Jorge Ramirez-Vallejo serves as Chief Executive Officer of the Porter Development Initiative (PDI), where he leads the design and execution of high-impact strategies to enhance national and regional competitiveness. He directs complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives that integrate advanced frameworks in economic strategy, shared value, cluster development, and institutional strengthening to drive inclusive and sustainable growth.
At PDI, Jorge led the Guyana Development Initiative and has supported strategic projects across Latin America and the Caribbean, working closely with governments, business leaders, and development partners to translate competitiveness frameworks into actionable reforms and measurable results.
Over the course of his career, Jorge has advised policymakers, private sector leaders, and institutions in numerous countries on competitiveness strategy, economic transformation, cluster upgrading, and shared value initiatives. His work bridges rigorous analytical frameworks with pragmatic implementation.
Jorge was a member of the faculty at Harvard Business School and worked closely with Professor Michael E. Porter for more than two decades. He served as Principal Associate at the Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness at Harvard Business School, where he coordinated the global Microeconomics of Competitiveness (MOC) Affiliate Network—an academic network spanning more than 120 universities worldwide. He has authored and co-authored numerous Harvard Business School cases and academic publications on strategy, shared value, competitiveness, and regional development.
He was named Honorary Professor at the Universidad de los Andes in Colombia in recognition of his contributions to competitiveness research and practice. He also received the Distinguished Leadership Award from the University of Minnesota, recognizing his outstanding professional achievements and contributions to public leadership and economic development.
Beyond academia, Jorge has held senior public leadership roles in Colombia, including President of the National Development Bank (FINDETER) and Director General of the Colombian Institute for Water Resources (HIMAT), where he led large-scale institutional and infrastructure initiatives.
Jorge is a civil engineer from the Escuela Colombiana de Ingeniería and holds an M.Sc. in Civil Engineering from Colorado State University, as well as both an M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Applied Economics from the University of Minnesota.
