“Latinos, yes, you know, we are story tellers. And this is what I tell my team. Let’s tell the story.”
So said Jose Piñero, Latino, dad and Microsoft veteran of 16 years, including his current stint as Senior Director for Entertainment Services, which includes Xbox LIVE. As part of his job, Jose works closely with entertainment and social offerings, including Netflix, Hulu, ESPN, Xfinity, Verizon and others, to deliver rich, interactive entertainment experiences via the Xbox lifestyle. He also manages a large staff in the Redmond, Washington campus.
And while he has been hard at work, Jose, father of two, has also found time to contribute to the Latino community. In 2007 he was included in Latin Business Magazine’s Top 100 U.S. Hispanics to Watch and later received the Donald H. McGannon Service Award from the National Urban League, an organization dedicated to helping underserved urban communities. Super ocupado!
Despite all his professional achievements, and true to his roots, Jose is most animated when he speaks about his family. Perhaps that’s why his family – and millions like them – have been drawn to the entertainment opportunities in the wildly successful Xbox 360, a console once considered the exclusive domain of couch potatoes and diehard gamers. And something many parents may still believe is exclusively used for video games.
Jose and his wife Maru, both originally from Puerto Rico, are raising their kids to enjoy just about everything the Xbox lifestyle has to offer: They watch movies, play family games, enjoy two-way TV experiences, stream music throughout their home, and make a point of video chatting with the kids’ grandparents every Sunday morning.
“There is no need for anything else in the living room at our home. The choices have multiplied and there is something for everyone in the new Xbox lifestyle,” says Piñero.
How does his role as a father impact his daily job? “I think of families and how important bonding time and connections are to their wellbeing,” says Piñero. “We aim to deliver high quality products that support parents.” His enthusiasm is genuine and animated. While we chatted on the phone, I could virtually “see” his hands moving as his passion came through loud and clear.
Jose Piñero is one of the many dads behind Xbox 360 – senior executives who understand the importance of true family entertainment that is safe, engaging and in some cases playfully educational.
On a personal level, it’s also very uplifting to showcase successful Latino business leaders who fully embrace their heritage and embrace it daily to motivate teams and enthusiastically move consumers to embrace the lifestyle his organization delivers.
And if you had any doubts he is a true Latino – José of course, also plays the guitar!
Moms and dads work to design and market the technologies that we use every day – this series on NBCLatino.com is aimed at bringing you many inspiring examples in the weeks to come of Latino parents that innovate and drive incredible work in their respective fields. by Monica Vila [NBC]