Ariel Ramirez Directory Page

Ariel is a multiple award-winning adjunct professor in corporate investigation, fraud examination and forensic auditing at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Department of Accounting and Information Assurance, and teaches in the Master of Accounting program. He is also a visiting professor of fraud examination and business investigation at Rutgers University and teaches anti-corruption, anti-bribery and corporate investigation topics in the MBA of Compliance program at LEC Legal, Ethics, and Compliance in São Paulo, Brazil.

Ariel is president, chief operating officer and chief executive officer of RKA Worldwide Group LLC, which includes RKA Worldwide USA LLC in Washington, D.C.; RKA Worldwide Brasil Ltda in São Paulo; and RKA Worldwide Middle East LLC (in formation) in Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia, and Dubai. RKA Worldwide provides high-risk forensic and special investigations, integrity and risk assessments, executive security/protection, white-collar and financial crime litigation support, eDiscovery and digital forensics, and compliance consulting.

He is also chairman and CEO of Mavins Latin America, the LATAM presence for Mavins International LLC, a global network of independent accounting, auditing, tax and strategic consulting firms. The organization also includes two companies in formation: Mavins Brasil Consultoria Ltda and Mavins Brasil Serviços de Contabilidade Ltda.

At RKA, Ariel guides senior business development leaders and technical specialists in prospecting, originating, closing and overseeing projects across North America, Latin America and the Europe, Middle East and Africa region, while building sales channels. He oversees RKA’s seven global service delivery practices and the senior managing directors of those practices, manages corporate functions with ultimate responsibility for global profit and loss, and leads the firm’s profitable growth and annual strategic plan execution. He also formalizes core corporate processes and oversees senior vice presidents leading legal, human resources, accounting and finance, sales and revenue management, administration and operations. He reports to the global non-executive chairman of the RKA board.

In his roles at Mavins International, he has direct oversight of the managing partners responsible for day-to-day firm operations.

With more than 25 years of experience, Ariel is an internationally recognized leader managing multinational and cross-border issues. His work spans anti-corruption and anti-bribery matters, including the FCPA, the U.K. Bribery Act, Brazil’s Clean Company Act and comparable statutes in Colombia, Chile and Argentina, as well as policy violations, financial crimes, workplace violence, due diligence, employee, supplier and executive misconduct, economic sanctions, complex white-collar defense, government enforcement and special investigations mandated by boards of directors, senior executives and audit committees.

He has collaborated with risk managers and internal and external legal counsel, including major international law firms, as well as national and international law enforcement agencies. He has led end-to-end investigations and advisory work across procurement, supply chain and manufacturing, including matters involving product quality, drug spoilage, money laundering, tax fraud, gap analyses, loan covenant violations, disaster recovery and SBA and COVID-19 claims, compliance program reviews and development, and controls and ethics program design. His clients have included Fortune 500 companies, private entities, multilateral institutions, development banks, federal agencies, royal families and foreign governments. He has served as a principal investigator and as part of expert support teams on major fraud and corruption cases, as well as global monitorships and testing.

Ariel is fluent in English, Spanish and Portuguese and has lived and worked abroad for extended periods. He has worked in Spain, Argentina, Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, Peru, Chile, Ecuador, Puerto Rico, Mexico, South Africa, Greece, Canada, Russia, the Czech Republic, Hong Kong, Singapore, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and the United States.

A veteran, Ariel served 21 years in the U.S. military reserves. He enlisted in the U.S. Marines and graduated from Parris Island, earning multiple early merit promotions. He later graduated from U.S. Navy Officer Training College in Pensacola and became a commissioned officer.

Ariel holds an MBA in international business and a B.S./A.S. in computer science from Tampa College, graduating cum laude and earning Dean’s Honor and Dean’s List recognition. He is a graduate of the John Reid and Wicklander-Zulawski basic and advanced courses in interview and interrogation techniques. His certifications include Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), Certified in Risk Management Assurance (CRMA), Certified Government Audit Professional (CGAP), Certified in Control Self-Assessment (CCSA), Certified Financial Services Auditor (CFSA), Certified Internal Controls Auditor (CICA) and Professional, Academy of Healthcare Management (PAHM).