Thomas Smith-Ferrer cbt@esatclear.ie

Director of GTI Learning.com Ltd.  

PERSONAL DETAILS

Name: Thomas John Smith.

Address: 17 Wheatfield Road, Palmerstown, Dublin 20, Ireland

E-Mail: ts@gtilearning.com

Telephone Ireland: +353-87-6783785

Nationality: Irish.

Date and place of birth: Dublin, 14 November, 1973

Marital Status: Single.

Current Occupation: Director of Global Trade Interactive Learning.com Ltd - GTI Learning.com (Dublin, Ireland)

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Global Trade Interactive Learning.com (Dublin, Ireland):
Director.
March 1999 - Present day

Development of interactive learning courses in the areas of International Trade and Ecommerce.  In charge of Product development, marketing and development of the corporate web presence.

Lesbury Group of Companies (Moscow) - Plano International (Barcelona):
Export Development Manager. August 1998 - February 1999
Area Co-ordinator CIS & Baltic Countries. October 1997 - August 1998.

Lesbury is a leading confectionery exporter selling into the CIS and Baltic countries.
I began working in Plano International S.L, its commercial and marketing agent for Europe, as the right hand of the Marketing
Director, in the conception of new ideas for new bubble gum and chocolate eggs collections. Further I was responsible for the
market diversification for the products of Lesbury worldwide.

Later, I was offered to go to Moscow to work as Area Coordinator for the CIS Countries. I had 5 people under my control and my objectives can be summarised as follows: Increase the sales of Lesbury, to carry out market surveys on a regular basis, to detect market trends in order to assure the success of newly launched collections, to negotiate contracts with the traditional and potential buyers of Lesbury, to negotiate license contracts with copyright owners of the most popular animated cartoons in Russia, to give a constant follow up to the deliveries of Lesbury in the CIS countries and finally to search for new clients and new regions of the CIS.

In 1997 the sales of Lesbury increased by 20% to $15 million. Of course, this growth trend was stymied by the payment moratorium in Russia on the 17th of August, 1998, at a time when we had consolidated our leadership in the Russian Market.

In August 1998 I was transferred to Plano International in Barcelona, with the position of Export Development Manager and
coordinating various feasibility studies for new business projects.

ABACongress S.L. (Barcelona): Translator Co-ordinator.
July 1994 - September 1997:

ABACongress is an interpreting agency and congress organiser.

I covered a wide range of areas while working in this company, beginning as the personal assistant of the Director and developing progressively to finally running the day to day operations of the company.

I would therefore highlight the following functions: Accounting, invoicing, financial planning, marketing, sales, market analysis,
client prospecting, design of advertising material, control and assignment of jobs to the interpreters and translators, design and
promotion of the company presence in Internet, client prospection through INTERNET.

Export-Ease Services Limited (Dublín): Administrative / Financier.
Foreign Trade & Finance consultant. January 1993- June 1994:

I carried out administrative functions, L/C Management, documentary collection management, bill discounting, etc. In the area of marketing, design of leaflets, course books, etc. During my time in Spain, I carried out numerous research projects for clients of the company.

Active participation in various export related congreses.
- Irish Export Forum,
- Introductory seminar on the new L/C Rules UCP500,
- Making Treasury Count Conference of The Irish Association of Corporate Treasurers


ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS

DIPLOMA IN INTERNATIONAL TRADE & MARKETING, Dublin, 1992-1994.
Specialization in Export Finance and Documents in Foreign Trade

Short courses:

Diploma in Fiscal Management and Consulting (ESINE Barcelona, 1997).
Methods of payment and Finance for Exports.
How to Finance Exports.
Payment Management for Exporters.
Documentary Credits: The New Rules.
Letter of Credit Management and UCP 500
Payment Management & Finance.
Export Procedures and Documentation
Financial Accounting Certificate 1997

OTHER SPECIALISED COURSES
Course in Sales techniques in the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce. Barcelona, 1998.
Catalan Language Certificate 1995.
Computing Certificate, Barcelona. December 1994.
Diploma of Spanish as a Foreign Language, Dublin, 1993.
City & Guilds of London 1992. Applications Programming. (COBOL).
Computing Certificate, Dublin, 1991.


ADDITIONAL SKILLS

English is my native language. I also speak Spanish and Catalan fluently. I have a working knowledge of Russian, Italian and
notions of French and German which could be improved easily.

I am very computer literate, handling various applications for wordprocessing, databases, spreadsheets, desktop publishing
systems, graphical presentation programs like Powerpoint, and specialised programes like The LC Program, Dimoni Accounting and ContaWin.

I have experience of working on various platforms like VAX systems, MS DOS y Apple Macintosh as well as Windows 3.1, 3.11 for work groups and Windows 95 & 98.

Extensive experience and knowledge in all aspects of INTERNET, including Web page design, co-operaton systems and especially Marketing in INTERNET.

I am polyvalent and can adapt myself to many environments, as an example I have lived for 4 years in Spain and 1 year in Russia and I enjoyed very much adapting myself to the different cultures.

I have also done a course on ‘How to communicate effectively’ and have strong interpersonal skills.