Name: Jose Montealegre
Title: QA Manager
Location: San Jose, Costa Rica
Favorite Philosophy: Be Strong.
What does your usual workday tend to look like?
My day starts with a cup of coffee as I hop on my computer to check emails and get caught up on anything from the night before. Then we’ll have our daily status call to see what needs to be done, and spend most of my day checking automation and testing our client products. But as our QA leader, I’m also very committed to fine tuning our process as a whole. That means continuously researching best practices and industry updates to make sure we keep improving how we approach QA as a company.
How would you describe your job to a bunch of kindergarteners?
I review the different advertisements and small websites that my friends create to make sure they are working properly and show up how our client wants them to.
What is a struggle or issue that marketers typically have to deal with that you want to improve?
I’ll reference a couple of stats for this one.
52% of users say that a bad mobile experience will make them lose faith in the company.
88% of online shoppers say they wouldn’t return to a website after a bad user experience.
The functionality of your digital products is so important to building consumer trust! And that guides everything I do. A lot of marketers just want everything produced as fast as possible, but there are so many requirements to consider and trace. For example, you want your website to show up properly on a tablet. Well, that means it has to accommodate both landscape and portrait orientations; anything that may interfere with the user experience is something we have to be on top of for our clients — whether they’re aware of it or not.
What do you love about working for Assemble?
A lot of things! I love our close-knit culture and the way our products are made. And I think it is very unique that no matter what role or department you are in, you can easily communicate with anyone at any level of the company. Whether it’s chatting with the developers about a project, making a new suggestion to our leadership team — or even working directly with them on a project, Assemble encourages a very lateral work environment where everyone is able to communicate equally. That’s very important to me.
What motivates you professionally?
The growth of our QA services! I’m driven by the goal of building out a QA team that can continue to support our clients in all the ways they need us to as the industry evolves and grows. And on a more personal level, my family is my motivation for everything. That includes my wife, Paola, and sons, Dani, who is six years old, and Nico, who is three. I work hard to be able to provide for them and enjoy the nice things in life. Their happiness is the most important thing.
What are your favorite things to do in your free time?
With two little ones, we are always trying to get outside and do something active with them. On the weekends, we’ll spend the morning at the playground or the park to play soccer. We’re currently working on getting rid of diapers too, so that’s an adventure in itself.
As for me, I love to do cross fit. I’ll get up at 5am to get a workout in. It gives me energy for the day, and I really enjoy it. My wife and I have a goal to do a couple of 10Ks around the city, so we try to train as much as we can. It’s a great way for me to stay fit because I also have a major sweet tooth! My kids love cookies and waffles with nutella, so any piece they leave on the plate, I’ll be sure to get!
What’s one thing about you that surprises people/most people don’t know?
Well, I think most people realize that it takes a lot for me to get angry. I’m just a very laid back and calm person. So you’d never expect me to get mad about something — but if I do, watch out! 🙂
If you could go live anywhere in the world and take everyone you love with you, where would you go and why?
I took a trip to Aruba many years ago and absolutely loved it. The people were so nice and the food was so good — so much seafood! It was such a chill island. Everything moves slower there and no one seems to be carrying around stresses or worries. They have a saying there: “no bad days,” and it’s so true!
If you could only have one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Torta Chilean! It’s a dessert that combines 6-8 layers of golden brown pie pastry with smooth dulce de leche in between. It’s sooo good and very popular in Costa Rica. With my sweet tooth, I could totally eat it every day!
If you won a million dollars, what is the first thing you would buy?
I would get a huge ATV. My father has always had one, so it’s in my blood. I want to be that guy with one of those big luxury ones with nice seats that everyone gets annoyed with because it’s so ridiculous. That would be awesome.
What advice would you give your younger self?
I would tell myself to stay on track and be patient. Younger me liked to have a good time and was sometimes easily distracted by the less important things in life. So I would convince myself to get more focused. It would be interesting to see what would have been different if I was!
