With over 15 years of experience in the financial sector of major corporations, Fernanda Franco highlights the leadership spaces women are occupying.
The space women have been gaining in companies has grown over the past decades. In 2004, only 19% of leadership positions worldwide were held by women. Twenty years later, this number has risen to 33.5%. Although still not ideal, there are examples of individuals who have achieved international status, and one of them is Fernanda Franco.
With experience at giants such as Hilti, Bayer, and Santander, she represents a generation of executives who not only occupy positions but redefine governance in environments historically dominated by men. In sectors such as construction and engineering, female presence in top financial management brings a combination of technical rigor and a holistic vision that translates into real profits. Global studies indicate that companies with gender diversity in their boards are up to 20% more likely to outperform the average profitability of their competitors—a figure that validates the trajectory of professionals who, like Fernanda, manage multimillion-dollar portfolios with precision.
Fernanda’s work at Hilti North America, where she was responsible for accounts receivable and accounts payable in the millions of dollars for the Mexican market, illustrates the scale of responsibilities entrusted to high-performing female leaders. This trust stems from a competence that crosses geographic and linguistic borders, as her fluency in Portuguese, English, and Spanish enables direct coordination between global headquarters and local operations. Her ability to ensure audit and compliance processes aligned with regulations in the United States, Canada, and Mexico demonstrates that female leadership in finance today requires technical mastery that goes far beyond traditional accounting, involving strategic risk management and cash flow optimization on a continental scale.
In Brazil, Fernanda strengthened her reputation by managing highly strategic investment budgets in Bayer’s engineering division, where she led the implementation of global tools that increased operational productivity. This type of delivery is what drives global statistics forward, proving that including women in strategic roles is not only a matter of social justice but an essential business strategy. Her optimization of logistics cost management—improving expense control and significantly accelerating processing cycles through efficiency methods—demonstrates a rare ability to turn complex data into corporate agility.
Even in a scenario where full parity remains a distant goal for the middle of this century, Fernanda Franco’s example serves as a beacon for new generations of women pursuing international careers. Her decision to continue specializing in the United States, seeking certifications from renowned institutions such as the Tax Foundation and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, reinforces the commitment to excellence that defines great leaders. By combining unwavering ethics with sustainable financial results, she is paving the way for the next twenty years of corporate history to present even more expressive numbers of representation and female success at the top of global operations.
