FWIT San Antonio October Meeting

About our Speaker:

Richard Sifuentes is the Director of the UTSA Small Business Development Center (SBDC), a leading service center of the Texas South-West Small Business Development Center Network and part of UTSA’s Valdez Institute for Economic Development.

Sifuentes is an accomplished leader with over 30+ years’ experience in upper level management, business advising, procurement, and project management. Prior to joining UTSA SBDC, Sifuentes spent 17 years in leadership positions with the Department of Defense and United States Air Force and received the Department of the Air Force Award for Exemplary Civilian Service.

Sifuentes also owned a small business where he gained first-hand experience about the challenges business owners face daily. He served as Interim Director of the UTSA SBDC from December 2018 to February 2019. He had been the Assistant Director since April 2012. He joined the UTSA SBDC team in 2005 as a Business Development Specialist and is the recipient of numerous certifications and awards during his tenure.

In his prior role as Assistant Director, he remained active as a senior business advisor while mentoring his teammates and contributing significantly as a representative of the SBDC and Institute for Economic Development leadership teams. The UTSA SBDC has routinely and annually produced approximately $50 million in capital formation, assisted in starting and expanding over 160 companies and businesses, and created and retained over 2000 jobs in Bexar and surrounding counties. UTSA SBDC is the state’s highest-producing center. Sifuentes’ passion for cultivating successful small businesses with great economic impact will contribute to continued growth for San Antonio and the surrounding areas.

Sifuentes received a Bachelor of Science from Trinity University and a Master of Arts in Procurement and Acquisition Management from Webster University, St. Louis, Mo. He is a veteran of the armed forces having served in the Army as Captain for 10 years.