We Build Bridges for Collaboration, Communication
and Empowerment of Communities.
To improve the quality of life of the citizens or members of communities, SDI takes a holistic approach to understanding the myriad of sustainability and resiliency issues and their interdependencies, faced by communities. We focus on understanding where they are now and where they want to be, conducting gap analyses, and formulating proactive and collaborative approaches to build bridges for filling in the gaps in addressing community issues and challenges. We accomplish these objectives through our SMART Framework©.
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Our SMART Framework© provides a citizen-centric and holistic approach to solving many of the challenges faced by communities in tackling sustainability and resiliency issues to increase the quality of life of its citizens. Our approach centers on fostering collaboration among community stakeholders that may include the public, private, and academic sectors to serve the needs of the citizens of the community, leading to a shared purpose with communities for ensuring success. Complementing our approach is the combined expertise and resources of our staff and partners in supporting government programs and operations that serve the needs of communities.
Our Leadership
Roberto Llames
Director
Roberto Llames (Roberto) is the Managing Director of the SMART Development Institute (SDI), an IRS-approved 501(c)(3) non-profit firm (www.sdinst.org) and the President of Enterprise Solutions, Inc. (ESI), a technology management and consulting firm (www.enterprisesolutions.net). Roberto has over 25 years of experience in the software and information technology services industries supporting public and private sector clients. Roberto has established ESI as a reputable firm by providing reliable and effective enterprise-level IT solutions, knowledge management solutions, and business process improvement and transformation solutions to a diverse group of clients. As the Managing Director of SDI, Roberto leads the Institute in providing policy-driven technology solutions for empowering communities to transform them into smart communities addressing sustainability and resiliency issues. In addition to SDI, Roberto is an active member of several local non-profit organizations supporting various community and humanitarian programs. Roberto has also supported programs that tackle social problems in the sports industry and some of his notable achievements include: (a) spearheading the design and deployment of www.ConcussionTV.com to raise awareness of problems related to concussion, which was eventually turned over to EIC TV Network; and (b) Executive Producer of a documentary entitled “Tackle the World: Tough Game Tougher Women” that documented the challenging road of Team USA Women Tackle Football Team to winning the 2013 World Championship (https://vimeo.com/127521709) as well as demonstrated the importance of gender neutrality and diversity in any sports. Roberto also serves as a Member of the Board of Directors at the U.S.-Philippines Society (USPHS) and the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS). Roberto holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from Averett University.
Michael Lee
Director
Michael Lee (Mike) is the Managing Director of SDI and the Executive Vice President of ESI. Mike has over 20 years of experience in forming and leading high-performance teams in implementing high-impact technology solutions for government and commercial clients. Mike is a subject matter expert on business process re-engineering, and enterprise architecture and integration. He previously served more than eight years in the Army National Guard as a Communications Specialist. Mike is also a Deacon and Treasurer of the Metropolitan Baptist Church where he supports and advocates for various church-sponsored community programs to help the poor and needy. As a Managing Director of SDI, Mike engages in formulating the Institute’s digital transformation policies, strategies, and solutions for smart community enablement as well as formation of high-performance teams to support SDI Programs and Operations. Mike received his Bachelor of Science in Business Management from George Mason University.
JiAe Sohn
Program Director
JiAe Sohn (JiAe) is the Program Director of SDI and SMART MoBee Corporation. JiAe has over 7 years of experience in supporting the public sector, serving agencies such as, the Republic of Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korean Cultural and Information Service. JiAe engages in government programs aimed at boosting bilateral ties with foreign countries and formulating outreach programs to raise awareness of the government’s development policies toward underdeveloped countries. She was part of the Cultural Ministry’s delegation accompanying the President’s state visits to Washington D.C., France, Colombia, Iran, Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia, leading and organizing humanitarian and cultural exchange events. As Program Director for SDI, JiAe leads multiple projects and high-performance teams for smart community transformation through implementation of smart technologies and support for humanitarian projects. JiAe graduated Summa Cum Laude from Yeungnam University with a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature.
Our Partners
