Marcos Guevara

Marcos is a Business Strategist with over 10 years of international experience in Venture Capital, Corporate and Financial environments and is skilled in:
- Designing and planning strategic change initiatives, following a practical, client-centric, results-oriented approach.
- Leading and motivating “change evangelists” in both small and large organizations, focusing on the human aspects of the initiatives under his tutelage.
- Involving and selling objectives to technical personnel and technology vendors, ensuring the successful execution of the change initiative.

Marcos’ expertise arises from practical experience in high stress business turnaround situations where strategic realignment was closely supported by operational and financial restructuring. Complementing this experience, he has also facilitated Strategic Planning workshops and taught graduate-level Business Strategy classes.

Marcos Guevara’s Specialties:

Sustainable Small and Medium Enterprise (SME), Microfinance, business strategy, entrepreneurship

Marcos Guevara’s Experience

COO

Blue Star Partners, LLC

(Privately Held; Management Consulting industry)

December 2008 — Present (1 year )
Advisor

Grow Smarter, Inc.

(Information Technology and Services industry)

July 2006 — Present (3 years 5 months)

We are the leading provider of on-demand vineyard management solutions that enable growers and wineries to manage critical information from their vineyards - from soil to the winery door.
Managing Partner

SME Partners

(Management Consulting industry)

January 2004 — Present (5 years 11 months)

SME Partners offers advisory services to investors and entrepreneurs involved in small and medium enterprises. As a natural extension of this specialization, SME Partners also provides strategy and change management support to business units of large corporations.

Recently, I've delved deeper into the Operational aspects of SMEs, providing back office relief to clients who wish to dedicate their time and effort to revenue generation, eschewing expense tracking, customer billing, bank reconciliation, vendor selection and management, etc.

Some past activities include:

• Restructured the startup plan of a $1 mm biofuel initiative.
• Successfully led the restructuring of Amigo S.A., a small, self-regulated micro finance institution.
• Led the change management initiative in Grupo Alcos S.A., a medium pharmaceutical laboratory, reformulating both its overall business strategy and its capital structure.
• As part of the company mentor team to New Ventures, contributed to the equity funding of 9 of 20 company finalists.
• Frequent speaker and writer on entrepreneurship and business strategy.
MBA Program Coordinator and Graduate Lecturer

Universidad Privada de Santa Cruz (UPSA)

(Higher Education industry)

December 2003 — Present (6 years )

Administrator and lecturer in both UPSA's MBA programs (www.upsavirtual.com).

MBA Lecturer on Entrepreneurship, Business Strategy, and Corporate Finance

Class Facilitator for Global MBA (Thunderbird and ITESM joint venture)
Chief Operating Officer (acting)

Banco Los Andes ProCredit

(Banking industry)

April 2003 — July 2008 (5 years 4 months)

September 2007 to July 2008 (11 months)
As acting COO, in addition to creating the position, I oversaw the execution of the company's $30 mm annual budget and 6 direct reports: Procurement, Branch and HQ Operations, Integrated Security, Organizational Development, and Insurance.
• Consolidated the Operations Team, integrated by more than 700 people across 43 locations.
• Championed the justification and vendor selection of SAP's ERP System.
• Initiated the use of Microsoft's Sharepoint Services as part of the new project management practice.
• Facilitated the National and Regional Strategy workshops.

October 2006 – August 2007 (11 months)
Non-executive Board Member
• Contributed to the overall strategic direction of the Bank, actively participating in the monthly Board meetings.

April 2003 – September 2006 (3 years 6 months)
Shareholder trustee
• Ensured regulatory compliance as dictated by Bolivian law and the Bank Superintendence.
Graduate Lecturer

Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar (UASB)

(Educational Institution; 201-500 employees; Higher Education industry)

April 2005 — April 2008 (3 years 1 month)

Master Degree Lecturer on Entrepreneurship, SME Strategy, and Corporate Finance. Thesis guide.
New Ventures Consultant

World Resources Institute

(Non-Profit; 51-200 employees; Think Tanks industry)

February 2004 — November 2004 (10 months)

Mentor for New Venture's Investor Forum Finalist companies

Consultant to WRI on Latin American SME issues
Bolivia Fund Manager

Small Enterprise Assistance Funds (SEAF)

(Venture Capital & Private Equity industry)

November 2002 — December 2003 (1 year 2 months)

• Developed a scorecard approach to portfolio management.
• Improved investor relations by implementing informal but structured monthly meetings.
• Oversaw 5 direct reports and reported to the Regional Director.
• Managed an 8-company investment portfolio worth USD 4.2 mm.
Investment Officer

Small Enterprise Assistance Funds (SEAF)

(Venture Capital & Private Equity industry)

May 2000 — October 2002 (2 years 6 months)

• Developed a deal pipeline management system in MS Access.
• Identified, structured and justified investments in 3 companies for a combined total of $2.6 mm.
• Screened more than 200 investment requests.
Lieutenant

US Navy

(Government Agency; 10,001 or more employees; USN; Military industry)

February 1991 — August 1998 (7 years 7 months)

Helicopter Pilot (SAR, logistics, training): Sikorsky Sea King (UH-3H), Bell Jet Ranger (TH-57C), Beechcraft Mentor (T-34C)

Last duty station: VC-8, Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico

Honorably discharged.

Marcos Guevara’s Education

Thunderbird School of Global Management

MBA , International Management , 1999 — 1999

Activities and Societies:

National Society of Hispanic MBAs - Student Chapter President
University of Wisconsin-Madison

BS , Engineering Mechanics (Astronautics Option) , 1988 — 1992

Leader of Design Team: "Exploratory Mission to Jupiter's 4 Main Moons"

Activities and Societies:

Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE)
- Student Chapter Founder and President
- Professional Member

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA)
- Student Chapter Treasurer
- Professional Member
BDHS
Universidad Privada de Santa Cruz de la Sierra

Additional Information

Marcos Guevara’s Interests:

Sustainable SMEs, Small and Growing Businesses (SGB), Business strategy, change management, Webware, Software as a Service, on-demand software, Viticulture, phenology, vineyard management, microfinance, microcredit, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, Aviation Pilot, FAA Certified commercial, multi-engine, instrument rating (rotor and fixed-wing), consulting