Exclusive Trusted Magazine Q&A with Paula Tavangar Co-Founder & Investment Director @ Genesis Capital-LATAM
How could you describe your career path in a few words?
With a financial background, I can say I was always focused on quantitative solutions, that’s why I specialized in the derivatives markets. After a few years working in the industry as a trader and a structurer, I started developing my own pricing models and trading algorithms in Python, which I believe was the foundation for who I am today. With time I shifted a bit the focus from pure financial management to technology and while the majority of my attention goes to our Quant Fund in Genesis Capital, I am also involved in parallel with tech projects. I find the latter very thrilling, because of the multiple angles you need to work on as a founder, the tons of information and new knowledge that you process in short time and the brilliant minds you get a chance to meet.
What was your most challenging experience and how it had changed your mindset?
We all have difficult moments both professionally and personally, I think the one occasion that had a major impact on my career’s direction was when the company I used to work for shut down and consequently not only my visa, but also my family’s visas were cancelled. While we had the means to stay, as well as our contractual commitments just due to immigration we had 30 days to leave if I haven’t come up with a quick fix. Very unpleasant and stressful situation. Since then I decided to never rely on anyone else and undertake full responsibility by developing my own business. At the time I thought it was a disaster and why it should happen to me especially , but now looking back I see clearly that this was the single push I needed to build what I have today. It's a great opportunity to reach out to anyone struggling at the moment, sometimes life takes from us forcefully something to open up space for something better coming along.
When you get surprised by an unusual or uncertain context, what do you think?
I have a critically analytical mind, which sometimes puts me in trouble when a more emotional situation takes place. Generally, if any unprecedented event occurs I will take a few days to study all the angles and potential outcomes, reach out to friends and colleagues to seek their advice and finally, based on all the information, make a decision. Since I never act impulsively in my professional life, I can safely say I do not regret any turn my career has taken.
What’s the key success factor for a female entrepreneur in cross-cultural context based on your experience?
An interesting fact is that I never considered myself a “female entrepreneur”, but simply “entrepreneur”. I never experienced any special treatment due to my gender, I strongly believe career progress is all about working smart and hard, but mostly about achieving results. If you can deliver, everyone will want to work with you regardless of gender, nationality or looks. Being based out of the UAE and priorly in Turkey, I have been used to seeing very respectful behaviour towards all females especially in the professional environment.
Based on your experience, what’s the key success factor for a female leader / manager?
As I said I never saw any discrimination towards females, even I can say that there is a certain benefit, because many companies and governments promote programs, that are focused on female inclusion, so its easier to find support when looking to achieve your goals professionally. In my belief, success is based solely on problem solving skills, if you have the capacity to overcome the challenges, whichever are relevant to the position you will be a valuable asset to the organization and to the society. Also, being involved with different associations or personal projects, except for the full time occupation, opens your mind and allows you to be more creative in your professional life, as well as increases self confidence, which is crucial for tasks execution.
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