About Us

Who we are

Since our founding, TMG has helped shape all aspects of the information and communications technology (ICT) regulatory landscape. Believing deeply in the power of ICTs to positively transform the world, TMG leverages our multidisciplinary approach (regulatory, economic, and technical) and keen understanding of the entire technology development and value chain to assist our clients in their endeavors.

Our modular approach combines analytics with traditional economic and regulatory expertise to address the needs of all stakeholders in this highly dynamic sector, including network operators, government regulators, manufacturers, technology companies, and more. As the private sector and governments alike understand, addressing convergence and other trends brought on by technology requires this kind of dynamic approach.

We advise stakeholders in the ICT ecosystem, from tech and new space pioneers and startups looking to expand their footprint internationally, to regulators looking to modernize their regulatory frameworks. In the end, our goal is to create a vibrant and inclusive ICT sector.

Areas of expertise

TMG specializes in a broad range of subject matters, including mobile services, emerging technologies (such as IoT and 5G), and digital services.
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Countries where we have worked
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Key Team Members

Key Team Members

Janet Hernandez

An attorney with over 20 years of experience in the ICT sector, Ms. Hernández advises domestic and international communications companies and governments on regulatory, commercial and transactional, and trade matters in Africa, the Americas, Asia-Pacific, Europe, and the Middle East. She has extensive experience on licensing, spectrum, broadband, mobile termination rates, convergence, market access and Internet-related issues, among others. Prior to joining TMG, Ms. Hernández was a Partner of and headed the Global Telecommunications, Media and Technology Group of the international law firm, Coudert Brothers LLP. She also worked as an attorney-advisor in the Chief Counsel’s Office of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) within the U.S. Department of Commerce and was in the Department’s Honors Attorney Program. Ms. Hernández obtained her law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and her undergraduate degree with honors from Florida International University. She is fluent in English and Spanish.

Kari Ballot-Lena

With 15 years of experience in the ICT sector, Ms. Ballot-Lena’s expertise covers a wide range of traditional telecommunications regulatory matters and emerging digital policy issues across the globe. She focuses on market access issues at both the domestic and international levels, including licensing and authorization, regulatory compliance, and technological convergence. In an increasingly digital and connected world, Ms. Ballot-Lena’s concentrations extend to new policies regarding over-the-top (OTT) services and digital platforms impacted by evolving regulatory frameworks on authorization, competition, and consumer protection, such as data privacy, taxation, and net neutrality. She advises and conducts trainings for national governments and international organizations worldwide on ICT and digital frameworks, emphasizing policies that best promote competition, collaboration, and the development of the digital economy. She also provides guidance to private clients on global regulatory trends to understand how traditional and emerging digital regulation may impact them as they expand into new markets around the world. Ms. Ballot-Lena obtained her law degree at George Mason University and her undergraduate degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Ms. Ballot-Lena is fluent in English and has upper-intermediate knowledge of French and Spanish.

Michele Lynch

Ms. Lynch has over 15 years of experience at the intersection of international affairs and public policy, with a specific focus on technology policy issues. Prior to joining TMG, she was a member of Google’s government affairs and public policy team, managing policy engagement with the diplomatic community in Washington, DC, and with international organizations, such as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the United Nations, and the World Economic Forum. At the American Red Cross, Ms. Lynch managed a global technology project that explored the use of emerging technology for disaster response and served as Director in the Office of the Chairman of the Board of Governors. She also worked at the British High Commission in Malaysia, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance, and the White House Office of Presidential Advance. Ms. Lynch earned a master of arts in conflict, security and development from King’s College London and a bachelor of arts in international relations and political science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is a native English speaker and has intermediate knowledge of Spanish.

Erik Whitlock

An economist with over 20 years of experience in the ICT sector, Dr. Whitlock provides advisory services to companies, regulators, and investors globally. He specializes in solving problems in a broad nexus of economics and commercial and regulatory issues in the field of telecommunications: pricing, costing, compliance, organizational design, forecasting, valuation, business case development and strategy. From 2008 to 2012, Dr. Whitlock was a director within PricewaterhouseCoopers’ strategy and valuation practice in the Middle East and worked with PwC’s global telecommunications practice out-of-region – in North America, the Caribbean and Africa. Before joining PwC in 2008, Dr. Whitlock worked for a decade with the Cable & Wireless Group (C&W), including as Vice President of Regulatory Affairs and Finance with C&W Americas. Before joining C&W, Dr. Whitlock worked in various economic and financial advisory capacities for investors, operators, and regulators on projects in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Dr. Whitlock earned his Ph.D. in economics at Indiana University. He is fluent in English, speaks Russian, and is has intermediate knowledge of French.

Joel García

Mr. García has extensive experience in financial analysis, budgeting, business valuation, and business planning. He has participated in the deployment of quality assurance systems, as well as corporate risk assessment and response evaluations. Mr. García has also analyzed organizational processes and procedures in various industries, conducted feasibility analyses, and served as project manager in diverse responsibilities. He obtained his bachelor’s degree from the Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo. He is fluent in English and Spanish and has upper-intermediate knowledge of French.

Matt Greenspan

Mr. Greenspan has worked on telecommunications projects in a variety of contexts including for government agencies, think tanks, international organizations, and academia. In his recent work, he has served as the spokesperson for the United States delegation to ITU-R Working Party 1A on beam Wireless Power Transmission (WPT) issues. In this role, he has helped to advance an international recommendation and report on beam WPT frequencies by facilitating domestic and international negotiations on these texts. He has also participated as a member of the United States delegation to ITU-R Working Party 5D, ITU-D Study Group 2, ITU-T Study Group 3, and the Inter-American Telecommunication Commission (CITEL) Permanent Consultative Committee II: Radiocommunications (PCC.II). Additionally, he participated as member of the FCC WRC-23 Advisory Committee (WAC), assisting in the development of US positions in the leadup to WRC-23. Before joining TMG, he worked as a project officer for the International Telecommunication Union organizing the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). He has also worked on the field and policy teams for various local and statewide political campaigns. Mr. Greenspan obtained his bachelor’s degree in international economics and his Master of Leadership and Public Policy from the University of Virginia. He is fluent in English and Spanish.

Daniel Leza

Mr. Leza, an attorney, is a policy and regulatory specialist with expertise in the areas of competition law, regulation, and public policy in the information and communications technologies sector. He has substantial experience on regulatory reform initiatives, digital services, market analysis, infrastructure deployment and investment, spectrum assignment processes and licensing, anticompetitive conduct and mergers and acquisitions in the communications and digital technologies sector, and advises private and public sector clients on such matters in Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa. Prior to working at TMG, he was with the Legal Counsel’s Office of the Comisión Nacional de Telecomunicaciones of Venezuela. Mr. Leza obtained his Master of Laws at University of Chicago and his law degree at Catholic University in Venezuela. Mr. Leza is fluent in Spanish and English.

Jeffrey Bernstein

Mr. Bernstein has 20 years of experience in the telecommunications sector, analyzing issues and services across the ICT sector, including broadband and Internet policies, spectrum management, licensing, privacy, and universal access to communications. His work addresses a range of issues that has evolved along with the industry to encompass increasingly prominent matters including 5G, IoT regulatory regimes, artificial intelligence, digital platforms, and cybersecurity policies. He routinely advises both public and private clients on issues related to the development of and access to ICT services, as well as policy and regulatory frameworks governing service and technology development. In addition, Mr. Bernstein has participated in international groups addressing emerging wireless technologies and has contributed to World Bank and ITU handbooks, toolkits, and workshops on topics including broadband strategies, digital regulation, and innovative business models for expanding broadband access. Mr. Bernstein earned a master of business administration with an emphasis on global information technology as well as a master of arts in international communication from American University and holds an undergraduate degree in economics and international relations from the University of California, Davis. He is fluent in English and upper-intermediate knowledge of Spanish.

Juan Luis Núñez

Mr. Núñez, based in Santiago, Chile, is an attorney with more than 20 years of experience in the telecommunications and digital technologies sectors. He focuses on policy, regulatory and competition matters and has worked in both Chile and the United States advising ICT and telecommunications companies, as well as governments. He served as Chief of Staff of Chile’s Vice Ministry of Telecommunications and as Head of Chile’s Telecommunication Development Fund, where he was directly involved developing legislation on number portability, net neutrality, and infrastructure deployment. Between 2012 and 2018, Mr. Núñez was the CEO at the Pais Digital Foundation, a non-profit organization that brings together the ICT industry in order to promote digital development in Chile. In this position, he worked closely with private and public sector stakeholders in developing digital policy in Chile, participating in the last two Chilean digital agendas and several other bills related to the digital ecosystem. He was also Chairman of the e-Commerce Committee within the Chilean National Chamber of Commerce. He has been speaker at several industry events, including the 2015 Mobile World Congress and the 2013 Smart Cities World Congress. Mr. Núñez has a law degree from the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile and a masters of laws (LLM) with certification in international commercial law from American University’s Washington College of Law in Washington, DC. He is fluent in Spanish and English.

Robert Ford

Robert N. Ford is a digital and technology business and policy consultant based in Kigali, Rwanda. He has career spanning over 23 years in the ICT industry and has played leading and significant roles in that space in Rwanda, East Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region. Among his experience is coordination of a regional technology alliance for implementation of major technology infrastructure projects in East Africa, coordination of private equity and venture capital investments from Asia-Pacific to Africa, and participating in the Internet for All committee at AFRINIC and the World Economic Forum. Mr. Ford is on several governing boards of local and international companies, academic institutions, member-based technology associations, and civil society organizations.

Will Rieck

Mr. Rieck’s career has focused on the intersection of telecommunications policy, technology, and business. Before joining TMG, he was a regulatory analyst at Charter Communications, specializing in policy and regulatory issues related to spectrum, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity. Prior to that, he was a Senior Project Associate at the Federation of American Scientists, developing and implementing policy recommendations to advance progress on a broad array of societal challenges related to science, technology, and innovation. Mr. Rieck received a bachelor of arts in economics with a minor in science, technology, and society from the University of Michigan. He is a native English speaker.

Geraldo Neto

Mr. Neto, based in France near Geneva, is an engineer with more than 18 years of experience working in the telecommunications sector. He has extensive strategic, technical, and regulatory expertise in broadband, convergence, mobile technologies, spectrum management and interference, television broadcasting, international telecommunications regulatory frameworks, the Internet of Things (IoT), and over-the-top (OTT) services. Mr. Neto actively participates in ITU and regional organization meetings, representing companies at different study groups and committees on issues related to mobile services, spectrum, IoT, OTTs, and ICTs. He holds leadership roles in multiple organizations and is recognized as an international expert on spectrum and mobile service regulation.

Prior to joining TMG, Mr. Neto worked at Qualcomm as a Senior Manager of Government Affairs for Latin America, at different broadcasting companies as an independent consultant, at the Brazilian National Telecommunications Agency (ANATEL), and at Globo TV affiliate RBS TV. He holds a master of science in embedded electrical and computer systems degree from San Francisco State University (SFSU) in the United States, and a bachelor of electrical engineering degree from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) in Brazil. A Brazilian native, Mr. Neto is a bilingual speaker of Portuguese and English who is fluent in Spanish and has upper-intermediate knowledge of French.

Abubakar Maina

Mr. Maina is an electronics and telecommunications engineer with more than 35 years of experience, including 20 years of active practice as a telecommunications field operations and regulatory expert in the Nigerian telecommunications industry. Mr. Maina previously served as Head of the Cybersecurity Unit in the New Media and Information Security department of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), anchoring establishment of the Computer Security Incident Response Team (NCC-CSIRT). During his time with the NCC, he also also participated in the committee that developed Nigeria’s first National Cybersecurity Policy and Strategy (NCPS) documents and directed the National Broadband Implementation Steering Committee.

Ana María Rodríguez

Ms. Rodriguez has experience working as a management consultant in Colombia, Sweden, and the United Kingdom and has three years of experience working in the ICT sector. She has worked to advance the concept of meaningful connectivity developed by the Alliance for Affordable Internet and has explored the state of Internet access and affordability in low- and middle-income countries. She has experience working on ICT and gender, including development of a model to measure the cost of excluding women from the Internet and has participated in international conferences such as IGF Poland 2021 and RightsCon. Ms. Rodriguez holds a master’s degree in public policy from University College London and a bachelor’s degree in business administration and international business administration from the Montpellier Business School and Universidad del Rosario dual program. She is a native of Colombia and bilingual in Spanish and English, with intermediate knowledge of French.

Alex Oh

Mr. Oh’s professional and academic career have centered around studying technology policy. He has extensive experience analyzing technology policy and regulation, monitoring domestic and international developments, and identifying industry trends. In his previous role as a Senior Research Associate for National Journal, he led his team’s research on artificial intelligence, data privacy, and online content moderation. Mr. Oh received a bachelor’s degree in professional writing and a master’s degree in international relations and politics at Carnegie Mellon University. During his studies, he focused on the intersection of emerging technology and the law, culminating in a thesis exploring the effects of Internet regulations on online behavior.

Camilo Zamora

Mr. Zamora has more than 10 years of experience working in the telecommunications sector, specializing in regulatory and policy issues associated with spectrum management, mobile technologies, ICT policy, traffic and spectrum forecasts, the Internet of Things, and spectrum planning and valuation. He participates actively in various International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and Inter-American Telecommunications Commission (CITEL) meetings, where he has held a number of leadership roles. Mr. Zamora has worked in the private sector as an RF/TX engineer designing and planning wireless networks, and in the public sector as a senior advisor at Colombia’s National Spectrum Agency (ANE). For ANE, he led international spectrum management strategy and preparation for participation in ITU World Radiocommunication Conferences and CITEL Permanent Consultative Committee II (PCC.II) meetings, and also formulated ANE strategic planning proposals. Mr. Zamora holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration from ISEAD (Spain) and postgraduate degrees in finance and negotiation from Universidad Santo Tomás and Universidad de Los Andes (Colombia), respectively. He is fluent in English and Spanish and has a working knowledge of Portuguese.

Alina Denis Jarjour

Ms. Jarjour, an attorney, has over 20 years of experience providing international legal counsel, regulatory advice, and corporate compliance management to numerous companies, including companies in the ICT sector, as both a company executive in charge of legal and compliance departments and as a private practitioner. A significant portion of her practice is devoted to negotiating corporate deals, including private-public partnerships; handling licensing matters; structuring and managing business governance and compliance programs; and addressing privacy and cybersecurity issues. Ms. Jarjour works with TMG clients on a wide range of issues, including market expansion, sales practices, commercial collaborations, and consumer-oriented matters. Ms. Jarjour obtained her law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and her undergraduate degree from Florida International University. She is fluent in English and Spanish.

Oscar M. Gonzalez

Mr. Gonzalez is an attorney specializing in telecommunications and ICT policy, law, and regulation with more than 20 years of experience. He has substantial expertise in the areas of regulatory reform, market access, spectrum regulation, satellite services, convergence, interconnection, licensing, and Internet regulation. He has advised telecommunications and satellite operators and service providers on such matters in Argentina and South America, as well as within the Inter-American Telecommunications Commission (CITEL) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). He served as Argentina’s Undersecretary of ICT Regulation from 2016 to 2019 and was the Chairman of the 2017 ITU World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC-17). Mr. Gonzalez obtained his master of laws (LLM) degree at the University of Maastricht, the Netherlands, and his law degree at the National University of Cordoba, Argentina. He is fluent in Spanish and English.

Andrew Johnson

Mr. Johnson is an experienced business executive and engineering specialist in Africa’s telecommunications sector. Based in Johannesburg, he has worked in the sector for over 37 years, working as a consultant for 25 years. His experience includes serving as a business and telecommunications technology expert in the areas of mobile technology, fiber-optic networks, submarine cable systems, utility telecommunications, business plan development, and telecommunications market option studies across several countries in Africa and in the Asia-Pacific region. His experience includes executive management positions within MTN Group and its subsidiaries, including serving as Launch CTO of MTN Uganda and then CEO of MTN Rwanda. His previous experience includes working in the telecommunications division of South African national power utility Eskom.

Eddy Setiawan

Mr. Setiawan is an Indonesia-based telecommunication engineer with 30 years of experience. He has extensive experience on matters including satellite telecommunications, subsea cable telecommunications, public-private partnership (PPP) universal service obligation projects, and spectrum regulatory matters, including the satellite coordination practices. Mr. Setiawan served as an expert and consultant on several Indonesian telecommunication projects, including supervising the government’s PPP Palapa Ring backbone and Satria-1 satellite projects. Prior to his consulting work, Mr. Setiawan worked for TELKOM Indonesia.

Nzilani Mweu

Ms. Mweu, based in Nairobi, Kenya, is an advocate of the High Court of Kenya with over 10 years of experience. She advises on a range of issues in the telecommunications and technology industry, including compliance, data protection and privacy, cybercrime and security, innovation, infrastructure, cloud computing, the use of artificial intelligence, distributed ledger systems, fintech, intellectual property rights, media law, Internet governance, and strategic partnerships. Ms. Mweu has extensive experience in data protection and cybercrime, including publication of articles locally and internationally, as well as facilitating training programs. In addition, she has experience in cross-functional legal disciplines spanning media law, domain registrations and disputes, competition regulation and disputes, corporate litigation and alternative dispute resolution. She has advised clients on company incorporation, transactional, and competition matters, consulted on mergers and acquisitions, and represented clients in technology and telecommunication litigation, commercial alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, and commercial litigation.

Karen Ng

Ms. Ng has more than 10 years of experience advising clients on telecommunications regulation, including regulatory engineering and licensing, public policy, spectrum management, market access, and government affairs. With qualifications in both engineering and law, she is uniquely positioned to provide both technical and legal advice to a range of clients. Over the years she has established strong relationships with national regulatory authorities and ministries across the world and particularly in Africa. A native of Mauritius, Ms. Ng develops and implements outreach strategies to effectively influence outcomes in her clients’ favor. She actively participates in the meetings of the African Telecommunications Union and of the sub-regional organizations in sub-Saharan Africa (Economic Community of West African States, Economic Community of Central African States, East African Communications Organisation and the Southern African Development Community) in preparation for the International Telecommunication Union’s Conferences. Ms. Ng’s experience also includes advising satellite operators and industry associations, moderating a series of capacity-building workshops across Africa, and managing licensing projects. Ms. Ng is a native Creole speaker and is fluent in English, French, and Chinese Hakka. She has a limited working knowledge of Chinese Mandarin.

Francisco Soares

Mr. Soares has over 40 years of extensive experience in telecommunications regulation, policy development, and technical expertise across various sectors, including government, private industry, and non-profit organizations. During his time at Qualcomm, where he served as Vice President of Government Affairs in Latin America and the Caribbean, Mr. Soares became a leading force in shaping the company’s policy and regulatory strategy for the region. He cultivated strong relationships with government authorities, including commissioners, board members, superintendents of regulatory agencies, secretaries at various government ministries, deputies, senators of the House of Representatives, and ministers of state. Mr. Soares’s contributions extended to strong participation and support for regulatory agencies during public consultations that addressed regulations for the implementation of new technologies and the allocation of fresh spectrum resources. Beyond his regulatory and policy expertise, he also possesses substantial knowledge of patent matters and the semiconductor value chain, along with a keen understanding of the associated challenges. Prior to joining Qualcomm, Mr. Soares held several key positions at Brazil’s National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) and the Ministry of Communications, with responsibilities including product certification as well as spectrum planning, engineering, and regulations. He has been an active participant in international forums, including the ITU and CITEL.

Services for public and private entities of all sizes, emphasizing scalability and sustainability

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Policy & Regulation Formulation

Aid regulators and government agencies in forming their policies and regulations to create a robust ICT sector

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Strategy Development

Assist private-sector stakeholders in working with governments, entering new markets, and adjusting to the dynamic industry

Market Intelligence

Monitor ongoing developments around the world and in regional & international institutions

Economic Analysis

Monitor ongoing developments around the world and in regional & international institutions and create tailored market access and intelligence reports

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Research & Analysis

Research and write papers on key topics in the ICT space including current and future trends, topics of relevance for clients, and preparatory materials for global events

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Market Access & Strategy Implementation

Global expertise on assessing regulatory, technical, and corporate requirements to roll-out new products and services

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