Ana Pinczuk, an IT Leader Who Knows the Secret Lies in the Strong Will

Ana Pinczuk is Senior Vice president and General Manager of HPE Pointnext, Hewlett Packard Enterprise. She is an eminent IT leader whose goal is to promote digital transformation. Her journey to becoming an Intelligent Edge professional and Hybrid IT expert was no cakewalk. Ana Pinczuk and her family escaped their native country, Argentina in 1976 amid a coup and came to White Plains, New York, where Pinczuk’s parents had lived during their studies. Her future became uncertain and she knew that going to college was a luxury her parents couldn’t afford. The unfamiliarity with the English language and being displaced to an unknown city made her life difficult.

When her family fled to New York, her father started working at IBM. Ana’s strong will paved way for her and she received a scholarship from Cornell University where she earned her Bachelor of Science and Master of Engineering degree in Mechanical Engineering. She started working in factory automation at AT&T Bell Laboratories. As she was awarded higher ranks in the company, she went to pursue her second master’s degree in Technology Management from the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School.

During those days, the tech industry was male dominating and she was among those few female IT experts of her age. She observed throughout her career that it was easier for men particularly white men to grow in any organization as they tend to have more professional connections and contacts. This inequality in workspace was not acceptable to her.“It’s even more important for women and minorities to build our networks. It is through these interactions and relationships that we gain access to opportunities for growth,” she says.

Even though being Hispanic felt like another challenge especially to achieve leadership roles, she proved herself and her worth to advance at AT&T, and later at Cisco, where she spent nearly 15 years in various leadership roles. Further, she earned her third master degree in software management from Carnegie Mellon University while she was working at CISCO.

She became senior vice president and general manager of Symantec’s backup and recovery division in 2016. Ana is a member of the International Women's Forum, Anita Borg Institute, Carnegie Mellon Engineering Advisory Board, and Cornell Computer and Information Sciences Advisory Board. She has won many awards including Fortune's 2017 Top 50 Latinas, the 2016 Women of Influence Award, the 2014 Corporate Index (Top 25 Hispanics) etc.

Ana has always been a staunch supporter of woman empowerment. She has brazenly talked about the issue in multiple forums. “My advice for younger women is three-fold: first, pursue your passion because if you enjoy what you do and you do it well, that will generally be noticed. Secondly, in case you are not noticed, ensure that you have advocates to guide you through your career. Third, continue to educate yourself and take risks,” Pinczuk quotes her words of wisdom for women.