A graduate in math and physics from MPTI (Moscow Physics and Technical Institute), Natalia Bril is marketing manager for software development company ABBYY’s FineReader program. She says she appreciates her company’s work ethic and the mentoring of the company’s Russian-born founder, David Young.

The Leader: How has your career at ABBYY developed?

Mrs. Bril: When I entered the company as a graduate in 1994, there were only 20 employees, and now there are over a hundred, so there have been plenty of opportunities for career growth. The fact that I have been here for so long means that I have had to do all kind of work. I began my career here working part time at exhibitions demonstrating our products and generally organizing the stands. I spent the rest of my time in the marketing department writing promotional texts and even designing. We now hire specialists to do presentations at exhibitions, because it is important that the person should be a leader and should be able to get others to listen to him.

The Leader: What are your main responsibilities?

Mrs. Bril: I am a marketing manager for the FineReader program, and have been for two and a half years, ever since the founder of ABBYY, David Young, left to set up an electronic games company. It is my responsibility to make a list of requirements for future versions of the programs; these requirements then form the basis of the production plan for the programmers. I am also responsible for ensuring that the product is easy to sell and that customers like it. I organize the promotion of the product in Russian and abroad through our distributors all over the world.

The Leader: Could you describe an average day at work?

Mrs. Bril: Experts recommend that managers begin their working day dealing with their most important tasks, and not let themselves be distracted by e-mail. But I cannot resist the temptation and start my day by checking my mail. I have close connections with our American and European representative offices, and there are often several letters that need urgent attention from them. I later work on my documents whilst it is still quiet in the office. After lunchtime, when our programmers arrive and the marketing department starts working, I communicate with employees, participate in meetings, in discussions and in finding solutions.

The Leader: What do you like most about your job?

Mrs. Bril: My role in the company is not limited. The company is constantly growing and my responsibilities change with it. But I like the work ethic at ABBYY. An employee is given a free hand in his activities, and while everything is fine nobody interferes with his work, which is great because I prefer to make my own ideas come to life, rather than somebody else’s.

The Leader: What do you like least and find most difficult about your job?

Mrs. Bril: I dislike having to criticize an employee’s performance, even when it is of benefit to the company. The most difficult thing is to bring together several employees’ ideas to reach a total solution. This became harder two years ago when the president of our company left ABBYY. When David used to work with us, he had the last word in the case of disagreements, and now the process of agreement can take a long time.

The Leader: What skills are important in your work?

Mrs. Bril: The most important is to be able to think clearly and calmly and also the ability to explain ideas to other employees in such a way that they feel they are their own. People work better when they think that they took part in the decision to do something, than they do when they feel as if the decision was made from above.

The Leader: How did you get your present job?

Mrs. Bril: I was attending courses at the institute and I was pressed for money, so I decided to earn on the side. My friend told me there was a firm — widely known in some circles — that was looking for a technical writer. When I came to be interviewed, I was told that it was better for me to start working in the marketing department.

The Leader: Is the Russian software industry growing?

Mrs. Bril: The turnover of the software market in Russia is constantly growing due to the fact that the number of PCs is growing, while pirated products are falling. But it is quite difficult for me to say whether the part played by Russian program writers is growing in line with the general rate of growth.

The Leader: Is there a lot of demand for workers in the software industry?

Mrs. Bril: Yes, we have demand for employees such as programmers and project managers. The recruitment situation is made worse by strong competition from the West. American companies such as Microsoft, choose employees straight from Moscow and then do everything for them. It is easier and cheaper to find a highly educated person in Russia than in the United States, where such people are very busy and expensive. Software experts who don’t want to leave for America, find excellent opportunities for temporary work in Germany.

The Leader: What kind of vacancies arise most often at ABBYY?

Mrs. Bril: Most are in the research and development department, mainly for fourth and fifth-year students and fresh graduates. It is more advantageous for us to hire a clever person who doesn’t have much experience in programming and teach him everything in our company style than to teach an experienced programmer. From the point of view of the employee, if they stay at the company, they are sure to be promoted. The number of projects at our company is constantly growing, and we need new leaders at the top and medium level.

The Leader: What advice do you have for someone who is interested in working at ABBYY?

Mrs. Bril: We give different kinds of puzzles at the interview, so be ready to solve them. If you solve everything, you will get to work on a trial period. The rest will depend on you.

The Leader: How do you deal with stress at work?

Mrs. Bril: It was very difficult to begin with, I even cried sometimes, but then I understood that the main thing when you are under stress is to believe that you will cope and that everything will be successful in the end. This helps me to approach crucial situations with calm, to detach myself from the disruption around me and to act quickly and without hysterics.

The Leader: What kind of ambitions do you have for your career?

Mrs. Bril: I don’t have any personal ambitions, but I do want our company to be successful on the American and European markets, for our projects to be implemented, and for the company’s staff to be proud of its achievements. David has trained me to believe in company ambitions and extirpate personal ones. I have never made any career plans — on the contrary, I think a successful woman is a woman who has many children and a loving husband; she is a housewife and brings up her children. But everything comes in time.

The Leader: Do you consider yourself to be successful?

Mrs. Bril: All employees who have been working in the company for a long time have brought a lot to its development and are now in top positions. We have a friendly atmosphere and good relations in the team. I am pleased at how my work is developing in the company.