By GEORGE RUSSELL /EDITOR, TIME LATIN AMERICA

f the hum of printing presses and the rumble of delivery trucks in the night don't sound like music to you, maybe you need to listen more closely. Nadine Candemeres, our director of production, knows the rhythm and the melody well. "I think of myself as leading an orchestra," she says. "My job is to get everyone to do the right things at the right times." Candemeres, who has been on the job only six months, oversees the physical manufacture and distribution of the magazine from the moment it leaves the hands of our editors and art designers until it gets to your hands. That can involve everything from negotiating printing contracts and purchasing paper stock to putting in place the latest technical innovations in the printing and transmission processes to the complex logistics of delivery in 42 nations. "My goal," she explains, "is to produce quality magazines and distribute them on a timely basis at the lowest possible cost."

How did Candemeres end up with a job that, not so long ago, would have been considered a man's preserve? Good question. Originally, she was more interested in the fashion business. Born in Puerto Cortez, Honduras, Candemeres was seven years old when her father moved to New York City. After studying at Manhattan's Fashion Institute of Technology, she had thoughts of becoming a fashion designer. But, she adds, "I always had a passion for magazines." It led her to join Time Inc. 11 years ago as an account manager in the magazine's in-house engraving center. She moved to our sister publication FORTUNE as assistant operations manager before returning to TIME to become a financial manager. Her interest in publishing technology deepened along the way. "Technology is the driving force in the industry," she explains, cell phone and beeper never far away. "My job involves keeping on top of what's new."

And also on top of what's missing. One of her biggest challenges shortly after she took over her current job in November 1997 was to get her hands on 10 tons of paper. For some reason we had suddenly run short. (TIME Latin America goes through about 15 tons of high-grade coated stock a week.) There wasn't time to order more from the mill, so Candemeres quickly demonstrated a pragmatic streak by arranging to borrow what she needed from a competitor. She paid them back the following week. Most of her duties aren't that frenzied, but whatever the challenges, Candemeres has shown that she is our kind of conductor.

Editor, TIME Latin America