Fiorella Palmieri
The content of this news item has been machine translated and may contain some inaccuracies with respect to the original content published in Spanish.
Our economics graduate Mónica Com is currently the only female partner at Grupo Macro, Peru's leading economic and financial consultancy firm, where she was also a pioneer as the first woman to assume the general management of Macroconsult.
With nearly 30 years of experience in the business sector, Monica had to carve her way step by step, taking every opportunity to give the best of herself. In this interview, she shares, among other things, her experience as a university student in the late 1980s, during one of the worst crises in Peru's history.
"At PUCP I made great friends, learned a lot academically and gained access to a different view of the world".
I believe that these have been challenges in keeping with the times we have lived through as a country. I finished my career in the late 1980s, with the debacle of Alan García's first government. I have witnessed economic cycles, booms and economic and political crises, which have also been reflected in my professional and family challenges. I believe that the context defines many of the challenges we face. In my case, and despite the crisis, I was able to finish university with excellent grades, work in my profession, and have the opportunity to work and learn a lot at Macroconsult in my work as a business consultant. I started working as an economic analyst and almost 20 years later I took over the position of general manager until 2012.
For three decades, the country opened up to international markets, we had stability and economic growth, we had access to long-term financing for projects, we encouraged respect for investment. Markets that did not exist or disappeared due to years of crisis were developed: an agro-industry for exports, the private pension system, a mortgage credit market, among others. We hosted world-class investors. This context produced the flourishing of a generation of professionals who supported decision-making based on knowledge and specialisation, and helped to consolidate the country's economic growth and prosperity.
"The challenge now, as a country, is to rebuild ourselves".
I started my studies at the beginning of the first García government and my last year at the PUCP coincided with the historic 7,000% hyperinflation. The economic crisis was a factor that made it a priority for many of us to finish our studies as soon as possible, because the payment of our pensions was not assured. My parents are Chinese migrants and I belong to the first generation of my family to be born in Peru. My family belongs to that immigrant middle class that looks for their children to achieve better living conditions. All this influenced the dedication and willpower I had to study and achieve my goals. In all this situation, studying at PUCP was a privilege, a life experience, I made great friends, I learned a lot academically and I was able to access another vision of the world.
PUCP represented a before and after in my life. General Studies exposes you to a set of specialisations that allow you to mature and make better career choices. Now I realise that at 17 or 18 years of age, one is not very prepared to define what to do for the rest of one's life. At that time, without having a clear idea of what career to follow, I knew that I had to study hard to progress; it was what my family needed from me. In my case, the courses that caught my attention the most were in the Humanities. Although they may not seem so relevant for today's world, they are fundamental for the integral formation of a professional, since they place you in a broader context and invite you to look at other ways of seeing the world.
"I believe in private enterprise and that companies in Peru can be world-class".
In general terms, I think that if you are a graduate of PUCP, you are probably going to be a well-prepared, competitive professional of international quality. That is the University's promise of value. In addition, I believe that PUCP opens up many possibilities by being part of a community that seeks academic excellence and high ethical standards. I am proud to be part of the PUCP and, although I am currently a bit distant from the academic world, I respect the contribution it can make to other areas.
Many. From the economic point of view, the pandemic tells us that it does not matter how much economic progress we have made, it matters less the "Peruvian miracle" when there are situations, social gaps, that have not been resolved. The pandemic is changing lives, businesses, projects. It is affecting many families. It has hit us hard as a country. No one can be happy with that situation. Now, the challenge now, as a country, is to rebuild ourselves.
"Success is going to sleep at night and being content with life".
After the health crisis of 2020, the Peruvian economy has been gradually recovering, although in some sectors it has not yet reached pre-pandemic levels. Overall, economic expectations for 2022 are highly conditional on the actions of the current government. These have a direct effect on investments and the general business environment. On the other hand, a high exchange rate and favourable metal prices benefit export sectors, but hurt import-dependent sectors.
For me, being great is about a set of characteristics. To begin with, to be great is to seek to do good; in addition, to have resilience, vision, intelligence and compassion. There is nothing that can stop a person with these characteristics. Through my work, my ideas and my experience, I would like the companies I work with to be outstanding, recognised, influential and successful. I believe in private enterprise and that companies in Peru can be world-class.
Drawing on my Eastern heritage, I consider success to be a state of peace of mind and body. Success is going to sleep at night and being content with life. Knowing that you did your best that day and that your work contributed to doing good.
Name: Monica Com Com
Studies: Bachelor's degree in Social Sciences with a major in Economics from the PUCP. Master in Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley (USA).
Career: She is currently a partner at Grupo Macro, one of the country's leading economic and financial consultancy firms, of which she has been a member for 23 years. She was the first woman to assume the position of general manager of Macroconsult (2009-2012). The PUCP economist has specialised in financial consultancy. Since the mid-1990s, she has held management positions in various companies. She has also taught the Corporate Finance course at our University.
