Stake’s Diana Margarita Otalora has been crowned Leader of the Year at the 2024 SBC’s Latinoamerica awards.
The October award win was the perfect way to mark the one-year anniversary of Stake’s operation in Colombia, which has led the operator’s ambitious expansion plans in Latam.
The victory for Diana, who is GM for Latam as well as the operator’s Colombia country manager, is proof that Stake’s strategy to hire the best talent available in each territory is paying off.
Diana’s team was recently strengthened by the addition of Peruvian country manager Jennyfer Escobar, who helped to secure Stake’s licence in Peru as a result of the operator’s progressive recruitment policy.
“At Stake, we want to appoint the best people for the role. Our ambition is nothing less than to become a leading player in the Latin American sports betting market.” said Otalora.
“It has been rewarding to find those attributes in my fellow Latina leaders, who are pulling together to propel Stake forwards in Latam’s emerging regulated markets.
“We work hard every day to ensure that gambling in our home countries is both exciting and safe for players, who have come to expect nothing less from Stake over the years.”
In order to complete the Colombian launch, Diana managed the merging of two teams following Stake’s acquisition of Betfair Colombia, delivering continuity and harmony during what might otherwise have been a challenging integration.
Diana has successfully grown the Stake Latm team to more than 35 employees and is continuing to grow.
More internal growth is on the cards as the operator looks to build on Colombia by entering Peru and Brazil, among others in the region.
Luisa Muñoz, Head of Operations, Latam for Stake, said: “Under Diana’s leadership, we have launched one of the largest gaming companies in the world in the Colombian market and are now expanding our horizons to all of Latam.
“Working with Diana, I have grown both professionally and personally: professionally, by being able to evolve my role in the organisation from managing the Customer Experience processes to now leading the operation for Latam. Personally, she has guided me, trusted me, empowered me and has opened the way for me to contribute value to the company on a daily basis.
“This is what true leaders do.”