Full name: Carlos Alberto Vaz de Amaral
Age: 49
Birthplace: Penalva do Castelo, Beira Alta
Academic degree: Degree in Social Communication, specialization in Journalism
In order to close the chapter of our biographical articles related to our managing partners, we will end talking, last but not least, about Carlos. Just give him a loft in New York, allow him to live the dream of a Transamerican coast-to-coast, take the handball team of Clube de Futebol de Sassoeiros to the First Portuguese Division or develop the cure for cancer and we have a happy man! Nothing too difficult, right?
He was born in Portugal, but he missed being born German by only six months, his age when his parents took him to live in Germany. Until 1990, when he decided to study in Lisbon, Carlos lived in Ludwigsburg, a beautiful historic city in Southern Germany. His plans were quite simple: he moved to Lisbon “only” to get his degree and return “home” immediately after that… as it seems though, his “home” moved to Lisbon instead.
He describes himself as being “Just a regular guy, like everybody else, but completely different”. Carlos is a funny person, forthcoming and helpful, always cracking a joke and keeping people upbeat at the office. The well-being of his team and his staff is extremely important for him. But it’s not all roses! Legend has it that Carlos has an evil, less sympathizing twin brother: Alberto. And sometimes, Alberto takes Carlos’s place at the office. Now we are talking about a pungent and somewhat caustic personality, with a very particular temper – to say the least – and not a good-humoured person. This twin says things like “it annoys me that people dare to think that they can be right… and me wrong”. Should you cross Carlos’s path and be curious about it, you can always ask him. Just be sure to check first if it’s really Carlos you’re talking to or Alberto!
But, at the end of the day, be it Carlos or Alberto, he is just like the other managing partners, just somebody that wants the best for the team and TETRAEPIK and gives his best, day in, day out!
“More than offering solely a (good) salary, I want TETRAEPIK to offer people the chance to look back one day and say that it was worth the while knocking on our door, because this is, in the end, the place where they were happy (professionally, of course, but not only that…).”
On an academic level, Carlos has no direct connection to the area of Translation. He actually got a degree in Journalism and this background gives him a clearer and more comprehensive view of other aspects of daily life and allows him to look at business in general and TETRAEPIK in particular in a completely different way, whenever that perspective is essential. It is mainly this analytical capacity, which allows him to detect and solve problems and, very importantly, to communicate and do so fluently in several languages, that keeps Carlos always at the forefront, namely in business development and in contact with international customers.
Besides acting as Business Director, he also heads the globalisation department, called Globalisation Solutions: https://tetraepik.com/globalisation-solutions/. His value is visible in every step of his work at TETRAEPIK, but also outside the office walls, and has been recognised on several fronts. He is TETRAEPIK’s main representative at SAP and that means being present at meetings, conferences and other initiatives of the German software powerhouse. Carlos has also been invited to be one of only a couple of representatives of almost two hundred translation agencies at SAP’s Supplier Advisory Board. He is proactive, dynamic and responsible for the connection between TETRAEPIK and everyone else involved in SAP’s translation environment. He is also one of the founders of ASAP Globalizers, an international company, with headquarters in Cologne, Germany, that integrates 11 agencies linked to the SAP world that offer a wide range of services in the areas of translation, localization and content creation – https://tetraepik.com/clientes-e-parcerias/.
He is highly communicative, open to the world and holds on to each project with tenacity and determination. He always gives his all in all endeavours he is involved in and invests a lot of his passion in each journey but also demands the same commitment from his team at TETRAEPIK in return.
For Carlos, creating this company was a window of opportunity one could not ignore. It was, in his opinion, a moment of perfect cosmic alignment: perfect timing, perfect people, coming together at the right spot and the right moment. “To be able to be on board of this ship, with these people, doing what we do and having the audacity of dreaming about doing it better for all the people involved” is something special. According to Carlos, “TETRAEPIK’s journey has been impressive – a totally unexpected emotional rollercoaster.”
TETRAEPIK: What distinguishes TETRAEPIK from other agencies?
Carlos: Obviously the people involved and the relationships we manage to develop.
TETRAEPIK: What do we do best?
Carlos: Anything done with conviction, passion and without hidden agendas is, in my opinion, well done.
To get to know him a little bit better, words won’t suffice, but knowing what he likes and his passions might help.
TETRAEPIK: What is your favourite artist or work:
Carlos: In music, it’s impossible to choose only a few, but if I had to, Prince, Metallica, Linkin Park, My Chemical Romance and Breaking Benjamin are clearly my favourites; Literature – ‘Lord of the Rings’ by J. R. R. Tolkien, ‘Game of Thrones’ by George R. R. Martin and the entire works of Stephen King. Being an aficionado of Fantasy, Carlos could never disappoint when asked about his favourite quote. Without hesitation, he gave us this emblematic and enigmatic quote from the author of one of his favourite works: “I don’t know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve”. Why is this quote so special to Carlos? We wouldn’t dare to answer and leave the suspense in the air… Don’t miss out on the next episodes and neither will we.
