Switching Gears with Fabio Barata
We caught up with our IT Manager Fabio Barata during a coffee break to ask him five questions about his work, and to know him a little better.
Describe your day as an IT Manager at Charge Cars.
Due to Covid-19, my day-to-day has shifted a lot towards ensuring all our staff have the right tools when working from home. This includes implementing the right technology and solutions to keep the team connected, enabling our colleagues to stay productive whatever the challenge is. My role ranges from simple password resets and ticket management to new solution implementations, server maintenance, security & third party management. This also includes researching, acquiring and managing all hardware and software throughout Charge Cars, whilst actively looking for new ways to improve performance. I also look for cost saving opportunities and provide top-of-the-range VR (virtual reality) solutions to add value to the Design process and our Customer Journey.
Top Tip for someone entering your field of work.
Don’t be afraid to negotiate on price of products and offerings, I know this can sometimes make you feel a little awkward but worst case scenario is the suppliers say no, best case scenario is you just saved yourself some valuable funds, and if properly documented you can start to see the benefit you bring to your business. Also, don’t underestimate the power of a good supplier roster, even if you can get it cheaper elsewhere. Keep in mind return customers tend to get the better deals in the long run, so evaluate your current situation whilst keeping an eye in the future. Finally, always keep spare kit where possible. Just trust me on this one.
What trend, if any, is shaping your area of work right now?
In the IT world, the biggest shift has been towards remote working. This has impacted virtually every business around the globe and it means the technologies around enabling this have developed much faster than previously expected, especially due to lockdown. However, this change has provided me with a greater flexibility on how I can support Charge Cars as well as keeping everyone better connected.
Working here, what are you most looking forward to?
I can’t wait to test the Charge Cars Electric Mustang out for myself! Seeing the car brings back nostalgic moments from my youth when I dreamt of owning my own Mustang. I am really looking forward to seeing Charge Cars grow as a company as well as finding out the future projects our team will be working on! I am thrilled to support the implementation of better virtual reality & augmented reality solutions. This will dramatically improve our Customer Journey and the full scale of customisation available to our customers.
What book would you recommend?
I read the “American Sniper” recently and really found it to have a gripping story line and would recommend this to anyone. The plot follows the life of America’s most prolific sniper; it covers all aspects of War including a detailed account of events by Chris Kyle himself.
