Elsa Yáñez, Manager for Latin America at Belimo, is our Professional of the Month representing Mexico.
By Duván Chaverra Agudelo
In an industry dominated by the male gender, a talented and charismatic woman shines from Mexico. She is Elsa Yáñez, Manager for Latin America of Belimo Aircontrols (USA), Inc., who is recognized in the guild thanks to her talent and the contribution she has made to the industry throughout her career.
In addition, Elsa was recently appointed as vice president of the Mexican Institute of smart building (IMEI). For this and other reasons, in this edition of the Professional of the Month we recognize a professional woman, wife and mother of four children (two daughters and two twins), who still has many challenges to meet. We will know a little more about his arrival in the industry, his challenges, his hobbies and his expectations for the future.
ACR Latin America: How was your process of linking to this industry?
Elsa Yáñez: My first contact was in a talk they gave us at La Salle University, where they told us about Smart Buildings. This caught my attention, because they explained many areas of interest that involved the subjects I had already studied in the career.
Subsequently, the reason why I entered Foxboro, S.A. (company where he began his professional history) is because a former student of La Salle of the Mechanical Engineering career, Diego Márquez, sent an invitation to the School of Engineering and because of that, She interviewed me for the position of intern in her department and thus began my adventure. Diego is a person out of the ordinary and what I thank him most is that he gave me all the bases to know how to work in a company.
Additionally, our boss, the engineer Pedro Omaña, an excellent professional and human being, left us the leadership in the administrative and estimation part, while he continued with the technical and commercial leadership of the Siebe Environmental Controls department, dedicated precisely to Intelligent Buildings. With him I learned to be a leader, to delegate and to trust people with capacity, because the experience is gained day by day.
I have had great teachers in my professional life. From each person I interact with I have a lot to learn and be thankful for. That's the most fascinating thing about human relationships: it's an exchange of ongoing experiences and learning.
ACR: What are your personal challenges and upcoming goals to meet?
Elsa: In my personal life I have always set very firm goals, based on the values instilled in me by my parents. To this day, I think the balance is very positive. It has not been easy, but having your goals clear, you have that compass that helps you navigate dark seas. My current challenges from the professional point of view are to finish the German language, since my company is Swiss German. Another challenge is to stay current in an industry that appreciates new talent, where leaders are getting younger and more capable. My dream is to continue studying, whether it's a master's degree in science or even a doctorate. I am passionate about teaching and would like to one day teach full time.
ACR: What challenges do you face as a leader from the point of view of the relationship with employees and the objectives that must be met in the market?
Elsa: A major challenge is to keep my team motivated and cohesive, while delivering value to our customers. The HVAC industry is very select, and the more you make your people shine, the more attractive they become to the competition. The important thing is that Belimo is a company that promotes personal and professional development. When the company cares holistically about the well-being of employees, we are more likely to achieve that extra effort on their part. In addition to this, it is important to have clear, challenging but realistic challenges that help them stay engaged and interested.
My ongoing goal is to be a transformational leader. Leaving a mark on my team and my colleagues is a personal commitment. It's not about doing business, it's about creating experiences that become rewarding for both parties, a win-win. If friendships are formed along the way, it is an added value for me, which seals that effort made.
ACR: What are the reasons for achieving recognition in this market?
Elsa: It's very risky for me to talk about my recognition myself. What I can comment on is that I myself have encouraged to be present in the market, through my active participation, as well as that of all my collaborators, in the different associations of HVAC and related sectors in Latin America. I think it's a commitment as leaders in the industry and a source of motivation. This is embodied in Belimo's values. We have the knowledge, the technological advances and we must disseminate them with the main objective of reaching the largest number of people.
ACR: What has been the evolution that the industry has had in Mexico in the years you have been working in it?
Elsa: The advances of our industry, not only in Mexico, but in Latin America have been gigantic. Since the opening of markets through trade agreements and the use of the internet, we have seen that technology has reached our markets much faster. We are seeing exchanges between Asia and Europe, between Asia and America, between Europe and America, even between countries in the region, at high speed. Today, product launches occur simultaneously worldwide and Latin America is up to date.
The challenge is to understand how countries prepare people for the adoption of these changes. Each country will be successful to the extent that its education and economic, social and normative structure are prepared to accept such changes, otherwise the level of success will be very low.
ACR: How do you see the future of this industry?
Elsa: I think the air conditioning industry just has a more positive future than it does today. I believe that all actors are committed to delivering energy-efficient, innovative and high-value solutions for the end user, because end users are becoming more informed and know what they want every day. Anyone who has not visualized that reality runs the risk of becoming uncompetitive.
ACR: Tell us about any anecdotes you've learned from for your professional work and personal life?
Elsa: I remember once being told by an HR manager that I could go very far if I were a little more diplomatic. I think he hit the nail on the head about an opportunity for improvement, since in my family what I was taught the least was diplomacy. The most important thing was to speak the truth, however cruel it was. So I struggled to understand how I could improve and that has helped me communicate better with everyone around me.
ACR: Tell us about interests other than your professional life.
Elsa: I love music, singing, getting to know new cultures and learning new languages. When I travel, I like to become just another local. I love all kinds of sports, so when I have a pay TV in front of me, I instinctively look for sports channels. Another hobby is watching comedy or romantic movies, drama and violence movies make me think about the reality of our world and for that, I better turn on the news channel.
I don't go to any soccer team, but I always follow the Mexican soccer team or any Mexican team in international competitions. I love remembering my childhood because I had the opportunity to enjoy my community in a way that I see today as impossible.
I love my personality, I have learned to love and value myself for who I am, as a human being and as a professional. It's just that sometimes, I can seem too bold or even presumptuous with my comments. Who likes a woman who has an opinion on all topics, right? (Laughter.) Sometimes I feel like being in a men's industry has given me that empowerment that's very normal in gentlemen, but it still stands out a lot when you're a woman.
Trajectory
Elsa Yáñez is a graduate with honors from the career of Engineering in Electrical Energy and Electronic Systems at La Salle University, in Mexico City. He has a Postgraduate "Global MBA" from Thunderbird School of Global Management of the United States, in conjunction with itESM, Mexico City Campus.
She is currently the Manager for Latin America of Belimo Aircontrols (USA), Inc., a company for which she has worked for eight years. She started at Siebe Environmental Controls, within the company Foxboro, S.A. as an intern when she was still in the 7th semester of her degree. In the 10th semester she moved to Johnson Controls where she worked for six years, first as technical support for sales and then as an account executive for several vertical markets.
Subsequently, he arrived at Alerton, where he took over the network of distributors, first for Mexico, and later for Central America, the Caribbean and the Andean Region. He worked at Alerton for almost 6 years.
Finally, in 2010 he started with Belimo as sales manager for Mexico. In 2012 he was in charge of the territory of Central America and the Caribbean, later the Andean Region and in 2013 Brazil. It is currently focused on Latin America, except Brazil.
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