What is your area of responsibility at fino, Luís?
I’m a product owner for the core modules. These are various services used by products such as the account switching service.
How did you come to fino?
That’s an exciting story. In August 2020, at Wirecard we were all looking for new jobs. I got in touch with fino via LinkedIn and things happened relatively quickly for me: after we had a team meeting on a Friday, I found the contract in my email inbox that evening. Over the weekend, I thought about the offer, gave notice and started at fino on September 1, 2020.
What were you involved with before?
I worked at a start-up that was later acquired by Wirecard. There I was responsible for quality and support. Because I enjoyed it, I also built up the reports area, prepared a user interface and the like. At Wirecard, I was initially responsible for support and then became a senior business analyst.
It is clear from your answer that you like programming. Is that your passion?
Yes, definitely. Everything that has to do with the internet, user interfaces, new technology, programming languages, that’s what I like to do – even in my spare time. I bring my experience and know-how to fino to make everything even more user-friendly. However, I can’t spend 100 percent of my time defining roadmaps and seeing that my team gets the job done. I’m a hands-on guy who also has to tinker and build things myself.
What does fino offer you so that you can live this passion? Why do you feel comfortable at fino?
I am very positively surprised by the people. Our team of four has been working together for more than ten years. First and foremost, it’s not money or a high position that counts for me; I want to identify with the people and the tasks. That is what I feel at fino. You can develop yourself. If you have ideas, you can implement them. I can communicate easily with Florian, our CEO, and our co-founder Aleksandar. That’s important to me and I enjoy it.
That really sounds like enthusiasm and joy. Doesn’t that sound too good to be true?
fino is indeed special, especially in human terms. I experience that every day. I have a rare tumor disease that affects one leg and brings with it many problems. I can always count on the helpfulness of the finos, for example our Feelgood Manager Michèle, who takes care of our health and is systematically committed to it, even working out training plans. That can’t be taken for granted, and I’m grateful to be able to work here.
Have you already met the Kassel team?
No, I only meet my colleagues in Cologne. When we were hired, we were supposed to go to Kassel a month later. However, I had to go into quarantine and since we’re all working from home at the moment, a face-to-face meeting hasn’t happened yet after that. I hope that the situation will calm down a bit in the next few months and that it will be possible to travel again.
