The Team

Down below you can find the professional profiles and biographies of Zereon Associates's Founder Team and Board. 

Please do not hesitate to contact us if you see some specific topic, industry or work area that may be appealing to you.

Mario Ceron, MBA Founder & CEO

GEMBA, ESADE-Babson College MBA, ESCP-Paris Chamber of Commerce Venture Capital Academy, Berkeley Law-ICADE Digital Transformation, MIT Sloan-Emeritus Agile Scrum Certificate, EXIN MA & BA Business, ICADE GRP ®, CECP ® WorldatWork

Our Managing Partner & CEO, Mario Ceron, MBA, created Zereon Associates in 2017 to add true value to distinguished international Clients.  A resident in Zürich, Switzerland, for ten years, Mario has a truly global mindset and a passion for the exchange of advanced business ideas. Prior to creating Zereon Associates, Mario had a successful 22+ years executive-level career at KPMG, Indra Corp., SR Technics, Ball Corp., Ecolab, Mercer, Altadis-Imperial Brands and Arthur Andersen.  As a practitioner and as trusted advisor, Mario led many international projects and teams for his Clients' advancement.  Mario is a frequent speaker and author and member of several professional associations, global 2% with MIT among other accomplishments. Areas of direct expertise: Board / CEO / Top Management affairs, Strategic Growth & Digitization, International Business, Tech Selection, Startup Ecosystems, AI / ML / DL adoption, Cloud, Blockchains, M&As, Investments and Business Plans, PE/VC, Financial Deals, Sales Effectiveness, Org Design, Restructurings / Turnarounds, Performance Measurement, Classic and Agile Projects, Equity Pay and Executive / Employee Remuneration, Teams and Workforce, Leadership & Change, general HR. Industries of direct expertise: Oil & Gas, Utilities, Construction & Real Estate, Manufacturing, Pharma / Healthcare / Life Sciences, Chemicals, Transportation & Logistics, FMCG, General / Category-based Retail, Banking and Financial Services, Insurance, Advanced Technology / IT, Telecom and Media, Professional Services, Startups and Ecosystems.

Dr. Raul Linares, MBA Executive Board Member

Ph. D. Applied Creativity (cum laude), UCM MBA, IE Agile & Scrum Expert BA Finance, UDLA

Dr. Raul Linares has two decades of global financial services expertise in multiple industries (Big 4 included), where he has operated as Board Member, Finance Director, Auditor and Controller as well as other roles - launching and expanding businesses, optimizing revenues and costs, operating M&A, supervising teams and leading IT roll-outs across world regions and multi-cultural environments.  He has also performed as a developer of teams and international speaker. A resident in Zürich, CH, for more than ten years now, he was formerly a resident in several other countries (US, Spain, Germany, UK, Colombia, etc.). Areas of direct expertise: Business Development, Finance and Controlling, Business Plans and Valuations, Revenue & Cost Optimization, Balanced Scorecards, Financial and Legal Due Diligence, M&As, Risk Management, Capital Raising, Joint Ventures, Collaborative Partnerships, Innovation & Applied Creativity, Classic and Agile Project Management, International Teams. Industries of direct expertise: Commodities, Manufacturing, Automotive, Transportation & Logistics, Banking / Insurance / Capital Markets,  Auditing & Consulting, Startups, Government, NGOs.

Riccardo Balsamo Non-Executive Advisor (Founder and CEO, Delega)

Startup Expert BA Business, Bocconi

Riccardo Balsamo is the Founder and CEO of Delega, a startup working with several major global Banks and corporations helping them optimize their Treasury / Cash Management processes, Compliance and Risk Management with solutions related to signatory management, rights' determination and operation streamlining.  Active in international startup and investing/PE/VC ecosystems, Riccardo and his team are deploying cloud solutions and computing and other innovations (blockchain, AI / ML) to serve their clients' needs.  Prior to that, Riccardo had a successful career as corporate executive in a major multinational Bank, and was formerly a consultant with Accenture.  Areas of direct expertise: Finance Operations, Payment Methods, Treasury Management, Banking Solutions Implemenation, Process Analysis, Tech Selection, ERP Implementations, Startup Ecosystems, Cloud, Blockchain, PE/VC, Financial Deals, International Business. Industries of direct expertise: Banking / Insurance / Capital Markets, Auditing & Consulting, Startups.

We remain at your disposal to comment on any expertise areas or industry focus of your preference.