Getting to know Digna Olivardia

We want to share a little more about Digna Olivardia, who is a Project Engineer, highly recognized as a specialist in terms of finishes, and who has been working with Proyectos Mar Azul for eight years.

Digna tells us that she attended primary and secondary studies at the Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles School in David, Chiriquí. Later, she moved to Panama City to study Architecture at the University of Panama. She is currently studying a Master’s Degree in Higher Education at the Universidad Latina de Panamá. Her first steps as an architect were in a paint contracting company doing budget estimates. She then had the opportunity to lead the construction of the Provisional VIP Lounge at the Tocumen Airport prepared to receive presidents and heads of state.

Also, she tells us that she was proudly part of an important change in the city since she collaborated with the company that won the concession for the construction of the patios for the new Metro buses, which arrived in Panama to make a change in public transport and take out of circulation the famous Red Devils of Panama. It is then, in 2014, when she joined our family, and began her work with Proyectos Mar Azul: «Mar Azul opens doors for me, allowing me to develop much more as an architecture professional with great experiences and opportunities in each of the projects in which I have had significant participation.”

What is Digna like outside of the workplace?

«I define myself as a simple, optimistic and humanist person, who in her free time loves to light her favorite scented candle, listen to relaxing music -it can be blues or jazz- and who, in good company, enjoys a couple of drinkss and telling stories», she tells us between laughs.

About Mar Azul

Regarding her outstanding career in Proyectos Mar Azul, she has participated in different types of projects, which is why we asked her to share what is she most passionate about in her work: «As an architect, I am passionate about seeing the result of so much effort and sacrifice. There is no greater reward than seeing clients’ dreams come true; that is priceless. For this reason, I try to do my best so that each project in which I participate has a particular imprint of my work.»

Experiences

She also shares with us that all projects are important to her but that, definitely, the remodeling of the Grand Colonial Room at the Bristol Hotel, the event rooms – phase 2 of the Marriott Hotel (formerly Tryp de Wyndham), Albatross in Santa María, which is a 42-story building, and the Liberty offices in Plaza del Este with 3,000 m2.

Digna, tell us about your greatest lesson throughout your work experience, whether in Proyectos Mar Azul or in other companies?: «For me, the greatest lesson has been learning to never give up. When you think that something is not going well, you will always have the opportunity to show that you are capable and focus on achieving your goals. This has allowed me to learn that not everything is perfect and that there is always a way to solve things, focusing on the solution and never on the error.”

She adds that a situation that, without a doubt, impacted her and generated a change in her, was having lived through a pandemic: «I think it is something that has marked my life in many ways. I never imagined a situation as difficult as it would be to be unemployed for so long and have to stop the pace of work to which I was accustomed. It was overwhelming but it led me to take the time to rethink what I was doing right or wrong; that time allowed me to see mistakes and successes in my life. Today I can say that I am working on making certain corrections: after twenty years I have resumed my studies and I think that this is a great step so, from something bad like the pandemic, good things also came out.»

An experience or anecdote from these years working with Mar Azul?

“I’ve always found it very funny how people can confuse our names. In principle, I have coincided on projects with the best team of professionals, of which I highlight the architect Ida Gonzalez and the engineer Ruth Valderrama and, for some strange reason, among the contractors, managers, suppliers and others, they always manage to confuse our names by calling either of us with the name of the other.”

To culminate, with all this accumulated experience, a valuable advice that you want to share with us and what you consider could be the five keys to achieving objectives:

«The most valuable advice I have been able to receive in my career has been —build your own experience—. That helped me get to where I am today. And, regarding the five keys to achieving personal and professional goals, for me they are:

→ Sacrifice;
→ Perseverance;
→ Dedication;
→ Love and passion for the things one does; and
→ Resilience.”