Interview with Jorge Carvalho

How did Luza come into your life and why did you choose us to develop your career?

It was at a moment when I really felt like I needed a new challenge to embrace. I have been working with Microsoft technology for almost 6 years, during this time I had the pleasure to work with great people and had the chance to expand my knowledge. As time passed, I learned an important lesson – It’s important to have great people working with you to go beyond. When I was approached by a recruiter requesting my contact information to be passed to Luza I got intrigued to know better about the job opportunity. More than the job opportunity I got fascinated by the passion that Rita and Nelson demonstrated when talking about their brand-new challenge. I had a really good conversation with them and decided to take a few days to think about the idea of becoming Luza’s new joiner. The idea of working so close with each other on a start-up and having the ability to grow not only professionally, but also personally really got into my mind and I instantly knew that after our call I had to say yes to this opportunity.

What do you most value in the company and how do you expect to contribute to joint growth? What qualities stand out in you?

What I value the most is the so close and friendly environment that we have. It’s nice to be able to talk with each other, propose new ideas and discuss them with the sole purpose of feeling that we are doing the right thing every day. Nowadays it’s difficult to not look for a job that is just not a job, having the consideration of making people feel included and making sure that everyone is doing well it’s something that I consider to be important and it’s something that I found in Luza. As a team player, I really believe that everyone performs best when included in a great team environment. My past professional challenges had me working with charity organizations and one thing that I learned is that the person close to us is as important as I am. I felt like I could be an asset to the team not only because of my Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement and Power Platform expertise but also because of my caring side. I really like to work with people and motivate them to go above and beyond.

What is your opinion about remote work and why do you think it is a good option?

One thing that I can always remember when I wake up is how much better it is to not have to commute daily to the office to do my job. Avoiding all the traffic stress, all saving time every day that I can use to my personal benefit really makes me feel happy. I believe that remote work came at a good moment, unfortunately, due to the pandemic. A couple of months before the pandemic hit worldwide, I was already working remotely because my previous company had to reallocate their office and because of that we got allocated to work entirely at home while all the bureaucratic processes happened. During that time, I understood how better it is to save a couple of hours every day that can be used for our own. Unfortunately, one of the things that I dislike is the inability to personally get in touch with people. It’s always better to share a pint in person rather than through a virtual meeting room.

What are your main functions and skills?

Currently working as a Dynamics Customer Engagement & Power Platform Developer my focus is to provide the best technological approaches to help customers achieve their goals. Every customer has a specific process to perform their job. When a digital transformation occurs and the designing phase is concluded, this is when I step in, helping the digital representations come to life and become part of the customer’s journey.

What project are you involved in and what do you do?

This is my second week at Luza and due to the Easter break, it was not yet possible to conclude two proof of concepts that are meant to be shown to two different clients during this and next week. During this wait, I am taking the time to validate my knowledge by trying to achieve two Microsoft Certifications – I got one of them done yesterday, and hopefully, by the end of this week I should be able to achieve the other.

How did the onboarding process go?

Honestly, I couldn’t have asked for a better onboarding. It’s been a relaxing experience, having the time to dedicate to myself, exploring the new Microsoft concepts and technologies and getting to know everyone with whom I will be working in the upcoming months.

Where do you live and what do you like to do in your free time? Is there any curiosity about you?

I live in Porto in a place called Leça da Palmeira also known as the “Terra mais bonita de Portugal” which stands for the prettiest town in Portugal. In my free time, I really enjoy walking close to the beach or walking in general or riding my bike. My favorite activity is to do long hiking’s with my girlfriend, having the luck of living in Portugal it’s always amazing to take the time to know better our country, specifically the mountain side of it where we can find nice and cozy places, great people, and wonderful food. I also enjoy traveling, getting the chance to meet different places, different people and different food is something that really warms my heart.

What do you expect from the future?

I expect an exciting challenge up ahead. With the opportunity to grow not only professionally, but also personally while we watch Luza grow and become a reference in the Microsoft global sphere, not only internationally but also nationally.

Do you consider that we are fulfilling our claim of “We make work a positive experience? 😊 Why?

A different mindset from what we are used to in our country really counts towards making the work a positive experience. Since my first talk with Nelson and Rita I knew that they would do everything to make Luza a great place to work. Caring about their employees and their needs makes everyone’s job way easier, when people are motivated, everything happens to happen naturally. As math prove, a plus with a plus can only result in a positive aspect.