"No career gives you studies in management and it is important to later develop activities of boss or managerial positions."

Why did you decide to become an engineer?

  Why I liked the technique in all its branches. From the beginning I was in Vocational Training in the Electrical specialty where a teacher introduced us to the radio-galena and the 'radio' of valves ...

At the end of my FP I started working in the field of industrial instrumentation, at BASF and shortly after a year I joined a multinational engineering and industrial assembly company. It was when the use of electronics in the industry started and as there were not many specialists in electronics, I did very well. It was at this point that I ‘needed’ to do the engineering.

Did you do engineering as a continuation of those early studies in the specialty of electrician?

  Yes. From the age of 30 to 35 I did Electronic Industrial Technical Engineering, in a promotion that we organized, at night, within what was then the Labor University.

Looking back I see that I have been a good part of my professional life surfing over the continuous evolutions of electronics.

Is this surfing you are also commenting on the natural transition from electronics to computing?

  Yes, but as a natural evolution. I found that in my profession, the path that opened up, as an extension of electronics, was computer science: it went from analog to digital. In the beginning while there were no computer studies in universities, most of us who did it were engineers or physicists.

Were you also in charge of the TINET citizen network?

  Yes. In 1995 a team led by Manel Sanromà, behind the Metropol theater in Tarragona, got teams with which the first citizen network in Spain was created: TINET (Tarragona INternET). The first connections were with those modems that made noises ...

I was a user of TINET -and I still am-, above all, with e-mail that opened a world for us ... and, also, with a web page (which at that time was just a page).

In 2000 the Provincial Council decided to host the Tinet project -which came from Tarragona City Council, the URV and other organizations in the territory- and Manel joined the Autonomous Body for the Information Society -OASI. Then, Manel was offered to go to direct the AOC and I was offered to be director of OASI and the most relevant service that was Tinet. I was there for another 10 years. From OASI we had the responsibility to evolve the world of internet in the demarcation of Tarragona. The 'tinetaires' that had their e-mail and, in large part, their website also grew a lot.

How have you experienced changes in your profession on a personal level as well, did you anticipate that we would get to where we are now?

  Coming to predict the current situation, in terms of technologies as they are now, I have to admit that I don’t. In each strategic period I had a four-year proposal vision seen in the political leadership and I must say that I never got it right, I always fell short, it moved forward quickly, more than we could have imagined.

It was very exciting. We were going to work and we didn’t know what would happen, what news would come up. It was a time of uncertainty when it came to making decisions, but it was very appealing. It turned out to be a very enriching experience.

What surprised you the most?

  First and foremost, in order, what is the evolution of the mobile phone. It has become a key element. When silicon technology is overtaken, and higher computational and transmission speeds are achieved, we will continue on our path to becoming ‘cyborgs’ mostly as extensions of the mind. We are moving towards a new society that we are not yet able to imagine, nor were we able to predict what the mobile phone would be like.

Second, and more current, the concept of Artificial Intelligence (AI) that allows, for example, that when in a browser you are looking for information, for example, from a home weather station the 'system recognizes you' and then you will receive information everywhere and increasingly tailored to what you may need. Closely related to AI are the 'algorithms' that shape us and allow us to influence our decisions. When someone arrives and needs to do any operation, or make a decision there are algorithms that make the job easier, but also condition it. And that will grow a lot.

Can comfort keep us from being alert or active?

  If we are not careful all technologies (from fire, gunpowder ...,) have positive uses and other uses that are not ... with a knife you can cut food or the neck of someone. Computer technology and AI can also have this dual use. One algorithm-good can help you, but another algorithm-perverse (which has been maliciously designed) can harm you, is when there is danger. When we have a need AI can help us lead us to a product or service that suits us; an algorithm can decide in front of different alternatives to ‘orient’ us to choose the option that interests the creator of the algorithm, this is the danger. They can be very subtle. We need to be careful that any algorithm that filters our information can make us uncritical. We will certainly hardly be able to prevent them from leading us to certain positions, capitalism is that, but we must be careful.

In addition to the evolution in the digital world, what have you learned from your time in management?

  Anyone with studies, who is growing and achieving success in their job can have aspirations of wanting to make management decisions. This usually occurs around the middle of professional life. This is a dilemma in which any engineer finds himself and is sometimes a critical point. They may offer you to be boss and you may not be aware that you need enough management knowledge; almost no career has subjects on management. Someone can be a very good electronics person, but once you evolve into a team or project manager you can have management problems and you need to acquire knowledge: "A good engineer doesn't have to be a good doctor; a good engineer doesn't have to be a good manager ". From the age of fifty, I decided to study Business Administration and Management at the UOC. I then defended my two-day doctoral dissertation to turn sixty. And now, I still continue researching in the area of management.

Allow me to reiterate the message: I’ve seen people accepting management positions and failing. Logically, competencies are achieved by preparing and training. In short, I can say that in the second part of my professional life the part of management is the one that has given me the most satisfaction.