Our Team

 

CORE STAFF

Agha Hussain

Director/Chief Executive Officer, Islamabad, Pakistan

 

A well reputed entrepreneur, development practitioner and a management consultant, previously working with all major consulting groups in Pakistan including PricewaterhouseCoopers, Grant Thornton and Hagler Bailly (PA Consulting, UK) and The World Bank. Mr. Hussain brings along 20 years of versatile experience with last fifteen (15) years as founder and Chief Executive Officer of AGHAZ Consulting and INTIGRO, both technology driven management consulting firms, based out of Islamabad, Pakistan. While working directly or representing clients, he has the knowledge and experience of working with all major national and international donor agencies and development financial institutions including the World Bank, USAID, ADB, Oxfam Novaib, Packard Foundation, Care International, RTI, British High Commission, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung (HBF), International Development Research Center (IDRC), Johanniter International, Agha Khan Foundation, to name few. Hussain brings along hands-on experience and training in business process analyses, re-engineering & automation, organizational change, technology consulting, management consulting, due diligence, market research, business intelligence, performance audits and litigation support. Hussain has worked in a cross section of industry verticals that includes Retail, Telecom, IT, Infra-structure, Cement, Financial Services, Public Sector Universities, SME’s, Construction, Textile and Beverage.

 

Mr. Hussain is a Certified Finance & Accounting Professional (ICAP), Certified Financial Consultant – IFC Canada and Certified Public Accountant (ICPAP).

 

Maria Agha

Director Communications, Washington DC, USA

 

She has 13 years of experience in steering and supervising project communications and media. With her vast experience in working with Project Management tools, she has been actively involved in operations of the company, monitoring & evaluation (M&E) for the Non-Governmental Sector (NGO) working with all the major donor agencies with a special focus on impact assessments, progress reporting on the key performance indicators, interpolating results, analyzing trends and advising on the operating effectiveness of the project. Ms. Maria has professional experience using statistical software packages and large data sets. She has strong analytical skills and fluency with quantitative research methods. She has ability to synthesize new information quickly and develop expertise in a range of research areas and policy issues. A trained researcher/journalist for BBC GMR has worked in UK for three years while conducting two live programs leading and coordinating supplement programs for the Northern area in UK. She was the lead journalist covering the Youth Supplement for the Telegraph and Argus Daily tabloid and has extensively travelled throughout Europe. A professional from the marketing, public relations and advertising, she has a track record of over 10 years of international and national (including FATA/FR) experience of working with public and private organizations.

 

She has done MSc. Strategic Information Systems Management, Sheffield Hallam University, UK and BA Hons Business Studies from Sheffield Hallam University, UK. She has also completed Higher National Diploma HND with a distinction from Manchester City College, UK.

 

Hernando Quintero

VP-International Development, Washington DC, USA

 

Over 30 year of experience in international development. Member of Roster of Experts of WB and Inter-American Development Bank. Mr. Quintero has fulfilled various roles including IT adviser, Architect/Designer, Project Manager and Validation and Verification of implemented systems. Designed and implemented MISs for conditional and non-conditional cash transfer projects and other social development programs in Africa, South Asia, Easter Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, in all about 30 countries. Have managed teams of IT specialists, including system designers, developers, web specialists, network engineers and database designers. Designed and managed IT systems, from initial architecture concept to detail implementation based on different technologies including biometrics, smart cards and POS devices, online/offline data synchronization, Internet and Virtual Private Networks, cloud computing, virtualized servers, multi-tier architectures.

 

Mr. Quintero has BSc in Computer Science from American University and Masters in Computer Science, George Washington University,

 

Alex Boyd

Senior Associate, Washington DC, USA

 

Alex Boyd is an international business strategy and economic development professional with a wide range of private sector development, competitiveness, value chain development and business planning experience, both in the U.S. and overseas. He specializes in assisting regions, and industries and individual firms within those regions to compete helping to facilitate their sustained and profitable participation in overseas competitive markets by translating industry and market trends into concrete business opportunities. His primary area of work has been as a competitiveness and private sector development practitioner, having worked extensively in areas such as SME competitiveness, value chain and cluster analysis and strengthening, access to finance, association and organizational development and trade and investment promotion across a wide range of industries and economic sectors, as well as the design of region and country-level innovation and competitiveness enabling program.

 

Mr. Boyd has Masters in Pacific and International Affairs from University of California, San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy (GPS).

 

Murtaza Hussain

Manager Admin & Accounts. Islamabad, Pakistan

 

Mr. Hussain has been there with us from the inception of the firm. He is responsible for the day to day operations of the company in Pakistan while looking after financial matters in US. He is an MBA in Finance.

 

Sector Specialist

Gul Mastoi 

Senior Associate (Community Engagement), Islamabad, Pakistan

 

Gul Mastoi is an experienced development professional working since last 22 years and has worked for Integrated SMC Community Mobilization Programs with European Union Technical Assistance for Education and Literacy Department. Reform Support Unit, Government of Sindh Pakistan, Lead Pakistan, US aid, International Labor Organization, British Council, The David and Lucile Packard Foundation funded project on enabling effective district local government leadership of District Khairpur Mir’s for Reproductive health in Pakistan, UNDP-ENGRO funded project on to conduct Baseline Survey of 2140 HHs in 10 districts for the project of Community Empowerment through Livestock Development and Credit. Worked as a Regional Director Sindh from 1991 to 2000 and Deputy Chief Executive SPO Pakistan from 2000 for 2003 years at senior management level in Pakistan-Canadian Small Projects Office (SPO), SPO in 1994 converted into Pakistani development organization with the name of Strengthening Participatory Organization (SPO). Mr. Mastoi is the one of the founders of SPO Senior management team. SPO is a largest rights-based national support organization in Pakistan working for capacity building of Rural Development Organizations in all four provinces. Mr. Mastoi has been a leading force into strengthen 16 clusters of 100 development organizations (NGOs) in 7 districts of Sindh. While he established and trained 7 Women groups in 1992, these groups later on became Pioneer Female NGOs of Sindh. He achieved an honorable best performance award during the year 1995-96, 1996-97, 1998-99 and 1999-2000He has an extensive experience of working with the Development Financial Institutions.

 

He is a member of National Council of Social Welfare Sindh for Government of Pakistan, Board of Directors for Society for the Protection of Child Rights (SPARC) Pakistan, National Coordinator for Coalition Against Child Labor Pakistan, Senior Management Committee member for SPO Pakistan and Chairman, Employees Provident Fund Trust for SPO Pakistan.

 

Munir Wahid

Senior Consultant - Infrastructure Projects, Karachi, Pakistan

 

Mr. Wahid is a professional engineer and analyst with over 30 years’ experience of managing and supervising major projects of shipbuilding, port construction and services/Infrastructure in organizations like Gwadar Port Authority, Karachi Shipyard & Engineering Works and Pakistan Navy. He has undertaken various professional studies as research and worked closely with foreign and national consultants of repute for preparation of reports and research data for studies. Mr. Wahid has acquired rich experience and expertise in projects & contract management, working papers, effective presentations and negotiations with people at all levels from almost across the globe. 

 

Mr. Wahid has done Executive MBA (Finance & Accounting), PIMSAT, Pakistan (2009), Master of Science in Strategic Studies, National Defense University, Pakistan (2008), Master of Science in Naval Architecture, University College London, UK (1979), Bachelor of Science (Honors) in War Studies, Karachi University, Pakistan (1994) and Bachelor of Science in Engineering, Karachi University, Pakistan (1977).

 

Mohsin Muslim

Senior Consultant - Research & Surveys, Lahore, Pakistan

 

Mr. Mohsin has more than 19 years’ experience in the Industry from supplier side. As COO/Head of Research & Operations of Pakistani affiliate of Gallup International he has successfully managed many projects for leading National, International clients and agencies and received many appreciations. Mohsin's background is in behavioral sciences and marketing. Mohsin has extensive experience in most aspects of Research including Business Development, Strategic Planning, Research Management, Training, Moderation, and Management of Operations (qualitative and quantitative). He is a visiting faculty member and resource person on Marketing Research, Marketing Information System, Marketing Research Practicum, Advance Marketing Research, Media Research & Research Methods in many leading universities of Pakistan. He has successfully conducted professional trainings to senior research management teams in Afghanistan, Bahrain and Pakistan. He is an active member of leading National and International professional organizations. He is holding the office of Country Representative of ESOMAR in Pakistan. As Vice President/Chairperson of Marketing Association of Pakistan, his remarkable achievements were the launch of a Training Institute for "Marketers and Marketing Researchers" in Lahore, Pakistan besides a significant increase in the base of members of the association. Currently he is also holding the office of Vice President / Chairperson of Alumni Association of Punjab University Sociologists. He is leading an Alumni of Sociologists (around 4000 who graduated since 1954) of Pakistan's largest University.

 

He has done Masters in Sociology from Punjab University, Lahore and Bachelors in Business Administration from Preston Institute of Management Sciences, Pakistan.