Faces of Fioneer: Maria Ana Cazares
Faces of Fioneer is a series showcasing the great people behind our company. In celebration of the international Pride Month, we are highlighting Fioneers who are members or strong allies of the LGBTQ+ community.
Meet Maria Ana Cazares, Head of Cloud for Banking for Americas at SAP Fioneer.
Tell us about yourself!
I am Mexican and I was born near the Pacific in the northern part of the country. Yes, it can be quite hot sometimes, but the place is beautiful. Later in life I moved to Monterrey to pursue my professional studies and I fell in love with the city, so now I live between “the city of mountains” and Mexico City. I am a huge advocate for EQUALITY. Being Mexican takes nerve and determination to go against a thousand years of “macho” culture, and I am proud to stand for anybody who calls for justice, equal opportunities, and human rights.
What do you do at SAP Fioneer?
I am an Electronic Systems Engineer. It all started because I was (am?) that geek interested in robotics. I am happy to say I got an opportunity to work at SAP early in my career, and I knew I wanted to be part of a team that would help companies leverage the very much needed technological capacities of this century. My entire time working at SAP I was focused on the banking sector, and now at SAP Fioneer I am Head of Cloud for Banking (C4B) for Americas and I am responsible for selling and delivering successful core banking projects, such as neobanks or spin-off banks. It can be challenging to bring traditional banks into the digital world, but I am fortunate to be part of a great team of talented people and I’m confident we’ll accomplish any goals.
What does diversity mean to you?
Diversity means inclusion and the celebration of different cultures, beliefs, ethnicities, as one equal human experience. As a manager, I am constantly looking for talented people that belong to a range of multiple lifestyles as I understand the value of having many different points of view in a team. Contact me if you want to be part of the C4B team at SAP Fioneer! 😊
Can you tell us about being a member/ally of the LGBTQ+ community at SAP Fioneer?
I feel fortunate to work in a company that provides a space for the LGBTQ+ community and promotes equality of opportunities, as a global company. It is priceless to be able to bring other countries’ initiatives to my region and to have a voice in this matter and do what I can from my trench. We just started the SAP Fioneer LGBTQ+ Network and I’m really looking forward to what’s to come.
How do you promote diversity and inclusion at SAP Fioneer?
Right now, I’m trying to promote inclusion in the team, around different topics and specialties. I try to give everyone the same opportunity to learn and grow in the areas that are of their interest. I don’t want to impose something that they don’t want to learn. We are all open-minded people, which is also a key feature that I’m looking for in candidates, to add diverse people that are in tune with what we are trying to accomplish: a successful diverse and inclusive company, one that we can feel proud to be part of.