Great Women of Texas 2019: Anette Landeros

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Anette Landeros

President & CEO, Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce

Anette Soto Landeros became the head of the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (FWHCC) in July 2019, after an extensive and successful career in federal service.

“I knew I wanted to work for the federal government when I was 15 years old. That is not a normal 15-year-old,” she told the Fort Worth Business Press in a recent interview.

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That came, she said, from watching TV news with her father, Heriberto Soto. She would constantly question him about how decisions were made and who made them. He would the different levels of government, including Washington, D.C.

That’s when she decided that “I’m going to be in Washington, D.C., making those decisions one day, too.”

And she was. Before joining the chamber, Landeros was a project manager leading teams of federal auditors in evaluating program performance and regulatory compliance for the Office of Inspector General at the United States Department of Transportation.

Landeros holds a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University and a master’s from the LBJ School at the University of Texas at Austin, both in public policy. She’s an alumnae of the Leadership Fort Worth LeadingEdge Class of 2011.

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She is the immediate past state chair of the Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas, and is the youngest person elected to lead the organization’s statewide mission and provided direction for chapters located in 8 different cities throughout Texas.

She was recognized by Telemundo as a “Heroe Hispana” and selected as one of HWNT’s Estrellas de Tejas in 2014.

She was featured as one of 2015 Women to Watch and 2016 Forty Under Forty by the Fort Worth Business Press, and as one of 12 national nominees for the 2016 Coors Light Lider of the Year award. Most recently, Landeros was named a 2017 Woman of Distinction by the Girls Scouts of Texas Oklahoma Plains.

She serves on various local boards including Fort Worth Sister Cities International, Carter BloodCare and the Planned Parenthood Community Board.

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– Paul K. Harral

What advice would you give young women rising to a position of prominence?

Give yourself enough grace to recognize that you can’t win them all, be perfect all the time, or know every answer. Surround yourself with the best time team possible and ask for help when you need it.

You could choose to spend your time in many ways: Why do you choose to spend your time the way you do?

In the rare times when I do have some free time, my favorite pastime is supporting local artists and art organizations. … It’s a truly brave and courageous effort to put yourself out there like that, so showing up to support them and those efforts is important to me.

Who is the most significant role model and/or mentor in your life?

I’ve several key role models and mentors in my life, but as of recently I’ve been trying to really to admire and learn from specific qualities in a multitude of individuals. Rather than having one person who I seek for advice, I have 10-20 who I seek advice from regarding specific expertise and qualities that I find inspiring in them. I do my best to express that to them as well, so they realize the positive impact they are having on others.

What book, movie, TV series or play influenced you growing up? Why?

Reading The House on Mango Streetby Sandra Cisneros is a significant memory for me. It’s written from the perspective of a Latina teenager dealing with all the teenage issues combined with her struggles with the duality of her cultural heritage. I just remember being really enthused to read a story that related to my cultural surroundings.

What would you like for us to know that we might not know to ask?

It will be incredibly obvious that I’m currently expecting my first child. I am honored to be selected for the Great Woman of Texas recognition, but I also have a new respect for women’s ability to do it all and create human life while doing it.