Hello Ruben! Shed some light on your life’s journey.
I grew up in a humble community in Santiago de Cali, Colombia, without access to much technology. Still, my grandfather was repairing things, changing transistors, and soldering. It was something. I had parents who, although they could not give us everything, made enough effort so that we did not lack anything, including when I turned 13, my first computer, which allowed me to enter that system (repair, maintenance, software tools, programming). Between being 15 and 18 years old, I already had a healthy group of clients to whom, using the computer, I was selling the service of creating their website with SEO included. I would say that this was a critical time. It allowed me to see that the future of technology was not only in one single niche, but the needs of customers were varied. I noticed that not everything could be solved with one programming language. All that made me a constant learner, to this day being dedicated to reading and learning as the best way to solve the needs of the customer or… friends.
What is your professional background?
Thanks to the background from my youth, I was skilled in multiple programming languages, logic, and customer needs. As not everything is so colorful, for a while, I worked more in the area of imports than systems. Although I was still developing and keeping myself updated, I got back to programming by working as an analyst in HR, calculating payroll for 900 people. I had to let people know about their salary details, so I decided to automate it and develop an application in which they could do it from their computer using their account.
I liked it so much, and my company also appreciated it. I was transferred to the systems area and was developing an ERP with multiple features ranging from room management to hiring and firing personnel. That forced me to take the next step, which was to learn more about log control and resource management of my applications, which, in our area, they did with open-source tools that fulfilled their function of giving us constant reports on our performance.
When I started working with Dynatrace, I already had some background about the applications’ lifecycles and relatively easily understood everything Dynatrace offered us. Thanks to that, from the beginning, I started making POCs of the features I was learning from Dynatrace and how they were integrated into some systems I had previously developed.
What was the biggest challenge Dynatrace helped you to overcome?
There are many, and without Dynatrace it would have been tough to identify it. Especially those challenges related to the number of queries where some microservices no longer seem and end up being practically monoliths for their lack of experience, which I have always thought was the biggest challenge.
Dynatrace is not in the tool because, thanks to all the engineering behind it, it makes everything more straightforward. It allows to raise the developer's or technical leader's curiosity to improve their application and work even more efficiently. That takes me to the time that I spent almost a year and a half in the largest bank in Peru, going through each of its leading teams explaining and evangelizing with the tool, going from the frontend to the mainframe for every one of the teams by which passed the transactions of your application. The bank's experience is always very specific. Since that time, there have been multiple customers with whom I have been able to work in Peru, Chile, and Argentina. Perhaps there are more than 40 customers from different countries whom Dynatrace has been able to help.
Dynatrace is not in the tool because, thanks to all the engineering behind it, it makes everything more straightforward. It allows to raise the developer's or technical leader's curiosity to improve their application and work even more efficiently. That takes me to the time that I spent almost a year and a half in the largest bank in Peru, going through each of its leading teams explaining and evangelizing with the tool, going from the frontend to the mainframe for every one of the teams by which passed the transactions of your application. The bank's experience is always very specific. Since that time, there have been multiple customers with whom I have been able to work in Peru, Chile, and Argentina. Perhaps there are more than 40 customers from different countries whom Dynatrace has been able to help.
What makes Dynatrace Community important to you?
The forums and groups on the internet have been a fundamental part of my knowledge development. Before I got certified for the first time almost 5 years ago,
" The Community was, and still is, the best place to ask questions I have. Usually, it’s likely that someone has already gone through each process and is happy to help and explain. "
This place, full of knowledge and a kind environment, made me join and stay. The best advice I could give anyone regarding the Community is that the only wrong question is the one you don't ask.
Tell us something about you that most people don’t know. What is your biggest joy or passion in life?
I like to cook and watch anime with my partner. When I'm alone, I read a novel or a manga. My biggest joy is playing with my son, and my passion is to be able to do that for a long time. Also, if I have something to build, I build it. If I have something to learn, I look for the means to learn. I like to hone my skills and develop skills I don't have.
List a few facts we likely didn’t know about you! What's on your bucket list?
Well, that my son will learn to program. I have already taught him some things with Scratch, Arduino, and Python.
My dream, too, is to run a school for other young people who want to learn programming and IT one day.
Writing a book is also on my list.
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