Lacey Perry is the Branch Retail Executive for the BBVA Compass Shoreline Branch in Corpus Christi, Texas. Owing to its downtown business center location, of the three branches in the city, the Shoreline branch is the one with the least consumer foot traffic. Yet Perry is still the highest performer across all 644 branches in the bank’s retail network.

The BBVA Foundation has recognized the computer engineer Ivan Sutherland with the Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the category of Information and Communication Technologies. Over the course of his 60-year career, the American computer scientist has led the transition from text-based to graphical computer displays. He pioneered the use of graphical icons and virtual reality, and anyone who uses a computer or smartphone today benefits from the output of his research.

AVA Digital Awards recently recognized the BBVA Music Sessions for its “high standard of excellence,” noting the work “serves as a benchmark for the industry.”

BBVA CEO Onur Genç continues his tour across the Group’s operating countries. After his visit to Spain and Mexico, last week he found himself in Turkey. During his visit to Garanti Bank, Genç was able to witness  firsthand the digital transformation progress that has been made by one of the bank’s leading digitization franchises, led by Fuat Erbil.

The Corporate Network for Diversity and LGBTI inclusion (REDI) is the first corporate association in Spain created to promote an inclusive and respectful environment in organizations, where talent is valued regardless of gender expression or sexual orientation. BBVA is joining the REDI to demonstrate its commitment to diversity.

Gretchen Daily and Georgina Mace have been recognized with the BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the category of Ecology and Conservation Biology for their visionary work combating the loss of species. They have developed tools that are invaluable for quantifying "nature’s value" thus facilitating science-based policies in support of the conservation of species. The jury panel commended not only their efforts in identifying the problem, but also their involvement in finding solutions.

The Dallas Creation Center (technically in the Farmers Branch, Tex. suburb) has earned its place as the digital heart and soul of BBVA. Turns out, its diverse workforce and startup attitude are also positioning the team as a leader in innovative engagement, too.

Elisa Acosta has been working at BBVA for more than 10 years and manages the Dolores (Soriano) branch in Uruguay. She loves going on nature walks, a passion that has taught her the importance of working as one team, both inside and outside the bank.

The BBVA Foundation has recognized the American researcher with the Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the category of Biology and Biomedicine, for his pioneer findings in demonstrating the importance of the gut microbiome. Their discoveries have allowed to demonstrate that gut microbes play a central role in conditions like obesity and diabetes.

There are unsung heroes who travel miles, undaunted by distance or the obstacles they face on the road to reach their entrepreneurs: entrepreneurs who, whether standing behind a shop counter, sitting behind a sewing machine, or surrounded by their crops, make decisions everyday that impact their lives and the lives of their relatives and neighbors. If these entrepreneurs – more than two million today – are the heart of the BBVA Microfinance Foundation, then the more than 4,000 loan officers who accompany them on the road toward prosperity are its soul. There are many types of heroes in the world. Some, like these, were not born heroes. The were made into heroes.