Timing is Everything When Doing Business in Latin America

A book I started recently has really grabbed my attention. The book, “No Lost Causes,” by the former president of Colombia, Alvaro Uribe Velez, provides fascinating first hand stories about the challenges Uribe faced as he took on the task of clearing the country of terrorists and returning the nation to a state of economic growth.

Having a Latin American bent to my personal history makes reading this book interesting and reminds me of a challenge I took on to help GE Energy return to Colombia.

When Uribe took office in 2002, several paramilitary groups and Marxist terrorist organizations controlled half the country's territory. Every year, an average of 3,000 citizens were kidnapped and 28,000 killed.  Drug traffickers generated $3 billion annually. Unemployment was close to 16%.

In the late 90's I worked for GE, and this company, like many other multi-national companies, had pulled out of Colombia as the country’s political and social environment worsened. For example, in the business I worked in, GE Energy Services, we pulled out all expats and sold off all local operations and maintenance contracts.

The departure of the international business community tore important economic vitality from an already troubled nation.

But in 2005, after four years of the Uribe government, and as things seemed more positive for the nation, due to Uribe’s hard line approach, I took on the challenge of preparing a case to convince GE that the time was right to reenter the country. Security had improved enough to make this a viable idea and there was potential for GE Energy to re-establish a presence and grow their business there.

I pulled together a detailed country update and found proven opportunities in both the power generation and oil & gas businesses. As a result of this effort, GE Energy’s president at the time, John Krenicki, authorized the hiring of a country manager and a return to doing business in Colombia. This important decision paved the way for GE to re-establish itself as an energy player in Latin America and take advantage of Colombia’s economic rebirth.

Timing was everything and both GE and Colombia benefited.

Please refer to the following Wall Street Journal book review by Alvaro Vargas Llosa, titled, “The Man Who Saved Colombia” for a more detailed account of Mr. Uribe’s achievements.