This month, our newsletter opens the door to a genuine and inspiring conversation with Susana Freitas, Managing Director of Jervis. Throughout the interview, Susana shared her professional journey, revealed what motivates her leadership, and discussed the challenges and achievements in the world of communications. More than just discussing the agency, she shares her vision for the future and the passion she brings to each project.

1. Name and current role in the company?

My name is Susana Freitas and I am the general director of Jervis Pereira.

2. What motivated you to accept the challenge of becoming CEO of Jervis?

I'll be very transparent and direct about this. What motivated me to accept this position at Jervis was Rosário. I didn't know Rosário; I met her during this process. Rosário didn't know me either, but I think we got to know each other and discovered each other. I realized, as our conversations progressed, that we actually shared the same values and ways of thinking. So, that ended up being the motivating factor for me to accept.

It was Rosário's mindset, what she had already built over the years, that I found very interesting. I ended up sharing those values, and this symbiosis between us led to my joining Jervis.

3. You came from other communications agencies…what did you bring from those experiences to your day-to-day work at Jervis?

The path is made by walking. Not only in other communications agencies, I also had experience in marketing. I would say that everything is part of our process; all experiences are part of our journey. Therefore, the experiences, the clients, even the agencies and companies—everything we go through culminates in who we are today. Perhaps most importantly, the teams I've worked with have always taught me. I've been very lucky to find people above and below me who have taught me many things. I've also been very lucky with the clients I've had, because, amidst all this, it's the clients who present us with the greatest challenges. It's with our clients that we learn and are able to overcome our challenges and expectations.

With clients, we realized we could achieve certain things. It was with clients, with the teams I had, that I grew. Therefore, it all culminated in who I am today and what I understand as communication.

4. What's it like to lead a multifaceted team and oversee different areas such as press relations, social media, events, etc.?

I'd say it's good. I'm a public relations person. In fact, there's one thing I've never had any doubts about in my life: the field I would choose. From tenth to eleventh grade, and even in college, I knew it would be communications. That was over 20 years ago.

Back then, we didn't have the communication we have today. I knew I wanted to pursue social communications and then journalism. But when I entered college in my second year, and then in my third year to choose a major, I realized that there were areas of journalism, marketing, and advertising that interested me, in addition to public relations.

Initially, I entered with the goal of pursuing a degree in journalism and social communications, but by the end of my first year, I realized I wanted public relations, with advertising and marketing as a complement. All these areas—press relations, social media, events, and public relations—all culminate in this communication aspect. I like that all of this happens. In fact, I started my process backward; typically, people start in a communications agency and then move on to the end client. I started in the end client position and then moved on to the communications agency.

That's why I like this agency format, where so many things happen. I enjoy taking on multiple challenges, offering clients a variety of solutions, and suggesting new ideas. For me, that's a positive thing. I can't see myself doing anything else in my life. Therefore, all these areas are part of communication, and that's where I see myself.

5. What do you look for in a client or project that makes you say, “Let’s go for it”?

I'm not very pushy. I don't usually say no to challenges, not even, perhaps, when they're crisis challenges, and crisis communication is a bit more specific. I don't usually turn down a challenge or tell a client we can't do it. Making decisions is difficult, of course; there are more demanding clients and more difficult challenges, to use the expression, but let's do it, let's strategize, move forward, and see what happens. We reevaluate if we're not achieving the results we should, and we do things differently.

On the contrary, if you really want to start, continue or create a strategy in terms of communication, come, we'll do it and you'll certainly be successful.

6. What has been your most memorable project or moment so far?

Well, there are several cases—well, it's been 20 years, but I'd say that, of these, I'll name three. I'll talk about clients, naturally, more than agencies, because I don't think I've worked for many agencies, but I did have some important experiences, where I spent some time and already felt very comfortable in the places I worked. But I think, in fact, clients end up being the driving force behind our evolution. And the first one I felt entrusted with, and which was actually a client I had to serve several times, was Tresemmé in Portugal. I launched Tresemmé in Portugal together with the team at the time. It was a client that, in addition to providing consultancy, was present when blogs began, and then influencers too, and it was a client that marked a turning point for me as a consultant, because I had to do everything from the beginning.

So, we had to effectively launch the brand in Portugal. It was internationally known, but not yet nationally. In addition to the usual consultancy, which later included communication through blogs and influencers, we also had to hold events. At the time, the events were large fashion shows, and we had to present Tresemmé to the sales team in Portugal. I would say it was the client where I really had to prove: Susana, you can do it. It was a client I considered very important to me. Since then, I've had countless clients, but I don't want to mention them all. I'll only mention Tresemmé, which was very important, and Makro Portugal. I worked at Makro Portugal for over nine years, and it was a client that, while Tresemmé brought me a lot of experience in events and press relations, Makro, with all its stores and communication levels, also ended up being a distribution brand, and it ends up being a more demanding brand. Only those who haven't worked in distribution don't know. During the pandemic, there were some very interesting moments, from which I learned a lot, especially about the dynamics of business and corporate hierarchies. It was very interesting.

I also highlight joining Jervis, which happened when I was already quite comfortable in my previous role, in my position as team leader. Then Jervis came along, which was just the right time and ended up being a paradigm shift for me, taking on a general management role that I performed with great joy. In fact, all experiences, even when we go through difficult periods with a client, are always positive, and we learn from them. So, here's to more.

7. How do you see Jervis' future? What new goals or dreams do you have for the company?

I want to maintain what's good, and Jervis has many qualities. And those qualities, which also captivated me in my conversations with Rosário: transparency, ethics, teamwork, and the fact that we always give our best when working with a client. So, I think these things, and the team itself, are very important to me.

And then it's about growing on top of that, in a very sustained way, but my goal is to take what is so good and on this solid base and make it grow and take the next step.

8. On a personal and professional level, what makes you happier.

I'm very professional and personal; everything goes hand in hand for me. If someone on the team talks to someone in my family, they'll realize I'm the same person. But for me, what makes me happiest is having accomplished my duty, having made a difference, having achieved and even surpassed my goals. Therefore, it's this matter of dedication, both personally and professionally. Of course, on a personal level, I can't forget my family. Family carries a lot of weight; it's my roots, it's where I go when I have difficulties.

9. What message would you like to leave to those who trust Jervis: team, customers and partners?

I really like a quote from Ricardo Reis: "Put your all into the least you do." Be whole, and I think that if we, as a team, clearly do this with clients, it will shine through, and even more so with suppliers. If this whole wheel, this circle, if we are whole in everything we do, the work will flow differently, and we will be able to achieve greater goals. That's my message: be the best we can at every moment. And then, of course, transparency, team, we also have to, Rosário said in her interview, be happy, and to be at peace with life and in a good mood. Life already has so many challenges that if we're in a bad mood, everything will be a little harder. And a good mood always helps to lighten things up, and we don't need bad moods.

Don't waste a minute doing things you don't enjoy. Life is too short, and we can't spend it being unhappy.

Watch the full interview here