Santiago

Q: You joined Strategy& in 2023. What shaped your path up to that point? Looking back, my path has been shaped by two consistent themes: public policy and teaching.

A: I began my professional life as a high school teacher. What started as a practical choice quickly became something more meaningful. Teaching taught me how to explain complex ideas clearly, how to listen, and how learning really happens.

I then spent several years working in the Colombian government, focusing on economic development and center-of-government challenges. That experience gave me a front-row seat to how complex decisions are made, how trade-offs are managed, and what it takes to deliver results in environments with real constraints.

After that, I moved into think tanks and consulting roles, supporting public and social-sector work across Latin America. Over time, that blend of policy, delivery, and people development became the foundation of my professional identity.

Today, that same combination shapes my work in Strategy&’s Government and Public Sector practice, where I support governments as they tackle complex, high-stakes challenges.

Q: Moving to the Middle East was a big personal and professional shift. How did that experience shape you?

A: By the time we moved to Dubai, my wife and I were already living abroad. We had spent three years in Panama with our two daughters, who are now 9 and 11. Still, the move to the Middle East was a deliberate and meaningful step for our family.

Professionally, the region offers an incredible pace and scale of opportunity. Personally, we wanted our daughters to experience more diversity and see the world as bigger than what they already knew. The transition was not easy at first, but today, Dubai genuinely feels like home.

At work, I had to adapt to different cultural norms and client dynamics. But the core challenges felt familiar: grounding strategy in evidence, making it implementable, and staying flexible as realities shift. The move reinforced something I believe deeply: good work starts with listening, and growth comes from staying humble and curious.

Q: You are very intentional about protecting time for your family and wellbeing. How has that shaped the boundaries you set at work?

A: Early on, someone told me something that stuck: at work, nothing is ever truly finished. There is always one more thing you could do.

That is why boundaries matter. I try to be very clear with myself and with my teams about what “good” looks like for a given day or week, and what we will intentionally not do. Otherwise, the work will expand into every available hour.

My family makes this real for me. I want to be present for my wife and daughters, and I want them to experience a version of me that is patient, healthy, and available.

I protect a few personal rituals that help with that. I wake up early, train, run outside, stretch, and meditate. I do it almost every day. It is how I manage stress and show up with clarity and energy. If I neglect those basics, I feel it quickly, both at work and at home. 

Q: When a project wraps up successfully, what tells you that the team culture was working?

A: After one recent project, hearing the team reflect on how we supported each other and protected our wellbeing while still delivering high-quality work genuinely stayed with me.

It connects back to my roots in teaching. People do their best work when they feel safe to learn, ask questions, and be honest. As a leader, I try to bring that mindset into consulting teams.

The culture I want to build is one where high standards and humanity coexist. Where people are respected as people, not treated as resources. And where doing exceptional work does not routinely come at the cost of health, family, or sustainability.

We do not get it right every day. But I care deeply about it, and I try to make it real through the small decisions that shape how we work together.