Nason Team
The Nason Group has a large and experienced staff. In addition we have a cadre of consultants to add their expertise as needed. Our key team members are as follows:
Partners
Dennis Nason - Chairman, Founder and CEO
Email: dnason@nasonsearch.com
Dennis Nason founded Nason and Nason in 1994. Nason is a serial entrepreneur. Dennis successfully established and managed a variety of entrepreneurial ventures within the international financial services field which included serving as Principal and Director of registered broker - dealer and founding a Miami-based investment banking firm specializing in international corporate finance and investment management.
Dennis established Credit Suisse Miami as Senior Vice President and General Manager and served the same capacity with Banco de la Nación Argentina in 1979. Nason came to Miami with Wells Fargo Bank, as President and Chief Executive Officer of Wells Fargo Bank in Miami. He had been Chief Representative in Mexico City, President of Banco Continental de Panama (a Wells Fargo Bank affiliate) and head of the Latin American division in New York City. Dennis began his banking career at Citibank in New York and Argentina.
Dennis graduated from Harvard Business School in Corporate Financial Management and received a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy and a Master of Arts in Economics from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. Dennis holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in physics and mathematics from Washington & Jefferson College.
Dennis takes great pride in being an active member of the community and is involved in a large number of charities as well as industry associations. Dennis was elected President of the Florida International Banker’s Association (FIBA) and was the Founding President of the World Trade Center. He has been inducted to the International Hall of Fame by the World Trade Center of Miami and selected for Who’s Who in International Business in South Florida. Dennis was chosen by Miami Today as Outstanding Community Achiever and recognized in the Book of Leaders. He was also named one of the 101 Most Influential People in South Florida by South Florida CEO magazine. Dennis has served on over twenty Boards including the Ransom Everglades School and the Florida Council of International Development.
John Porges - Vice-Chairman
Email: jporges@nasonsearch.com
John Porges brings a wealth of experience to the Firm, with over forty years experience in the banking industry and over fifteen years in the executive recruitment field.
John is the former Director for Latin America at Morgan Guaranty Trust Company in New York City. As a banker in South America, John was a Board Member of Banco de Bogotá Trust Company and member of the Executive Committee and General Manager of CAVENDES, the oldest and largest private investment bank in Venezuela. He was also the Chairman and CEO of the International Bank of Miami, Director of the International Banking Center at Florida International University and has been a member of the Board of Trustees of Mercy Hospital for several decades.
John received a Presidential appointment to serve as Executive Director of the Inter-American Development Bank and served as Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States.
John graduated from New York University with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Romance Languages, and also holds a Master of Arts in Political Science and Romance Languages from the University of Florida. He is trilingual (English, Spanish and Portuguese) and has a working knowledge of Hungarian and French.
Alexandra Nason-Aymerich - President
Email: anason@nasonsearch.com
Alexandra Nason-Aymerich is President and COO of Nason Search and is involved with all operations, recruiting and placements. Ali serves as President of Nason Consulting, a minority owned firm dedicated to group solutions of temporary needs. She has over ten years of experience in the executive recruitment field and has been instrumental in the establishment and expansion of the Nason Temp Solutions division within the Nason Search umbrella of companies. Alexandra is involved in all elements of strategy and business development and is in charge of rapidly expanding this highly successful division. Alexandra joined Nason & Nason following a career in the retail field.
Alexandra graduated from the University of Miami with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a minor in Art. She is currently a member of the Junior League of Miami, co-chair of one of the League’s largest fundraising efforts and a member of the Development Council. She is also a member of the Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce where she is actively involved in a steering committee. Alexandra is an active volunteer at the Epiphany school and church.
Directors
Roberto Diaz de Villegas - Director of Operations and Marketing
Email: rdvillegas@nasonsearch.com
Roberto Diaz de Villegas joined Nason & Nason in October 2008 following 25 years of International Banking experience as Chief of Operations Officer and Chief Financial Officer for: ABN AMRO International, Credit Lyonnais International and Chase Manhattan Bank International. Leveraging his significant analytical background in identifying and implementing efficient and effective processes, Roberto works to ensure that clients are delivered superior results that satisfy their executive recruiting needs.
As the Director of Operations he works closely with the senior management team to plan, organize and implement strategies to develop exceptional operational and organizational practices that will guarantee that Nason & Nason’s clients and candidates are presented with outstanding executive recruiting services. He has been responsible for upgrading software and systems in the firm. In his marketing role he coordinates the marketing efforts with operational efficiences. Roberto has a BS from Florida State University and is a registered CPA.
Raul Fernandez - Director of Business Development
Email: rfernandez@nasonsearch.com
Raul Fernandez joined Nason & Nason in June 2008 after an extensive career in international banking. He graduated from Law School at the University of Chile and subsequently cum laude at the University of Costa Rica. He started his career at the Central Bank of Chile and after moving to Costa Rica worked at the Costa Rican Central Bank and later became an advisor to the Secretary of the Treasury and Director of Public Credit. In the US he has worked for more than 25 years at several banks and financial institutions specializing in international business, acting in different senior capacities including those of Director, President and CEO. Most recently he was President and CEO of Pine Bank prior to it’s merger with another local bank.
David Pinto - Director
Email: dpinto@nasonsearch.com
David Pinto has had over 30 years of executive experience with leading investment banks, brokerage firms and international banks. He was a senior executive in sales and sales management for The Dreyfus Corporation, Mitchell Hutchins Asset Management, Drexel Burnham and the Bank of New York. In addition he has been actively involved for many years in recruiting with Nason & Nason (1998-2004) and owned a franchise with Snelling Personnel in Boca Raton, FL. He has since returned to Nason and will be actively covering Palm Beach County.
Consultants
Cookie Moll - Senior Recruiting Consultant & Manager
Email: cmoll@nasonsearch.com
Cookie Moll is a Senior Recruiter at Nason & Nason. Mrs. Moll has fifteen years experience in sales marketing, product management, business development and human resources. She served five years as a Director of A. T. Kearney, one of the nation’s leading executive search firms and brings with her an excellent background in the search business. She has a degree from Miami-Dade College, is married and has three grown children. Mrs. Moll is responsible for handling senior searches and developing new business markets for the Firm. She is in charge of directing and training of all recruiting.
Lisa Rek - Senior Recruiting Consultant and Representative for Andean Region
Email: lrek@nasonsearch.com
Lisa Rek joined Nason & Nason as a Senior Recruiter in 2005. Lisa brings a strong background and solid experience in recruiting to the Firm. She has over seven years of recruiting experience from Virchaux Partners and Spencer Stuart. Prior to her recruiting career, Ms. Rek worked in banking in her home country of Peru. She has a degree in Business Administration from Berkley College in NY.
Lisa heads Nason & Nason’s office in Lima, Peru. She is responsible for all searching and recruiting needs in the Andean Region, including Peru. She will also continue recruiting private bankers and senior banking officers in South Florida and the Latin American market. She is fully bilingual in Enlish and Spanish.
Ana Gabriela Alvarez-Grillet - Recruiting Consultant
Email: agalvarez@nasonsearch.com
Ana Gabriela Alvarez-Grillet joined the firm in 2004. She specializes in temporary assignments, where she manages all levels of positions, and further tackles mid-level permanent positions. As part of the Nason Temp Solutions team she continuously researches the market in order to provide clients and candidates with the industry's highest level of service and information. She has been actively involved with developing the firm’s strategic marketing plans, working closely with senior management. Her responsibilities entail extensive recruiting, sourcing, and candidate selection as well as managing the relationship with top executives. She has extensive knowledge in dealing with compliance procedures for state and national regulations.
Prior to joining Nason & Nason she received her bachelor’s degree in Economics at the University of Florida. While at UF she was actively involved in leading an international student association where she successfully used her organizational skills in order to benefit the University community at large.
Lisa Dorment - Recruiting Consultant
Email: ldorment@nasonsearch.com
Lisa Dorment comes to Nason & Nason after a successful recruiting career in New York City with Gilbert Tweed Associates in 2005. There she was engaged in recruiting financial, legal and human resource professionals. Prior to that, she had experience as an institutional treasury broker with Liberty Brokerage and with Chapdelaine and Co. as a public finance broker. She also worked for Prudential Securities in institutional sales. Lisa is a graduate of Fordham University where she attended on a tennis scholarship.
Gilda "Cookie" Phillips-Marti - Recruiting Consultant
Email: gmarti@nasonsearch.com
Gilda Phillips-Marti joined Nason & Nason in February 2009. She brings a total of 25 years banking experience which started in the Operations Department primarily in Letters of Credit and progressed to Assistant Vice President in International Private Banking at Credit Suisse Miami Agency. Gilda spent the last 7 years of her banking career at Northern Trust N.A., Key Biscayne office as a Vice President of International Private Banking. Her thorough knowledge of the banking system combined with exceptional interpersonal skills will bring added value and expertise to Nason & Nason clients.
Paul Smith - Panamanian Representative
Email: psmith@nasonsearch.com
Paul Smith joined Nason & Nason in August of 2009 to spearhead the opening of our Panamanian office. Paul has a wealth of experience in international banking culminating in over 35 years of experience in international management including the positions of CEO in two banks and an investment company. After having worked for many years as a banker at various institutions including Banco Continental de Panama, Banco Andino, Siac and Chase Manhattan, Paul became a consultant and has advised many companies on doing business in the region.
Paul has held numerous appointed and elected offices including, Director of the National Banking Commission, Director of the Panamanian Foreign Trade Institute, President of the Panama Bankers Association among various others. He has an intimate knowledge of the Panamanian financial and commercial markets and is well-versed in foreign risk assessment and human resource issues affecting the country and the region.
Paul has traveled extensively in Latin America, Western Europe, and the U.S. throughout his career. He has an international management degree from the American School of International Management “Thunderbird”, as well as an MBA from Nova Southeastern University.
Administration
Daniel Diaz de Villegas - Research and Administrative Consultant
Email: ddiaz@nasonsearch.com
Daniel Diaz de Villegas joined the Nason Group in July 2007. As the Research and Administrative Consultant, he handles all research, historical records, and new candidate information. He leverages his in-depth knowledge of our extensive data base to assist the Executive Search consultants actively source/recruit the right professionals. He is an integral part of the team and is responsible for maintaining a comprehensive candidate identification and resource data base to meet all our client needs. Daniel is currently finishing his A.A. degree at Miami-Dade College.
Elaine Torricella Cuervo - Deputy Office Manager
Email: ecuervo@nasonsearch.com
Elaine Torricella Cuervo is currently the Deputy Office Manager. She originally joined the firm in February 2000 as a recruiter and spent 6 years managing all types and levels of positions for the permanent placement division of the firm. Her focus was in banking, real estate, legal and support for the Temporary division of the firm as well. She returned to Nason & Nason in October 2008 as Deputy Office Manager working closely with senior management in all firm aspects. Prior to joining the Nason group, Elaine was responsible for fundraising efforts for a private foundation in Latin America and interfacing with its clinic in the national children’s hospital. She comes from a strong retail background and was a small business owner. She is actively involved in the Alumnae Council of the Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart. Elaine graduated from Florida International University School of Arts and Sciences with a major in Psychology and a minor in Social Work.