Federico Masías Believes in Starting with the Basics

For Federico Masías, any successful endeavor—whether it’s mapping out and executing a technology vision or landing a career aspiration—starts with going back to the basics.

“Everything in this world is a process with a beginning and end,” he says. “Focus on understanding that to reach your goals.”

That’s what Masías has done throughout his career, especially as he navigated various subjects and industries he didn’t have prior experience with, including at his current company, Illinois’s largest family-owned real estate brokerage, Baird & Warner. Here, as senior vice president of information technology, Masías evaluates business needs and implements technology solutions across all business units.

When Masías stepped into his role in 2019, he didn’t have experience in cybersecurity or real estate. While he had success in digital transformation initiatives in the past, replicating that at a company of Baird & Warner’s size was an entirely different undertaking. So, he took his own advice.

“When you have to digitally transform a company, you look at how things are done today, focus on how they should be done, and determine if you have the technology that fits the future,” Masías explains. “If the answer is no, you look at how to make the necessary changes to achieve that future goal. Sometimes it means some of the technology needs to be replaced.”

That approach has allowed the SVP to help the company’s businesses upgrade and centralize its technology systems in ways that’ll improve the customer experience, an effort that’s halfway complete.

“If you want to buy a house, for instance, we can offer you a mortgage, but we didn’t always know that you needed one since those are two different business units and operations,” he says. “So now, we’re working to allow the left hand to talk to the right, so to speak, so all the company technologies can interface and work in a harmonious way.”

When you hear Masías talk about his upbringing, it’s easy to understand how he became a leader that spreadheads innovative initiatives. He was born in Mexico City, coming of age with an innate curiosity about how things worked. As a kid, he disassembled electronics to see what was inside and if he could put them back together. Meanwhile, his parents stressed the importance of education, which he says incentivized his critical thinking skills.

“I was lucky to receive that education in my early years and to be exposed to computers and other things that weren’t available to other kids back then,” he says.

Masías always had a fascination with technology, though he didn’t formally study it in college; he pursued a marketing degree at Universidad Tecnológica de México instead. However, when he wasn’t in class, he worked full-time at Nestle, where he got a crash course in project management, technology, business analysis, finance, and supply chain matters. He spent six years at the company serving in various roles with increasing responsibilities, helping the company implement tools for its retail stores.

His accomplishments impressed leaders from Information Resources Inc., who hired Masías to help cultivate relationships with retailers. While it was different from his previous roles, he spent his first four years as a thriving product manager and head of Latin American operations. His work earned him a position in Chicago, a transition that was as exciting as it was challenging.

“It was a different business culture between the two countries,” he says. “From sending a letter, the way you talk, the way you construct an email, it’s totally different here than it was in Mexico.” As a result, he worked twice as hard to get the same results of his American peers, while leaning on his colleagues and different trainings to adapt to the new environment.

While navigating cultural norms and expectations might’ve been difficult, Masías remained steadfast in his work ethic and his ability to broaden his skill set. In his nine years as a project manager, he effectively managed projects that were completed on time with no defects, including the conversion of market research databases from local currency values to euro values.

That work paved the way for a leadership role managing large, multinational IT projects and prepared him for his next role at US Foods, where he rose from a project manager to a senior IT director overseeing the entire supply chain systems.

These experiences ingrained in Masías a leadership philosophy that drives the way he approaches his team and its initiatives. He calls it “managing by objectives.” He meets with team members weekly to talk about their work and how he can support them.

“Certain things have to be accomplished at certain times and no one can be looking over everyone’s shoulder; if I did that, I’d die,” he says. “I have to point where I want the team to go, and they hit the mark.”