Advisory
What I am actually useful for.
Knowing this region and being able to operate in it are different problems. The three practices below run off one evidence base. The questions differ; the facts do not.
01
Market entry and site strategy
For suppliers and OEMs (original equipment manufacturers, meaning automakers) placing a first or second footprint in the region.
- Site and corridor comparison, tested against firm power, industrial water and prepared acreage rather than brochure acreage
- The practical shape of an incentive negotiation — which body grants what, in what sequence, and what is genuinely negotiable
- USMCA (United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement) rules-of-origin and content design, and where IMMEX structures change the arithmetic
- Tier 1 and Tier 2 connection mapping, including who can actually hold tolerance
- Workforce pipeline assessment against the skills the plant will need in year three, not year one
- Institutional introductions at county, city, state and utility level
02
Corridor intelligence and diligence
For investors and corporate strategy teams pressure-testing a thesis or a deal.
- Pre-entry and pre-acquisition assumption testing
- Supplier base verification, on the ground rather than from a database
- Where published regional statistics and operating reality diverge, and by how much
- Standing corridor briefings on OEM announcements, incentive programs and policy movement
- Board-ready briefing packets that survive internal circulation without me present
03
Cluster strategy and investment attraction
For counties, chambers, utilities and economic development organizations.
- Competitiveness benchmarking against the regions you actually lose to
- Ranked and reasoned target lists, with the reasoning shown
- Workforce pipeline development with the training institutions that can deliver it
- Material written for the person making the siting decision, not for the press release
- Delegation and trade mission preparation, including Japanese-language material
How engagements work
A fixed first step, with a set length.
| Engagement | Length | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Bounded question | 2 weeks | One question that is blocking a decision, answered in a short written deliverable |
| Project | 6–12 weeks | A full site-selection or entry strategy, carried through to a decision |
| Continuing advisory | Quarterly | Quarterly briefings on the TMASC region with access between them; offered after a first engagement, not as a starting point |
No annual retainer is required to start.
How an engagement runs
Judgment, not guarantees.
Most engagements begin with a single decision that is stuck. The first conversation is more useful when it is specific: this site or that one, is this assumption right, what will this negotiation actually cost us in time.
Scope, deliverables, timeline, assumptions, exclusions and fees are set out in writing before work starts, along with what I need from you. If the matter is confidential, say so and an NDA goes in place before you describe it.
I do not promise an incentive, an approval or a site outcome. Nobody can. What I offer is the judgment of someone who negotiated these agreements from the other side of the table for 28 years.
What I will tell you early
- Where this region is weaker than its competitors for your specific investment type. The scorecard on the region page is public for that reason.
- Where a target list is unrealistic, before it costs you a travel budget.
- Where my prior County role could read as a conflict on a given matter, so it can be handled cleanly at the start.
Questions
Common questions
Is TMASC a grant or incentive program?
No. The Texas–Mexico Automotive Supercluster is a bi-national regional cluster and the strategic framework that describes it, documented in studies commissioned by Bexar County in 2008, 2012 and 2024. No company applies to it, joins it or receives funding from it. Incentives come from the bodies that grant them: counties, cities, the State of Texas, the Mexican states and utilities.
Do you represent Bexar County or the TMASC initiative?
No. I conceived and led the TMASC initiative while at the County, and retired from the County in 2025. This practice is private and independent. It does not speak for Bexar County, the TMASC initiative or any manufacturer, and I cannot obtain anything from the County that is not public.
Can you guarantee an incentive, an approval or a site outcome?
No. Nobody can. What I offer is the judgment of someone who negotiated these agreements from the other side of the table for 28 years.
Which areas do you cover?
Texas and the Mexican states of Coahuila, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas and San Luis Potosí, along the I-35, MX-85 and MX-57 corridor. The main hubs are Dallas–Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio and Monterrey–Saltillo.
Can we work in Japanese?
Yes. You can write to me in English or Japanese, and the main pages of this site are available in Japanese.
How does an engagement start?
With one decision that is stuck. Describe it in a few lines. Scope, deliverables, timeline, assumptions, exclusions and fees are then set out in writing before work starts. If the matter is confidential, an NDA goes in place before you describe it.
What if a matter touches your former department at the County?
I will say so at the start and suggest a cleaner route.
Next step
Bring me the decision that is stuck.
A site comparison, an incentive conversation, a supplier question. Describe it in a few lines and I will tell you whether I can help and what it would take. I normally reply within two business days, in English or Japanese.
Or write to hello@txmxautomotive.com · +1 210 861 1464