The Lisbon MBA students meet Pedro Morais Leitão- CEO at PRIO

Posted by The Lisbon MBA on 21 Feb, 2020 10:56 am

This week, the cycle of Breakfasts with CEOs for the International MBA Class of 2020 initiated with Pedro Morais Leitão, Chief Executive Officer at Prio, the largest biofuels producer company in Portugal. During 90 minutes, the CEO shared with students his leadership journey and insights in the energy sector, in a very intimate atmosphere.

 

Pedro Morais Leitão is a true corporate entrepreneur, with a multifaceted career in sectors such as telecom, internet, education, insurance, media and most recently in the energy sector. As he mentioned, “my career path was defined by opportunities that arose in each decade”. Graduated in management by Católica Lisbon and with a Masters from Northwestern University, Pedro joined in the 90’s McKinsey, when it was still a start-up, as he mentioned: “to be part of change and growth of Portugal at the time”. In the decade of 2000’s he built and led an internet operation made from scratch for one of the largest media companies, associated with the digital boom. With the financial crisis in 2010’s, the opportunity came to manage corporate restructuring and launching corporate ventures with private equity investors.

 

The choices made in his journey were taken as they came, but he doesn’t settle – he is always searching for the next challenge. “Passion” was also always one of the key ingredients for his successful journey.

 

As the conversation rolled, our students got inspired by precious advice and recommendations to apply to their own professional careers. Between many, the CEO of PRIO suggested the students not to stress out, to be truthful and have a sense of mission. “It’s important to find yourself, to make your own choices and never regret them. You need to plan ahead, but always be prepared for change”, as life rarely goes as first envisioned. With this in mind, he went for the ultimate encouragement “What you don’t say is what defines you” and this is why it is important to “be ready, prepared, study the data, learn with others but at the end, trust your own instinct.”

 

A learning and inspirational session that enabled students to understand the trends and what is at stake in the energy sector and helped them better define their own career path.

 

Thank you Pedro!

 

The Breakfast with CEO cycle is an initiative developed by The Lisbon MBA, designed to give students the opportunity to have close contact with CEO’s and be inspired by their visions and their experience. It is also an opportunity for CEOs to have close contact with the next generation of managers and leaders.