Antonio Senatore, senior manager at Deloitte Technology Consulting, tells us why he chose Ireland as a place to live, work and start a family, and how working at Deloitte has changed him both professionally and personally.
Where are you from?
I’m from Cava de’ Tirreni, a southern Italian city in the Campania region. The city is 5km north of the famous Amalfi Coast. Northwest, there’s the city of Pompeii (famous for Mount Vesuvius’ eruption in 79 AD) and, further north, the city of Naples, where the football player Diego Armando Maradona played at the peak of his career.
The city is beautiful, surrounded by hills, mountains and, of course, the coast. It has a combination of history, important culinary tradition and a good night life.
How long have you been in Ireland?
Since June 2007, so it is seven years now.
Why did you move here?
I was looking for a new career challenge but also a life change. Ireland was (and still is) a very important technology hub in Europe, therefore, I had been considering it for awhile. The fact that Dublin is an English-speaking and small capital city where you can easily settle in and begin a new life contributed significantly to my final decision.
What work do you do?
I’m a senior manager in the technology consulting practice at Deloitte Ireland. I work as an enterprise architect for different customers, designing technology solutions to solve business problems and advising C-level stakeholders on technology trends and strategies.
How would you describe your working environment?
Challenging but fair. I have learned a lot since I started with Deloitte and I keep learning every day. There are so many smart and competent people to learn from that you improve every day. I feel not only that I am a much better professional now, but also a much better person.
What do you like most about your job?
Building long-term business relationships with our customers is what I like most about my job – gaining their trust over time, making a good impact and really making a difference by adding value. I also like the career counselling part of my role; coaching junior resources throughout their career, advising them and seeing them succeed within the organisation is really satisfying.
Was it difficult to adjust to living and working in Ireland?
I didn’t experience many difficulties. In general, moving to a different country is always extremely challenging and adapting to a new lifestyle can be difficult. For me, personally, the challenge was to adapt to a more indoor lifestyle. Other than that, Dublin is a place where you can easily settle in and develop your hobbies, your social life and, of course, your career.
What surprised you about moving to Ireland?
The number of babies and young kids that you see. You can tell that Ireland has a very young population compared to Italy.
How does your working life help to make you feel at home here?
Working life helps you feel at home when you are treated fairly and equally, and this is true in Deloitte. I became a father recently and I got a lot of support from my colleagues and supervisors at the beginning, when things are a bit more difficult. Even if the job is challenging, they never forget you are a person, a human being, and sometimes you may need a bit of help outside work.
What do you like most about your adopted home?
The fact that the city is designed for families; the entire society is built around the concept of working families. Wherever you go, there are facilities for babies and toddlers. It is really nice to see so many families and young kids around.
