Engineering leadership that strengthens your project delivery
Our leadership team brings deep, hands-on experience across U.S. and international projects—ensuring technical rigor, seamless collaboration, and execution models that elevate performance and reduce risk.
Arturo Portilla — Managing Director & Engineering Integration Lead
Arturo Portilla is a Mechanical Engineer with more than 40 years of experience leading engineering, fabrication, and construction projects across the Oil & Gas, Power, and Food industries. He holds an MBA from the University of California, a specialization in Metal-Mechanical Production from CDG in Germany, and advanced training in Project Management under PMI methodologies, combining technical rigor with strategic, business-oriented leadership. His career spans roles from discipline engineer to project and engineering manager within major multinational firms, delivering complex projects in the United States, Colombia, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, and other regions.
He has extensive experience developing and executing integrated collaboration models for engineering teams, a capability refined through years of working with U.S.–based organizations. Arturo designed the integration framework that CREATES uses today—an operating model focused on seamless team alignment, clear communication channels, and reliable execution across borders.
His leadership centers on technical rigor, predictable delivery, and helping companies strengthen performance through well-structured, high-quality nearshore engineering teams.
Carlos Mario Escobar — Director of Transport Systems
Carlos Mario Escobar is a senior Project Director with more than 40 years of experience leading major infrastructure and oil & gas programs across America and the Caribbean. His career is defined by the successful delivery of high-impact projects that integrate engineering excellence, solid financial structuring, and transparent, accountable governance.
A specialist in rail and multimodal transportation, Carlos Mario brings more than three decades of leadership in metro, LRT, monorail, commuter rail, and regional mobility initiatives. He has played key roles in some of the region’s most significant transportation projects, including Medellín Metro, Tren Urbano de San Juan (Puerto Rico), Regiotram de Occidente, Metrorrey Lines 4–6, Tren Maya, and Bogotá Metro, among others.
Throughout his career, he has led multidisciplinary teams, PMOs, and complex project portfolios—supporting both public and private clients in transforming strategic mobility concepts into feasible, sustainable, and well-managed programs. His work blends systems engineering, procurement leadership, and hands-on guidance for large-scale tendering and delivery processes.
Recognized for his collaborative and solutions-driven approach, Carlos Mario helps clients design, procure, and implement modern, reliable, and future-ready transportation systems that strengthen mobility, regional competitiveness, and long-term urban development.
Jesús Salazar — Director of Power
Jesús Salazar brings over 35 years of experience in the power, infrastructure, and oil & gas sectors, with a strong technical foundation in power generation, high-voltage transmission, and medium- and low-voltage distribution systems. He has led multidisciplinary engineering teams responsible for planning, designing, coordinating, and delivering complex electrical and infrastructure projects across Latin America.
Throughout his career, Jesús has managed critical interfaces between electrical engineering, civil, mechanical, automation, and control disciplines—ensuring alignment with scope, quality, safety, schedule, and cost requirements. His expertise includes system studies, protection and control coordination, substation and grid integration engineering, and the oversight of long-lead equipment strategies.
With more than a decade applying PMI project management practices and Agile (Scrum) methodologies, he brings a balanced approach that strengthens technical rigor, responsiveness, and execution quality.
For over 10 years, Jesús has specialized in integrating power engineering teams into the workflows of U.S. engineering and construction firms, enabling seamless collaboration, clear technical communication, and reliable delivery aligned with U.S. codes, standards, and expectations. His leadership ensures that CREATES provides dependable, technically sound, and high-value support in all power-related assignments.
Alejandro Morales — Director of Infrastructure
Alejandro Morales brings over 30 years of experience delivering major transportation and civil infrastructure projects across North America, Latin America, and the Middle East. His technical leadership spans roadway engineering, geotechnical analysis, soil stability, hydraulic and hydrological studies, water systems design, material sourcing, and advanced topographic and surveying methodologies. He has led multidisciplinary engineering teams for more than a decade in workshare and distributed-delivery environments, ensuring seamless coordination and consistent technical quality across global offices.
He holds advanced academic training through a Master’s-level program in Construction Project Management and a Specialization in Road Infrastructure and Transportation, providing him with a holistic understanding of the engineering, financial, administrative, legal, environmental, and social factors that shape modern infrastructure development.
Alejandro is committed to delivering innovative, efficient, and resilient engineering solutions, leveraging modern computational tools and digital methodologies to enhance design precision and optimize project schedules. His approach integrates technical depth with practical constructability and proactive problem-solving, consistently supporting clients with infrastructure solutions built to meet today’s challenges and anticipate future demands.
