The thing I will miss most about the CSC Experience is the
people I met. Professionally and
personally, these are individuals I respect & admire, people whose skills
in the workplace are exceptional and whose perspectives on living and working I
value. They are also funny and
friendly. Some are silly and some are
serious; some are musical and some are athletic; some are pragmatists and
others are dreamers.
Before I left, I wrote a post on my anticipation for how
great this experience would be by drawing what I hoped were humorous parallels
to the “A” Team series. Afterwards I
worried that I might have been tempting fate with that post, but fortune was
more than kind. Everyone on this team
was different but contributed something important and unique to the successful
group dynamic.
Meet this “A” Team (in alphabetical order), and what I'll miss most about them from our short time together:
Jane Antova was the first IBMer I met from the CSC team; we
flew in, bought strawberries, and got lost twice in the Casablanca Medina
before most of the team even arrived.
She is full of fun and takes every experience to its fullest; this is
what I will miss most, and this is why I will be calling her when I take my
family to Ireland in August.
Edwin Baby is one of the most genuine people I’ve ever
met. Despite my giving him a hard time
for wandering off a few times early in the trip (yes, Edwin is Waldo), I am so
glad he got put on my team.
What I will miss most about Fabian Bourdin is his sense of
humor. A lot of people on this team had
a great sense of humor, but no one made me laugh as hard as Fabian. His humor permeates his professionalism and
makes him a wonderful teammate.
What I will miss most about Kavya Gowda is the way she balances
her creativity and humor with a sense of urgency in her work. This woman, who I had the privilege of
working closely with every day, is a creative soul who only accepts greatness
in her work.
Jette Gustaffson might be the coolest person from the Morocco
6 crew. She has seen much of the world
and you can sense that in her demeanor and her sense of humor; nothing too much
seems to ruffle her but she finds fun everywhere. She’s also incredibly tech-savvy. If you don’t believe me, check out these amazing
videos she made of our trip: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkRiX3jiWz4;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IaaDyWoE-8;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CMICYu-Cu4)
Although it would be a stretch to say I’ll “miss” Jordan
Heichel (he and I work in the same business unit in Washington DC and I will
most certainly see him again soon), I have great respect for his
professionalism. He’s one of those rare
“up and coming” types who facilitates participation from all corners of the
group.
Sarah Power is a confident and capable professional with a
deep interest in the world around her. I
will miss her sharp humor and her willingness to debate. The world needs more people like her who
think hard about important issues.
What I will miss most about Tania Garcia Rueda is her
laugh. She is an incredibly warm and
friendly person, and when she laughs she GOES for it. No matter how poor the joke, or mundane the
situation, Tani found every inch of joy in everything and laughed a laugh that
no one could ignore.
Masafumi Takahashi is about as down to earth as it
gets. What I will miss most about him is
that he was consistently a realist but that he always found the good in and
around the grit. No matter how
irritating the situation, no matter how exhausted we all were, Masa was right
there agreeing with us but able to find light and humor.
Samantha Milena Novaes Tomeotti (or Sami, as we called her)
is just a delight. A delight to talk to,
a delight to joke with, a delight to work with, a delight to simply be around.
There is no other way to describe her on paper, because to truly pay her
tribute I’d have to use my hands in describing her to you.
And last but never least, the man we affectionately
nicknamed “Scrooge” for much of the trip.
Although Juani Espinosa Torroija is quiet and measured by nature, he is
precise and thorough in his work. And
his sense of humor is as dry and sharp as they come. Scrooge made me laugh every day in the
office. It’s a rare thing to find
someone who takes their work seriously even when they see irony in task, and
that it what I will miss most about him.
Hopefully, Morocco will be better for having this team’s
professional focus for the month – but regardless, I can say definitively that
I am better professionally for having been one of this group in Morocco.
Next post - pictures of #ibmcsc morocco6
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