Miami-Dade Beacon Council Announces Lineup of Top Business and Community Leaders as Committee Chairs

(Miami, FL) Sept.15, 2016 — The Miami-Dade Beacon Council announced today its roster of new committee leaders for 2016-2017.

The six industry and four market committees help implement the community’s economic development strategy by helping drive job creating investments that offer high paying jobs and promising career paths. The committee chairs provide direction and leadership for their committee’s goals which support the business development mission of the Miami-Dade Beacon Council such as generating new business leads and visiting local businesses.

“We’ve assembled a group of the most influential industry and community leaders in Miami-Dade County to help guide this community into the future,” said Miami-Dade Beacon Council’s Chair Ernie Diaz.  Chair-elect Jaret Davis added, “This year, we have appointed committee chairs and chair-elects to ensure continuity of mission and a succession plan for future leadership.”

The new Miami-Dade Beacon Council committee chairs and chair-elects for 2016-17 include:

Aviation

Alex De Gunten, Business Development Officer, HEICO Aerospace – Chair
Peter Cerda, Regional Vice President,  International Air Transport Association – Chair-Elect

Banking and Finance

Steve Leth, Sr. Vice President, Non Profit, Healthcare, and Government Division,SunTrust – Chair

Felipe Basulto, Retail Market Manager, Miami DadeTD Bank – Chair-Elect

Creative Design

Jonathan Bruckner, Market Vice President, Florida and Texas, Tiffany & Co. – Chair

Danielle Garno,Shareholder, Greenberg Traurig – Chair-Elect

International

Olga M. Ramudo, President & CEO, Express Travel – Chair

Roberto Muñoz, South Florida Market President, BBVA Compass – Chair-Elect

Life Sciences and Healthcare

James Gale, IP Litigation Co-Chair,Cozen O’Connor – Chair

Matthew Pinzur, Associate Vice President, Communications and Outreach,
Jackson Health – Chair-Elect

New Leaders Taskforce

Maya Tzur, Branch Sales Representative,Bank United – Chair

Austin Hollo, Vice President, Florida East Coast Realty – Chair-Elect

Small Business

Andrew Ashby, Senior Vice President, Business Banking Market Leader,
BankUnited Chair

Joe Atkinson, President, South Florida Region – Wells Fargo – Chair-Elect

Technology

Hugo Perez, Managing Director, United Data Technologies – Chair

Chair-Elect – Pending

Trade and Logistics

Ron Atapattu, President& Founder– Overseas Cargo – Chair

Romaine Seguin, President, UPS International Inc., Chair-Elect

Urban Initiatives

Barron Channer, Chief Executive Officer, BACH Real Estate – Chair

Teri Williams, President, OneUnited Bank – Chair-Elect

Each committee sets specific goals to increase jobs and investment in their sector. They implement programs to strengthen industry clusters, attract new business, strengthen the talent pipeline and help local companies expand.  The committees work closely with the other community leaders to implement One Community One Goal recommendations that are respective to their industry.

“From top to bottom this is a powerhouse line up of community and industry thought leaders,” said Miami-Dade Beacon Council’s President & CEO Larry K. Williams. “We are fortunate to have recruited this highly talented, diverse group of individuals, who will be invaluable resources for advancing the economic well-being of our community. 

The new committee chairs assume their leadership roles on October1, 2016. 

About The Miami-Dade Beacon Council

The Miami-Dade Beacon Council is Miami-Dade County’s official economic development partnership. The not-for-profit public-private organization focuses on job creation and economic growth. Since 1985, the organization has assisted more than 980 businesses that have created more than 65,000 direct jobs and added more than $4 billion in new capital investments. It accomplishes this by marketing Miami-Dade as a world-class business location, growing local companies and shaping the local economy’s future. For more information, visit www.beaconcouncil.com