Thursday, 1 October 2026
Cushman & Wakefield Echinox is reorganising the leadership of its Romanian valuation business as it prepares to make greater use of data and artificial intelligence across the company. Claudia Scarlat has been promoted to Deputy Head of Valuation, while Bogdan Sergentu will combine his existing valuation leadership responsibilities with a new role overseeing Data & AI Strategy.
Scarlat has spent almost 20 years with the company and will gradually assume a larger share of the management of the valuation department. The team works across Romania’s main property sectors and in 2025 assessed assets representing approximately 7.8 million sqm of leasable space with a combined value of more than €7.7 billion. Around half of assignments were connected with financing, with financial reporting accounting for 25% and taxation for another 15%.
Claudia Scarlat, Deputy Head of Valuation at Cushman & Wakefield Echinox, said: “This new responsibility represents a natural continuation of the professional journey I have built alongside the Valuation team. We have grown together, navigated different market cycles and built strong relationships with our clients. In my new role, I aim to contribute further to the coordination and development of the team while maintaining the same rigour and close relationships with our clients that have guided us so far.”
The redistribution of management responsibilities will allow Sergentu to spend more time developing the company’s approach to data and artificial intelligence. His remit will extend beyond valuation, examining how information already held across the organisation can be used more effectively and where AI-based tools can support everyday operations. He will nevertheless remain involved in major valuation assignments and relationships with strategic clients.
Bogdan Sergentu, Head of Valuation, Data & AI Strategy at Cushman & Wakefield Echinox, said: “I have had the opportunity to see both the company and the market evolve significantly over the years, and technology is now opening a new chapter in the way we work and advise our clients. Data & AI is a strategic priority for us, not merely a technological one. Our objective is to use data and new tools more intelligently to support our teams and generate more relevant insights for our clients, while keeping professional expertise at the core of the decision-making process.”
The move places AI within the company’s management structure rather than treating it solely as an IT function. Valuation provides an obvious starting point because of the large volumes of property, rental, transaction and financing information involved, although Cushman & Wakefield Echinox intends Sergentu’s new responsibilities to cover the wider organisation.
For the Romanian real estate advisory market, the change also illustrates how established property consultancies are adapting their operating models as AI becomes more closely integrated with research, valuation and client advisory work. Cushman & Wakefield Echinox is retaining professional judgement at the centre of the valuation process while creating a dedicated management role for developing how technology and proprietary data can support it.
