The Parranda Global Summit Announces Keynote Speakers

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, MIAMI, and SILICON VALLEY, Calif., May 24, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Parranda.org, a new non-profit dedicated to the development of a "Greater Puerto Rico," today announced that it has selected its keynote speakers for its first annual Parranda Summit in San Juan, Puerto Rico on Thursday, May 30^th at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus.   Headlining the event – which aims to bring together leaders throughout the global Puerto Rican diaspora community for a full-day interactive session – are Jose Masso and Manny Morales, two thought leaders and pioneers in the 21^st century Puerto Rican community.

"Jose was and is one of the most active and visionary leaders in the Puerto Rican diaspora, and Manny is a path breaking pioneer in the technology community," said Giovanni Rodriguez, co-founder of Parranda.org.  "We're honored to have them at this first gathering of the global Parranda community and look forward to the contributions they will make in the coming year."

Jose Masso – known to many in the US for his role in broadcast media – has enjoyed a rich and multi-layered career, including prominent positions in education, communications, media, politics, government, entertainment, sports and philanthropy.  A Puerto Rican who has lived in Boston for more than four decades, Masso recently joined the Massachusetts Port Authority's senior leadership team as the Director of Community Relations under the direction of CEO & Executive Director Tom Glynn.  Masso directs the five-member Community Relations and Charitable Giving staff that serves as the first point of contact for the Authority with community groups and is critical to the success of Massport in fostering community collaboration and its responsibility to be a good neighbor.  On June 22^nd his weekly radio show "¡Con Salsa!" on WBUR 90.9fm (National Public Radio in Boston) will celebrate 38 years on the air.  He is also the first and only Latino in the Massachusetts Broadcasters Hall of Fame.

Manny Morales, a prominent Internet veteran, started his first interactive firm in 1997, and sold it to Puerto Rico's leading bank in 2003. He conceived and led the development of Ticketpop, the leading electronic ticketing processor in Puerto Rico, owned by EVERTEC Group, LLC, that services venues and promoters with a combined client base of more than 130,000 consumers. Morales is now Senior Vice President and Processing Product Manager at EVERTEC, the leading full-service transaction processing business in Latin America and the Caribbean and the first Puerto Rican technology company to ever go public.  Morales is also founder of Grasslark, a product company based on patented technology he developed to eliminate plastic usage in the consumables category. He holds a B.S. in Telecommunications from Universidad del Sagrado Corazon.

Occurring at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras, the Parranda Summit will provide many other leaders the opportunity to drive discussions on topics of interest to the global Puerto Rican community.  Styled as an "unconference" – an event format that allows for greater engagement – the Summit aims to get leaders to work with one another, and take positive and measurable action across a broad range of areas: economic development, entrepreneurship, healthcare, education, crime prevention, the environment, and voter empowerment.

"It's an opportunity to mix and engage with people who are not only thought leaders but action leaders as well," said Marcos Polanco, co-founder of Parranda.org.  "Jose and Manny are both great examples of this new kind of leader, and we're hoping to attract many more."

For information on registrations and sponsorships for the Summit please contact Antonio Sosa Pascual at (617-233-2845). Eventbrite link to the event: http://parrandasummit2013.eventbrite.com/

About Parranda.org

Parranda.org is a project devoted to the economic, civic, and cultural development of a "Greater Puerto Rico." By providing a virtual platform for mass collaboration, Parranda enables people on and off the island (the Puerto Rican diaspora) to work with one another on meaningful and measurable initiatives. 

Please visit us at www.parranda.org. You can also join the "parranda" on our social networks on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ParrandaPuertoRico and on Twitter at @ParrandaPR.

SOURCE Parranda.org