Rolando Ramirez

About the Candidate

Summary
With over 20 years of transferable leadership experience, a pro-team passion, and cross-cultural experience delivering projects on time, it is easy to understand why global business today demands ever-growing collaborative innovation and faster change.

· Spearheaded a startup for a global organization, distilling complex environments/processes and achieving new businesses valued at US$65M in 12 months.

· Innovated and led logistics company strategy, repositioning it with stakeholders’ and achieving profitability in 12 months. This “cost center” had no profits for 15 years.

· Steered a Bank online innovation, bringing new business valued at USD$50M in 12 months.

Skills

Stakeholder relationships – Strategic planning – Effective communication – Technology savvy – Program management – Social quality and responsibility – Financial funding – Sustainability focus – Process improvement – Leadership – Collaborative culture – Multi-cultural savvy

Work Experience

CAREER BREAK. GLOBAL AFFAIRS CANADA                                                     12/2019 – 07/2023

CANADIAN HIGH COMMISSION in Zambia, and Bangladesh.

I made a life-changing decision and lived in South Asian and Sub-Saharan African countries. As a result, I deepened my cultural and technical knowledge, studying the Canadian economy evolution; and gaining new certifications in AI, Cloud Management, and Project Management.

 

LEAD PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT MANAGER

PROJECT MANAGEMENT OUTSOURCED SERVICES                                        10/2003 – 12/2019

Led a consultant service designed to help clients overcome their shortcomings. Focused on strategy alignment and sector competitiveness, and, as project manager, implemented solutions that solved these challenges. I had a formal role leading a team and collaborating cross-functionally.

My clients competed in Telecom data transportation, Telecom wireless broadband, Digital Imaging, Retail, Advertising, Logistics, Car Servicing Retail, and Aftermarket Car Lubricants.

 

Strategy Planning, Market alignment, and Communication

· Advised Telecom Incumbent CEO with the redefinition of strategy due to structural market changes. The telecom industry went from a public monopoly to a competitive one.

· Trained Telco top brass financial executives in competitive, strategic, and execution topics.

· Prepared Telcos exhibits for Board Meeting reports including performance and financials.

· Proposed and communicated to stakeholders of a digital imaging business, the strategic and operational changes to update its competitiveness, including “greener” technologies.

 

Financial Modeling and Communication Management

· Structured a financial model of a real estate project valued at over US$90M, used across the organization to communicate cash flow estimates and price modeling.

· Structured fact sheets to negotiate an $80M investment, improving founder’s share value by 6X.

· Designed and proposed the communication strategy of a Telco cost reduction (11%) in a 22,000-person organization, preparing all presentations and internal news releases.

· Structured, and produced financial models of 8 startup products used to fund equity partners allowing the launching phase. (3 became successful start-ups).

· Aligned strategy, operations, and negotiated government procurement bids, on medical imagery industrial goods and digital health technologies.

 

Operations Excellence and Process Innovation

· Steered the reduction of Telco’s services churn by 32% and days-to-collection by 40%.

· Re-structure of wholesale inventory management, recovering 87% of unpaid receivables.

· Oversaw Telco’s short-term borrowing, bank relationships, and quarterly reporting.

· Structured Telco’s strategy to improve risk exposure, by developing wireless connectivity products aligned with the technology evolution.

 

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER                                                                    07/2002-10/2003

IMPROSA BANK – Costa Rica

· Engineered a new position, changing core business development, and end-to-end processes.

· Redesigned territories for team members, improving average performance by 50%, in 1 year.

· Drove a 30% total corporate loan portfolio growth, up to US$130M (2 times the market).

· Structured estimates of a new Mortgage product, bringing in US$6M in 6 months.

 

FINTECH DEVELOPMENT MANAGER                                                                      02/2000-06/2002

BANCO NACIONAL – Costa Rica

· Led the development of new products bringing in new business valued at over US$400M.

· Pioneered strategy and tech development for new online E-Factoring, and M-Banking.

· Coordinated external and internal stakeholders optimizing general legacy IT infrastructure and the new requirements of IT systems for online services.

· Led the first innovative mobile payment service (third party’s real-time collection platform).

 

EDUCATION

· Master in Business Administration (MBA)

INCAE Business School, Alajuela, Costa Rica.

Co-Structured by Harvard University in 1964.

Degree accredited by AACSB, AMBA & EQUIS

 

·  Bachelor in Business Administration (BBA)

Universidad de Costa Rica, San Jose, Costa Rica

 

PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATES

· AI for Business                                                                   9/22 – Wharton (U of Pennsylvania)

· Digital Transformation with AI/ML                                 6/22 – Google

· Project Management Professional Certificate               5/22 – Google