Silvia Graciela Tenazinha, Head of Commercial Banking and Wealth Management Santander Argentina, 10 Most Influential Women Leaders of 2022 Profile

Silvia Graciela Tenazinha
Head of Commercial Banking &
Wealth Management at
Santander Argentina


Silvia Graciela Tenazinha, Head of Commercial Banking and Wealth Management Santander Argentina, 10 Most Influential Women Leaders of 2022

"A Progressive Leader"

Silvia Graciela Tenazinha, Head of Commercial Banking and Wealth Management Santander Argentina is part of a team transforming Santander, and she is proud to be part of that team. “The main challenge is to transform a Santander of products into a Santander of customers. It is to turn the organization around so that everything is focused on the customer and not on the product. This seems very easy to say, but it implies a change of DNA,” says Silvia, who works with her team to take the bank to new heights.

Silvia is passionate about purposeful technological advances. “Why do I think this? Because I see in technology the potential to improve the quality of people's lives. I firmly believe that technology enables new ways of doing things. Technology gives us opportunities. Digitalization brings us closer to people, their stories, their projects and their dreams,” she explains.

“Behind figures there are top stories.... What do I mean by these stories? The protagonists do everything to progress and we want to support them. It is a fact: technology equalizes opportunities. Today, access to information is within everyone's reach. Let's build on this by helping people and businesses thrive.”

Banco Santander Argentina is the largest bank in Argentina and what they do has a significant impact on the market. Santander is a leader and has a unique positioning. But they always have to go one step further, and there is always an opportunity to improve their understanding of what the customer wants and needs. “It is a path that started some time ago and that we are outlining day by day, and it never ends, and improvement is continuous. We are a reference in the Argentine financial market, which implies that we have and want to be pioneers in many areas, helping to advance and consolidate the financial system. That is our hallmark.”

Silvia is inspiring and empowering team members to become great leaders of tomorrow. “Our world has changed a lot, and the ways of working are no longer the same as years ago. We left behind the work in silos with agile work methodologies and gave way to work in cells. We believe in "netarchy" over hierarchy, and it is important because an agile company has empowered leaders who work in a horizontal format.”

She is building closer leadership when horizontal teams are connected to the needs of both employees and the customers. According to her, a leader is not a boss. A leader helps develop the best talent of each member of their team, making each one shine and perform at their best. High-performance teams generally do not have many individual stars but have a team based on trust, commitment, mystique, fun, and gain success. “Success is a continuous work of overcoming and learning. It is a journey that begins but does not end and that is the most fun. It is a path, not a goal. If we define that someone is successful, they have managed to do a task that they love, that they do with commitment and leave a mark. It is not about your position, but it is about doing it with passion and, therefore, with motivation.”

The 20 years of experience in the sector has allowed Silvia to investigate, study, learn and apply technology for the good of business and, above all, of people. “We believe in the culture of learning through error. We encourage people to do, make mistakes and learn.” One of the objectives is the participation of women in the labor market. The pandemic produced a severe setback in this issue, more than anything else because the country went back to work at home without outside help in many cases, so the bank had to combine work with care and domestic tasks.

“Today, 56% of women in Argentina are heads of household, that is to say that they are the main income of their household and this is a great responsibility and with the pandemic, in many cases this has been accentuated,” says Silvia. “A lot of progress has been made, there are many companies socially committed to this and we lose a lot of talent if we do not incorporate the female vision to our businesses. Additionally, women incorporated into the labor world help to eliminate toxic social elements (domestic violence, abuse, among other issues).” WL


Company

Santander Argentina

Management

Silvia Graciela Tenazinha
Head of Commercial Banking &
Wealth Management at
Santander Argentina

Description

Banco Santander Argentina is the largest bank in Argentina and what they do has a significant impact on the market.


Influential Women Leaders Special Magazine