National Hispanic Heritage Month: Leonid Lopez Duenas talks tech, family, passions

National Hispanic Heritage Month kicked off on September 15 and runs through October 15 in the United States. This month-long celebration lasts through the independence days of eight Latin American countries, and provides an opportunity for Infor to spotlight Hispanic and Latinx colleagues who have contributed to our success. Our first feature focuses on Leonid Lopez Duenas who reflected on his Infor journey and experience as an engineer.

What’s your role, and how long have you been at Infor?

• On the Birst team, I work in a Quality Assurance role in Engineering. I joined in September 2017, so I’ve been here for almost 2 years.

Why did you choose to work at Infor?

• There is not a fancy and romantic explanation about why I choose Infor, but during the time my contract ended, I was looking for a new opportunity to work, and I applied to several offers that I had found. During the call I had with Infor’s Engineering (Consumption) director at the time, he explained me what Birst was doing as a business intelligence product. It sounded very interesting, and when he mentioned the description of the position to which I was applying, I really liked how it sounded, as it provided me with everything that I wanted to do and the things I love to do. I also know he was looking for a new QA because the previous one moved to a new project within Infor, which made me think that this company does provide the opportunity for continued career growth. That’s something that I like seeing day to day - every day I get the opportunity to learn new skills for positions I’d like to occupy when the time comes and to prepare myself to be better on what I’m currently doing.

Has your Hispanic or Latin heritage impacted your career and career choices? Has it also impacted your aspirations?

• It has a huge impact. Something I have noticed is that there aren’t many engineers with a Hispanic-background, and that feels strange at times since I don’t really feel immersed in my culture on the day to day. That by itself speaks to a larger issue surrounding diverse representation, especially for Hispanics, in STEM-related careers.

What motivates you, both personally and professionally?

• My family is my biggest motivator. At the end of the day, everything I do is to provide them with a better life. I also love what I do, technology has always been a passion for me and something that actually keeps me incredibly self-motivated.

You can learn more about Infor’s Inclusion & Diversity strategy and find more employee features in the coming weeks on the Infor blog.