The Next Level
by Frank McCoy
editors@ccgmag.com
TAKING A SHINE TO BRIGHTSTAR
SELLING WIRELESS TO THE WORLD In the 13 years since founding Brightstar Corp., its CEO, R. Marcelo Claure, has made strides that seem extraordinary to some. But to him, they are a natural progression.
For starters, how many 39-year-old men lead a $2.7 billion company with global reach in one of the fastest growing industries? Bright- star has become a global leader in the wireless in- dustry, providing services and solu- tions to manufac- turers, operators, retailers and enterprises serving the telecommunica- tions industry. The company now has sales and distribution facilities in more than 50 countries on six continents, and works with its customers to ensure that the right wireless product is in the right place at the right time.
R. Marcelo Claure
Brightstar’s global operations are stag- gering. More than 80 million devices are handled annually, and there are over 20 million customized devices that include hardware and software, and program- ming.
In 2008, Claure told the World Eco- nomic Forum his philosophy. “Our main challenges have been to continu- ally adapt our business models for the uniqueness of each market, implement- ing an effective global knowledge sharing system that disseminates best practices across the entire organization, and retaining the structured flexibility required to capture new opportunities while maintaining corporate guidelines and procedures,” he said.
Admittedly, Brightstar did take a hit in 2009. Reported revenues fell 23 percent
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from $3.5 billion in 2008 to $2.7 billion last year as wallets thinned globally. Consequently, Brightstar lost its perch as the biggest company on the Hispanic Business magazine 500 list. It fell to sec- ond, behind a company in a completely different and burgeoning sector: Health- care. Regardless, Brightstar has an all-star history. Inc. magazine reports that between 2005 and 2008 the company grew 59 percent. This record should serve Claure well when the global economy recovers. In fact, in the first half of 2010, Brightstar’s revenues grew by 50 percent and the company had a billion dollar second quarter.
Claure’s leadership skills, business creativity, and philanthropic efforts have garnered accolades and admirers. In 2010, he was included on Hispanic Engineer & Information Technology magazine’s list of the “Most Important Hispanics in Technology,” and named by Global Telecoms Business magazine to its 40 Under 40 list of senior executives. Previously, he had been hailed as Entre- preneur of the Year by USA Today, Ernst & Young, and Hispanic Business maga- zine. Claure has also been an invited speaker at numerous World Economic Forums, and has been listed as a leader of a “New Breed of World-Class Com- panies.”
Actions back up the applause. In 2005, Claure was a co-founder of the One Laptop Per Child program created by Nicholas Negroponte and MIT’s Media Lab. Earlier this year, he got involved after Haiti’s devastating earthquake.
Claure joined forces with AT&T and delivered 5,000 wireless devices to the country so that relief workers and citi- zens could remain connected through- out the emergency. Phones were sent to
Digicel, the Caribbean’s largest mobile telecommunications operator, and Com- cel, a Haitian mobile phone operator. Brightstar also set up a non-perishable collections program to donate needed items. At the time, Claure said, “We are working quickly to help assist Haiti in their relief efforts as well as their rebuild- ing efforts, with a specific focus on help- ing the country with device distribution to support the communications infra- structure as that is our forte.” Brightstar also set up a non-perishable collections program to donate much-needed items such as food, water, and clothing. In addition, the company implemented a fundraising drive and the tens of thou- sands of dollars raised by employees was matched 100 percent by Brightstar and was given to the organization Doctors Without Borders to provide much-need- ed medical supplies to Haiti.
Prior to founding Brightstar, Claure gained valuable experience in the wire- less telecommunications entrepreneur market. He worked for Unplugged Com- munications, which distributed activated wireless devices, served as president of Small World Communications, and also led Cellular Solutions, a wireless retailer.
Claure earned a Bachelor of Science degree in economics and finance from Bentley College in Massachusetts, and was presented with an honorary doctorate in commercial science by the same institution. Most recently, Claure was appointed to the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship in support of Presi- dent Obama’s innovation strategy to develop domestic policies that foster entrepeneurship. In August, he was also appointed to the Board of Directors of the Council on Foreign Relations, an independent, non-partisan think tank that acts as a resource to government officials and business executives to help develop foreign policy choices facing the U.S. and other nations.
HISPANIC ENGINEER & Information Technology | 2010 63
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