TradeEvolution - Global Trade Finance Consultants

TradeEvolution is group of highly experienced Global Trade executive consultants, with a deep understanding of Trade Banking. Each brings industry recognized difficult-to-find expertise with a track record of accomplishment in their arena. Whether working singly or in cross-discipline teams, TradeEvolution consultants provide the specific knowledge and know-how required to make your initiative successful.

The following profiles illustrate the caliber, experience, and accomplishments of TradeEvolution's executive consultants. It also illustrates the collective breadth of TradeEvolution's cross-discipline expertise:

Expertise: Global Trade Banking Business Architecture, Global Trade Banking Application Design and Development, Trade Banking/Supply Chain Business and Application Integration, Insourcing and Outsourcing Business and Application Integration

Profile: Kitt Carswell has 25 years experience in global trade banking business architecture, application design, insourcing and outsourcing, integration design, supply chain business and application integration, and development management. He has successfully held many senior positions including, VP LC Development (Anacomp), Development Manager - Trade Finance Group (AMS), European Corporate Banking - Practice Manager (AMS), and Director of Alliances (AMS). Regardless of position, Kitt always provided senior subject matter expertise in trade banking and solutions design.

As Director of Alliances at AMS, Kitt implemented the strategic initiative to integrate supply chain solutions into the Trade Service Group’s (TSG) product lines. Components included were Document Preparation, Purchase Order Management and Visibility, Corporate LC, Reconciliation, Document Management and Dashboard, and real-time seamless integration to AMS products.

Kitt provided creative and intellectual leadership in a variety of roles during his 20 years with AMS. He provided senior level guidance and in-depth expertise for the trade outsourcing of a large Canadian bank. He developed the global trade banking business architecture employed by Proponix, the global trade insourcing service, and designed many of the most complex components. As a founder of the Trade Services Group at AMS, Kitt lead the design and development of virtually all of the TradeLine family of products.

Kitt has worked with numerous banks around the world, serving 5 years in Frankfurt, as European Corporate Banking - Practice Manager. Kitt also brings the experience having launched well over 10 new businesses, numerous products, and initiatives.

Kitt's main focus is now the business, process, and technology integration of Trade Banking and and global supply chain platforms.

Expertise: International Trade and Export Finance, Trade Services, Credit, Vendor Financing and Supply Chain, International Debt, Merchant Banking, Financial Instrument Trading, and Project Finance.

Profile: Robert C. Flores, President and Founder of the firm personally supervises all client activity. Mr. Flores has held positions at Price Waterhouse, Kemper Insurance and Teledyne Corporation.

Flores Financial Services believes in attention to detail and persistence, which is what our clients value most about the firm. In the words of one international banker, “A number of us who have tripped over one another in this business have found we have a common thread. It is Bob Flores.” Former President of Bank One International Corporation, Darin Narayana said, “You think of Bob when you have a need for the right person, and he works the way you want him to work!”

Bob maintains an extensive database of Trade Banking experts from which TradeEvolution leverages to assemble our teams.

Expertise: Global Trade Application Design, Development and System's Integration, Trade Technology Operation's Management, In/Outsourcing Automation, and Financial Supply Chain Automation.

Jim Francis has twenty years of global trade technology experience. In 2004 he left his position at American Management Systems (AMS) as Vice President of Product Management, Development, and Operations of the IT outsourcing business; and joined Neovera as a Principal Partner and VP of Operations. Neovera is TradeEvolution's strategic technology partner whose strong ties are evidenced by Jim's involvement as a Principal and Chief Technology Officer of TradeEvolution.

In his nearly twenty years at AMS, Jim was directly involved in development and integration for all of AMS’s trade finance applications, including TradeLine®, Object TradeLine®, TradeFlow®, TradePortal® and hosted Proponix® offerings. Jim secured the patent for Distributed Workflow in International Trade Services (Patent # 6,772,131) and his overall Proponix work was credited with the 2003 Banker Technology Award in “IT Outsourcing”.

Jim has extensive global exposure having participated in over twenty international trade finance projects, some requiring multi-year relocation to Europe and Pac/Asia. All were complex implementation and integration projects to customize trade finance software to local and bank practices, and to embed these trade finance systems into the highly integrated system's environments common in Europe and elsewhere.

The solutions included back-office processing systems, front-office customer systems, imaging workflow solutions, in/outsourcing solutions, global reporting solutions, and various supply chain automation offerings (e.g. open account, document preparation, PO event management, and cross border compliance).

The confluence of Jim’s technology expertise, including very complex global technical architecture design, development, implementation, and technical operations, and his substantial understanding of trade banking, yields a rare perspective and in-depth know-how. From vision formation, design creation, and management of very complex development and integration engagements, Jim is a leader of the highest caliber. His experience, drive, skill, know-how, and leadership are exactly what is required to deliver a critical technology project.

Expertise: Trade Finance and Trade Banking: strategy, business processes, in/outsourcing and project management/implementation; Trade & International Development, Export Promotion, Public Sector Advisory Services, Operational and Program Reviews

Profile: Alexander Malaket is a founding Alliance Partner of TradeEvolution, and the Principal and founder of OPUS Advisory Services International, a trade and management consultancy practice based in Canada. He has been involved in financial services for over eighteen years, focusing specifically on trade and trade finance since 1991.

As a member of the trade operations and trade projects team at a leading Canadian bank, Alexander acquired broad experience in all aspects of trade services, as well as business process analysis and activity-based costing.

Subsequently, Alexander joined the New York-based trade practice of a leading global consultancy, undertaking business analysis, project management, implementation and consulting assignments with top US and Canadian trade banks.

Alexander established OPUS Advisory Services in 2001, and has been engaged by world-class banking, government, and private sector clients on a variety of assignments since that time. OPUS Advisory has assisted clients with research and analysis, operational quality assurance, program reviews, customer surveys, and website content development.

OPUS Advisory has authored the complete trade finance web content for a trade banking client, and was co-author of a definitive guide to export finance, published by the Government of Canada. The practice covers a range of areas, including trade best practices, export promotion, operational in/outsourcing, offshoring, international development, and all aspects of trade banking.

Alexander is a member of the Toronto Board of Trade, the Forum for International Trade Training, and the public/private sector working group on service sector exports for Trade Team Canada., Service Industries Branch.

Alexander is a member of TradeEvolution’s executive consulting team and advisory group.

Expertise: Global Trade Finance, Senior Management, Strategy, Supply Chain Product Innovation - Open Account and Working Capital, Played Active Role in Numerous International Boards and Initiatives

Profile: Senior Executive with over thirty years of experience as an international banker and academic with active involvement in all aspects of trade finance, supply chain, institutional sales, electronic banking and overseas branch management. He spent 16 years abroad working in Belgium, Zaire, Philippines, Singapore and France and has negotiated deals in over 50 countries.

One of his primary areas of expertise is developping innovative solutions for supply chain financing thereby enabling companies to "leapfrog" the competition. During his long international career he has had many interesting assignments including: representing the French Banking System on the ECP (Electronic Commerce Project) at the International Chamber of Commerce in Paris, a member of the BOLERO Bank committee in London, Financial Institutions for BNP Paribas and as an adviser to the BNP Dresdner Bank joint ventures on their trade strategies in E. Europe and CIS. He has also served on a number of international boards and as acted as an advisor to the United Nations, European Central Bank (ECB), IFC, and the Laotian Government.

He has an MBA in International Finance from Penn State and a Masters in International Development from the Free University (Universite Libre) of Brussels, Belgium.

Expertise: Marketing Trade Services, Technology Acceptance, Corporate Buyer Behavior, Applied Statistics and Organizational Psychology.

Over the past twenty years, Ed has developed and run more than 350 studies in financial services including a 35-country multi-year study of trade banking and a 15-year study of corporate treasury management. Ed’s clients have included most of the world’s largest banks, as well as a cross-section of other financial institutions, regulators and industry associations. He has conducted international projects on behalf of ABN-Amro, BNP Paribas, Citibank, Deutsche-BT, Fidelity Investments, IOSCO and others. He has also presented study findings at Eurofinance, BAFT and many other conferences. Ed holds a PhD in Measurement & Evaluation (Applied Statistics) and is also a licensed Industrial Psychologist.

Expertise: Global Trade Banking Business; Strategy, Sales and Marketing; International Operations; International Trade Supply Chain. Insourcing and Outsourcing of Trade Operations and Technology; Business Case Development and Implementation.

Peter Wren was global head of Trade Finance for 12 years for a leading North American bank with strong presence and market share in the trade finance markets in Canada, the United States, and Asia. Peter has over 33 years of international banking experience spanning global trade finance management, strategy formation, strategic business development, sales and marketing, technology deployment, global operating model innovation and implementation, and global operations.

Peter lead the bank through fundamental changes in their approach to the market and the underlying technology required to meet the new market challenges. This required re-designing of the bank’s overall processing model delivering a truly global, scalable, and efficient operation. To this end, Peter was instrumental in the founding and initial management of Proponix, a trade finance joint venture, where three major trade banks and CGI-AMS jointly invested in innovating and developing the next generation of global technology, and operating models. Subsequently, Peter played a key role in outsourcing the further development, maintenance, operation of the resulting Proponix technology to CGI-AMS, managing the associated business and legal complexities. Taking the next steps forward to address the industry move towards open account, Peter has leveraged the new global platform to deliver products and services more directly linked to the international supply chain.

Peter has been actively involved in contract negotiation and business case development as well as serving on a number of international industry bodies such as the ICC and various banking organizations. He has served as a director of external companies and subsidiaries and has played an active role on a number of Boards, including Chairman. He has traveled extensively internationally and has an in-depth understanding of global business practices and the technical aspects of trade documentation and regulations.