Little bit about the background

Currently Leonidas Glynos is a lead business consultant in AccessBank Azerbaijan. Before joining AccessBank’s team he was contracted by LFS Consulting Company through Temenos Germany – the company which was undertaking the project of creating software for Bank. All over the world 41 of top 50 financial institutions choose Temenos for their banking system. Since 2013 Leonidas was providing different trainings and consultancy to AccessBank directly and indirectly (via LFS) and in 2016 July he was offered full time job and received that offer:

How he came to Azerbaijan

“I was contacted by Bank and was asked if I would like to work for this company as an employee. I found it as a good opportunity to join the bank because until that time I was always from vendor side and I found it as a nice opportunity to see the customer side instead of always being a vendor”

It was different but it was not a surprise for me. Because, I had few trips to Baku, test the environment, to deliver trainings, trials of the system. I have travelled few times for a few days.

I accepted to work in Azerbaijan because I knew the working environment. We spend about 4 weeks consecutively here when the bank was going “live” with the new system.

“So it was not unfamiliar for me. I had seen the environment before I accepted the job offer and I accepted the offer because I knew the environment, so it is not like I just showed up here suddenly.”

The ground was very nicely prepared. A nice corporation with a banking team who participated directly to this project. They were very cooperative and very helpful.

 “Let us say there was a nice chemistry between me and the bank persons”.

About work environment in Azerbaijan

As you can imagine, there are always pros and cons, advantages and disadvantages. As a statement “Going to work to Azerbaijan” is not something attractive, but just as a statement. I mean, I would give a second thought regarding coming here If I did not know how things are.

But I have found out:

!) First, it is quite safe place if you are comparing it with other places. Taking into account places in Europe with terrorism threat and all other stuff, I feel secure here. But when you cross the street you have to be a little bit more careful.

2) It is a nice place where you have a lot of things to do. I do not think there is anything missing:  there is night life. There are nice restaurants. Life is not that expensive – some things are very cheap compared to European prices – utilities for example.

3) People are very friendly. Azeri people even though they do not show it from the beginning Azerbaijanis are very emotional and this is how Greek people are. That is why I said there is chemistry behind it

4) Working environment – I have been participated in more than thirty projects – specifically with this system software. I have been to 30 projects in different countries from Canada to India. Europe, Egypt.

“It’s a first project that I have spent more time and the project I have enjoyed the most”.

Because it is a healthy environment and at the same time you have things that you received, that you have learned and things that you can deliver, knowledge that you can pass.

“Nice trade off: you get and you give”

About differences between working in Baku (AccessBank) and elsewhere

The processes are not different. But each country and each organization has its own features and tasks to be done. So processes are not changed. Some things are being adjusted according to the needs that we are having each time. I do not see any difference telling the truth between AccessBank and any German company, English company, or any other bank. 

“I just see healthy organization. I mean healthy relationships come from healthy organization. So it is very organized bank”.

They are very professional and as I said I have been working for them for 4 years even though indirectly and there is very strong bound between us. Things are made very easy for me. It is easy for me to be in this organization, I really enjoy it.

Ok, you can say that I am saying it only because of working for AccessBank, but it is not like that. Also there is good excuse for me. Because it is the first time that I am working from customer side.

Being on vendor side is constant pressure. You do not work just 8 hours when you are in vendor side – your working day lasts from 12 to 20 hours and it is not just for short period. 8 hours is like holiday. So there is constantly pressure in order to satisfy the customer. Now I am on customer side.

Of course there is some kind of pressure here too – because there are deadlines, you have to deliver on specific days, but also there are the combination of being very well organized, working with professional people and very healthy teamwork which makes things smooth. So even there is small pressure or tension, it is considered naturally and even welcomed, because you need such things too.

About Baku – city of winds

Climate here is almost same to Greece – yes it can get extremely hot in summer, maybe up to 45 degrees and it is cold in winter, maybe not as much as here, I believe it is because of wind. Wind is the main difference, but truly it does not bother me.

“I love all seasons and Baku offers all seasons; autumn is autumn, winter is winter, summer is summer, spring is spring”.

All seasons are beautiful and I like to live in a place where you can observe how seasons change and how nature is changing.

 I have been living in the places where we had 10 months of summer and 2 months of spring, no winter at all. When I was studying in USA, in the beginning it was exciting because I could spend more time to visit beaches, but after while it turned little bit boring, because it was Christmas time and we were going to the beach. The climate is nice. I enjoy it.

Favourite place in Baku

There are a lot of nice places. Of course I have my favourite place. My favourite place is Hard Rock Café. I enjoy very much going there. I like music a lot and it is place where I can listen music

Usually when I go out I try to find different areas, different neighbourhoods and try to see how it is set up,  what differences exist. My favourite places – Fountains Square, I spend a lot time walking around the Fountains Square, Old City and Boulevard.

Also I have been to Gobustan, Shahdag, Goygol. I went there because I wanted to explore more places.

What about weekends

I like painting, when I have free time I go for a walk around, then I go to eat somewhere and finally I go home and I spend my time painting something.

 “Baku inspires me in expressing my feelings through my paintings”.

Realities and stereotypes

I have never thought about Azerbaijan as a touristic location. I have never made any plans in my mind like “Let’s go to Azerbaijan for holidays or for a week. However, I was thrilled that I will have this opportunity to travel to Azerbaijan.

Of course I was little bit amazed because of many things that I have to take care of.

For example we have to keep track of days that we are staying in Azerbaijan (or you are travelling to Azerbaijan), because there is a limit of days that you stay here even for business purposes. When you visit Azerbaijan you cannot exceed specific number of days in a year. We have to declare to Migration Services. When we arrive here we have to register our mobile phones. In general I was kind of surprised how contradicted things are.

There were lots of sport events - First European Games, Solidarity Games, Formula One - meaning that things have been done for Azerbaijan to be advertised.

You could see it through very famous football team, like Atletico Madrid, that Azerbaijan is spending money for its advertisement. And yet it is still so difficult to enter the country and you cannot stay in the country as much as you want. If you are staying more than 10 days you have to declare to Migration you are staying over there.

“There are lots of things that have been done to attract the people and when you come to border you see some kind of obstacles saying that – you can enter but you better go as fast as you can.”

Also there are nice cultural events like jazz festival. Every time when there is jazz festival here I really enjoy it.

The value created for AccessBank

My role is a lead business consultant. What this translates to? There is a team of business consultants from IT department. And whenever they have a problem to be solve – whether it is regarding banking system, or any new requirement coming from different departments – meaning we have new product or new functionality.

 I am a person who examine whether this requirement has been analyzed correctly. If it can be adjusted to system and how it should be created in system and keep guiding bank business consultancies.

It is kind of providing guidance, knowledge and testing the results.

“The value created for Bank” - You should ask about it to the bank J

I am system oriented. So I have been working with this system for18 years and I have a vast experience of system. I am a good point of reference for the bank to acquire the knowledge :)

Requirements of AccessBank

 The things are pretty much planned. You know what to expect today, tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. Of course you may have some cases poking out of plan – each organization has such cases but the rule is rule.

I was working for “easy projects” and “demanding projects”.  In the demanding projects it was really-really tiring, everyday having 2-3 hours of sleep and this was not just for short period of time, one weekend and that is all.  It was continuing for months and that was not healthy.  Nevertheless I was trying to get something positive of it too.

“The life is not about good things and bad things, I would say good things and experience”.

Language barriers

In general it is not easy – living in a country where people do not speak your language. I have travelled to other countries too, so let us say, I had experience how to handle the communication, how to operate or communicate with people who would not speak common language with you. Somehow wherever you are there will be the way to communicate even though you do not speak the language.

I did not expect a lot of people to speak English in Azerbaijan. Because the native language is Azeri, Turkish is second closest language and people do speak Russian. It is already three languages – you cannot expect English being the fourth language. You cannot expect old people or most of people to speak English. It is almost impossible, I was prepared to this.

At the end if you want to work somewhere and you want to stay there, you do not expect the country to come to you. You have to go towards the country. If you want to stay there start learning something. Learn Azeri, learn Russian.

“You have to adapt if you want to be adopted if you want to be a part of community you have to go with the community. I am not expecting people to learn Greek because I am Greek”.

Best memory regarding the life in Baku

I live my life everyday and I am trying to get best out of it. Everyday there is something nice happening. I’m optimist person and I observe a lot.  I prefer to receive feelings whether they are positive or negative.

These are feelings that I receive from people – they make me a better person. Today I can see happy the person who was sad yesterday and to see him smiling. I get something nice everyday – it may be a gesture, handshake or smile, may be because we just finished one development, because testing resulted good, because we are going out to drink with friends, we have a nice chat. There are things that constantly make me happy. I enjoy every day.  I do not want to keep just one memory from Azerbaijan.

I mean when the time comes and I have to leave Azerbaijan I do not think that I will have just one memory – which I will call best memory. There will lots of amazing memories. On daily basis I am trying to get positive things from people surrounding me.

Thanks for the interview,

Könül Soltanova, Banco.az

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Könül Soltanova, Banco.az