ESR13 – Daniel Mora – Testimonial

Daniel Mora

ESR 13

AWS-Institute for digitized products and processes

Testimonial

ESR 13 Recommender System for a Connected Customer Journey From Maracaibo, Venezuela, where I obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering, specializing in Financial Management. In 2015, after starting an engineering solutions company in my home country, it became clear to me that the rapid development in large-scale data mining, analysis and visualization had an immense potential to reorient and drive new areas of industry and business. Therefore, last year I completed a Master in Data Science for Complex Economic Systems in Torino, Italy. It was the perfect fit to enter in the PERFORM project as an ESR, focusing on Digital Retail, especially in recommender systems at AWSi in Saarbrücken, Germany.

After having intense discussions with my professors pertaining to my future plans and thorough research on the web, I came across this fellowship program which was the most reputed grant in my field. A great opportunity to keep the learning process in an industry-oriented environment along with a tremendous scope to expand my research network along with in-course trainings led me opt for this. Apart from the initial bureaucratic issue, moving to Germany has been a smooth ride for me as I have lived for some months here before. A small city with scenic beauty, forest and extremely kind people, Saarbrücken, offered me a space to enjoy every day.

As an Early Stage Researcher, PERFORM has provided me the means to associate with different team members with different backgrounds and learn from their experiences. The reputation of the grant influences the interaction with the people who are outside of this program. They value the opinions shared by me, which leads to more motivation. As mentioned above, the training sessions gave me an direction to improve upon the skills that I lack. So far, I have been content with my journey. I am highly motivated to make a mark both in the industry and academia, with the help of publications and, consulting experience to bridge the knowledge. Also, I am working diligently and in an organized manner.

Personally, the fact that we are involve in a network with other ESR, supervisors and partners is a great experience and an excellent opportunity for networking. If I later want join the industry, working in AWSi is the best possible way to experiment with different ideas and have first-hand feedback about industry needs. On the other hand, if I decide to pursue academia I also have a network of supervisors and other academics to know where and how to channelize my energy, therefore, here I can utilize my skills more efficiently and focus on the right goals. As an individual, I am growing every day. The intercultural aspects, an opportunity to have conversation with colleagues who have similar thought-process, is worth every difficulty. With the reputation that the Marie Curie Fellowship has, I am confident that it will aid my professional profile. As of now, I am more oriented towards the industry and therefore I am trying to attain as many skills as I can.

I will bring the knowledge obtained in research to the industry, it will have impact and a real value in the businesses. Also, the consulting experience will fit perfectly for my long term plans, helping clients to improve their business with a solid support of the theoretical foundations.

It’s an honor to be part of this respected project.

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Shubham Jain (ESR 14) and Daniel Mora (ESR 13) started their secondment at Johannes Keppler University in Linz, Austria. Both the ESRs are enrolled in the university as Ph.D. students…