Our Trainers and Mentors
Working staff of the Virtual Business Incubator “ABCO” is completed with highly qualified and experienced professionals – trainers, business consultants, mentors.
Konstantin Zhgenti
Location: Tbilisi
Konstantin Zhgenti has been working in the area of business consultancy Since 1995. He is a senior business consultant and trainer. From 2001 Konstantin Zhgenti occupies position of the President of the Association of Business Consulting Organizations of Georgia (ABCO). Prior to 1995, he at worked in the number of trade and intermediary companies as well as various times in the Georgian ministries of Industry, Economics and Finance. Konstantin Zhgenti possesses high qualification and vast experience in the areas of small and medium enterprise management, marketing, financial planning and financial management, attraction of investments, access to bank crediting and grant financing. At the same time, he has extensive theoretical knowledge and practical experience in agricultural extension, support to development of the primary agricultural production and of agricultural processing enterprises, development and supporting of the products’ value chain, evaluation and monitoring of projects, issues of foreign market relations and DCFTA implementation in Georgia, etc. Konstantin Zhgenti has also developed and published a manual for business plan elaboration.
Giorgi Khatiashvili
Location: Tibaani
Giorgi Khatiashvili has been active in the sphere of agri-business consulting, particularly in the direction of animal husbandry. He is a zoo-engineer by profession, an expert in animal husbandry and has a degree of a doctor of agrarian sciences. Giorgi Khatiashvili also has big experience in development of agricultural cooperatives and farmers’ associations. Over the years he also worked in the Georgia’s banking sector in the direction of agriculture crediting and participated in several projects for supporting local agribusiness sector that were carried out in Georgia by various international organizations. Giorgi Khatiashvili has long experience in delivering agricultural extension and consulting services. In this regard specifically should be mentioned such areas of activity as processing of milk and dairy products, design and management of intensive dairy farming enterprises, livestock breeding activities, etc. In 2019, Giorgi Khatiashvili founded the “Georgian Livestock Breeding Association”. Since 2016 he is an executive director of the company “Caucasus Genetics”.
Aleko Mameshvili
Location: Ozurgeti
Aleko Mameshvili has been active in the business consulting sphere since 1999. Over the years he has occupied the position of the chairman of the board of the Guria Agro-Business Center and at the same time he has been the coordinator of the international donor funded projects implemented on the regional level in Guria. In this respect, Aleko Mameshvili’s relevant experience counts several successful projects implemented in Guria and other regions of Georgia that aimed at development of the local agriculture, tourism and processing industry. He possesses thorough work experience in such areas as elaboration of business plans and preparation of credit applications, attraction of finances, development of marketing strategy and implementation of marketing activities, financial planning and in general management.
Gia Dzirkvadze
Location: Khulo
Gia Dzirkvadze has been working in the sphere of Business Consultancy since 2012. He is a Zoo-technician by education, possessing relevant theoretical knowledge and considerable practical experience in diverse areas of agriculture including livestock farming/cattle-breeding, vegetable growing (potato production) and in operation and management of agriculture machinery (mechanization) service center. Since 2011, Gia Dzirkvadze manages “Dioknisi Rural Service Center” (Khulo municipality of Ajara region) as well as the agricultural cooperative “Dioknisi” which produces various fruit jams, dried fruits and fruit juice products, made of ecologically clean local fruits and berries. Gia Dzirkvadze also has considerable experience in cultivation/production of raspberry. During the 2001 – 2010 he also worked in the public sector, occupying various public job positions within the Khulo municipality of the Ajara region.
Makhare Matsukatov
Location: Akhalkalaki
Makhare Matsukatov has been working as Head of the Akhalkalaki Business Center since 2002. He is a business consultant and trainer. His professional business consulting service activities mainly cover the region of Samtskhe-Javakheti, particularly the municipalities Akhalkalaki and Ninotsminda. Over the years he also acted as local coordinator of the number of International Development projects. In 2014, Makhare Matsukatov founded association “Akhalkalaki Potato” and through his initiative, in Georgian patenting agency “Sakpatenti” registered the appellation of origin and geographical denomination for the locally produced potato - of “Akhalkalaki Potato”. Makhare Matsukatov is an agri-business consultant /expert in the area of potato value chain. He also co-authored the research on “Implementation of Climate-Smart Agricultural Methods in Akhalkalaki” (a guidebook for farmers).
Tamar Qachashvili
Location: Tibaani
Tamar Qachashvili has been working in the area of Business/Agribusiness Consulting since 1999. From 2006 she is the founder and director of the company “Caucasus Genetics” as well as the founder of tourism company “FIDA Georgia” and the number of professional associations. Tamar Qachashvili is a certified professional coach and strategic development consultant, she also delivers lectures on the topics of strategic management and organizational and personal development at the “Ilia University”. As a business consultant and a coach, Tamar Qachashvili’s scope of activities and services cover the following areas of expertise: elaboration of the strategic development and action plans of the enterprises; definition and application of the crisis management measures; modeling of business ideas and new projects; planning and implementation of organizational changes, etc.
Otar Absnadze
location: Zugdidi
Otar Absandze has been active in the sphere of business consulting and financial audit since 1989. From 2019, he is a certified trainer of the International Labour Organization (ILO). Since 2003, Otar Absandze as a business trainer, consultant and analyst, cooperates with various organizations for international development that are active in Georgia and has participated in number of relevant projects implemented in Georgia and particularly in Samegrelo and Zemo Svaneti region through funding from international donors. He has high professional qualification and many years of experience in the areas of marketing, general management, financial and general business planning, project evaluation and enterprise coaching and mentoring, other relevant areas.
Akaki Ghlonti
location: Ozurgeti
Akaki Ghlonti has been active as a professional agro-consultant / expert since 2004. From 1995 he has engaged in practical bio-farming. His previous work also include occupying a position of chief specialist in agriculture in Economic Department of Ozurgeti municipality. Over the years, Akaki Ghlonti as an expert-consultant has participated in various relevant programs carried out in Guria region through financing by international donor organizations. Simultaneously he is involved in scientific-research/ selection works with regard to sub-tropical agricultural crops. Akaki Ghlonti’s professional consulting activity profile includes: assessment and management of soil fertility, selection of seeding/planting materials, selection of methods of plants’ protection, identification of pests and diseases and selection and application of the relevant pest and plant disease management measures.
Giorgi Chumburidze
Location: Kutaisi
Giorgi Chumburidze has been actively working in the business consulting sphere since 1996, providing services as a business consultant/advisor and a trainer. At various times he used to work at the Centre for the Enterprise Restructuring and Management (CERMA) as well occupied position of the Head of the Imereti Regional Office of the telecommunication companies “United Telecom” and “Silknet”. Giorgi Chumburidze possesses high qualification and extensive experience in such areas as the development and management of small and medium size enterprises, supporting the development of agribusinesses, processing industry enterprises, agricultural cooperatives, in topics related to foreign trade operations and the implementation of the DCFTA process in Georgia. He also has big experience in the areas of the Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation.
Ekaterine Kimeridze
location: Tbilisi
Ekaterine Kimeridze has been working in area of business consulting since 2005. She is a founding partner of the consulting company “GDCI” LLC. The principal direction of Ekaterine Kimeridze’s work activities includes food safety and quality control of food products. Within these areas she intensively cooperates with both private companies and public/state structures. The scope of her professional services includes: assessment of the enterprise Infrastructure’s compliance with the requirements of the relevant legislation and international standards; development and implementation of food safety and quality control systems; conducting of the audit at the enterprises. Ekaterine Kimeridze is a co-author of the several guidebooks/manuals published in the sphere of food safety.
Elguja Deisadze
Location: Kutaisi
Elguja Deisadze has been actively working in the sphere of business consulting since 2000. He is an associated professor at Kutaisi University and a private business consultant and trainer. His previous work experience includes working as business consultant at the Center for Enterprise Restructuring and Management (CERMA). Elguja Deisadze possesses big experience in the areas of small and medium enterprise management, marketing, financial planning and management, assessment of investment decisions and access of grant financing. Simultaneously he has relevant expert knowledge as well as the considerable experience in agricultural extension, product value chain analysis and evaluation, development of processing enterprises and other related areas of expertise.
Tamar Labartkava
Location: Tbilisi
Tamar Labartkava has been worked in the sphere of food safety and quality control since 2002. From 2006 she is a co-founding partner of the consulting company “GDCI”. Tamar Labartkava works with representatives of both private and public sectors, cooperating in the areas of the infrastructure assessment, elaboration and implementation of food safety and quality control systems according to the requirements of the local legislative and national and international (GLOBAL G.A.P., ISO 22000, ISO 9001, IFS Food, BRC, etc.) food safety standards. Tamar Labartkava is also co-author of several published guidebooks/manuals on food safety related to diverse sub-sectors of food production.