VP: What was your first job?
MAGM: I have a degree in aeronautical engineering, so when I finished university I started working at the European Space Agency (ESA), in the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) that controls ESA satellites in orbit. It was an incredible experience, but also a little disappointing to me, because what I really wanted to do was to participate in the design and manufacturing of spacecrafts, satellites, etc.
VP: What led you into a career in telecoms?
MAGM: It was something that came naturally. My work at ESOC, and later at Eutelsat and other companies in the aerospace industry sector, was closely related to the monitoring of the communications between satellites and their control centres. This is how I realised the importance of the communications part of any aerospace activity, in particular for the remote control of aerospace traffic, and got a taste for telco.
VP: Without naming and shaming, tell us about your worst ever boss.
MAGM: To be honest, the worst boss I’ve ever had must be myself! There are no good excuses; I am aware of what I have achieved and not, I know that I have not always fully understood the messages from everybody in my team or managed to spot the positive aspects in a difficult situation. In general, being a manager and your own boss is challenging. I keep learning and know exactly where there is room for improvement!
VP: What has been your worst business travel experience?
MAGM: I have had a few bad experiences… But the worst one must have been when I was travelling abroad to see a customer and the meeting was cancelled upon my arrival. This was frustrating in itself, but if you take into account the planning in terms of logistics and other preparations, it felt like a huge waste of time and resources.
VP: What has been the proudest moment in your career?
MAGM: Perhaps this very moment, because I am really proud of what we’re achieving at Blue Telecom Consulting. I value what we have built and how the company has evolved, how the project has taken shape and the company found its role. Looking back and considering the big picture, which is what finally counts, one can more easily appreciate all the hard work put in and results obtained by all.
VP: Where you see yourself in five years?
MAGM: I would like to continue developing new business segments outside the telco sector by creating new, innovative telecom services for companies in any sector of activity. I intend Blue Telecom Consulting to bring in the needed expertise to organisations that are implementing automation systems and/or services for handling operations remotely or for fleet management. We already do that, to a certain degree, but I would love to advance further on this journey into the digitised society.
