It’s all about exercising self-reliance and self-motivation I in every step of career to climb the ladder of success, believes Rachel Andalaft, the CEO of Mangifera Analytics and REA Consult.
Rachel is an engineer and certified finance professional. She has over a decade of experience in renewable energy investments. Born in Brazil and based in Germany, she is dedicated to enabling investments in the renewable energy sector. She founded REA Consult in 2016, a management and consulting company working with energy investors. In response to the company’s success and the exciting reform taking place in Brazil’s energy sector, Rachel founded Mangifera Analytics to serve the investment community with accurate, reliable, and up-to-date information on this blossoming market.
“There is no such thing as a silver bullet. Everything counts.”
In an interview with Insights Success, Rachel sheds light on how she is heading Mangifera Analytics to offer actionable market intelligence on the Brazilian energy sector.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Kindly take us through your journey on becoming a proficient business leader.
During the first decade of my career, I was blessed with business opportunities that allowed me to expand my horizons and understand the complexities of international businesses. However, there was always a voice in my head telling me that “I could do more”.
Over time this voice grew to a realization that I can do more, and that slight shift in perspective changed everything. Not only did I begin to trust in myself, but I also felt a duty to do more and a duty to motivate the people around me. I try to motivate everyone I work with to not compromise when striving for excellence by growing more aware of themselves, their abilities, and their ambitions.
How do you diversify the company’s offerings to entice the target audience?
I believe in constant adaptation towards more sustainable businesses. While this certainly includes sustainability in the context of social and environmental responsibility, my view of sustainability in business is much broader. I strive for sustainable business excellence every day, be it for a construction company or a bank, by relying on strong structuring and long-lasting solutions.
What are the vital traits that every business women should possess?
Self-awareness is the most important characteristic anyone should cultivate in business. The traditional corporate structures and communication culture, which used to focus on feedback as the main inspiration for personal growth, no longer exist today. Instead, self-awareness has become paramount to maintaining the edge between oneself and others, thereby having faith in yourself is crucial.
Where are you focusing your energy right now, and where do you hope to make an impact next?
I have never been more focused on bridging responsible and profitable investments in the energy sector. As developed markets mature and emerging markets follow suit, the challenges of governance and compliance for sustainable investments have only grown more important.
There is nothing more impactful than transferring the expertise and lessons learned you have learned to your next opportunity.
A great example is my latest business venture Mangifera Analytics, a business I launched in late-2020. Mangifera Analytics is a platform dedicated entirely to mitigating investors’ reservations and fears about approaching a vibrant but often challenging emerging market. In this case, we are talking about the renewable energy sector in Brazil.
As a female leader, what has been the most significant barrier in your career? And how did you overcome it?
Female professionals still face very little diversification in the business landscape, it is not just a lack of representativity. As an individual, you want to expand your connections and learn from as many experiences as possible.
On one hand, I think that my personal intercultural background, living between Europe and South America, has made me aware of and helped me appreciate the vast range of perspectives the world holds. On the other hand, I actively and intentionally promote diversification and inclusion within my own businesses.
How do you balance work and life responsibilities?
I compromise on the “how” but not on the “what”. I have learned to value flexibility both in business activities and in my personal life. I attempt to keep the habits that count towards my quality of life, however and wherever they arise, but I also don’t give up on the habits that bring me enjoyment.
What would be the biggest challenge for the next generation of women and how can one be a strong role model for them?
Inclusion and diversification in business had been increasingly promoted through more networking, more empathy, and more exposure to “the other”. The events of 2020 have brought about a much-needed acknowledgment of remote working models, for example, meaning we now face a new cycle where we will have to rely on our “virtual-selves” much more than before.
The definition and management of this virtual-self will require a range of soft-skills, that are relatively new to the business world. Therefore, the openness to see beyond the virtual-other will now play a bigger role in promoting diversified talents.
How do you cope up with capricious technological trends to boost your personal growth?
There is an overwhelming offer on new stuff every day, whether you are wasting time by not adopting a new form of email integration or if your friends are split between different messaging apps. For technology, the 1950s is prehistory but even in 2021, I find the Eisenhower Decision Matrix from that decade continues to prove helpful. Focus on what is important and don’t dwell when you need to move on to the (real) next best thing.
