Female leadership and its impact

Uncertainty challenges but it also offers possibilities. From this perspective, Popular recently hosted the Women Investing in Women (WIF) forum, where the panel Leading Through Crisis: Turning Challenges into Opportunities for Wealth was presented.

A group of visionaries, who see leadership in times of crisis as an opportunity for growth and long-term positive impact, converged at the Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico’s Raúl Juliá Theater. Patricia de la Torre, first vice president of Corporate Communications at Popular, moderated this panel of four women, which are leaders in their field.

The participants were:

• Wendy Perry, general manager of Avantor, a global service company for the life sciences and advanced technologies industries.
• Betina Castellví, executive vice president and chief security officer of Popular’s Corporate Security Group.
• Yolanda Rosich, financial consultant and first female vice president of Popular Securities.
• Jennifer Peña, internal medicine physician and founder of Medicina Exclusiva, a concierge-style executive medical model.

This event sparked an important discussion on vital topics such as: wage disparity, the importance of empathy in times of crisis, and the need to transform adversity into action.

Wendy Perry spoke about the increase in female leaders in her industry over the past 15 years. For her, this increase is still not enough. “There is still much to be done,” emphasized the expert in strategic planning and operational execution. Perry, who served as general manager of the Merck pharmaceutical company in Puerto Rico until 2021, highlighted the importance of implementing concrete actions to remove internal barriers and develop female talent within organizations.

Meanwhile, Betina Castellví shared with the audience how her work experience taught her an urgent lesson: to raise issues courageously. “I learned to ask for what I needed or wanted, and to speak without fear; something that we often struggle to do,” said the leader in data privacy, cybersecurity, and fraud matters at Popular.

Young internal medicine physician Jennifer Peña revealed her experience with wage disparity. The first Latina to hold the position of White House Physician recounted how a doctor competing for the same position was offered 3.5 times more compensation than her. Overcoming that challenge helped transform her anger and frustration into action and professional motivation. She identified gaps in the healthcare system and became an entrepreneur.

Yolanda Rosich, with 41 years of professional experience, spoke about the beautiful responsibility of helping other women seize the opportunity to grow financially. She pointed out that “having a financial plan is the most important tool towards the success of an individual or a company.”

This panel conveyed a clear message to the audience who participated in the forum: leading in times of crisis is an art and a responsibility that can transform into wealth, not only financially, but also in terms of impact, innovation, and legacy.

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