Myth # 5: Brazilian management must have a Harvard MBA to be reliable.
Many private equity investors looking at Brazil have chosen to invest with only those local entrepreneurs who have received a foreign MBA, or who have worked for a large foreign company for 10 years. They claim the institutional credentials are essential indicators of aptitude, commitment, and resourcefulness. As a result, they have refused many good ventures that later proved successful. One of our former clients was founded and managed by three high-school graduates. Private equity investors were worried because the three did not have MBAs or a former career with IBM. But the record of the three founders was astounding. They created one of the largest ISPs in the third largest city in the world (São Paulo). They eventually sold their firm to a foreign strategic buyer who appreciated their accomplishment and thus the managerial talent of the three founders. The three have recently formed a new company called WebForce, an investment and consulting firm, and they are having a much easier time raising capital this go-round.