What’s It Like in Our Eastern European Offices? We have been working with our Bulgarian colleagues since 2001 and have a nearly seamless working relationship. Here are some of our cultural differences. Annika Hey Design Principal Atanas Atanasov Software Development Manager – Agile Frameworks Björn Stansvik Founder & Chief Executive Officer Daniela Nazim MentorMate Alumni Dimitar Dobrev MentorMate Alumni Craig Knighton Chief Operating Officer Eleonora Georgieva Global VP, Delivery George Dormishev System Administration Manager Ivaylo Kostadinov Director, Software Engineering - .NET Jamie Bolseth MentorMate Alumni Jay Miller President Jeni Kyuchukova Director, Quality Engineering Jessica Anderson VP of Finance and Administration Liz Spolyar Global Director, Continuation Engineering Nick Curran Technical Architect Nikolay Lyubchev Global Director, Talent Acquisition, MentorMate Stefan Tsvyatkov Director, Software Engineering - Mobile Stefan Tzanev Chief Financial Officer Vesselin Dobrev General Manager (Bulgaria) Sylvia Vassileva Software Development Manager - Spok Filip Gajtanovski Software Development Manager - Storyworks Krasimir K. Nikolov VP of Technology Katherine Kelly Director of Operations (USA) Carrie Siewert Strategic Account Manager Brady Swanson Global Director, Marketing Eve Poeschl MentorMate Alumni Ryan Peña MentorMate Alumni Vassil Vassilev Software Development Manager - .NET Pavel Petrov Director, Software Engineering - LAMP&FE Ivan Peev Senior Technology Manager Bob Reuss MentorMate Alumni Vera Kasapova QA Manager Greta Yamacheva QA Manager Robert Samuelsson General Manager (Sweden) Kyle Simmons Solutions Architect Robin Thomas Solutions Architect Nataliya Naydenova MentorMate Alumni Adam Malone Alexander Dimitrov Enterprise Architect Andrea Kates CEO, LaunchPad Central Andrew Eklund CEO, Ciceron Andrew Marinov Angel Nikolov MentorMate Alumni Anurag Shukla Aron Wolde MentorMate Alumni Ashley Goodridge Office Assistant Benjamin Gramlich MentorMate Alumni Chris Black MentorMate Alumni Christa Haeg MentorMate Alumni Colin Lee MentorMate Alumni Deyan Stoynov MentorMate Alumni Dimitar Danailov MentorMate Alumni Dobrinka Tabakova Doug Leatherman Emily Genco MentorMate Alumni Fanka Vassileva Gabriela Zagarova MentorMate Alumni Gary Conkright CEO, physIQ Gary Fingerhut Executive Director, Cleveland Clinic Innovations Gavin Finden MentorMate Alumni Georgi Graham Klang Hyusein Hyuseinov Senior Automation QA Ian Good Global VP, Operations Iva Jack Cosentino James Williams John Byrne Kaloyan Stoilkov MentorMate Alumni Kosta Hristov Krasimir Gatev Senior Android Developer Lazar Petrakiev Lyubomir Dobrev Senior .NET Developer Lubomir Velkov Marin Yotovski Mark Smith MentorMate Alumni Martin Dimitrov MentorMate Alumni Martin Kalyonski Mike Hagan MentorMate Alumni Nikolay Andonov Nikolay Arhangelov Riley Panko Guest Contributor Roger Ferguson MentorMate Alumni Ryan Sysko Chairman, WellDoc Ryan Blake MentorMate Alumnus Sarah Rockholt MentorMate Alumni Sean McDevitt CEO, Sensei Siyana Slavova Stanislas Walden MentorMate Alumni Stanislav Atanasov Stanislava Bogdanova MentorMate Alumni Stefanie Trimble MentorMate Alumnus Stephen Fluin Stoyan Stoyanov MentorMate Alumnus Tessa Cacek Staffing Manager Tom Clemens MentorMate Alumnus V8 JavaScript Engine Viktor Mitev Yolanda Petkova Marketing Design Lead Pete Anderson Lead Product Owner, Target Vasil Nonchev Java Software Development Manager Dilyana Totseva QA Manager Stanimir Nikolov Software Development Lead - iOS, MentorMate Rosen Kolev Technology Principal Dimitar Mihaylov MentorMate Alumni Nikola Genov Software Architect - .NET Neli Todorova Software Development Manager - LAMP Yavor Dimitrov MentorMate Alumni Georgi Karanedyalkov Software Development Lead - Android, MentorMate Denislav Ganchev Technology Principal Stefan Shopov QA Manager Konstantin Rusev Java Developer Borislav Dimitrov Senior Android Developer, MentorMate Tsvetelina Lazarova MentorMate Alumni Dimitar Gadzhev Developer Plamen Stoev Software Development Manager - Front-end Jake Nelsen Senior Experience Designer Zlati Pehlivanov Senior Software Engineer II Kate Tolmie Senior Experience Designer Martin Angelov Director, Software Engineering - LAMP&FE, MentorMate Dimitar Zhelev Senior .NET Developer Joel Swenson Content Manager Kiril Ivanov Quality Assurance Analyst Viktor Hristoskov Software Development Lead - iOS, MentorMate Violeta Nikolcheva Database Developer Biliana Kadakevlieva Senior Quality Assurance Analyst Chris McLeod Senior Solutions Consultant Antonii Georgiev Junior .NET Developer Alexander Rusev Front-End Developer Matt Erickson MentorMate Alumni Brian Buchkosky Global Director, PMO David Tran MentorMate Alumni Kristin Krueger MentorMate Alumni Magdalena Chervenkova Business Analyst Denny Royal Chief Design Officer Joe Bodell MentorMate Alumni Viktoria Chuchumisheva HR Manager Kalina Tekelieva Senior Content Marketing Artist Daniel Rankov MentorMate Alumni Alexander Alexandrov BA Lead MentorMate Clint Rowles VP, Business Development Nikola Donev SysOps & DevOps Lead Tseko Tsolov Frontend Developer Denislav Lefterov Automation QA Analyst Dilyana Kodjamanova MentorMate Alumni Emma Jorstad Project Manager, Lead Georgi Georgiev Software Development Lead - LAMP, MentorMate Martin Panayotov Senior iOS Developer, MentorMate John Blake Senior Account Manager Tyler Compton Solutions Architect Nikola Peevski Software Developer — Lamp & Front-End Aaron Whitney Director of Client Strategy Veliko Ivanov Senior Cloud Engineer Suzanne O’Brien Senior Project Manager Svetlin Stanchev Software Development Lead - Front-end, MentorMate Todor Todorov Senior Cloud Engineer Kate Stamatova Senior QA Analyst Frank Anselmo Global Director, Project Management Gyuner Zeki Solutions Architect Galin Stanchev QA Analyst Sarah Hoops Business Development Manager Brenden Diehl Business Development Manager Anna Krivova Software Development Lead - Front-end, MentorMate Ivelina Kavalova Senior Business Analyst, MentorMate Paul Sanders MentorMate Alumni Jim Cikanek Senior Client Strategist Samuil Yanovski Software Development Manager - Android, MentorMate Krasimir Gatev Senior Android Developer, MentorMate Kristina Goryalova Talent Acquisition Manager Elena Petrova HR Specialist Jay Matre Senior Business Architect, MentorMate Lilyana Dimitrova QA Specialist Josh Marquart Chief Strategy Officer Mario Gorki Senior Mobile Developer Simeon Zhekov Cloud Engineer Hristo Stoyanov Cloud & DevOps Lead Ben Wallace Enterprise Architect Boyan Stoyanov Data & Dota Specialist Petya Ivanova Director, Software Engineering - Java Sebastian Ortiz-Chamorro VP of Engineering, Latin America Consuelo Merino Director of Operations Developers can be sourced from many continents. China and India are development hot spots, as are many cities in South America and Eastern Europe. Each country has a distinctive culture and unique set of challenges, but with careful planning and understanding each can be a great development center. MentorMate is built on offshore mastery. Our CTO Dimitar Dobrev has managed our Bulgarian development offices since 2002. Since then, we have expanded to a total of four development centers in Bulgaria and our collaboration with our offshore teams has become almost seamless. Why Bulgaria? Initially it was necessity, CEO Bjorn Stansvik and CTO Dimitar were friends and founded the company together. Dimitar lived and worked in Bulgaria and had the connections to build a mobile development operation. Since then MentorMate has had the opportunity to switch countries (even stop offshoring altogether) but after careful consideration, we decided to stay with Bulgaria for several reasons. Primarily, the culture in Bulgaria is similar to our own. They have a western work ethic, capitalist democracy, and similar societal norms (greetings, marriage traditions, relationships). Basically, they think a lot like us, and have similar wants and needs. Additionally, compared to India or China the time difference is much more manageable. Of course there are still some differences, which are important to understand. Bulgaria Facts Land Area: 42,683 sq mi Population: 7.36 million Monetary Unit: Lev (Lev to USD) Government: Parliamentary Republic Capital: Sofia (pop. 1.2 million) Greetings Man Greeting Man: Similar to American customs. A firm handshake with eye contact. A light hug and pat on the back is not uncommon for friends. Woman Greeting Woman: Light handshake is normal, a kiss on each cheek is acceptable if two women are friends. Man Greeting Woman: Standard handshake. Gestures Head Nodding and Shaking: One of the biggest communication differences in Bulgaria is nodding your head actually means no, while shaking your head means yes. It is the complete opposite of most other cultures and might lead to some awkward miscommunications. Language Language Breakdown: 85% Bulgarian, 9% Turkish, 4% Romani, 2% Other Second Languages: 60% of adults speak a second language. Most common second languages are English, German and French. English is considered the language of business. Time Punctuality: Although always important in a professional setting, has even greater meaning to Bulgarians.If you are unable to make it at the appointed time an apology and explanation should be given. Timezone: UTC+02:00 Culture Vacation Months: Many Bulgarians choose July and August to visit the sea shore or travel. Drinking Age: The legal drinking and smoking age in Bulgaria is 18. Tone: A direct, sometimes blunt, style of communication should not be mistaken as rudeness or frustration. It is normal. Meetings Business Lunch: Bulgarians are fond of having meals after important meetings. This is an ideal time to get to know each other and develop a relationship. Consensus: Even though the business culture is hierarchical, similar to American businesses, Bulgarians prefer to reach a consensus before making any major decisions. Proximity: Bulgarians put greater emphasis than Americans on face-to-face meetings when building a new relationship with a partner or customer. Attire Formal: During work hours, dressing formally is recommended unless it is explicitly stated that casual dress is acceptable. As we continue to operate as a global company with offices in the US and Bulgaria, understanding cultural differences is important not only to us but to our clients. Our advantage in lower costs will only make sense if we are able to maintain high quality development. Communication and team work between American and Bulgarian developers and management is critical in maintaining high quality standards and keeping projects moving efficiently. It is crucial that we continue to innovate with new technology and methods to bridge our differences in location, language, time, and culture, for the seamless collaboration that our clients expect. Tags CultureStaff Augmentation Share Share on Facebook Share on LinkedIn Share on Twitter Share Share on Facebook Share on LinkedIn Share on Twitter Sign up for our monthly newsletter. Sign up for our monthly newsletter.