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Irene Cano: “To achieve a good work-life balance, we don’t have to give up anything; we just need to do it in our own way”

02.11.2022

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Maria Blasco, scientific director of CNIO, and Irene Cano, general director of Meta Iberia, during the WISE talk at CNIO. / A. Tabernero. /CNIO


The Director General of Meta Iberia, Irene Cano, spoke with the scientific director of CNIO, Maria A. Blasco, about her career and the future of technology and the metaverse in the seminars organised by CNIO’s Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Office

“The secret of my success is irreverence, in the sense of not being afraid, of not thinking too much about things,” Cano said

“The metaverse is a project stretching over 10 or 15 years, you have to make a transition and you have to do it right,” she said

“When I studied the Internet, it was very primitive. A photograph took the whole night to download,” she began as she spoke to Irene Cano. Since then, technologically speaking, it’s as if centuries have passed. But she insists that “a lot of money still needs to be invested both to keep the technology going and to continue enjoying it, and to keep it moving forward.”

“Today’s Internet is falling short. We are now investing in the next generation, which is moving towards augmented and mixed reality. For example, in more native devices that can anticipate interactions, so-called surface electromyography,” she explained.  That is, devices that will learn to adapt to basic body movements, such as turning your head to look somewhere else, greatly speeding up decision-making.

Irene Cano has been Managing Director of Meta Iberia since June 2012. She heads up the strategy for Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp in the Spanish and Portuguese markets.  She joined Meta in December 2009 as Business Development and Commercial Director after more than 10 years of experience in the sector, where she has worked for leading technology companies. The Director General of Meta Iberia was speaking yesterday to the scientific director of CNIO, Maria A. Blasco, about her career at Meta and the future of technology and the metaverse as part of the seminars organised by the Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Office at the National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO).

Before heading up Meta Iberia, Irene Cano developed her career at Google, first as Operations Manager in 2004 and later as Agency Director in 2006. But she began her career at Yahoo!, where she worked for three years in the Commercial Department. In addition, she headed up the Commercial Department of Orange Spain in 2009.

Maria A. Blasco asked Irene Cano about her opinion on the book Lean in: women, work and the will to lead (entitled Vayamos adelante in the Spanish edition) by the economist and former director of Facebook Sheryl Sandberg, in which she explains why women’s progress towards positions of responsibility is stalling.

Lean in somewhat reflects the story of my life, because the secret of my success is irreverence, in the sense of not being afraid, of not thinking too much about things,” Cano responded. “And that doesn’t mean you don’t get confused, it’s just that when you do get confused, you know which direction not to go in,” she explained . “I have always been called naive, but in reality what I have done is make decisions that many people did not dare to make,” she added.

As for ensuring a good work-life balance, Cano believes that “you have to strike a balance between sacrifice and rewards, and that is why you have to think positively.” “We cannot fall into the work/life balance trap that we have always been taught, which is about giving up one part. We don’t have to give up anything but find our own balance,” she advises.

Irene Cano, general director of Meta Iberia, during the WISE talk at CNIO. / A. Tabernero. /CNIO

Maria A. Blasco also asked her about the “Elisabeth Holmes phenomenon”, the Silicon Valley entrepreneur who, after setting up the successful company Theranos and being compared to Steve Jobs, in a few years, went from being seen as a leading light in the world of science and technology to being accused and tried for fraud. “We must validate paths when they end, not because a cutting-edge plea has been made at a certain time,” replied the General Director of Meta Iberia.

“With the first half-petabyte transatlantic cable, America will be connected with Europe, via Spain”

“To get to the metaverse, you first need to develop lots of the more native devices I referred to earlier,” she continued. “The metaverse is a project stretching over 10 or 15 years, you have to make a transition and you have to do it right,” she emphasised. And she mentioned the example of the “first half-petabyte transatlantic cable in the world that they are building, which will connect America with Europe, via Spain”.

 The Director General of Meta Iberia also referred to the fact that this company has projects, such as those aimed at helping non-profit organisations, “that seek to bring communities together to develop different initiatives in an environment in which they can compete”.  Irene Cano, as well as being a member of the Board of Directors of Aena and the Advisory Board of Liberbank, actively collaborates with various NGOs, including Fundación Vicente Ferrer.

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