The Humans of smrtPhone

Our “smrtie of the Month” is a quick-learning, well-traveled family man who’s happy to provide support at smrtPhone

Name

Radu Andrei Simon

Title / Role in the Company

I’m a customer support representative. I resolve the issues of our clients pertaining to our systems and platform. These range from technical issues to knowledge issues to compliance issues. I’m here for whatever they need and if I can’t solve it, I will push it to the senior team and we will get it solved. That is our guarantee.

How long have you worked for smrtPhone?

I just had my one year anniversary last month.

What’s your background? 

I finished law school, which means I’m mostly certified as a first level lawyer. But, in Romania, if you want to move ahead as a lawyer, you need to apprentice first. It takes a long time before you’re earning money. I didn’t want to live with my parents any more. I was 22 years old and wanted to be on my own. 

So, I got a job in a restaurant with Royal Caribbean, the cruise ship company. I liked the work overall, but their system was flawed so I changed companies. I went to the German company, AIDA, and now I am fluent in German. 

At AIDA, it was quite a pleasant experience. I was a bar manager at first, with 95 people under me. That is as overwhelming as it sounds. We had a special phone for internal calls. Once, I remember looking at the phone log and seeing that in just two hours I had 120 inbound calls and I placed 80 outbound calls. After that, I decided I could not keep up that pace any more. 

I transferred to the casino, where I was a host. Soon I became a Cage Manager, which is where people cash in and cash out. Essentially, I was responsible for the finances of the casino. Which is also where I learned that the casinos are rigged. It is set that the house will always win, 44% to the player and 56% to the house. But, still, I liked the environment. 

After Cage Manager, I became the Casino Manager. I loved getting a promotion, but it was so busy all day. Repairing machines, completing documents, making improvements. As they say, “Always put a lazy person in charge of a difficult job because they will find the easy way to do it.”  

I met my wife on the boat. She is originally from Ukraine and was an acrobat in the onboard circus. We decided to get married and start a family. 

I have known Alex Parasca from smrtPhone for a long time. Before I came back on land, I was discussing with him about opportunities at the company. I knew nothing about technical support but I knew English, customer service, and computers. He connected me with Tudor [Head of Support] and we got along immediately. It felt like a good fit. 

During the first week of the training, it felt overwhelming. But with time and lots of support, now it’s easy. I know what the common errors are. I know what I can resolve and what I can’t fix and needs to be escalated. Our team is so well organized, it’s so easy to make sure things get to the right people to handle it.

What was your first job? 

My very first job was an assistant barkeeper in Constanza [by the Black Sea] at age 15. I was the back barkeeper’s assistant. A group of us went, and not all lasted. But I liked it. It was fun. I was at the seaside. They offered me one room in the basement, for lodging. As a young person, you’re happy with simple things. It was only for three months, and I didn’t make a lot of money. But I was able to buy myself a TV, and I had some fun experiences.

What do you like about working for smrtPhone? 

Having a young family, one of the things that is most important to me is the fact that I’m working from home. I live with my wife and our first child, and we have another one on the way. It’s been great working from home, not having to commute, and being able to be here. There is flexibility for me to show up for smrtPhone, for our customers, and for my family.

Describe smrtPhone in 3 words: 

• Vibrant – It’s quite active and involved. There is always something going on. 
• Easy-going – Nobody is stressed about what to do. Everyone knows what they have to do and how to do it. 
• Forward Moving – There are so many releases and new things. In fact, maybe we can slow it down and take it a little less on the releases!

The Support Department is so chill, and everyone stays in a good mood. We have confidence that it will all get done. And if it cannot be resolved by us, we will push it forward. I give it a 10/10.

Is there a particular moment/project at smrtPhone that stands out and makes you feel proud?  

I’m particularly proud of resolving the compliance and infrastructure upgrade related issues we had in September and October of last year. We had a lot of chats. It was all day long, running from one chat to the other. But we got through it all and maintained a high client satisfaction rating. I’m really, really proud of that.

What do you like to do in your free time?

I’m one of the guys on the team who rides motorcycles. I used to ride with my wife before kids. But I’m not obsessed with traveling like some people my age. I think it’s because my job was traveling for so long. Now, I know there is no place like home. 

Other places have sights to see, cool buildings, fun adventures. But at home, you have all of the memories and emotional connection. You experience LIFE at home. I like to be home with the family and with the kids and where my memories are. That is my slice of heaven. 

After you’ve traveled enough, you realize it’s a lot of the same. It’s architecture. It’s a mountain. Yes, it’s beautiful. But, in the end it’s just things if there is no emotional, human connection. It’s not enough to last you. 

My favorite day with my family is to wake up at 10, have some crepes, and have a little adventure downtown.

Name something that is on your “bucket list”

I’ve done a lot of what I wanted to do in my life. The things I want are not so outrageous. I’d like to buy another motorcycle. I want to update the house to make room for more kids. 

If I had extra time, I would like to go to a lake. Go fishing, relax, and read a nice book – have a moment of zen. But my needs are not a lot. I just need a few hours to myself, completely, every week.

What is a fun fact people might not know about you? 

I learned to speak German in less than two months. When I finished working for Royal Caribbean, I went home for seven or eight months. I was thinking about going back to law school, but the issue of money came up again. I couldn’t live on my own. So I was thinking about what I could do.

I talked with Carnival Cruise ships but they didn’t have an opening for over six months. But then they said they had an opportunity that would start in 7 weeks for AIDA. I was determined to get that job, so I stayed in the house 8 hours a day, and I learned German by myself. 

I bought books. I watched movies. I took online classes. 

I was really thoughtful about what I would need to know how to say. I prepared for interview questions like, “Describe the ingredients in a drink.” I prepared small talk in English and then translated to German. For one month I did nothing but German. And, out of 26 people who were interviewing, only two of us were hired, another person and me.