Fernando Larraín will pack his bags and together with his family will leave his home in Washington, United States, a city that sheltered him for more than three years in his role as a World Bank consultant, a job that he will maintain at least until the end of 2023.
The former general manager of the AFP Association is back on the market. And he will do it big. In the next few days he will arrive at Banco Santander Chile as the new Executive Vice President of Communications, Marketing and Studies.
The other notable organizational change in Santander was the creation of the executive vice-presidency of People, which will be led by Paula Meléndez.
The foregoing was announced this Tuesday within the framework of a new organic structure reported by the CEO of Santander Chile, Román Blanco, which implied the termination of the bank’s Vice Presidency of People, Communications and Sustainability, which was in the hands of María Eugenia de la Fuente, who will step down after eight years.
In Santander, De la Fuente’s leadership was highlighted in positioning Santander Chile in achievements such as the “Top Employers” certification, first place in GPTW and the bank’s entry into the emerging markets group of the Dow Jones index, among other recognitions.
the other changes
In addition to the vice-presidency that Larraín will command, a new executive vice-presidency of People was established, headed by Paula Meléndez, who has a long career in Santander in various positions such as recruitment, selection, organizational development, people management, culture, among others.
The reorganization will also imply that Santander’s Responsible Banking area will become part of the Office of Sustainable Finance and Climate Change (FS&CC) led by executive Soledad Ramírez. While the Organization area will be incorporated into the Vice Presidency of Management Intervention and Control, headed by Guillermo Sabater.
“Along with greeting Paula and welcoming Fernando, I ask each of you to provide all the necessary support to ensure the success of both of you and your teams in the momentous challenges and ambitious goals that we have outlined,” he said. Blanco in an internal communication this Tuesday.
Larraín’s networks
Although he left Chile three years ago, in the market they point out that Fernando Larraín never left Chile completely. Not only because a large part of his family resides in the country, but because the numerous networks that he created when he was in charge of the AFP union continued to be alive.
In fact, although he did not carry out official duties in the AFP Association, he was always a voice heard by the presidents and general managers, advising them on different matters.
It is even pointed out that Larraín would have recommended to the union the nomination of Paulina Yazigi as the new president of the AFP.
University teaching is another of Larraín’s ties he never cut with Chile. In March 2023, he took over as director of one of the four MBA programs at Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez (UAI), the MBA Executive.
Likewise, before being appointed to Santander, he worked as a senior non-resident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Adrienne Arsht Center for Latin America, one of the most important think tanks in the US. It is unknown if Larraín will continue to collaborate in this entity given his new duties. .
Larraín is a commercial engineer from the Catholic University and a master’s degree in Public Affairs from Princeton University in the US. He was an adviser to the Ministry of Finance in the Government of former President Ricardo Lagos.
