Winders, who has held various roles at SBS Bank in Invercargill over the past 18 years, replaced former netball chief executive Sue Clarke at the end of March.
With more than two months under her belt in the job, Winders said it was ''so much more exciting'' than her previous job.
Retaining and recruiting players and ensuring Netball South was financially sustainable were the two biggest challenges, she said.
''The further I get in, the more I realise I have got to learn,'' she said.
''The learning process is quite steep. I haven't been able to just waltz in and sit back and learn and observe. I've had to actually get into it and get quite quickly to the heart of what we need to focus on.
''Particularly from a revenue and expenses perspective ... as a banker, I want to look at the numbers and make sure we are OK there. So that's been a been a key focus - analysing the budget and understanding how we are positioned.''
Netball South recorded a $21,000 deficit last year, something Winders plans to address by the end of the year.
Despite the deficit, which followed a $90,000 drop in funding and grants, Winders said the organisation was well-positioned.
With the ANZ Championship regular season coming to an end this weekend, the busiest time of the year is upon Winders.
She has already started contract negotiations with seven Steel players, and is determined to have the ''core group'' of players signed up by the end of the season.
''It's going not too bad,'' she said.
''I've only just kicked it off, just initiating it. I'm getting a really good vibe from the girls. They are keen to come back.
''I have to work with them progressively. If we get some key players signed, it will make it easier for other girls to say, `Yes, I want to play with that girl'. So, I've kind of staggered it strategically.''
Despite franchises not being allowed to approach players on other teams until a two-week window after the final (June 21 or 22), and after the Netball World Cup (August 16), one Steel player was recently approached by another franchise.
The New Zealand Netball Players Association rebuffed the approach and alerted Winders.
However, it did not reveal what franchise made the approach or to which player.
Winders realises she is probably not going to be able to retain all the players she wants to, due to the talent in the squad ''looking really attractive to some other teams'', who might lose players to retirement after the World Cup.
Winders believes Netball South's best assets are coach Janine Southby, the environment she and captain Wendy Frew have created in the Steel team, and a passionate fan base.
An almost full house turned up to watch the Steel, a team with just three wins, play the Mystics in Invercargill last weekend.
The Dunedin public has generally been awarded two Steel home games a season, but that could change with Netball New Zealand and Netball Australia reviewing the format of the competition, with possible changes in 2017, Winders said.
''I'm not privy to the options that they are discussing but I know that NNZ is seeing what it can do to get more home games happening for all franchises and that could see more games for Dunedin,'' she said.
No announcement is expected until after the World Cup.
