Cristian Grunca

Cristian Grunca has a diverse work experience spanning over two decades, during which they have held various leadership roles in software engineering and technology.

Cristian started their career in 2000 at USWeb/marchFIRST as a Senior Software Engineer, where they worked on product development and designed an automated feed system.

In 2001, they worked at Symantec as a Senior Antivirus Researcher, where they focused on reverse engineering and wrote a heuristic virus detection engine.

From 2001 to 2005, they worked at NextEngine as a Lead Software Engineer, managing projects and developing software and hardware for testing embedded devices.

Starting in 2005, they joined the J. Paul Getty Trust as a Principal Software Engineer, leading the design of an image recognition system and developing online collection applications.

In 2010, they became the Director of Technology at StandardVision, LLC, overseeing software and hardware design and development for distributing video streams on large LED displays.

In 2012, they joined Amazon as a Software Engineering Manager, leading a machine learning team and developing transportation logistics metrics and prediction systems.

From 2015 to 2017, they worked as a Lead Software Architect at Red Bull Media House, where they developed a video content distribution platform and managed a team.

From 2017 to 2021, they served as an Executive Director of Platform Engineering at 21st Century Fox, where they built a digital supply chain platform and collaborated with internal and external stakeholders.

From 2019 to 2021, they worked at Disney Direct-to-Consumer and International as an Executive Director of Platform Engineering, focusing on building a media and metadata platform.

Currently, they hold the role of Vice President of Software Engineering at Pluto TV, where they lead teams responsible for developing software solutions for video content ingestion, streaming, and ad serving across all platforms. Cristian also drives the development of video streaming services.

Throughout their career, Cristian Grunca has demonstrated their ability to lead teams, drive innovation, and optimize performance in the software engineering and technology industry.

Cristian Grunca obtained a Master's degree in Computer Science from Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu between 1988 and 1994. Recently in 2022, they earned a Certificate of Specialization in Entrepreneurship and Innovation from Harvard Business School Online. Additionally, they completed several certificates, including Disruptive Strategy, Negotiation Mastery, and Entrepreneurship, all from Harvard Business School Online in the same year.