I take time as a scarce commodity, without variable geometry and with a lost tare.
Miguel Maya, current CEO of Millenniumbcp, sees his role as a state, to which he must provide daily proof of his capacity. Alumnus of PADE – Senior Management Program, he sees the demand with himself and others as a way to find the best version of himself and the people around him, aware of the responsibility of the impact of his performance.
What are the main milestones in your professional career, which contributed to reaching the position of Chairman of the Executive Committee of Millenniumbcp?
I start by pointing out that at no time in my career have I set myself the goal of becoming CEO. My aspiration was to be an entrepreneur. I accepted the invitation to work in Banking because I realized that this experience would value me. I ended up getting excited and I was lucky, more than luck I had masters, colleagues, workers, directors and administrators, who made me feel that my contribution to the Bank was relevant and, at the same time, realize that I valued myself at the service of BCP.
The diversity of experiences I have had throughout my career, from the risk assessment areas to the commercial areas, along with the enthusiasm I try to put into everything I do, the relational skills I have developed, the passion for innovation and the genuine taste for working in a team have ended up being decisive in my professional career.
But let me highlight that CEO is not a point of arrival, you are not a CEO, you are CEO, it is a role in which every day we have to demonstrate that we are prepared and that we deserve to perform it.
What were your main achievements?
The main achievements have always been collective. There were countless moments in which I felt the taste of victory throughout my career; from small details in which overcoming gave me great pleasure to more structural themes that had a relevant impact on the life of the Bank and of multiple people.
I would highlight, however, some aspects that are more present, because they are recent, in which I am especially proud to have participated: (i) the way in which BCP has managed to protect people and maintain operational capacity throughout these times of pandemic; (ii) the Bank’s adaptation to the context in which mobile has assumed enormous relevance in the relationship with Customers, a matter in which the Bank stands out from the main competitors and competes without complexes with new operators; (iii) we have been able to return the aid we received from the State, returning to taxpayers the 3 billion we received and paying another billion about one billion in interest and commissions; (iv) the contribution that BCP is making to the recovery of the Portuguese economy; (v) having, and the latter is more personal, managed to bring together around a project a team of extraordinary people.
What are the main lessons that make you the leader you are today?
I always have a lot of difficulty in making a synthesis of the teachings I received, because there were so many, so diverse and so contextualized that they make this synthesis an exercise impossible to be well achieved. Choosing just one makes everything simpler: being aware of my limitations, confident in my abilities and knowing that our potential is only realized in sharing; in sharing dreams, sharing the path, sharing the successes we have achieved.
What values do you govern yourself by and that you transmit to your teams?
The values around which I try to structure my personality, both in my personal and professional life, are multiple and relatively simple to reference: Respect; Trust; Credibility; Ambition; Work; Rigor; Requirement; Tolerance; Freedom; Justice; Diversity; Availability; Generosity (I could go on…).
I am constantly seeking to achieve a better, denser version of myself and the people with whom I share the paths I pursue. I am demanding with myself and with those who work with me, because I am aware of the responsibility we have to influence the lives of thousands of people. This requirement is a factor that gives us confidence, as we all know that the most relevant people in our lives have always been those who have required effort, resilience and the ability to overcome. Obviously I not only appreciate but value that people are very demanding with me.
If you could go back in time, what would you do differently?
I can’t conceive of going back in time, my attention is always placed on the use I make of time. I take time as a scarce commodity, without variable geometry and with a lost tare. But I often go back to the past to deepen the teachings, never with a view to transporting myself to a present or an imaginary future. Surely I would try to demand even more from myself, more intensity, in everything I did, whatever it was.
Professionally, how do you see yourself in 5 years?
In five years, the world will be even more fascinating. I see myself restless, undertaking, doing things with a positive impact on people, developing initiatives that excite me and densify me both in my professional and personal life (I can’t conceive one without the other). I certainly see myself in the plural, sharing the path with fascinating people with whom I will still have a lot to learn and share. I seek and am lucky enough to often find happiness in what I do.
