Cooling off

Flash Interview with Nuno Vinhas Figueiredo

C — Tell us about a heat experience with which you learned and why?

NVF — Putting aside my experiences in Namibia (where I learned that driving faster in desert gravel roads is better than driving slowly – which I could use for some witty remarks), I will tell you about my experience in our very own scorching Celfocus Equinox program for Vodafone Ireland.

I was brought aboard to try and help in a particularly heated moment for the team and Celfocus. Temperature was high, pressure was rising, sky was cloudy… all the symptoms of a storm. Equinox was a tough project, but in the end, after many days of hard work, we ended up delivering it successfully. And I learned a lot of lessons during those blistering days.

First, I learned to temper my criticism – that being part of the solution is much, much harder than pinpointing problems from the side-line. Before joining, I had some harsh critical opinions about our work there. Once I was sweating with the team, making our best to put the project back on track, I understood that the reality was much more complex than I thought. My previous opinions were untrue and unfair. We tend to criticize what we don’t know, as if problems are obvious and answers are simple. But they are not. Reality is messy and complex.

Second, I learned a lot about Celfocus’ DNA, about our drive and ability to deliver. We had very heated arguments. They were tough discussions, but never “blamestorming sessions”. We used them to understand what the root cause of our issues was – and to try and fix them, instead of using band aids. We ended up having to ask everyone for a lot (more) of extra work - “the Crunch mode” - and the team’s response was amazing, as was the support of our management. It was a hot summer, but ultimately, we stood with our mantra: we delivered.

Third, I learned that heat can be… pleasurable! Just like when you go inside a sauna, the immediate experience was not pleasant – but it paid off afterwards. I met some great people during the project and strengthened my bounds with others I’ve known for many years. Nowadays, I look back with fondness and appreciation on the many things the team was able to accomplish, on what I learned from them and how much I grew.

That being said: let’s avoid another Equinox, ok? 

C — In your opinion, what is the right temperature for a dream holiday? Give us an example of how you enjoy that time?

NVF — A dream holiday contains sun, loved ones, close friends, sea water at 21º Celsius… and continuous heated debates about the fundamental things of life: football, politics, beer, climate change, the pros and cons of nuclear energy, the future of mankind, space travel, the laws of physics and if anything is slower than William Carvalho. You know, the big stuff.

Every year I spend one week of my holidays with a huge group of old friends who go back from my high school and university times (circa A.D. 1800). We discuss. A lot. Like crazy. Temperatures rise, we get mad. And then we make up, have a drink and are ready for round two.

Knowing how to discuss is very much about being ready to open yourself up to new ideas, being able to defend your stand, acknowledging and accepting other’s viewpoints, without hard feelings.

I love a good debate.

And beer. 

C — How do you deal with making decisions in the heat of the moment, when necessary?

NVF — Well, it very much depends on the context. I try to adapt to the situation, the urgency of the matter and those involved.

I would say that I always try to balance the scale between gathering info, discussing the alternatives and action. In the heat of the moment, we are prone to make hasty decisions. But we cannot be stuck in non-decisions.

I know, great non answer… but that’s just it.

Mind you, delegation also helps a lot – what might be a complex decision for me, is probably a simpler decision for someone more knowledgeable or experienced with the matter at hand. Learning how to, when to, and who to delegate can, many times, easily solve what initially seems tricky.    

C — From your experience, what is your advice to avoid burnout?

NVF —  Learning how to cool-off.

There are loads of ways to do so and I believe each person must find their own method – probably different methods, for different occasions, that you learn through experience.

I love doing real breaks. Before my holidays, I do my best to delegate any responsibilities and make sure I will not be disturbed. You need planning and work to make sure you can do this – and you need a team you can trust.

Additionally, I try to cool-off every day. I make an effort not to work during the weekend and I never schedule meetings beyond 18h.

I also like to… talk. Talking is a great way to blow-off steam.

I humbly suggest you take some time, here and again, for introspection.

I’m far from reaching success. Balancing my emotions and life is a never-ending journey of introspection and continuous learning.  

C — From your experience in technology, give us an example where friction and challenges contribute to creating good things.

NVF — Ok. Challenge = cold. Wood + friction = fire. Cold solved. Next question! :D

Now, really. Well, just look at today. At what all of us are doing, where and how we are doing it. And think about how… wonderful it is!!

Think about it. We are working at home, in the middle of a pandemic. We are creating things, serving our customers, doing our jobs, all remotely. Away from our clients, away from our colleagues… but in fact close to them, continuously connected. And thriving!

The challenge was enormous: a global problem, in need of immediate actions, requiring social distancing and a new way of working and living.

The friction was immense. There were many doubts about the efficiency of remote work. There were zillions of questions whether our ecosystem would be able to cope with this – the technical infrastructure, the connectivity network, the social fabric.

The outcome of this is, in my opinion… a tremendous success. Due to a combination of information and communications technology along with people’s ability to adapt, I believe we all were able to create something great, out of what could have been an enormous crisis.

Can you imagine if covid 19 had been covid 95? Don’t you think we are now ready to embrace new and better ways of working?

I also think we – each of us at Celfocus – should be proud of our contribution to this. Our work in this industry makes the creation of the global infrastructure possible which is instrumental to overcome this crisis.

We are all contributing for a better world (of course, the real heroes are doctors, nurses and health professionals. Control your egos!). 

C — In your opinion, what is the future of technology for which you have great passion? Why?

NVF —  I am an avid reader of science fiction, from old school classics to modern hard sci-fi. The future of technology is a broad subject for me, mixing stuff which is nearly attainable with techno-magical concepts of human augmentation, FTL travel, cyberspace ninjas and how to survive in a vacuum with the power of the Force (nope, the wound is not healed).

To stay close to earthly subjects, I’ve been particularly passionate about the future of information.

The technology that has allowed the dissemination of knowledge around the world and has granted so many people the power of learning and be heard is a wonderful technologic achievement and something we must treasure. But it is also being used to pollute reality and spread disinformation.

To quote a friend who was quoting Barack Obama - who himself was quoting Daniel Patrick Moynihan – who apparently was quoting James R. Schlesinger (who probably was quoting his mother): “Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts”. Yet, today the barriers between facts, opinion, speculation, and fiction are more diluted than ever.

I also fear that the future of information might make us… dumber. Behold the addiction of the infinite scroll. The invasion of grumpy felines. The absurdity of Qanon’s conspiracy theories. And TikTok.

The internet has enormous power and “with great power comes great responsibility” (favourite quote ever). The responsibility of the internet power is - just as the very own nature of its supporting network - spread across the world and virtually distributed among everyone.

Managing the different freedoms allowed by the internet is a threat and a challenge to all of us, both as a society and as individuals.

And I’m always passionate about big challenges.

Plus, someone must step up and avoid the horrible dystopian world ruled by TikTok.