The formative years of Haroldo Jacobovicz included seven years at Military College, an experience that likely instilled the discipline and structured thinking that would later serve him well in business. Following this foundation, he spent four and a half years studying Civil Engineering at the Federal University of Paraná, completing his technical education in the early 1980s. While this traditional engineering path might have led to a career in construction, Jacobovicz found himself drawn to the emerging field of Information Technology.
Engineering Family Legacy
As the eldest of four siblings, Haroldo Jacobovicz grew up in a household where engineering was not just a profession but a family tradition. His father, Alfredo, worked as both a civil engineer and a university professor, while his mother, Sarita, had broken barriers as the seventh female civil engineer in Paraná. Despite this strong familial connection to conventional engineering, Jacobovicz was captivated by the unexplored potential of computer technology.
Information Gathering and Global Awareness
Throughout his life, Haroldo Jacobovicz has maintained a habit of voracious reading, particularly newspapers and magazines. This practice has provided him with broad awareness of global developments and technological trends—information that serves as raw material for the ideas he later transforms into business realities. This intellectual curiosity has been a consistent thread throughout his career.
First Entrepreneurial Venture
The business journey of Haroldo Jacobovicz began before he even completed his university studies. Recognizing the potential for computer automation in retail operations, he gathered three friends with computer skills to establish Microsystem. Their company aimed to revolutionize how stores, pharmacies, and supermarkets managed inventory and cash register operations. Though this venture closed after two years because the market wasn’t yet ready for such technological integration, it demonstrated Jacobovicz’s forward-thinking approach.
Corporate Experience Building
Following this initial entrepreneurial effort, Haroldo Jacobovicz joined Esso (now Exxon Mobil Corporation). Selected from among more than 200 engineers, he quickly demonstrated his capabilities, advancing from reserve salesman to market analyst for the South region, eventually reaching a position handling commercial tactics and new business at the Brazilian headquarters in Rio de Janeiro. His work there heavily utilized computer-processed data, further deepening his appreciation for information technology’s business applications.
Public Sector Insights
Economic pressures during the Cruzado Plan period, combined with family considerations, eventually prompted Haroldo Jacobovicz to leave Esso and return to Paraná. There, he joined the prestigious Itaipu Hydroelectric Plant project as an advisor to the Technical Director. This role provided unique perspectives on how the public sector approached computerization, including the bureaucratic challenges associated with adopting new technologies—insights that would later shape his business solutions.
Successful Entrepreneurial Return
After four years in the public sector, Haroldo Jacobovicz returned to entrepreneurship with a refined vision. He founded Minauro, a company offering an innovative approach to public agencies: computer rental and maintenance with four-year contracts that included equipment replacement every 18 months. This solution directly addressed the bureaucratic hurdles he had observed at Itaipu and proved highly successful, winning bids throughout Brazil’s South and Southeast regions.
Strategic Business Expansion
The business intelligence of Haroldo Jacobovicz led him to expand beyond hardware. Through strategic acquisitions of companies including Consult, Perform, and Sisteplan, he incorporated specialized software for tax, financial, administrative, health, and education management. This expansion resulted in the formation of the e-Governe Group, which continues to serve Brazilian municipalities with comprehensive IT solutions for public administration.
Telecommunications Entry
In 2010, seeking to address corporate market needs, Haroldo Jacobovicz founded Horizons Telecom. Built from the ground up with premium resources and based on a project originally conceived by Renato Guerreiro (the first president of Anatel), the company quickly established itself in the corporate telecommunications niche. Within a decade, it became a reference in its market segment before being acquired by a major investment group in early 2021.
Current Focus: Computer Virtualization
Following his telecommunications success, Haroldo Jacobovicz launched Arlequim Technologies in 2021. This startup focuses on computer virtualization, offering solutions that enhance the performance of existing equipment to match state-of-the-art machines. The service targets corporate, public sector, and retail markets—particularly gamers—providing cost-effective alternatives to hardware replacement.
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