As part of my community connections project, I have been fortunate enough to interview two different people. These people are Alfredo Valente and Sime Buric. Both of these people are connected to me in the same way, our passion, soccer.

I have chosen to interview these two people because they have both done amazing things with their lives. Alfredo Valente is a former Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder and also played for the Canadian national team and is now the Technical Director of Coquitlam Metro-Ford Soccer Club (the club I play for). Sime Buric is the head coach for my soccer team and he is a chemist and Vice President for KPrime Technologies. In his field, he does research and analysis in cancer studies, food testing, pharmaceuticals, environmental, mining, oil and gas, steroids, drugs and much more.

The reason that I have chosen to ask two different people is that they both connect with two different things that I would love to do with my life. Playing soccer is something I have played since I was four years old and I have always been really passionate about the sport. This is why I asked Alfredo Valente because he is a former soccer player and he is now the Technical Director for Coquitlam Metro-Ford, so basically he has made his life based on soccer. Being a professional soccer player is always something that I would love to do except I know that I have a very small chance of becoming a professional and I’m not going to be able to think about that as a profession. If I was going to be a professional, at my age, I would already be scouted by the Whitecaps or be on their residency team (which I am not). That is why I  asked Sime Buric if I could interview him because of how he has a really good job and is doing stuff he loves to do. Later on in the future, my goal is to have a good job that does not involve physical labor. Sime Buric is the perfect example of this. As he says in the interview, he realized that it is a very hard life if you have to use physical labor to work, so he decided that he wanted a good education and a good job that does not involve this. He is also currently doing what he loves as he is still playing soccer and coaching three soccer teams. This matches up very closely as to what I want to do with my life. The only real difference is that I won’t end up exactly where he is at KPrime Technologies or might not even in the same field. Basically, I really like the way he has set himself up for success while enjoying what he is doing, and I hope to do the same when I get older.

Interview for Sime Buric:

1. Why are you so passionate about your job?

I am always interested in learning. In my position, if you stop learning, you become obsolete. There is a simple but great book called “Who Moved My Cheese” that summarizes it well. You have to constantly be looking for the next opportunity so that you can continue to grow. The other side of my passion is that I like to help people. Whether I am volunteering my time coaching or helping scientists achieve their goals. In my field, I have the opportunity to see all sorts of research and analysis in cancer studies, food testing, pharmaceuticals, environmental, mining, oil and gas, steroids, drugs, etc. The list is much longer than this and it is constantly growing and the technology is constantly changing. I help link the technology to the lab scientist. Through all of this, I get to meet a lot of interesting people and travel across Canada, the US and other places around the world.

(Image was taken by Sime Buric)

This is an image from a plane as I travel a lot.

2. What obstacles have you faced to get where you are today?

There have been many obstacles along the way. I never harped on the obstacles. I am an optimist and truly feel that there isn’t an obstacle that can’t be tackled. If I didn’t know the answer or the approach, I would call upon my family, friends, co-workers, etc for advice or assistance. Just because I came across an obstacle for the first time doesn’t mean that others have not. Some of the obstacles that I have had are:

• Deciding to get a degree in Chemistry (more details later on as to why)
• Not doing well on a midterm in University
• Poor extractions/data when I worked in the lab
• Not being able to fix an analytical piece of equipment in the time that was expected by a customer
• Selling an analytical instrument that didn’t live up to the expectations of a customer
• Not being able to connect with a customer
• Not making a sales target
• Having to lay someone off

3. What advice would you pass on to someone interested in what you are doing?

First of all, you need to enjoy what you are doing and you need to put in the time. Not everything will come easy and right away. Set goals for yourself. I would set shorter and longer-term goals for myself. One of the goals that I had was that I wanted to make a certain salary and hold a specific position by the time I was 30. I had achieved my goal by having smaller goals that pushed me toward my bigger goal. As you proceed, you continuously review and modify the goals as needed. This does not mean that you are going to do it all yourself. You will rely on others and how you interact with others will also show your leadership qualities.

4. Would you be open to further contact from Riverside students and if so, how can someone contact you?

Yes, I would be open to be contacted. They could reach me through my work email at sime.buric@kprime.net.

(Image was taken by Sime Buric)

This is an image of my laptop as I am on it every day, including my phone.

5. What education did you need to get the job you have?

In my area of employment, a background in the sciences is a must, followed by business/sales training. This will be the foundation to your career. How successful you are will come down to your personality, drive and focus.

6. Growing up, did you always want to be a chemist or did you want to have a different job?

My career path took a couple of turns along the way. I am one of 5 kids and with that, my mother was a stay at home mom taking care of us and everything around the house. My father worked for himself framing houses. My brother and I were definitely groomed at a young age to continue in my father’s path as that is what we all knew. When I went through school, I loved math and the sciences. Math came easy but the sciences were fun and that is why I went down the path of science. During my time in school (post-secondary included), I framed houses with my father. I made good money and this would have been the path of least resistance but there was a turning point. One winter I was working with my father, framing a roof. Back then it was mostly using a hammer and not the nail guns that are used today. The weather was like it is today, cold and windy. After a few hours of hammering, all of a sudden the hammer disappeared from my hand. It flew out and I had no idea as my hands were frozen/numb. At that point, I decided that schooling is the way to go as I couldn’t do this my entire life. I love the fact that I know how to do what I learned as I am able to fix anything around my house or help friends when needed. This was also a turning point for the family as I was the first male in my entire family, extended included, to go to university. Eventually, the mindset turned that it was a good decision.

(Image was taken by Sime Buric)

This is an image of a new product that we are selling and servicing. It is a security scanner that uses millimeter wave technology. It can detect guns, knives, explosives, etc on people plus provide facial recognition

(Image was taken by Sime Buric)

This is an image of a lab that includes an Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer and an Inductively Coupled Plasma Triple Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer. These instruments are used to detect elements and very low levels. On the far right is a Liquid Chromatography system. This system is used in all sorts of industries, including food and pharmaceutical labs.

Interview with Alfredo Valente: 

(Click here to go to image)

1.) Why are you so passionate about your job? 

Being technical director is more than a job for me. Growing up I was a product of Coquitlam Metro-Ford as a player. The club gave me many opportunities and friendships through the years and now all my old teammate have their children in the club. I work hard to make this club the best in our country so I don’t just let down all our current members but also all the alumni who love this club so much.

(Click here to go to image) 

2.) What obstacles have you faced to get where you are today? 

The biggest obstacle is work-life balance. Because I work all day from home on my computer and then work on field most nights, it becomes difficult at certain points of the year to spend time with my wife and three kids. There are some days that I take my kids to school and leave for the field before they are home in the afternoon. I sometimes go 24 hours before seeing my kids again. But, I do get all holidays off that match the school Calder so try to make it up during those times!

 

3.) What advice would you pass on to someone interested in what you are doing? 

Always be honest and make decisions based on what is best for the players in our club.

 

4.) Would you be open to further contact from Riverside students and if so, how can someone contact you? 

Absolutely, All my contact info is on our club website and I would be happy to answer any questions about soccer.

(Click here to go to CMFSC website)

5.) As a child growing up, did you always want to be a soccer player? Or did you have another dream of what you would be? 

Yes, I never thought of being anything else even though I din’t know how it would all end up in my life. As much as I wanted to be a professional soccer player being a technical director and youth soccer coach is how I have impacted the game more than playing. Most, if not all our current registered players never watched me play with the whitecaps so they only know me as a coach.

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6.) What motivated you to become the Technical director of CMFSC after you retired? 

The position fell in my lap. I was a young coach working for our former technical direct (Domenic Mobilio) who was also my godfather. Unfortunately, Domenic passed away in 2004 of a heart attack and they club asked me to take over until they found a replacement. I wasn’t serious about taking on the role but after speaking with one of my teammates Steve Kindel he suggested his wife (Sara Maglio) and I pair up and share the duty of technical director. The rest is history and I believe both Sara and I have made Domenic proud of where our club is today.

 

7.) What is your favorite moment with your teammates while playing on the Whitecaps? 

Winning our first USL championship in 2006. We beat Rochester Raging Rhinos 3-0 and it was our first North American Championship since 1979.

(Click here to go to image)

8.) what is your favorite goal you scored with the Whitecaps?

I would say my first goal of 2005 season. It was our home opener and our first since my godfather Domenic Mobilio passed away. We had special ceremony for Dom at that game and remember missing him a tone. I was awarded a penalty shot that game and remember scoring and dedicating to Dom.