Freedom of speech is a right given to Americans by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. It’s what allows them to stand on a street corner and say whatever comes to mind. Freedom of speech is also what gives U.S. journalists the ability to write news or run TV segments critical of government officials […]
Features Region: Latin America
Melissa Díaz Artavia – Holcim Costa Rica
The cement industry isn’t always perceived as environmentally benign, but Melissa Díaz Artavia is quick to emphasize the sustainable aspects of her employer’s business model. As she tells Vanguard, the Costa Rican division of Swiss-based building materials and aggregates company, LafargeHolcim, seeks to develop sustainable projects to optimize its production while engaging in a coprocessing […]
Vanessa Manrique – GE Healthcare
The lack of life-sustaining ventilators became obvious in 2020 with the onset of COVID-19, launching General Electric on a mission to produce and distribute the much-needed devices to hospitals worldwide. It’s been a challenge, to say the least, says General Electric Healthcare Mexico Senior Legal Counsel Vanessa Manrique—noting the trade war going on between the […]
Leandro Campos – Synnex Westcon/Comstor
Even when he’s dealing with the smallest of legal details, Leandro Campos always tries to take the long view. In more than 15 years of practicing law in-house, Campos has sought to be a business partner as much as a legal resource for the multinational firms he’s worked for in his native Brazil. Now, as […]
Raymundo Arenas – AXA Mexico
He’s a veteran litigator managing cases for one of Mexico’s largest insurers, but Raymundo Arenas freely admits the last place he wants to be on company business is a court room. Following advice from his mentor, John F. Munger, to be “a fearless advocate and courteous foe,” Arenas strives to settle claims and legal matters […]
Benedito Villela – Cimed
Coming from a family of teachers, Benedito Villela feels indebted to the profession. He’d like all professionals to share that commitment to the common good, especially if they’re now earning more than the educators who prepared them for a rewarding career. “Teaching is the mother of all professions,” the personable and passionate Villela tells Vanguard […]
Ana Torreblanca – Cargill
Perhaps the last thing Ana Torreblanca expected during the COVID-19 pandemic was to find a renewed sense of spirituality, but that’s exactly what this Mexico City native discovered in those emerging quiet spaces that crept into her life amidst the chaos inflicted on society and business. Forced to work remotely during the pandemic as a […]
Daniel Lorenzini – Sandvik
Merely mentioning mining in some circles can conjure up collapsed tunnels and black lung disease, ever-present dangers in one of the world’s toughest occupations of hauling raw materials from the ground. But travel to Finland and hop in the cabin of the latest technological mining equipment with a coffee and you may be relaxing or […]
CMI – Hector Del Río
Building infrastructure, laying down electrical grids, producing foods for an international market and providing development opportunities to communities across Central America: It’s an interesting business model developed by Guatemala’s CMI, especially if one considers the business got famous for its fried chicken, says Hector Del Río. But as CMI Foods legal director explains, supporting communities […]
Mariel Picado – FIFCO
As a lawyer, Mariel Picado is accustomed to being a stickler about rules, but as an artist, she loves to break them. Both approaches are necessary to conduct business in a world economy turned upside down by a pandemic. Working as the chief legal counsel for Florida Ice and Farm Company, a publicly traded food […]
