1. Jerrold Smelcer Page 1 of 4
Jerrold Smelcer
US Passport; Authorized to work in Azerbaijan, Tajikistan
Phone: +1.520.392.1276; Email: jsmelcer@global.t-bird.edu
Address: 309 Lookout Drive, Sedona, Arizona, 86351, United States
International Senior Management Professional – Visionary and Innovative Leader
An accomplished and highly capable Senior Management Professional with an impressive international record of delivering successful strategies to turn around businesses, drive sustainable profitability and build strong equity growth.
A polished communicator with strong motivational skills and natural authority, this visionary and charismatic leader demonstrates a comprehensive knowledge of banking and finance, and leads by example to build and empower well-motivated teams to achieve goals and exceed expectations.
With a wealth of experience gained while in the US, EU, CEE, Caucuses and Central Asia, in all areas of driving change, growing revenue and maximizing profitability; this innovative, versatile professional uses well-developed skills to ensure the realization of objectives, and will be an asset to the board or senior management team of any forward thinking organization.
Skills
Executive Management Develops and deploys robust processes to eliminate operational inefficiencies
Strategy & Planning Defines and directs implementation of innovative & highly successful strategies
Risk Management Diligent planning, risk analysis and assessment, management and mitigation
Strategic Relationships Builds effective, respectful relationships at strategic levels with key stakeholders
Business Development Spearheads new initiatives to facilitate generation of revenue and new business
Profit Maximization Achieves maximum profits through strict cost control and revenue generation
Business Turnarounds Visionary leadership & skilled resource allocation, delivers rapid return to profit
Change Management Drives process and culture change with minimal disruption to core activities
People Management Strong and decisive leadership of diverse multi-cultural, cross-functional teams
Budgetary Control Sets & enforces strict but realistic budget controls to ensure containment of costs
Business Start-Ups Successfully establishes businesses to achieve early and sustainable profitability
Project Management Proven ability to lead complex projects from concept to successful completion
Languages English (Native); Russian (Moderate)
Microfinance, Financial Services, Joint Ventures, Supply Chain Management, Consulting and Trade
Career History
August 2010 – June 2014 FINCA Tajikistan, Dushanbe, Tajikistan
A subsidiary of FINCA International, founded in 1984, a recognized leader in microfinance and the pioneer of village banking methodology, operating a network of 23 country programs in Latin America, Africa, Eurasia, Middle East and South Asia.
Chief Executive Officer
Directed country operations in Tajikistan and led the process of a P/L turnaround by attacking issues related to competitiveness, capacity, efficiency, image, branch outreach, and other aspects through multi-faceted re- tooling of the institution. This included redirecting strategic vision for economic and human resources of the subsidiary, its operational and financial performance, as well as the restructure of its institutional capacity.
 Led the turnaround to profitability through cost restructure, policy / organizational change and expansion of services including implementation of money transfer services, multi-currency operations, currency exchange, savings, deposits, amongst others, resulting in strong profitability for country operations in 2014 for the first time since 2008, and only the second time in the eleven year history of FINCA in Tajikistan.

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 Grew the business from 300 employees to nearly 600 and from 8M USD in total assets to 39M USD.
 Increased the number of active clients from 17000 to over 34000, and from a loan portfolio outstanding in the amount of 7M USD to 37M USD.
 Completely rebuilt the FINCA Tajikistan management team, including the Management Board and heads of 9 functional units – HR, IT, Internal Audit, Internal Control, Finance, Credit, Marketing, Legal, and Admin.
 Institutionalized two additional functional units – Banking Services Department and Savings Department – in alignment with corporate strategy to diversify product offerings and mitigate regulatory environment risk.
 Repositioned the brand and strengthened market presence throughout the country via 1M USD investments in office renovation upgrades, relocation, a refocus on the “customer experience”, and introduction of the website www.finca.tj.
 Strengthened relationships with the Central Bank of Tajikistan, fostering support from the Chairman while diversifying the financial services portfolio.
 Led regional and global Asset/Liability Committees and quarterly Board of Director meetings; as well as oversight and support of regional and global Audit, HR, IT, and Internal Control meetings.
 Formulated agreements with IFC and EBRD on capacity development initiatives related to savings mobilization and the creation of a risk management department.
 Established the first National Credit Bureau in Tajikistan, as a member of the Board of Directors.
Achievements
 Received 2013 Brand of the Year Award from the Tajikistan Ministry of Trade and Commerce, in the microfinance sector category.
 Received 5M USD in equity from FMH (FINCA Microfinance Holding) over a 9 month period in 2011/12; and another 3.8M over a three month period in 2013/14.
 Outperformed projected figures on all key metrics for financial and outreach performance in 2012 and ‘14.
Role Structure
1. Ensure high quality financial services to the clientele, and maximize outreach to the target group in a sustainable way (25%)
2. Implement best-practice corporate governance, management, organizational structure and procedures, staff development, financial management, and risk management principles (20%)
3. Ensure compliance with the Charter/bylaws of the subsidiary; FINCA and subsidiary policies, procedures, plans and agreements; decisions of subsidiary governing bodies as well as headquarter and regional office; maintain good coordination with regional office, headquarters, and governing bodies (20%)
4. Mobilize funding resources in the form of debt and/or grant capital (15%)
5. Contribute to the development of the FINCA network (15%)
6. Promote FINCA International in the country (5%)
April 2008 – August 2010 FINCA Azerbaijan, Baku, Azerbaijan
Activity Based Costing Consultant
Provided a comprehensive review of operational efficiency and cost drivers that dictate future planning of organizational systems, policies, procedures, and structure.
 Analysis covered 650 employees, 61M USD portfolio outstanding, 82000 active clients, 6 loan products, 24 branch and 29 sub-branch offices located throughout the Republic of Azerbaijan.
 Key recommendations were made to the loan application, client approval, and loan monitoring processes that allowed the organization to increase efficiencies and reduce operating costs, as well as critical insight on break-even points per product line and pricing strategy to fuel revenue earnings.
Flex Cube MIS Conversion Project Leader
Project to test and implement a core retail banking system – FINCA International’s single largest investment to- date, worked with Oracle for several months in India, and then implemented the system at FINCA Azerbaijan.
 Led a select team of experts to execute 4 phases of functionality testing for MIS signoff with Oracle vendor.
 Created multiple strategic plans and managed the user acceptance testing process including business script scenario writing, data migration testing, report infrastructure analysis, test process tracking and documentation, and system rollout for Azerbaijan HQ and 24 Branch offices.
 Designed multi-language MIS user manuals, and led the training process for more than 300 personnel.
 Aligned corporate Finance Manual & Operations Manual policy and procedures to integrate the multitude of MIS process changes.

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January 2007 – April 2008 ACDI/VOCA, Baku, Azerbaijan
A private, nonprofit organization that promotes broad-based economic growth, higher living standards, and vibrant communities in low-income countries and emerging democracies.
Financial Sector MBAEC Consultant
Consulted for USAID’s SME Support through Financial Sector Development Project, provided strategic services to Executive Directors of Azerbaijan Credit Union Association (AKIA – comprised of 54 Credit Unions), Azerbaijan Microfinance Association (AMFA – 15 microfinance institutes and 7 banks) and assisted external consultants, brought in by ACDI/VOCA, who delivered technical support for AKIA, AMFA, and their members.
 Achieved 98% of AMFA’s Strategic Plan Initiatives for FY 2007.
 Designed and implemented the first internship program launched in the microfinance sector of Azerbaijan.
 Assessed Board & Member needs to create a 2008-10 Strategic Plan for implementation in FY 2008.
 Coordinated a 9 month project to support 6 Credit Unions (4 in rural regions) on various financial topics, Mix Market registration, and needs assessment/rating by India based M-CRIL international rating agency.
 Led an MIS project to install accounting and loan tracking software for 6 Credit Unions, conducted software vendor contract negotiations, and performed liaison functions between ACDI/VOCA and the Credit Union executive directors to successfully manage the installation, training, and post service support.
 Interpreted a ratio analysis of the Azerbaijan micro-finance sector and wrote the text for the international publishing of the 2nd Azerbaijan Benchmarking Trends Report. Analysis was coordinated between AMFA and the Microfinance Information eXchange (MIX Market - USA).
Achievements
 Benchmarking Trends Report distributed at the 10th Annual Microfinance Conference, Bulgaria (June 2007)
 Internship program was declared by AMFA to be the Most Innovative Program of the Year.
 Designed, wrote, and developed the first AMFA Annual Report for 2007 and the first “History of AMFA” Report covering the years 2001-2007.
January 2003 – December 2006 Various
 Director of Operations for Litamer Group LLC, exporting from Baltics/CIS to USA.
o Responsible for coordinating all activities with suppliers, packaging, labeling and export of goods to the United States.
 MBA studies successfully completed at Thunderbird School of Global Management.
 Traveled throughout Asia, Europe and USA.
December 1999 – January 2003 Joint Stock Company Nadiga Ltd, Vilnius, Lithuania
Lithuanian Specialist Company exporting to Europe crude oil and mineral oil refined from Russian crude in Russia, Belarus, and Lithuania, as well as delivering agricultural production to Eastern Europe.
Director of Operations and Strategic Development
Managed a newly created product division, and led the process of identification, development and establishment of new joint ventures to create a global agro commodity trading network.
 Facilitated letters of credit, escrow, bid bond, performance bond, and CAD instruments in European banks.
 Formed relationships with ABN Amro in Prague, and Bank of America in Los Angeles to facilitate financial trade transactions; activated an ABN AMRO trade account for transaction values not less than 3M USD.
 Led regional and global sourcing strategies, setting the direction of all channel members.
 Managed a virtual team of six sourcing professionals based in Europe, Russia, South America, and USA; negotiated high value sales/purchase agreements, promoted global sourcing events and strategy alignment.
 Utilized client facing management techniques to identify, seek out, present, and discuss commodity agreements with a multitude of public and private trade organizations; including governmental departments in the Baltics, Belarus, and Middle East (Ministry and Trade); such as the Ministry of Agriculture in Minsk, Belarus; IGO – Iranian Grain Organization (formerly Government Trading Corporation of Iran) and the US.
 Lead role in the development of a global supply chain that brought grain commodities (corn, wheat, barley) to the Eastern European and Middle East markets.
 Established a supplier network based in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, the United States, and West Europe.

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Education
Thunderbird School of Global Management, Arizona, USA December 2005
MBA in Global Management
 Thunderbird Europe Student Government President.
 Thunderbird Leadership EDGE Program, Thunderbird Corporate Liaison.
 Created volunteer programs between Thunderbird Europe and the ITU World Telecom / WSIS in Geneva.
Wirtschafsuniversität Wien, Vienna University of Economics & Bus Admin, Vienna, AUSTRIA May 2003
Certificate of International MBA Studies
Northern Arizona University, Arizona, USA August 1999
BSBA in Management
 Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE)
 NAU Intramural Sports Participant and Champion
Högskolan i Jönköping, Jönköping International Business School, Jönköping, SWEDEN July 1999
Certificate of International Management Studies, NAU Student Exchange Program
Memberships
Board Member Tajikistan National Credit Bureau
Chairman Tajikistan National Credit Bureau Vendor Selection Committee
Member Tajikistan Bank Association
Member Tajikistan Microfinance Association
Member Tajikistan AmCham
Ambassador Thunderbird Executive Education Campus
Awards & Other Accomplishments
President’s Volunteer Service Award – granted by the United States of America President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation.
Award for “Recognition of Contributions” in establishment of the First National Credit Bureau of Tajikistan – granted by IFC and Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.
Campus Involvement, Clubs, Activities, etc. at Thunderbird:
 TSG President (Thunderbird Student Government) – Elected by peers at the European Campus, France.
 Initiated, developed and coordinated a Thunderbird Europe /ITU World Telecom volunteer program at Palexpo Convention Center in Geneva, Switzerland.
 Created, developed and coordinated Thunderbird Europe /World Summit on the Information Society volunteer program at Palexpo Convention Center in Geneva, Switzerland.
 Member of the Energy Club, during academic studies at the US Campus in Arizona (chosen to attend dinners with Executives who participated in the Advanced Management Program for Oil and Gas Industry).
 Member of Thunderbird Leadership EDGE - a program which identifies, selects, and develops an elite group of high-potential MBA students for experiential leadership and growth opportunities.
 Took 1st Place in two last semester capstone course simulations at Thunderbird – recognized within the Thunderbird Alumni community as benchmark experience simulations for last semester MBA students.
o 1st place in the Multinational Corporate Finance capstone simulation – FORAD
o 1st Place in the Strategic Marketing Analysis capstone simulation – MARKSTRAT
 Member of the Russian Club.