Alan Cordova

Alan Cordova currently writes for National Public Radio’s “Planet Money” program, which explains the intricacies of the financial crisis to ordinary Americans in plain English. He received a BA in Political Science and Astronomy from Williams College in 2006 and a MBA with concentrations in Finance and Management at Columbia Business School in 2008. His publications include policy analysis for a Washington, DC think tank, reporting in Mexico City for Newsweek International, a sociological study of the Muslim community of Granada, Spain and a thesis on democracy promotion programs in Central Asia. He served as president of the community service council and member of the honor society at Williams and as a cluster leader, peer advisor and tutor at Columbia. Since 2006, he has provided strategy consulting to clients ranging from new media entrepreneurs to a frontier market venture capital firm. An avid distance runner, backpacker and trumpeter, he is currently a member of Net Impact, the National Society of Hispanic MBAs and the Columbia Business School Alumni Club of New York.

Employer:	National Public Radio, New York, NY
Position:	“Planet Money” Writer
Description:	• Produced stories for the public explaining intricacies of the current financial crisis.

Employer:	Freelance, Monterey, CA, New York, NY & Dushanbe, Tajikistan
Position:	Freelance Strategy Consultant
Description:	• Evaluated startup proposals and guided entrepreneurs through writing business plans. • Reviewed commercialization plans of candidates for National Science Foundation grants. • Led five-member team in consulting a microfinance institution on commercial banking o Advised management on revising HR practices and managing portfolio risk. • Advised a social networking site on reaching new audiences and improving retention. • Recommended a new client engagement model to a venture capital fund in Central America. • Worked with three-person team to draft business plan for space policy institute. o Identified best practices in existing government policy and research centers.

Employer:	Columbia Caseworks, New York, NY
Position:	Case Writer
Description:	• Authored studies of business challenges facing corporations for use in the MBA curriculum.

Employer:	B-Corporation (certifier of socially responsible businesses), New York, NY
Position:	Researcher
Time period:	May 2007 - July 2007
Description:	• Researched standards to judge companies’ environmental practices and codes of ethics. • Developed firm’s format for presenting best practices and guidelines for improvement.

Employer:	Independent, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Mongolia
Position:	Independent Political Science Researcher
Time period:	May 2005 - July 2005
Description:	• Conducted over 150 interviews for thesis on American democracy promotion programs.

Employer:	Newsweek International, Mexico City, Mexico
Position:	Foreign Bureau Intern
Time period:	May 2004 - July 2004
Description:	• Covered political developments with stories drawn from interviews and secondary research.

Employer:	Council on Hemispheric Affairs, Washington, DC
Position:	Research Associate
Time period:	May 2003 - July 2003
Description:	• Wrote press releases and articles on regional trends for international media. • Edited Washington Report on the Hemisphere (COHA’s scholarly newsletter).

University:	Columbia University
Time period:	2006 - 2008
Degree:	Management and Finance, MBA

University:	Williams College
Time period:	2001 - 2006
Degree:	Political Science (International Relations) and Astronomy, BA

Hobbies:

Alpine Skiing (8 seasons’ instructional experience), astronomy teaching assistant, English tutor.