If there was one company I had imagined joining after graduation, it was USSTATS, a leading business-intelligence software vendor. About three years after completing my degree, I reached that goal. This was the dream that had made me leave my previous role.
USSTATS in Spain was, at that time, a distinctive organisation. From my first day, I received training in its proprietary technology, particularly USSTATS Marketing. A large financial-services customer had bought the product, and an implementation project needed technical support. That was where I came in.
The technology itself was not the hardest part. Understanding the corporate culture surrounding the project was. A business specialist from the United Kingdom helped me see how to manage a situation in which technology was almost the least important ingredient.
The company put substantial resources behind the effort. A project that had seemed at risk became a commercial success in its market. It opened doors for the business and allowed me to develop a career in software presales.
There was a great deal of training, help from others and work on my part. Obstacles appeared continually, and getting past them took time, effort and many hours.
Success, however, did not make the environment uncomplicated. From my perspective, professional tensions and jealousy became part of the story. Two years after what I regarded as my greatest professional achievement, I was dismissed, in what was recognised as an unfair dismissal.
It was a hard blow. Eventually I came to understand that a career is not a judgement on a person’s entire worth. I still feel fortunate for the experiences and anecdotes I collected there. I can even be grateful that someone finally put a limit on an ego that had previously struggled to recognise one.
We often learn more from failure than from success. A continuously rising career may look ideal on paper, but setbacks can make us more thoughtful people and, through that, better professionals. Business is not only about technology. It is about people.
After a period out of work that felt long to me, another destination appeared. One door had closed; a different one was opening.
