Fernando Drumond | UX/UI Engineer at Preply

A calendar notification pops up on the desktop. The interview with Fernando Drumond is about to start. A quick microphone check, a quick look to make sure the video quality is good, and we’re ready for the call! Fernando recently joined Preply as a UX/UI Engineer. COVID-19 hasn’t stopped him from finding a great job, and today he wants to share his experience.

He studied Graphic Design and Computer Science in Brazil. During his student exchange program in Barcelona, he decided to start an internship with an advertising agency as a front-end developer, where he then got a full-time contract. At the same time, he started a Master’s in Science, Information and Knowledge Society in order to be able to analyze new technologies and understand their impact on society. He speaks Spanish, Catalan, English, French, and Portuguese.

Interviewer: Well first of all, congratulations on your new job! Tell us, how would you summarize your working experience / professional background?

I started my career as a front-end developer, and as I also studied graphic design, I always try to improve user experience. In 2015, I started at Antiloop Studio, for digital experiences, as the Co-founder and Tech Lead. I had the opportunity to learn different skills and manage projects and clients.

I decided it was time to leave the advertising sector and focus on product. I wanted to impact people’s lives and I found Alpha, an innovation center created by Telefónica. Every project had a social impact and it was totally aligned with my personal and professional goals. As a Rapid Prototyping Software Developer at Alpha, I met a very diverse, balanced, and fantastic team. Unfortunately, Alpha decided to stop doing new projects and I had to consider changing jobs.

I: Was there an active search or did the opportunity arrive before having to search actively?

I simply decided to change my LinkedIn status to “open to receiving job opportunities”. I had a chat with a friend of my husband, both of them are recruiters, and they told me about a hiring community called Circular. Lucia Fedele invited me to the platform and I started to receive interview requests. I was impressed by the number of great opportunities that were pouring in. My job search started in January, and by February I had received the job offer from Preply. The whole process was super efficient! I owe Lucia a dinner for having recommended me and helping me to change jobs! (he says smiling). Hopefully when COVID-19 is over!

I’m very thankful to Circular for guiding me along the hiring processes, personalizing it according to my preferences and protecting my privacy. I would definitely recommend Circular to everyone!

I: And as a last question, what are the things you value the most in a hiring process?

I consider it key for the company to be transparent and let you know exactly how the interview process works. It is very confusing when the process is not clear and you end up having to do extra interviews that you weren’t expecting. I also appreciate when there is organization and passion from the recruiter’s side in interviews. You notice very quickly when they’ve reviewed your profile carefully and when they really want to hire someone great! As a third thing, I’d say that I always left interviews with a good taste in my mouth when there was empathy for the candidate. It is nice to feel that recruiters care about you and about the time you’re investing, too.

More about Fernando

🍲 A meal: duck confit

🗺 A place: Barcelona

🤹‍♀️ A hobby: travel and get to know new cultures, practice languages