Charisma and passion are hallmarks of Orlando Espinosa’s approach to empowering business owners to grow their businesses. His most notable recent endeavor is as SBA Miami’s Emerging Leaders Instructor 2016 to present, which led to him becoming a top instructor with Interise, the organization whose Streetwise MBA curriculum is used for Emerging Leaders. In that position, he created quarterly Emerging Leaders alumni meetings, which have had record attendance. He has made a huge impact already with the small businesses enrolled in this program, by bringing them together to help each other and do business together whenever possible.

As an instructor to Miami Bayside Foundation, US Southern Command/Homestead Airforce base, Overtown Connect and Jim Moran Institute he has presented programs on numerous topics focused on business growth. Additionally, he has developed and organized workshops and presented for many Miami organizations including, U.S. SBA, Miami Dade College, SBDC National, SCORE, City of North Miami Economic Development, Beacon Council, City of Doral Economic Development, Start Up FIU, Mercantile Bank, Town of Miami Lakes, Venture Café and University of Miami, mostly aimed at small businesses.

Orlando was the first National Spokesperson for The Sallie Mae Fund’s “On the road: Paying for College Bus Tour”. The coast to coast tour gained national recognition for financial aid workshops in 70 cities. He was also a key member of creating and branding “2futuro”, a bilingual loan and outreach program by Sallie Mae and USA Funds. As a leadership advisor for ASPIRA of Florida, Inc., a youth-based organization, he empowered students through education and leadership workshops.

His passion for education has afforded him opportunities to counsel countless individuals and groups on higher education, presented to public and private business organizations, and has traveled nationally to conduct workshops on financial literacy, leadership, entrepreneurship, branding and marketing. He co-founded MICROscholarships Inc., a not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing opportunities to student entrepreneurs through equal access to scholarship funds and entrepreneurship training programs.

In his current role as co-founder of Emineo Media, Espinosa helps design, develop and implement business and outreach curriculums for Government agencies, Municipalities and organizations to market their brand by educating and training businesses. Emineo Media’s copyrighted curriculum, CEO Minded, Step Up Your Start Up, 8(a) Ready and Mission Possible: Strategies for Entrepreneurs has been implemented throughout Florida and other states. He is currently implementing programs with SBDC @ FIU, Miami Bayside Foundation, North Miami CRA, Homestead CRA, Town of Miami Lakes and other agencies in south Florida focused on brand building, entrepreneurship, leadership and sales and marketing. Emineo Media’s goal is to help businesses find the hidden gems their company possess by evaluating their overall business structure.

He graduated from Lee University with a Bachelor’s degree in Communication, and from Nova Southeastern University with a Master in Education. Espinosa is the recipient of the U.S. Small Business Administration South Florida District and State of Florida Small Business Advocate of the Year for 2016 and 2018. He is an unforgettable person – once you’ve met him, you’ll never forget him!

Dr. Karen Vieira is a multi-talented combination of scientific expertise, business savvy and enthusiasm for health and wellness. She is a medical scientist with a doctorate in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Florida College of Medicine department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, a Master’s of Science in Management from the University of Florida College of Business MBA program and a Bachelor’s of science in Biological Sciences with high honors, specializing in Molecular Biology, from the Florida Institute of Technology.

Dr. Vieira started her research career working on research on sickle cell disease patients in the Sickle Cell Center in Atlanta and from there moved on doing laboratory-based gene therapy research for sickle cell disease. Since she too has the genetic disease, helping with sickle cell has been her life-long passion.

She has laboratory and clinical research experience both in academia and with the largest food company in America. As a senior research scientist at Kraft Foods, she did nutritional research to discover new health benefits of existing food ingredients and natural compounds. Her project areas included bone health, diabetes and cognitive health. While there, she also started a comprehensive cell culture research project, a first of its kind there, discovering and prioritizing novel and emerging food ingredients for health and wellness using cell culture studies. This project later became part of a $10 million joint venture with a Nobel prize laureate.

Dr. Vieira is the sole owner of The Med Writers, a medical and scientific writing company that helps researchers get published easier by writing for them and helps companies get the Google rank they want by writing credible informational content for their websites. The company was started in 2007 after Dr. Vieira left Kraft Foods. They have worked on projects for companies like Belkin, Dole Johnson & Johnson, Meijer Pharmacy, Omega XL, Sechrist, ShopRite, Merck and Abbott Informatics, just to name a few. The company is comprised of a team of writers that are doctoral medical scientists, medical doctors, naturopathic doctors and chiropractic doctors, bringing credibility and their depth of experience to clients’ projects. They also formulate new dietary supplement blends for clients in the supplement industry, ensuring safety and efficacy. Over the past 10 years, she has grown from being a solopreneur, to having a team of 4 part and full-time staff plus as many as 20 part-time, full-time and freelance writers. The business is a federally-certified 8(a), WOSB, MOSB and EDWOSB, and are currently working on an NIH contract.

Her charisma and knowledge have led to her winning many awards over the years. These include being awarded SBA South Florida District Woman-Owned Small Business Person of the Year 2018, selected as a finalist in the 2017 Xcelerate Wellington 2.0’s Homegrown People’s Choice Award, selected as a 2016 SBA Emerging Leaders participant, winning the University of Florida Medical Guild research presentation, winning the Florida Tech Tri-Beta research presentation and being a Howard Hughes science grant recipient for an internship at Emory University.

As an international student with limited access to scholarship and grant money, plus zero access to student loans, Karen completed all 3 of her degrees solely with scholarship, grant and fellowship money, plus working in the fast food and telemarketing industries to support herself. The tenacity which she approached school with, enrolling in a doctorate and an MBA program concurrently, is the same way she approaches everything in life. Her work has been published in many medical journals such as Nucleic Acids Research, Journal of Biological Chemistry, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Nutrition Journal, Annals of General Psychiatry and International Archives of Medicine. She is a general health, cancer and weight loss coach, often volunteering her time to help people with their health conditions using dietary and lifestyle changes plus dietary supplements. With her experience as sickle cell patient and a sickle cell gene therapy researcher, she volunteers with her local Sickle Cell Foundation. She also helps other small business owners with their marketing, websites, sales, hiring, government certifications and proposal writing – the areas of business she excels at.

Raju Mohandas is a Florida SBDC at FIU consultant with more than two decades of experience in financial management and business turnaround. In addition to helping businesses obtain growth capital, he is adept at developing business strategies, incubating new business models and building out channel programs. He has extensive expertise in operational and deployment strategies, including budgeting, job costing, strategic planning and project management. Raju graduated from the University of Miami with a Bachelor’s in Industrial Engineering and an MBA in Finance.

In 1988 he started a company that was ranked in the top 100 nationwide in the industry. Raju has devoted the last 20 years to working with small businesses in facilitating financing for their business growth, as a consultant for their sales/marketing and operations, and as a turnaround professional. He has successfully restructured and helped small businesses obtain capital for their assets and operational needs. As the founder of BridgePoint Financial Group/BridgePoint Investments he has been able to secure capital for SME to ensure the growth and sustainability of their business. Through Bridgepoint he has been able to secure over $50MM in funding for small businesses. Raju has travelled nationally working with companies that have either hit a temporary rough patch or are seeking to grow and scale their business. After a thorough evaluation and assessment of the overall business, to ensure the business is still viable, Raju builds the organization internally from sales, operations, financial structure, personnel and marketing to ensure the business scalability. Many of the businesses he has consulted with have either been sold or grew exponentially due to his leadership and expertise. He has received numerous commendations from all the businesses he has worked with throughout the years.

Raju Mohandas has been helping businesses turnaround and scale for more than 20 years. Throughout his career in crisis management, Raju has served as an interim executive officer and reorganization director for both large and small companies, public and private. He is known for rolling up his sleeves and focusing on the pertinent issues with straightforwardness and integrity. Mohandas has built a reputation for developing business strategies, incubating new business models, and building out channel programs. He is a successful Business Executive with professional Track record encompassing experience in Strategic Planning, Product Development, Business Development, Market Research, Corporate Finance, Forecasting, Administrative Management, Project Management and Change Management. Mohandas has a proven ability to recognize and capitalize on market trends. He has extensive expertise in operational & deployment strategies, including budgeting, job costing, strategic planning and project management. He has developed numerous workshops focused on finance, funding, marketing, operations and sales. Raju Mohandas graduated from the University of Miami, FL with a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering and an MBA in Finance. He has over 30 years of experience in sales & marketing, operations and finance. Raju is an alumnus of the SBA Emerging Leaders Program and continues to provide support to other alumni to ensure their business growth.

Mr. Garcia has been an Entrepreneur from an early age. Mr. Garcia was sole owner of two businesses before completing his Bachelors’ Degree in Business Administration. His concentration in Entrepreneurship and International Business only fueled his desire to pursue life as an Entrepreneur. Prior to receiving his undergraduate degree, Mr. Garcia opened a tax practice. Concurrently with his tax practice, Mr. Garcia consulted small to large companies advising them on areas of accounting.

While continuing to manage the operation of his tax practice, Mr. Garcia would eventually complete his Graduate and Juris Doctorate degrees. Following the completion of both degrees, Mr. Garcia would eventually open his law practice to compliment his accounting and tax services. Mr. Garcia now operates a thriving law practice in three states assisting clients with their corporate, real estate, property associations, and property insurance claims. Additionally, Mr. Garcia is the Chair for SCORE in Miami-Dade County and a certified SCORE counselor advising small businesses on various topics to help propel their businesses to the next level. He has also provided assistance the Small Claims Clinic providing assistance those filing small claims cases.

Mr. Garcia has spoken on a variety of topics such as: How to start a business, Defining a business’ cost & profit centers, Seeking financing for a business, Proper budgeting, Communication within your organization, Estate Planning for Business Owners, Maximizing your tax refund while minimizing your costs, Importance of Capital Accounts, Tax planning, Stock Purchase Agreements vs. Asset Purchase Agreements, and Reducing member apathy.

Ms. Cunningham will serve as Project Manager (PM) on this contract. She has more than 20 years of experience managing multi-million dollar public sector contracts for municipalities, government agencies and community organizations. She currently serves as a PM on marketing, branding and public relations contracts for Jackson Health System and Jackson Health Foundation in Miami-Dade County; Speak Up Broward Phase 3 for the Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization (BMPO), the City of Kissimmee Gateway Airport in Osceola County, and City of Altamonte Springs in Seminole County. Ms. Cunningham’s role is to manage day-to-day tasks, offer high-level insight and monitor contract resources to ensure all tasks are completed on time and on budget. She will be responsible for integral project management tasks, such as developing a strategic marketing plan, to ensure the highest Return on Investment (ROI) for Urban Health Partnerships. Ms. Cunningham is instrumental in developing marketing plans are used by clients as road maps to define and determine what contract resources are available and how they can be maximized.

Ms. Cunningham assigns tasks and deadlines and empowers her team with the tools they need to succeed. She defines, schedules, and accurately estimates the duration of assigned tasks on the contracts she manages to develop and maintain a realistic schedule for completion. Ms. Cunningham monitors contract budget and ensure that clients always have a 360° view of the contract’s resources. To ensure work quality and client satisfaction with the TBA team, Ms. Cunningham maintains constant communication with clients, reporting on progress and receiving feedback. In her role as PM, she ensures that her team is ready to tackle any issues that may arise and works quickly towards resolving them. To make sure a project is progressing as planned, she constantly measures and compares metrics against strategic marketing plans that her team creates. She writes monthly status reports that are used by clients to track progress. She is also responsible for financial tracking and invoice submittals on the contracts she manages. Ms. Cunningham holds a Bachelor of Public Administration degree from Florida International University (FIU). She is a Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM), accredited by the Project Management Institute (PMI). Ms. Cunningham also holds a professional certificate in Project Management Principles and Practices from the University of California at Irvine.

Samantha Jade is a dynamic and talented business systems and marketing expert. She has been a small business advisor for over 15 years. Sam serves her clients as a Virtual COO and is certified by the International Association of Online Business Managers.

She is the founder and CEO of “That’s SMART Business”, an Online Virtual COO agency based in south Florida, with clients all over the U.S. That’s SMART Business helps business owners make sound decisions and create the right opportunities.

Her goal is to help her clients:

solidify their overall business strategy by optimizing operational processes

develop and manage effective marketing initiatives

implement initiatives to coach team members to optimize their capabilities

spearhead strategies to build a solid foundation

steer the company’s future into continued growth and profitability

She creates strategic marketing and operating plans. Sam then helps her client execute via social media marketing, content creation, SEO, integrating technology, improving accountability, creating dashboards, measuring performance, improving communication and promoting collaboration.

Sam is a female business leader who packs a punch. She is personable and fun to work with, yet professional and efficient while being knowledgeable and competent. Her network of experts in small, medium and large businesses allows her to execute beyond just her capabilities. Her clients all rave that she has skyrocketed their profits.

Macarena is an award-winning Creative Director and agency principal with 30+ years in the advertising field. She has worked in Santiago, Chile, New York, Los Angeles and Miami at global giants including Young & Rubicam, Saatchi and Saatchi and Grey Advertising. For the last 11 years, she has run her own agency in Miami. Her clients span non-profits and government and commercial enterprises, including the US Army, CALTRANS, Kraft Foods, Baptist Health, Imation, LORE Alliance, Highlands County, AVANOS, Medtronic, and Legal Services of Greater Miami.

Macarena is an experienced bicultural and bilingual (Eng/Span) advertising professional with demonstrated success in developing, supervising and delivering successful campaigns and design solutions for General, US Hispanic and LATAM markets. She has provided award winning creative solutions for clients in the following industries: automotive, retail, communications, banking, fast food, packaged goods, beverage, tourist/travel, higher education and government sector. She has worked for at fast-paced, high volume advertising agencies, in NY, LA and Miami, managing creative teams and freelancers handling regional, national and international accounts.

In 2009, she founded Zilveti Communications, a Miami marketing firm that helps middle to large sized companies surpass their marketing goals. She is characterized by successful results, hard work, reliability and teamwork. In 2010 she founded the non-profit Badges of Courage Foundation, that helps low-income women who are struggling with breast cancer.

A data-driven creative, Daniel Beyra has positioned himself as a seasoned expert in the video marketing landscape. He has worked with/for companies ranging in size from start-ups to F500. Through a versatile skill set and real-world experience, he has been able to provide a clear and actionable approach to incorporating a video strategy designed specifically to help brands and retailers meet their business goals.

Early in his career, after spending 3 years at MTV Latin America, Daniel moved on to lead the video and marketing department at TigerDirect, a national online and brick and mortar retailer specializing in consumer electronics. As the in-house producer, Daniel, along with his team, pioneered the use of product videos, tutorials and live-stream shows as a means of increasing product awareness and conversion for the online technology retailer. He went on to lead the video and marketing operations for WorldofWatches.com, a watch ecommerce platform, adding live-stream shopping and transactional programming to his marketing skill-set.

With over 10 years of video production and marketing expertise, Daniel founded Creative Particle in 2015, a video marketing agency providing brands and retailers a data-driven approach to creating video content designed to improve sales and awareness throughout the customer buying journey. His most recent achievement is being accepted and completing the SBA Emerging Leaders program in 2019.

Elizabeth is the founder and CEO of Zulubots, a robotics company that develops assistive robots for home and commercial applications. Elizabeth’s background and experience are in robotics engineering. In 2012, she graduated from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) with a BS in Robotics Engineering. In 2014, she graduated from WPI with an MS in Robotics Engineering. She first discovered robotics as a freshman, competing all fours of high school and freshman year at WPI when she was a member of the team which became the 2009 Professional Division Champion. She then assisted the team which won a NASA Centennial Competition in fall of 2009, and in 2013 she worked with the Track C Team from WPI that participated in the DARPA Robotics Challenge. Elizabeth loves encouraging students to build cool projects and to see the impact these projects will one day have on our day to day lives.

Elizabeth has been working on the Carrli, which is a combination of the words, carry and lift. It is a robot designed to help disabled individuals and the elderly carry and lift objects around their homes. She has done extensive research and has interviewed numerous Doctors to help her design the prototype. The Carrli is currently patent pending. She is currently working on a team to design low-cost ventilators. Elizabeth was the first student selected by the nonprofit MICROscholarships, Inc. to receive scholarship funding and mentoring to help her continue to grow her business. She has also helped guide some of the other student’s selected to ensure they also get their turn at success. In 2015, she mentored a team of high schools who competed in the BattleBots TV show which aired on ABC. Since founding her company, Zulubots has been named a finalist in the Miami Herald Business Plan Challenge and a semi-finalist in many business plan and pitch competitions. Zulubots was also chosen as a participant in the inaugural cohort of Babson’s WIN Lab Miami Accelerator and a participant in the 2017 Project Entrepreneur Intensive. Elizabeth is an alumnus of the SBA Emerging Leaders Program 2018 class.

Elizabeth has designed and implemented numerous STEM programs at Miami Dade College and local high schools teaching students the roles these programs play in technology. Elizabeth has also spoken and served as a panelist at numerous events in South Florida and Nationally. Locally she has spoken and served as a panelist at UM, FIU, Miami Dade College and the SBA. Her passion to help others is evident and she stays active in the community as she continues to grow Zulubots.

Coming soon…

Growth catalyst and visionary with a proud history of driving sales in billion-dollar-enterprises while accomplishing $4B in volume growth with the managed territory. Adept at managing accounts that generate $750M+ in sales volume. Strengths skills include advanced decision making, leadership, sales management, sales training, coaching, and team building.

Customer Service Excellence/Relationships

General Management of a Sales Operation

Leadership of Internal and External Sales Reps

Sales Presentations & Public Speaking

Sales Reporting, Forecasting, and Analysis

C-Suite Level Executive Relationship Management

Successful history of establishing and nurturing strong client relationships to assist in meeting and exceeding critical organizational objectives. Twice-recipient of the “Deal of the Year” award for the largest volume single deal closed and Salesperson of the Year

History of outstanding achievement with various companies include:

Recovered and grew struggling foreign market – achieved $100M sales, a 7-fold increase

Increased sales volume 200% each year over three years in targeted segments

Successfully maintained 60 customer accounts and represented $750M+ in sales volume

Spearheaded $4B volume growth in the managed territory – a 150% growth over four years prior. Earned prestigious award, Deal of the Year, for the largest volume account deal closed

Exemplary sales and business development expertise with talents in Sales/Business Development, Strategic & Solution Selling, Budget/Resource Administration, Alliance/Partnership-Building, Volume/Market Share Growth, Process Reconstruction/Innovation, Contract/Price Negotiation, Digital Marketing, Pipeline Management/Control, Sales Training/Coaching/Mentoring, Talent/Leadership Development

A skilled presenter, motivator, and negotiator adept in creating unique approaches to drive sales growth and profitability. Proficient at establishing sales processes to build brand awareness and brand image.