For someone coming down for work purposes, I would think your first priority is to make yourselves as comfortable as possible in as short a time as possible so that there is a minimum of fuss and getting into the job. Depending, of course, on how much time you or your husband may have between arriving and starting work. If you had a month or so, you could stay anywhere at first and find a place that suits you without having to worry about transit time for work.
If it's a shorter time to have to start work, I wouldn't plan on settling down immediately. You need to find a place close to work and then take time to see where you might want to live if it's a longer-term kind of thing.
I don't know that I would rent a place right off in Puerto Madero, for the reasons given. It's isolated, although easy to get to. When you first come here, you're going to want easy access to stores because you will be buying things (even if it's just food to cook, and a laundry place to wash clothes, etc). It's not impossible to buy things in PM, but I don't think there are many, if any kioscos (little convenience stores) and things like hardware shops, locksmiths, etc. I've never noticed them. They're not that far away, but you can live in places that have these things in abundance right next door.
Just across Alem (which is what Libertador turns into) from Puerto Madero is a nice neighborhood (actualy a part of Retiro officially, but on the other side of Alem and Puerto Madero) that is next to San Martin Plaza. It is bounded by 9 de Julio (I've heard called the widest avenue in the world), Libertador, Alem and Santa Fe. The area is close to a large slum (called a villa - it's behind the train station Retiro and extends up to Puerto Madero environs at one end. BTW, Recoleta is as close to the slum, and Palermo's edges next to Recoleta as well.) but it is a ritzy residential area with a lot of expensive, comfortable apartments. There is a very large (for BA) police presence in the area. I live there, a half block from Plaza San Martin, one block away from a local police station. It's fairly safe, as long as you stay away from the train station Retiro at night and early in the morning. It's down on one end of Puerto Madero (but across Alem, as mentioned), but easily reachable with a 15 minute walk. Places are going to be more expensive here, but you can find some nice places.
On the other side of Santa Fe, still between Alem and 9 de Julio for quite a ways (Diagonal Norte?) is Micro Centro. There are probably a ton of apartments to stay in that area and that whole area is also just across Alem from Puerto Madero. The prices will be much more reasonable, but the scale of newness and/or luxury will be lower.
Personally, I would stay as close to work as possible and still be comfortable until you know the score. Palermo begins to get into traffic issues when you talk about rush hour. Personally, I thank my lucky stars every day that I can work in my own office in my apartment, because if I had to ride a packed bus and deal with all the stops, pickpockets, and traffic, try to find a taxi (like everyone else at that time) and wait in traffic, squeeze onto subway cars an deal with pickpockets, or drive myself through traffic at rush hour, I'd shoot myself after a while. I used to do it a few times a week when I first came down here, and it's only gotten worse as the city has revamped some bus routes and screwed up the traffic patterns in this end of the city. Getting here from Palermo would probably be at least a half hour (5 minutes without traffic - it's close by, but probably too far for a walk every morning and evening) and up to one and a half hours (depending on your transport type) from Nunez at the far end of Cap Fed.
I'd think either of the two areas I'd mentioned would be the best place to start off since the work location is in Puerto Madero. In the areas I've mentioned, there's everything you need within a short walk, usually on the same block. Short walk to work, or a short taxi ride (which sometimes may take as long as a walk anyway...).
Get the lay of the land if you're going to be down here long enough, figure out a better place to live on your own time, and meanwhile transit time and frustrating traffic don't have to be a stress-makers while getting settled into work.
