AsKinQuestions to Juan Ospina, Product Consultant

Of course! Something fun about me is that I  speak three different languages. Spanish, of course, is my native language. And, I also speak English and Italian. I actually lived in Italy for a while, which is where that third language comes from.

I’m a Product Consultant, which has a wide range of functions across the industry. But to sum what it means I always like to say that we're the voice of the end user. With the help of all our teams, we’re responsible for ensuring the value of a solution that ends up fully embedded into a product.

I’m working on a project for a very big global client, meaning that we work with people from different locations such as India, Spain, Portugal, the UK and the US. Finding a time to connect with the teams sometimes can be a challenge given the time zones differences. In my role what this means is that I often have to be flexible, and excel at coordination. In hindsight, these skills are so valuable.

That's actually one of the things I like the most about my job. I love to meet people from different parts of the world. Of course, at the end of the day you’re working, but it’s really cool to have the chance to ask questions or to learn fun facts about other countries. It's really nice to have this experience to connect with people from all over the world.

One of the things that I’ve found particularly interesting is that there is no absolute truth about any specific topic. There are a lot of points of view, and there are many ways to deal with complex challenges. While as a Product community we likely share some common knowledge and concepts, you can often build each individual product through a variety of means. It's nice to have so many perspectives, as it keeps daily work very engaging and I feel like there’s always more to learn or to consider.

It was great! I loved finally meeting the people whom I often talk to in remote meetings. They even took me to their favorite places to eat. I was blown away by the food — it was delicious! But beyond the personal connection, I enjoyed the opportunity to participate in the workshops that the Product Practice put together. It was an amazing learning experience that strengthened the connections of the team.

One of the things I like most about working here is the fact that we all have a sense of ownership and participation. Everyone is empowered to bring their ideas to the table and discuss them with the team. For example, this morning my team had a workshop about a roadmap with multidimensional challenges. Two of my colleagues were explaining a specific topic which ended up being a team-wide debate. This was a totally open event where we were all participating and giving our points of view about the benefits and the drawbacks. The people I work with strive to create the best results, together.

I practice crossfit and one of the things I like about it is that for you to succeed and achieve great results, you need a lot of discipline and consistency. This is extremely motivating to me. You can see and feel the results that you achieve when you're consistent, and this same experience also applies to the work I do for Kin + Carta.

Be like a sponge. Capture and absorb every piece of knowledge that you can. We have a big team full of professionals with a lot of knowledge and experience. This is a place where you can really grow, and you’ll do so if you’re eager and willing to listen and to learn.