“I understood that what I most enjoyed was watching people’s lives changing.”
I didn’t know what I wanted to do. No, that’s not accurate. Actually I’ve always known quite well: I wanted to discover something so disruptive that it would transform society into something much better. Ambitious, I know, but not impossible. So, at first, I wanted to be a doctor. Later, that evolved to biotechnology because it would allow me to discover how to prevent diseases before they became a threat or even appeared. Plus, there was also a tech side of it. I could only imagine the incredible things I could build with new technology. At the end, I wound up choosing computer science, since there weren’t many schools focused on biotechnology. (Yeah, I was a bit of an indecisive teenager; who wasn’t?)
I lingered on the debate between medicine and computer science during the first years of university. But programming and solving problems was actually quite fun. The plan was to do it for the rest of my life. And that’s where I was heading. I worked for a couple of companies, using different tools, different technologies, and I was a happy developer. But then… I joined OutSystems.
I started as a consultant, programming and dealing with customers. However, a few years later I became a mother, and when I returned from maternity leave, my boss asked me what I wanted to do. And I realized I didn’t want to go back to development. Because, though programming was cool, the part that I most enjoyed in my work was engaging with customers. To put myself in their shoes and find the solution I would want someone else to find for me. So, I said Engagement Manager. And I have the most special memories from that time. It was incredible to watch — from the first row — people’s lives changing. To see the impact projects like the Sapphire Hospital Management System had on patients was proof I’d made the right choice.
After that it has been a roller coaster. I’ve been managing projects, coordinating training, leading express projects, and more recently leading the customer success teams — two brand new teams focused on prospects, completely out of my comfort zone.
People often ask me how can I stay in the same company for over a decade. Well, it’s easy. Because every two years I’m doing something different and challenging. I usually say if you’re looking for a predictable and quiet life, this isn’t the place for you. But if you want to learn, to grow, and to get out of your comfort zone, OutSystems is the place to do it all.
I may not have a career in biotechnology, but I’m still changing lives by making people’s lives easier. That’s very gratifying.
