Only with an understanding of the customer’s business can we offer a good service.
Pedro Seabra’s talent manifested itself very early, when at the age of 14 he started working in software development.
Founder of ViaTecla, he did the PADE – Senior Management Program at AESE.
He believes that ethics and honesty are key values for the business, as well as resilience to overcome adversity and make a difference with customers.
What are the main milestones in your professional career that contributed to reaching the position of CEO of Viatecla?
I am the founder of ViaTecla, created in 1996. The position of CEO was natural.
My path is atypical. I started working at the age of 14, developing software and, in the summer, serving in restaurants in the Algarve.
I was lucky enough to have contact with PCs at school since the 10th grade. I am the result of the Minerva Project. I trained teachers and developed some educational software, in the education science section of FCT/UNL, when I was still in the 11th grade and studying Electronics.
I studied Engineering Physics at FCT. I never concluded it because in the 3rd year I was invited to work in the USA. When I returned I was still in a PC Hardware company for a year, but I was too restless, and I founded ViaTecla, in the garage, where we started making web solutions.
What were your main achievements?
Three children educated and practically formed; two already working outside 😉
Seriously… having a company in Portugal, created from scratch, in a highly competitive area, with reference clients and projects that were milestones in the history of digital services in Portugal. Today we have two platforms that have national and international recognition, one in the area of travel and tourism distribution and the other in the area of information management. But that the path was made up of many projects. For example: CUSCO, an indexing service in Portugal; the 1st PayperView service in 1996; the digitization of Casa da Música; the 1st online travel agency in Portugal; Digital TV software in Portugal; among many others.
What are the main lessons that make you the leader you are today?
That although it can be very difficult, you can, with ethics and honesty, do business and survive. Even when the opposite seems to be the standard in this country.
That only with a lot of resilience can you be an entrepreneur and set up a project of continuity.
That despite all adversity we must pursue what we believe and dream.
What values do you govern yourself by and that you transmit to your teams?
Customer service: we have always offered continuity services. The focus is to give comfort to the customer so that they can sleep peacefully and trust that we are taking care of their services.
Only with an understanding of the customer’s business can we offer a good service.
And that punctuality is a duty, not an option.
If you could go back in time, what would you do differently?
I’m not one for regrets. I have always assumed my choices, but a radical option would have been to have stayed working in the USA.
In the company’s journey, when we had very rapid growth, I would have managed the team very differently, with people more focused on the business and not so much on technology, implemented control and reporting processes that would better hold people accountable and motivate.
Professionally, how do you see yourself in 5 years?
I would like to say that I would be calmer and with more free time, but I fear that the next 5 or so will be much more complicated than the last 5 I lived.
I hope I have been able to renew the company, have managed to maintain and capture a good team and continue to make a difference.
