénes, one of the sociologists involved in the research. In these two sectors there are more young people with higher education, and micro-enterprises are present in a much higher percentage than in all companies in the region.
The study data state that wages in the IT sector are high. An architect programmer earns between 13,000 and 16,000 lei net per month, a senior programmer between 9,000 and 13,000 lei. Beginner programmers receive between 2500 and 6000 lei, and designers between 4000 and 9000 lei. The lowest salaries belong to the range of testers (1000-3000 lei), and the highest, in addition to the architect programmers, belong to the senior managers in the sector, exceeding 15,000 lei per month.
The research outlined the ideal types of companies in the IT sector. The freelancer participates in the realization of a smaller module of a product, has an individual, autonomous economic strategy and often changes partners. The outsourcing company subcontracts different phases of production or hires labor, has an extensive development strategy, is constantly looking for labor and offers a career chance. The company with its own product integrates the entire production process, has marketing activity, offers a quiet work atmosphere, experienced and stable staff, but lacks a career chance.
The main difficulties of the companies in the targeted sectors, according to the research, are the recruitment, the unpredictable legal framework, and problems with the marketing of their own products. The study also shows that, according to entrepreneurs, the advantages of the North-West region are language skills, open communication, less competition, proximity to universities and outsourcing, and among the disadvantages the research participants mentioned the lack or state of infrastructure, transport, or, even too much outsourcing.
The field of creative and cultural industries is one in which it is worth investing based on the study, said sociologist Péter László. Between 2009 and 2016, this sector showed an increase of 22.2%, and in Cluj County almost 50%. The growth trend is higher than in the IT sector, one of the reasons being that a company in the creative industries does not need as much capital as the IT ones.
It is noteworthy that, while companies are mainly concentrated in Cluj and Bihor counties, Sălaj county has the highest percentage in changing productivity in the creative industries between 2009-2016.
The research also developed a typology of enterprises and entrepreneurs in the fields of IC. These are the artist, with the typical profession of designer, painter, sculptor, photographer; the artisan, who is a craftsman, tailor or textile engineer; the expert with special knowledge that is required in the market; the innovator with new, often revolutionary ideas; the successor who became an entrepreneur out of a desire to be independent; the provider with a community vocation, offering cultural services for a secondary income; the constraint that chooses entrepreneurship for unemployment or ensuring a constant income and the freelancer / atypical, who practices professions with special qualification or new uninstitutionalized activities.
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