+1-661-731-3579
jonthiele@global.t-bird.edu
www.jonthiele.com

Mr. Thiele has very strong economic development experience ranging from strategic planning for regional development to firm-level assistance, from program concept & design to micro-enterprise support.

With 20 years' experience in development, he has proven general management success with four chief of party postings and three start-ups of multi-million dollar development projects. Currently in a headquarter's role, he leads the design and implementation of multi-faceted anti-poverty programs in eight post-conflict countries. 44,000 women, the poorest victims of war, are the beneficiaries, and the objective is to help each raise her income to one dollar a day within a year. Strategic assessment, program design, planning, leadership, and staff development are strengths.

He has demonstrated cross-cultural skills with supervisory experience in over twenty countries. He has worked in central Asia, the Balkans, the far East, the Caucasus, eastern Europe, and several countries of sub-Saharan Africa. He has worked with SME, credit, agribusiness, business development services, linkages & clusters, business environment, and trade. Association support, organizational development, and community-based development are key areas of expertise along with training, capacity building, and grant making.

He has a master's degree from Thunderbird and an honors BA in economics with undergraduate study in Germany. He has written well regarded essays on development issues. He speaks Russian with high proficiency and German with moderate proficiency. He also has ten years professional experience in the US focusing on marketing management, marketing communications, and budgeting.

Master of International Management, Thunderbird, 1982.
Bachelor of Arts Cum Laude, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, 1981.

Transformative Learning, Istanbul, 2011
Development for Women in Africa, Denmark, 2010
USAID's GDA Design, Washington, 2009
Environmental Management & Compliance, Montenegro, 2006.
Peer Review Panel, US Department of Commerce Good Governance Program, 2003.
Islam and the West, Oxford, 2002.
Monitoring and Evaluation Design and Use, Delhi, 2000.
Micro-finance Partnerships, Delhi, 2000.
Gender Equity in Program Design, Tbilisi, 1999.
USAID Financial Regulations & Compliance, Budapest, 1998.

Senior Manager for Economic Development, Women for Women International, Washington
March, 2008, to present

Director of an extensive program to raise the incomes of very poor women in eight countries each year via micro-enterprises, business groups, and cooperatives. The program reaches over 40,000 women adversely effected by war in eight countries each year.

To design this ambitious program I began with analysis of market opportunities, assessments of country office capacity, a review of the business environment, and a survey of the skills & interests of the women. The women's needs were many, and I wrote training curricula for numeracy, business, and job skills programs. The plan became a comprehensive stragety for a multi-faceted economic development program.

To build field capacity, I hired dozens of new staff and created training materials. Implementation is a daily challenge, and my current role focuses on mentoring the field teams, supervising the HQ program staff, and monitoring implementation plans and budgets. I spend about 35% of my time in the field.

In addition to the year-long training curriculum, the program also includes over 20 pilot programs for job creation and three major social enterprises. All together, I lead a team of about 30 and project budgets of just over a million dollars a year.

Leadership of a large agribusiness program funded by USAID.

This was a very well regarded business and trade promotion program with practical, firm level business development; significant regional trade activities; grant making; and implementation of EU standards in agri-processing. Management of daily operations covered four field offices, a dozen local subcontractors, 36 staff, and an annual budget of three million.

Leadership of an economic development program funded by USAID.

This was part of the largest community development program in the world and focused on economic development and decentralization. There was a very large grant component. It was my role to guide the team through a recovery from a difficult IG investigation and forensic audit. Daily operations meant management of five expats, 65 staff, and an annual budget of six million.

Leadership of a local government support program funded by USAID.

We worked with ten municipalities to guide budget & finance reform, improve organizational efficiency, and change economic policy at the local level. My management role covered coordination of field teams, five project offices, two expats, 15 staff, three subcontractors, and a small grant program.

I also provided technical assistance to local government officials and community stakeholder teams, and designed & delivered seminars & workshops to help the municipalities produce strategic plans for economic development.

This was very sucessful. Eight of the ten municipalities incorporated this planning process into their local government regulations.

Designed a new, aggressive grant making program to complement a very large human rights, lawyer training, and rule of law project with a grant budget of four million dollars.

I prepared processes and personnel to write RFPs, review grant applications, and implement an objective approval process and maintain a diligent grant management and reporting process. I also established the project's Admin & Finance procedures and policies, hired, and trained staff.

Regional Director, Eurasia Foundation, Central Asia
August, 2001, - August, 2003

Chief of Party for a large-scale grant-making program funded by USAID.

Working in three country offices with over twenty employees, we reviewed over 300 grant applications and approved 60 each year valued from $3,000 to $200,000. We supported established and new NGOs across civil society categories and smaller rural communities in coordination with European and international donors and programs.

Chief of Party for economic and community development project funded by the US Department of Labor.

At start-up I hired and trained 15 staff, opened regional offices, and wrote project's annual plan. Our budget of over $1.5 million per year was aimed at community development through an economic renewal program to provide services to dislocated workers and their families at Chernobyl and in coal mining towns

As project manager for an agricultural lending program with over $1.2 million in assets, I provided direct oversight and guidance for all bank operations as a member of the board of directors and directed the field staff in loan monitoring and collection efforts.

Serving also as the Small Business Development advisor for the Caucasus region, I acted as CARE's regional expert on economic development activities, designed and wrote projects for credit union development and employment generation among internally displaced persons and refugees.

Country Director, Land O'Lakes-- International Division; Ukraine, Poland, and Hungary
November, 1996, - August, 1999

Chief of Party for a three year agribusiness and trade development project which offered a comprehensive set of integrated programs.

At project start-up, I hired 14 FSN and 2 expat staff, opened new offices, and wrote the organization's plan and procedures. We provided association support, capacity building of consultants, training workshops, bank training, and regional trade promotion activities. We staged annual trade fairs and training sessions in three countries, administered PL480 monetization, and in addition, I led USAID's strategic planning team for western Ukraine which wrote the first significant revision to the mission's country-wide strategy, and secured 21% increase in funding for the project.

NGO Advisor, Academy for Educational Development, Central Asian Republics
May - November, 1996

I directed the conversion of the project's five resource centers into financially self-sustaining operations in six months with supervision of staff in five countries, the development of fee-for-services programs, business plans to lead to four self-sustaining NGO's, and a financial planning and reporting system for each NGO.

Business Management Advisor, North Kazakstan Business Support Center
May 1994 - May 1996

As the first American to live in this soviet industrial town, I opened and operated a business center which provided business development services to assist local businesses in reorganizing. Working on loan applications of up to $3 million, I was the regional liaison for assistance programs located in the capital, and completed three new grants and loans in 18 months.

As a Peace Corps volunteer, I designed and implemented a loan program targeted at small farms. With initial funding of $100,000 our 97% collection rate enabled us to secure an additional $25,000 in funding.

Additional Experience

Project Start-up Advisor, International Republican Institute, Kyrgyz Republic
August - October, 2003

Open new office, conduct country-wide assessment of the political environment, and design a training program for new and existing political parties to foster improved public/private policy dialogue between parties, NGOs, and government.

Consulting to the Ministry of Agriculture, Farms, & Fisheries on the privatization of assets in agricultural education and extension services.

Prior to going overseas, I was a successful independent consultant for over six years with a specialization in marketing planning and campaign development. Projects included:
- Management systems review: integrated multi-channel sales organization for a regional petroleum distributor;
- Marketing policy: revised pricing policies for a Fortune 100 automotive products company;
- Distribution strategy: conducted master franchise sale in western Europe;
- Campaign development: numerous business to business direct marketing campaigns;
- and many more domestic and international marketing management issues.

Product Manager, Fort Howard Paper

- Full P/L for a $130 million line of institutional paper products
- Two successful new product launches
- Distributor price policy development and monitoring

Sales Administrator, Newell Group

- $50 million consumer products company
- Budget development and control
- Pricing analysis in distribution channels

Languages

Russian: high proficiency
German: middle proficiency