Oxygen, one of the largest independent integrated communications agencies in Romania, has appointed Andreea Filip as Chief Business Officer (CBO), a newly created role within the agency’s management structure. BR sat down with Andreea Filip and talked about her new role, the local communications market, clients, expectations and success.

By Romanita Oprea, Business Review

You have been promoted to Chief Business Officer. What are your main priorities in this role?

My focus is on sustaining Oxygens growth in a balanced and sustainable way. After a decade of expansion, the goal now is to consolidate what we’ve built while continuing to diversify. That means strengthening long-term partnerships, attracting clients from new industries, and keeping a clear, disciplined approach to business development. Growth today is less about scale and more about relevance, quality, and the ability to deliver consistent value.

What are the main challenges of developing new business in Romanias communications market in 2025?

Competition is fiercer, budgets are more fragmented, and expectations are higher. Clients are cautious and selective, expecting strategic clarity and measurable results from day one. The real challenge is to uphold the agency’s standards while staying agile, to say yes only to projects that align with our expertise and long-term vision. For me, discipline in choosing where to play and how to win has become equally important to speed or scale.

Which services are most in demand among clients?

Integrated communication remains at the core, bringing strategy, creative, PR, and digital together in one coherent narrative. Sustainability and ESG communication continue to grow, alongside employer branding and corporate reputation management. What’s changing is how technology and data now shape creative thinking: clients expect not only strong ideas, but also precision and insight into how those ideas perform. Artificial intelligence is part of this evolution, it helps us work faster and smarter, but creativity and human intuition remain the real differentiators.

How has Oxygen’s business evolved this year, and what clients have you attracted in 2025?

2025 has been a year of consolidation and diversification. We’ve welcomed new clients such as Anytime by Interamerican, Globalworth, BYD and Froo. The agency also advanced strategically through initiatives such as Oxygen Media, Oxygen Association, and our involvement in the Delphi Economic Forum Bucharest, all strengthening Oxygens positioning in the market.

How have clients’ needs and expectations evolved in recent years?

Clients have become more pragmatic and outcome-driven. They expect speed, clarity, and consistency, but also creativity that makes a tangible difference in competitive markets. They’re looking for agencies that understand business realities and can translate them into effective, authentic communication. Beyond visibility, they want relevance and measurable progress. That requires both discipline and vision.

How is Oxygen responding to these expectations?

By staying selective and strategic. We focus on industries where we’ve built depth and on clients who value partnership over transaction. Integration across disciplines is already part of our DNA, but we’re also investing in how creativity and technology work together, from insight and strategy to execution.

You once said that every win and every brief fuels your adrenaline. What is your key to success?

Clarity and preparation. The excitement of pitching never fades, but discipline makes the difference. It’s about understanding what truly matters to a client, building the right team for each challenge, and being honest about what can be delivered. Success, to me, means consistency, turning wins into partnerships that grow and last.

What are your criteria for entering a pitch, and what kind of clients are you most interested in?

We enter pitches that make strategic sense, where the brief is clear, the context is relevant, and there’s a real opportunity to build something long-term. We value clients who are transparent, collaborative, and open to dialogue, because true partnerships are built on trust, not transactions. The best results always come when both sides share the same ambition and are equally invested in the outcome.

Which projects in the past two years have been the most interesting or challenging, and how did you approach them?

Two pitch wins from the past two years – Avon and Anytime by Interamerican – best illustrate what I consider meaningful new business: opportunities that stretch the agency and show how strong partnerships are built. Both came with high expectations and required not just creative delivery but strategic alignment from the very beginning.

The Avon collaboration started as a PR assignment and evolved into a full-service partnership, proving how shared trust and ambition can turn a pitch into long-term, meaningful work. The Anytime win brought a different challenge: helping a brand enter a new market, shaping its purpose, tone, and positioning from day one. Building a brand from scratch is a rare and invaluable experience, one that makes the collaboration even more rewarding for us as a team.