Let it roll: A Lifetime Opportunity!
When I finished my first week in Quito, Ecuador, I never expected in such a short span that I will be able to learn, meet and share talent with such energetic, enthusiastic, focused and hardworking individuals, namely members from Lab XXI. It has been especially rewarding to work with my teammates Melanie from France and Tobi from Germany who devote their time and energy to improving the education system in Ecuador.
Lab XXI was born with the experience of Ana Cristina (Titi), their CEO, when she realized the need to introduce and change the perception of education in Ecuador. Titi has her education from the University of Virginia and became one of the noted women entrepreneur leaders in Quito in a very short span of time. Every time I meet Titi in the office, my vision to support Lab XXI gets clearer and more refined. Titi has a dedicated team which runs various facets of her organization in order to execute her vision and goals. I feel so privileged and proud to be a part of this great success story that Ecuador is going to experience in the upcoming years.
The first week really went fast with action-packed days involving meetings, design thinking workshops and client interviews. All these activities were then put into motion when we signed off the scope with Titi at the end of the week.
Melanie, Tobi and I see a great opportunity for Lab XXI to step up and enhance the current education system in Ecuador and be the agents of change with long-term solutions. I am super thrilled and excited to support Lab XXI team to come up with a new road-map to execute some of their strategies on the path of success.
The people of Quito are warm, enthusiastic, caring and hard working. I am so amazed with the cleanliness of the city and its infrastructural development over the last ten years and how steep their growth is despite some internal issues.
These examples clearly illustrate how manpower in Quito became the backbone of their growth when technology took a back seat and is classic case-study material for present-day management schools. Like any city, of course, Quito also has its share of areas of improvement which run parallel with its success stories.
Some of the facts that an Ecuadorian can be proud of:
· The historic center of Quito is one of the largest, least-altered and best-preserved in the Americas.
· They speak 14 native languages apart from Spanish which is the most commonly used language in Ecuador
· People of Ecuador are diverse and owners of a cultural and ethnic richness
· Ecuador has become the host country to thousands of immigrants, who contribute from their own culture to the creation of new identities and cultural characteristics.
· Within just a two-block radius in the commercial area of Quito, it is not uncommon to find an Indian restaurant next to a local fast-food chain, and a traditional market of the Mariscal with textile and manufactured products made by the indigenous peoples of the Ecuadorian Sierra.
· The broad range of diversity: to find people with different traditions and customs, you don’t need to travel large distances!
My next update will be on my trip to Amazon forest during the long weekend and I will be back soon with my experience in the jungle, with indigenous people, at the animal rescue center and last but not the least on my first canyoning experience.
More fun to come :)
