Born and raised in Venezuela, Charlie Medina has been living in Buenos Aires, Argentina, since 2018. He’s a systems engineer and has a broad working experience as QA.
He has two big (and different) passions: technology and people. When he joined the A-Team and decided he wanted to pursue a career with a full focus on people, he also realized that this didn’t mean putting aside his old tech love—instead, he could combine his two passions to enhance them.
Charlie’s story is proof that we don't have to choose between our passions in order to succeed—we should embrace who we are and what we’re passionate about to form our own perfect mix for success. Accompany me through this interview as we learn about his career development experience.
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When and how did your Avature journey start?
My Avature journey started in 2018, when a childhood friend referred me. Back then, he worked within the Talent Acquisition team in Palermo and told me about the company’s culture and values, which caught my attention immediately. He seemed very happy and told me it could be the perfect place for me, and since I had just arrived in Argentina from Venezuela, my home country, and was actively searching for a new challenge, I took the chance.
I had experience working at the Venezuelan Oil Secretary, mostly developing and leading teams, but still, I was a bit nervous and wondered if I truly had the necessary technical knowledge the job requested. My friend was sure I'd be a match for Avature so I trusted him and my interview process began.
The recruiters and people I met were great, and I was offered two options: to start as QA engineer or as data developer, and I chose QA. In October 2018, I joined the A-Team as QA engineer within the Integrations Frameworks team.
How did you go from working in a tech role as QA to working with people as Sourcing Specialist?
I had experience doing area interviews in my previous jobs and I realized that having people from the tech world doing interviews was a plus. Additionally, my friend worked as a recruiter and his role truly interested me. I wanted to be close to people, talk to them, and get to know them. That’s when I got close to HR and started pursuing a career change.
I talked with the area’s managers, had a few internal interviews, and here I am! To be honest, before accepting my new role I doubted a bit since I was fond of my old team and watched it grow in lots of ways. Still, I took a chance and wouldn’t change a thing.
And this is why after two years of doing manual and automated testing, I went from being a QA engineer to a Sourcing Specialist within Talent Acquisition, and I love it!
Does your previous experience and knowledge help you in your new field? Why?
My experience as a systems engineer helps me every day in my new field since the most valuable thing I can offer candidates is that I have a lot of technical knowledge and understanding. This results in a more open and deeper interview and luckily helps me connect with people right away since they feel understood and comfortable.
What would you say to a person who’s about to start their Avature career?
I would tell them that maybe today they join us in one team, but they’ll quickly be able to discover the whole Avature-world and experience different roles in the same company. We have a dynamic culture and work in a fast-paced and engaging environment, where we can explore and discover ourselves constantly and be who we truly are — there’s no need to change yourself to fit predefined patterns.
Also, at Avature we develop our own product, which gives place to evolution and constant growth; not only on the tech side, but, most importantly, on the human side. There’s always room for innovation, challenges, and out-of-the-box ideas.
What would you say it’s at the core of the Avature spirit?
Its people! Through my Avature journey I always found myself with people that have the best of vibes and a tremendous willingness to help. It amazes me how no one wants to be the main character and stand out over the rest. Though we’re different and unique people, we all share the same spirit.