Chatting with Hugo in times of teleworking

Hugo is one of our Software Engineering programmers, he's been with us for 10 years and decided to share a little about his journey to Contisystems and the challenges of teleworking as a new father.

Hi Hugo, welcome and thank you very much for taking on the challenge of telling us a bit about yourself.

Do you want to start by telling us where you come from?

-I was bornin Arouca, where I lived with my parents and brother until I left home. I went to school in Arouca until I went to the CET (Technological Specialization Course) in Oliveira de Azeméis at the Escola Superior Aveiro Norte (ESAN - UA) where I studied Software Development and Systems Administration.

What made you choose this area?

-It was, and is, a growing area. I saw the growth of the Internet and was always curious about it. After the CET, I took a degree in Information Technology at the Águeda School of Technology and Management (ESTGA - UA), as a student worker, where I had some equivalences and did some courses.

Where were you working at the time?

-At thein2b company where I was an intern for 6 months. That's where I met Hugo Santos and Carla, and we've worked together ever since. In the meantime, that company was bought by Netual, a company that was already in the process of integrating with GFI Portugal and where I met Ricardo Costa.

What did they do in that company?

-We have developed various systems ranging from hotel alarm systems, multimedia kiosks, corporate TV, teacher management, spa management software.... wide variety.

So how did you get to Contisystems?

-In fact, several of us left GFI for Contisystems in 2010, challenged by Duarte to work on a new project. That group included, of course, Hugo Santos and Carla.

Have you always had the same job at Contisystems?

-Yes, at Contisystems I've always been part of the development team, although I've worked in various areas and in various programming languages. The areas ranged from website content management platforms, child tracking systems, festival access control, development of factory and sales support systems... a lot!

Again, a lot of variety... where does our current Customer Communication Management system come in?

-It started in 2015 when one of our clients identified this need, and since then it has grown a lot.

And what's it like working in a small team in Aveiro when the rest of the company is in Lisbon?

-It's easy and works very well. There's always been collaboration on both sides and I've never experienced any difficulties. Of course, it's important to have regular visits and to be with people, but we're always very close, the geographical distance doesn't make it difficult to get the job done or the relationship. There are actually advantages because there are only a few of us and we can be much more concentrated and focused without anyone interrupting us in the room with other matters. It's very different to be interrupted by an email or chat or by a person in person. But at the moment there isn't even this Lisbon/Aveiro difference, now we're all the same!

Now the reality is different, what has it been like for you working from home?

-It's been a challenge. My wife is a nurse, so she doesn't have the chance to telework, and we have Diogo who still needs a lot of attention as he's not even 2 years old.

Working and looking after Diogo must be hard...

-É. Because of the risk my wife is exposed to, we try to avoid Diogo having contact with his grandparents and I've been trying to work shifts with my wife so that we can take turns looking after Diogo. It's complicated because it's very rare for us to have three-way time, and that's very much missed. In the meantime, he's already spending a few days with his grandparents, but I hope that the nurseries will open soon and that can change, and he already misses school a lot.

And do you still have time for any hobbies?

-Nowit's unthinkable. I'd love to be able to keep up with my exercise routines, but I'm not. In 2013 I lost 30 kg in 8 months thanks to greater discipline in exercise and nutrition, but some of that 30 kg has come back... but I'd really like to get back to that discipline. Apart from that, I've been volunteering at TEDx Aveiro since the first edition (2010), where I'm responsible for managing ticket sales and also helping with access control on the day of the event.

If we asked someone close to you to describe you in one expression, what do you think they would say?

-I thinkit would be the fact that I'm a caring and close father. I don't help, I'm part of it, I think they're quite different things.

Thank you so much for your time, it was great to get to know you better!