Today is my last day working at Tecverde, as part of the CR Fellows program (tomorrow is a holiday here in Brazil). I can’t believe how fast the 7 weeks have gone!
The experience has been nothing but wonderful and I’m truly grateful to have met everyone here!
Here are some photos as we say goodbye…
Last night I had the opportunity to attend the CEO (Chief Entrepreneur Officer) Summit in Curitiba. EY was a major sponsor of the event. The event brought together over 300 entrepreneurs to discuss topics such as dreaming big, smart cities (innovation and sustainability), education in Brazil, and the market for technology. It was a great event and an even better opportunity for me to work on my Portuguese 🙂
The entrepreneur I’m working with (Caio – from Tecverde) participated in one of the panels.
Overall – a really nice event and I’m so happy I was able to participate!
Many of the sidewalks in Curitiba were designed to look like the sidewalks in Portugal (or so I’m told). Here are just a few of the designs that I see on my walk to work.
Last weekend was filled with touristy adventures and some time spent pretending to be locals.
We started the weekend at the Mercado Municipal with Noa and Gilad (Noa is the other EY-er working here on the Fellowship). The market was filled with incredible fruits, vegatables, fish, meat, and snacks.
Then we hit the local park.
Then we headed to my entrepreneur’s house for a bbq. At the bbq we got to try some new fruit! Who knew cashew nuts come from a fruit??
Sunday we took a train trip down the mountain to Morretes – a small colonial town closer to the coast. The trip was gorgeous! Stunning views.
This week at work has been busy busy busy – I’ve moved from the planning stage or my project to execution. It has been really great to be part of a small company again – and to be working hands-on with some brilliant entrepreneurs! Next week I get to present my work to the board of directors who will all be in town for a quarterly board meeting.
This coming weekend we’re headed to Florianopolis! It is a beautiful town about 4 hours south of Curitiba. We’ll be staying in a Pousada – or a small B&B. More pictures to come!
Well – we made it through the first full week in Curitiba – and it has been nothing but great! We’ve enjoyed the people, the food, the scenery, and the work!
First the work – This week was primarily spent understanding the project and the goals that my entrepreneur has for me during my time here. The company I’m working with is very young, so these have been informal, creative, and very fun conversations. I’m helping Tecverde to develop a partnership strategy for R&D and it’s going to be a great learning experience for all of us.
Noa (the other EY Fellow) and I also spent a day in the EY office here learning about the business world here, EY’s presence, and getting to know the local leaders. We couldn’t have asked for a better support system. Claudio (the office managing partner), Marcelo (our local day-to-day contact), and the other folks we met have been so wonderfully helpful!
The company’s current office is in a converted house, and on Friday, they hosted a traditional BBQ in the backyard of the office. The food was delicious and it was a great way to get to know some of my colleagues more informally.
This weekend was all about settling in and then playing tourists for Ben and me. Curitiba isn’t a big tourist city so we likely won’t spend many weekends here, but this weekend we wanted to get to know the city better. We took a hop on/hop off bus tour of the city with Noa and Gilad (the other EY Fellow and her boyfriend) and it was a great way to see the main points of interest.
Going forward, we to do some traveling to places like Florianopolis, Rio, Parity, Ilha do Mel, Morrentes, and Foz de Iguacu.
This weekend we also joined a gym (that was an experience in itself trying to discuss getting a monthly membership in portuguese), ate at a traditional churrascaria, and perused a huge local Sunday fair.
Otimo!!
Here are some pictures of the weekend touring:
This is Ben and I on the tourist bus
Jardim Botanico
View of the city at sunset from a panoramic tower
Ben and I made it to Curitiba on Sunday (midday). After a fabulous wedding, and 19 longggg hours of traveling, we were happy to make it to our new city.
Curitiba is a great city! It is colder than I anticipated, but very nice. We spent the day on Sunday walking around the city and exploring.
And today was the first day of work! I spent the day with my entrepreneur, Tecverde. The company is great, and the people who work there are even better. They are young, energetic, and excited about new challenges. Today was all about information gathering – I spent most of the day learning more about the history of the company and the future vision.
I was invited to participate in a regular weekly status meeting. I’m proud to say that after 2 straight hours of Portuguese – my head wasn’t spinning! I only understood about 30-40% of the conversation, but it was enough to get the gist of things.
Tomorrow I begin to develop my plans and map out the work that I’ll be doing while here.
And tomorrow we move into our apartment (we’ve been in a hotel since we arrived). Woohoo!!
Ben says hello too!
Is it do-able? I’m certainly going to try! Ben and I will be traveling while we’re in Brazil so I want to be as flexible as possible with luggage. We’re off tomorrow evening (but not before attending the nuptials of some wonderful friends in the Boston area)! Vamos!
Check back soon for updates, antidotes, stories, and pictures from my time in Brazil working with a local entrepreneur as an EY Corporate Responsibility Fellow.
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