Cristiano Felicissimo believes that the growth of the sector in Latin America should remain constant as in recent years, with an average of 30%.
Richard Santa
From the age of 12 Cristiano Felicissimo discovered his taste for technology. At that time he began a short course in basic programming, after which he followed several more courses in computer science until he graduated, in 1996, from Systems Analysis at the Faculdade FAAP in São Paulo.
After working in different technology-related companies, in 2007 he had his first contact with audiovisual projects, when he linked as a commercial manager for an asset and service management solution at IBM, where command and control centers are used to manage and monitor the preventive and corrective maintenance of a company's production lines, industry or city.
Then, in early 2010, he assumed the Computer Engineering Directorate of El Corte Inglés, the IT arm of the Spanish Group, which began its activities in Brazil, leading the development of Public Security and Corporate Security projects with situation rooms, command and control center integrated with projects of multiple agencies, Digital Signage and Public Management in the transport and advertising sector.
"In 2014, I was invited to assume the pre-sales direction at Seal Telecom, where my experience with the audiovisual market really expanded, participating in projects of all sizes and technologies, such as meeting rooms, videoconferencing rooms, digital signage, theaters, cinemas, command and control center, automation of the environment, augmented reality, universities, museums, among others. In 2017 I also assumed the pre-sales activities in Latin America, when we began the internationalization of the company," he said.
Those were the steps that led him to become an outstanding professional in the audiovisual industry. Today this Brazilian, the Professional of the Month for this edition of AVI LATINOAMÉRICA, serves as director of project design for the company Seal Telecom.
Accumulating experiences
During all these years, Cristiano Felicissimo has participated in meetings and trainings in international events of manufacturers and associations such as AVIXA and InfoComm in the United States, ISE in Amsterdam, as well as in a Group of Experts in the sector to stay updated on the needs of customers, in addition to living attentive to the news and strategies of manufacturers
He has also completed short-term executive studies in Brazil and internationally, such as strategy in negotiation, conflict management, commercial management, opportunity qualification, people leadership, among others.
In his outstanding career, one of the experiences he recalled dates back to 1999, when he was invited to take a position in the business area of a multinational, where he would have to start a business unit from scratch.
"It was a great challenge, since my entire career to date was oriented to the technical area, but during the interview, the president of the company assured me that he had an unexplored commercial profile and that he would teach me how to develop this profile. The big lesson I learned at this stage was how to break the technical and logical thinking and create thinking focused on the business and the real needs of the customer and that one of the big mistakes we make is to assume that we know the customer, their needs and their business without researching and listening to the customer." Mentioned.
Today, in his day-to-day work he is responsible for pre-sales operations in Latin America, that's why he doesn't have a fixed schedule, because, due to the time zone and the number of business opportunities, it is necessary for him to be very flexible and available as much as possible to serve everyone, regardless of whether they are customers, co-workers or suppliers. "All this, balanced with the priorities and urgencies we have in our daily lives."
Challenges of an AV professional
Our Professional of the Month highlighted that today the biggest challenge he faces is keeping up with the technologies and concepts of leadership and team management. These two aspects are extremely important and, at the same time, they are innovative and rapidly evolving.
"Working daily with employees from different areas of the company (logistics, purchasing, operations, support, marketing and sales), guiding and supporting the professionals of my team and serving suppliers and customers, requires a broad and flexible management so as not to affect the development of the company, the performance of the team and preserve health and well-being to always be available and prepared to act", Highlighted.
He added that for a Pre-Sales Director, there is no single goal, but a series of them that are the main challenges. In addition to the fact that the professional himself is updated in technology and in the management of people and processes, he must ensure that his team is in constant technical training and has a collaboration profile that allows the productive relationship with the different sectors of the company, customers and suppliers, because together, with sellers, suppliers and customers, this team will develop the solution that best meets the client's business needs, implementation timelines, and available budget.
And that same harmony he seeks in his work and his team he applies with his family. He has been married for 12 years and is the father of a 7-year-old daughter and a 10-year-old son who live in São Paulo.
"I like to play sports and have a healthy life, enjoy good food and good wines. As a hobby, I try to travel with my family in search of a balance between trips to large centers and places of nature, which allows them to add something to their lives, such as the culture and modernity of big cities and the tranquility and teachings that Nature can give us," he said.
An evolving industry
Cristiano Felicissimo recalled that since 2007, when it began, technologies have become more accessible and functional, allowing companies of any size to have solutions with similar qualities. Solutions such as Videowalls for CCO, which in 2007 cost a few million reais and today can be purchased with less investment, with more functions and greater ease of use. This simplification of technology, the entry of different manufacturers into the region and the accelerated process of innovation, ensure and guarantee this evolution and change in the market.
Finally, he pointed out that "I always say that the audio and video market is infinite, since it allows the development of solutions with different technologies and features to meet the demand of customers. This is because it is a market in constant evolution and innovation, which increasingly seeks to simplify the daily lives of users and expand the functionalities and audiovisual resources that can be achieved. Therefore, I believe that the growth of the sector in Latin America should remain constant as in recent years, when we saw an average growth of 30% in the region and specifically in Brazil, I believe that the growth of 35% should be reached in 2020."
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