Technical Education and Early Vision
The business career of Haroldo Jacobovicz was built upon a solid technical foundation. After seven years at Military College and four and a half years studying Civil Engineering at the Federal University of Paraná in the early 1980s, he found himself drawn not to traditional construction but to the emerging field of Information Technology. This shift demonstrated an early ability to recognize transformative technological trends—a skill that would characterize his entire career.
Family Engineering Background
The technical inclinations of Haroldo Jacobovicz were likely influenced by his family environment. As the eldest of four siblings, he grew up in a household where engineering was prominent. 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 these strong connections to conventional engineering, Jacobovicz was captivated by the unexplored potential of computer technology.
First Venture: Too Early for the Market
The entrepreneurial journey of Haroldo Jacobovicz began before he even completed his university studies when he gathered three friends with computer expertise to establish Microsystem. Their company aimed to revolutionize how stores, pharmacies, and supermarkets managed inventory and cash registers through automation. Though this venture closed after two years because the market wasn’t yet ready for such technological integration, it provided a crucial lesson in business timing that would influence his future decisions.
Building Experience While Waiting for the Right Moment
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. This period provided valuable corporate experience while the technology market continued to mature.
Public Sector Insights: Identifying Specific Obstacles
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 specific bureaucratic challenges associated with adopting new technologies—insights that revealed a market opportunity that was now ripe for addressing.
Perfect Timing: Solution for Public Sector Computerization
After four years observing the public sector from within, Haroldo Jacobovicz determined that the time was right to return to entrepreneurship with a refined vision. He founded Minauro, a company offering an innovative solution specifically designed for government agencies: computer rental and maintenance with four-year contracts that included equipment replacement every 18 months. This approach directly addressed the bureaucratic hurdles he had observed and proved highly successful, winning bids throughout Brazil’s South and Southeast regions. The timing was now perfect for this solution.
Expanding at the Right Moment
As the market for hardware solutions matured, Haroldo Jacobovicz recognized the growing importance of specialized software. Through strategic acquisitions of companies including Consult, Perform, and Sisteplan, he incorporated specialized software for tax, financial, administrative, health, and education management at precisely the time when public administration was ready for these digital solutions. This expansion resulted in the formation of the e-Governe Group, which continues to serve Brazilian municipalities with comprehensive IT solutions.
Telecommunications: Entering a New Market at the Right Time
In 2010, identifying that corporate telecommunications infrastructure needed modernization, 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 entered the market just as businesses were beginning to require more sophisticated telecommunications solutions. Within a decade, it became a reference in its market segment before being acquired by a major investment group in early 2021—again demonstrating Jacobovicz’s sense of timing, both for market entry and exit.
Current Venture: Meeting Today’s Computing Challenges
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 without requiring new hardware purchases. The timing of this venture coincides with growing concerns about electronic waste, resource efficiency, and cost control—particularly relevant during economic uncertainty—providing a solution that addresses current market needs.
The Timing Advantage
Throughout his career, Haroldo Jacobovicz has demonstrated an exceptional ability to identify not just what technological solutions would be valuable, but when the market would be ready to adopt them. From his early lesson with Microsystem—when his solution was ahead of market readiness—to his perfectly timed creation of Minauro to address public sector computerization needs, to his strategic entry into and exit from telecommunications, Jacobovicz has shown that in technology business, timing is often as important as the solution itself.
The professional journey of Haroldo Jacobovicz illustrates how successful technology entrepreneurship requires not only technical knowledge and business acumen but also a refined sense of market timing—knowing when a solution will find fertile ground for adoption.