Interview for Executiva: The Lisbon MBA Católica|Nova helped me define and differentiate myself professionally

Posted by The Lisbon MBA on 29 May, 2023 1:43 pm

In this interview to Executiva magazine, Tânia Viangre, Senior Project Manager at Sociedade Francisco Manuel dos Santos, stresses how The Lisbon MBA Católica|Nova helped her define and differentiate herself professionally.

 

With a degree in Biology, Tânia Vinagre worked at the Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência until she launched a startup in the Healthcare sector. Later, she engaged in the development of joint-ventures at the Champamlimaud Foundation. Since May 2023, she has been senior project manager at the Sociedade Francisco Manuel dos Santos, where she is part of a team that will present a proposal for the creation of an international center for blue biotechnology in Portugal, contributing to the development of a sustainable economy. She considers that the common denominator in her career is the constant willingness to learn, to challenge herself, and to start new projects. “My background allows me to approach problems in a systematic and evidence-based manner,” she says.

Given her background, Tânia Vinagre decided to take an MBA to fill the gap in management and business. She chose The Lisbon MBA Católica|Nova because it offered “the reputation and the national network she was looking for”. Today Tânia Vinagre says that “the experience at The Lisbon MBA helped me define and differentiate myself professionally.”

 

 

What is your academic background?

 

I started my academic path with a degree in Biology, then I did a PhD in Molecular Biology and, more recently, The Lisbon MBA Católica|Nova.

 

 

From the PhD and the Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciências to launching a startup in the Healthcare sector and the development of joint ventures at the Champamlimaud Foundation, what unites your professional path?

 

The common denominator is a constant will to learn, to challenge myself and to start new projects. Throughout my professional career I have been gaining bandwidth, but my basic training allows me to approach problems in a systematic and evidence-based manner.

 

 

What added value do you draw from each of these very diverse professional experiences?

 

I think that as you grow professionally, you gain depth in your understanding of the world. In my PhD, I learned to think; the management experience taught me to make decisions based on imperfect information, not to let myself be paralyzed in the analysis and to iterate when the results require it; the large partnerships I helped to establish enabled me to consolidate the idea that teamwork allows to leverage projects to greater heights. I have been very fortunate in my journey and have tried to make the best out of each stage.

 

 

What is the biggest professional challenge you had to deal with and how did you face it?

 

I hope my biggest professional challenge is still ahead of me and not in my past. Dealing with many different people using different languages and advocating potentially contrasting agendas is not easy at all. The biggest challenges I have faced have always been around fairly and harmoniously distributing a valuable or limited resource, be it physical space, budget, staff, equipment, etc., without losing sight of the original purpose.

 

 

What was your role at the Champalimaud Foundation and what were the main challenges you faced?

 

Over more than a decade, I have had the privilege of performing several functions at the Champalimaud Foundation, each of which has allowed me to evolve and challenge myself in different ways.

 

 

In May 2023 you started a new job position at the Sociedade Francisco Manuel dos Santos as senior project manager. What led you to accept this new challenge?

 

Being part of the beginnings of a project with the potential to change the world was something I thought would only happen to me once, at the Champalimaud Foundation. I was lucky enough to be given the opportunity to contribute again, at the conception stage, to a project with a scale that makes me feel humble.

 

 

What is the mission you will pursue?

 

I am part of a team whose ambition is to present a strategy that allows Portugal to lead in the blue (marine) biotechnology sector and a proposal for the creation of an international center for blue biotechnology in Portugal, contributing to the development of a sustainable economy. It’s hard for me to contain my enthusiasm for this new challenge!

 

 

Why did you decide to do an MBA and why did you choose The Lisbon MBA Católica|Nova?

 

Given my background, I decided to do an MBA to bridge my gaps in management and business. The Lisbon MBA Católica|Nova offered the reputation and national network I was looking for. I chose The Lisbon MBA Executive program because I wanted to benefit from networking opportunities with colleagues who already had a consolidated experience in their fields.

 

 

How did you reconcile the MBA with your professional and personal life?

 

I can’t hide that it was a very demanding time. On top of my professional responsibilities, I had a little toddler and got pregnant again during the second year. I do not recommend this approach, but it helped a lot that most of my colleagues were in a similar phase of their lives, with so many professional and personal responsibilities. This made it possible to reconcile schedules among everyone and to work together in a more collaborative and effective way.

 

 

How did The Lisbon MBA help you define and implement your purpose and achieve your professional goals? What has this management training changed in your professional life?

 

The experience at The Lisbon MBA helped me to define and differentiate myself professionally. I learned a lot and I was very lucky with my classmates, who today are a fabulous network that I often turn to.

 

 

How did you live the experience of learning by doing, so integral to The Lisbon MBA Católica|Nova?

 

I think I’ve always learned best by doing. I adapted very well to that approach.

 

 

What advice would you like to leave to a young executive?

 

To see challenges as opportunities and not let yourself be limited by what you haven’t mastered yet.

 

 

 

Read the full article (original) in Portuguese here.

 

 

Source: Executiva Magazine