Development Consulting Staff and Technical Experts

Brent Chrite is currently the Gemelli faculty, associate dean an MBA programs director at the Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona.   Prior to this, Brent was the managing director of the William Davison Institute at the University of Michigan Business School (now Ross) and the executive director of the university’s South Africa initiatives office.  Brent has provided technical assistance, conducted research and has taught in numerous countries around the world including multiple countries in sub Saharan Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia and Central and Eastern Europe.  Brent’s focus is on institutional capacity building (primarily in higher education environments), private sector development, enabling environment creation and on strengthening the linkages between public and private sector entities.  He has consulted extensively with the World Bank, led economic development projects for the US Department of State, the Eurasia Foundation and the US Agency for International Development.   Brent receive his AB from Michigan State University, MS from the University of Missouri – Columbia and PhD from the University of Michigan. 

Thomas Devlin is currently the Director of the Career Center at University of California Berkeley and formerly the Director at Cornell University. He has more than thirty years of experience in higher education administration and career services. He has visited over 50 countries serving as a consultant in Australia, Algeria and Rwanda.  In 2004, he was selected to the prestigious Academy of Fellows at the National Association of Colleges and Employers.

David Harvey specializes in business analysis and evaluation, report writing and proposal preparation including communication with employees, consultants, partner institutions, NGOs and businesses at all levels, as required. David has extensive experience in international business development, project management, commercial RFP and governmental grant writing.

Previously, David worked for Unisys Corporation in program management with experience in applying technology and functional practices to solve business needs for both corporations and government entities. He has extensive international field experience. David was responsible for presales analysis, business case preparation, proposal preparation, contract negotiation, IT specification, training and implementation for BPO (Business Process Outsourcing) opportunities. David also held management positions in financial analysis and accounting at the plant, group and corporate staff levels.

David has a BS from Purdue University and an MBA in Finance and International Business from Indiana University (Kelley School of Business).

Peter Krahenbuhl is currently the Vice President and co-founder of Sustainable Travel International (STI), where he manages STI’s globally recognized climate mitigation and carbon offset program and has helped to develop several multi-industry firsts related to climate impact reduction and carbon offset activities.  He has extensive experience in working with international adventure and eco travel companies, including business and tour development, sales, marketing, operations and guiding. He has taught and consulted related to environmental management and sustainable development, and has leadership experience in international multi-stakeholder/national negotiations, as well as community tourism development.

Alyona Penchukova lives in Almaty, Kazakstan, where she founded the Marketing Studio, a firm specializing in strategic marketing projects and executive training. She also serves as the Executive Director of Kazakstani Association of Advertising Agencies. Before earning her MBA from HEC Paris, she had worked for Ferrero Central Asia as Marketing Manager  and later for Nestle Kazakstan as Marketing Manager  and  Business Development Manager. She was also involved in a USAID project on small scale privatization while working as a business consultant for Carana Corporation. For four years she has been an Associate Marketing Professor at the International Academy of Business (IAB) in Almaty, teaching MBA students and participating in executive training programs. Currently, Alyona manages the Marketing Education & Research Center at IAB, funded by USAID under the auspices of the Higher Education for Development office (HED). She is an author of a number of articles for business magazines.

Keith Sproule has managed both public and private sector projects in Southeast Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean and the Middle East. He has a comprehensive understanding of working with governments, international development agencies, conservation organizations and the private sector.  His areas of specialization include regional economic development, tourism policy formulation, community-based / SME development and conservation planning. Keith has worked as a long-term senior advisor to governments on three continents.  His work with the travel and tourism industry has allowed him to work and travel in over 95 countries, including some of the most beautiful and isolated natural destinations in the world.