Ileana Rojas: A life dedicated to the service of others

By: Juan Jose Cruz

When you think of the people who help students receive a quality education, teachers and administrators immediately come to mind. However, in an educational institution there are many more people whose work is essential to make everything work in the best possible way. Today we will know the story of one of them.

The year was 1984 and Ileana Rojas joined INCAE as Purchasing Secretary at the Costa Rica Campus. At that moment, the possibility of staying in the Institution for so many years did not even cross her mind. Although her area has faced various changes and efforts, Ileana always remained faithful to her position and the tasks entrusted to her. Now that she has accepted her well-deserved retirement, we wish her the best of luck in this new phase of her life.

*Photos provided by your INCAE colleagues

From his first months in the institution he began to generate memories that are still in his memory today. It helped a lot that INCAE was a small organization at that time, the colleagues worked much more closely, they knew each other and they came to form a small but functional family. They shared tasks as a true team and that generated important links that facilitated the work. 

“INCAE is an institution that marks the way one is and how one relates to others. That is one of the things I like the most, ”he mentions. 

Each of the 12 bosses he had during his time at INCAE gave him something to learn. Her constant training was essential so that she could grow in her various positions and give the best of herself in each one of them. Learning is not focused only on students and classrooms. 

Although one can often speak of the service provided by the workers of various organizations, at INCAE there has always been that spirit of collaboration that has kept the Institution in the place it occupies. They are all part of a team that seeks to give the best to its users, but also to their colleagues. 

*Photos provided by your INCAE colleagues

“It didn't matter what position I had in the organization; if I was walking and saw trash in the hallway, it was my responsibility to pick it up. It's not saying 'ah, that's what cleaning people are for'. I already brought this training from my home, but the commitment was not only with my position, it was with INCAE”. 

And that commitment also reached the students. Ileana mentions that, with the expansion of INCAE over the years, needs arose that had to be satisfied, among them the stay of the Incaists on the campus. While the academic part was in charge of meeting the intellectual expectations of the students, the Ileana area, among others, was essential to meet the expectations regarding the quality of life of the students. 

*Photos provided by your INCAE colleagues 

“When students wanted to get to their dormitory to rest, we had to make sure those beds were ok. When we buy, we are part of INCAE. You have to make an adequate selection of that bed, for example, to make sure that the student has the comfort he aspires to”. 

But not only students have expectations regarding INCAE; the employees also have theirs about the institution. Fortunately, Ileana assures that hers were exceeded, and by far, over almost four decades. In addition to providing her with the tools to develop professionally, INCAE gave Ileana the chance to improve herself and continue her education. Thanks to this, Ileana can boast her degree in Business Administration, essential to manage the Purchasing destination for many years. 

Said academic opportunity gave him sufficient preparation to solve various problems, interact with other areas, and broaden his way of dealing with various situations. Her challenges were getting bigger in the professional sphere, but thanks to INCAE's support, Ileana was able to overcome them. Negotiations became an indispensable part of her day-to-day life, and everything helped her build a new vision of her world of work. 

Farewell to Ileana at the Walter Kissling Gam Campus, she is accompanied in the photo by Julio Corrales, the new Procurement Manager, Katty Vásquez and Esteban Murillo, colleagues from the Procurement area, and Erika Bernal, Director of Administration and Finance

After 38 years of service to the institution, Ileana bids farewell to INCAE with her head held high. And it is that life is about cycles that open and close, some longer than others, but all with the same importance. For Ileana, leaving INCAE represents the opportunity to explore a new personal facet that fills her with joy and hope. 

“I want to be more with my family. And also reconnect with that social part, return to my essence, to my sensitivity. Something more natural. Due to work and other pressures you lose that side, you become 'very left' and stop being right. The part of doing and building dominates you more than the part of supporting and listening. I want to give myself that pause in my life, ”he added.

38 years of work at INCAE have resulted in thousands of experiences, anecdotes, acquaintances, and memories, but also in learning that does not go away. This concern for service led Ileana to become the Head of Purchasing, the area that welcomed her when she began her history at the institution. Now is the time to bring this service to other sectors of the population, perhaps those who need it most. Fortunately, the desire and enthusiasm have always been there, as has the passion for what is done. 

One of the highlights of her time at INCAE, and one that fills her with pride, is having been able to present the INCAE MBA degree to her daughter Valeria during her graduation ceremony, an act that is generally restricted to immediate family members of the graduates who are also Incaists.

If his time at INCAE teaches us anything, it is that there are many people dedicated to giving everything for their work. And it is people like her who make a big difference in our time in organizations. What started with a small family became a life dedicated to INCAE, but also a life dedicated to service.