Golden Rose 2007 - Tran Thi Viet Anh: Desire and Heart Leading to Success

I met Ms Tran Thi Viet Anh, General Director of Saigon Bank of Industry and Trade (Saigonbank) after she received the Golden Rose Award 2007. She had been a lecturer at the Ho Chi Minh City Banking Institute for 13 years. Her teaching love changed when she was appointed Deputy General Director of Saigonbank, from vice head of Accounting Department of HCM City Banking Institute. It was difficult to apply theory to practice, but her talent and effort brought her success. In 2007, Saigonbank’s growth was 56 per cent and profit was up 44 per cent.

 

However, there are not only roses on the road to glory. When she came to Saigonbank, it had chartered capital of only VND50 billion. To date, it has chartered capital of over VND1,000 billion with 53 branches across the country. Apart from capital and network growth, the bank also made significant progress in technological renovation. As a lecturer, she understood the importance of technology. Thus, she decided to invest in installing ATMs, issue payment cards and set up the VNBC network (with DongA Bank). Her decision was not initially supported by all leaders of the lender. She is now seeking measures to deal with the ongoing interest rate storm. Knowing that depositors may withdraw capital to put into other banks, Anh demanded her branches negotiate with depositors to head off their intention of withdrawing capital. She had experience in this situation with Saigonbank in the 1990s; thus, she was very calm.

 

She always believes that success comes from desire and heart. When she was a student, she loved banking and she was very diligent. She was selected to be a lecturer at her university. She wished to transmit all her knowledge for her students and always thought of interesting situations for her students to discuss and find solutions. When she moved to the banking sector, she continued to be devoted to her business. She never stopped learning from the experience of her colleagues and from her field visits to enterprises. She knows that a lack of determination will lead to serious consequences. Since she took the deputy general directorship at Saigonbank, Anh always keeps her heart in the business, and asks her employees to follow.

 

She said: “Winning the Golden Rose Award is my honour. This award is like a breath of fresh air, as well as inspiration for me to step forward in the challenging road ahead. In addition, the award is a reminder of my responsibility – as a Businesswoman in the wto era.”