For years, Pedro Guerrero has been accustomed to steering events and gatherings that draw a few hundred people at a time. As the founder and president of Hispanic Executive, Guerrero has built a reputation for convening leaders, fostering meaningful dialogue, and highlighting the profound impact of Latino professionals across American business. But this year represents something entirely unprecedented in scale and ambition.
With AVANCE Global projected to draw an impressive crowd of 6,000 attendees to Las Vegas, Guerrero finds himself at a pivotal career juncture. For him, and for the broader enterprise he leads, it is time for operations, influence, and community-building to move to the next level. The massive gathering brings together elite business minds, entrepreneurs, and advocates from across the country, turning the iconic venue at the Bellagio into a vibrant nexus of leadership and innovation.
Reflecting on the monumental shift in magnitude, Guerrero shares a unique vantage point regarding the massive undertaking. Having worked closely alongside the teams from AVANCE and the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals (NAHREP), he has witnessed the immense operational effort required to pull off an event of this caliber.
"I think I have a different perspective going into AVANCE Global this year because I’ve gotten to see all of the planning behind the scenes from the NAHREP and AVANCE teams," Guerrero explains. "I’ve seen the sausage made, and you know what, it just makes me appreciate this all the more. It is impressive to be a part of a team that can handle this type of gathering at this scale."
Bringing Featured Leaders and Personal Connections Under One Roof
Beyond the sheer logistical triumph of assembling thousands of professionals under one roof, this year’s AVANCE Global serves as a long-awaited reunion and intersection for Hispanic Executive. Over the years, the publication has profiled hundreds of trailblazing leaders, visionaries, and executives who are reshaping industries. For Guerrero, the conference provides a rare opportunity to meet many of these featured individuals in person in a single shared space.
The attendee roster reads like a who’s who of modern business excellence. It spans high-profile figures such as billionaire businessman and Kind founder Daniel Lubetzky, as well as fellow billionaire and Leon Capital Group founder Fernando De Leon. These luminaries represent the pinnacle of commercial success and corporate leadership, and their presence at AVANCE underscores the growing economic footprint of the Latino community in the United States and globally.
In addition to these monumental business figures, the event fosters deeply personal relationships that have blossomed over the past few years. Guerrero highlights connections forged during the unprecedented challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, noting how digital interactions have finally translated into meaningful face-to-face engagements.
"There are people like Bobby Herrera [co-founder and president of Populus Group] who I got to know during COVID and has come to be a very good friend," Guerrero explains. "Not only do I get to meet him in person finally, I get to hear him speak and inspire the audience. That’s the kind of energy you really look forward to encountering."
A "Conference of Conferences" for Latino Leadership
Guerrero characterizes AVANCE Global not merely as a standalone event, but essentially as a "conference of conferences." He views the gathering as a grand convergence where the multiple tributaries of NAHREP, AVANCE, Latinos in Sports, and numerous other influential organizations all flow into the same deep lake of Latino leadership.
This multi-organizational synergy has been a hallmark of an exceptionally momentous year for Guerrero and Hispanic Executive. In July, Guerrero’s creative enterprise officially merged with AVANCE in a strategic partnership. The union was memorably described by AVANCE founder Gary Acosta as "a scenario where two plus two equals five"—highlighting the exponential power generated when complementary forces align under a shared vision.
For Guerrero, AVANCE acts as a powerful vehicle to realize the full potential of his publication’s established media platform. Meanwhile, Hispanic Executive brings its trusted storytelling capabilities and deep-rooted relationships with a wide spectrum of influential Latino leaders to the table. In practical terms, this partnership unlocks innovative opportunities to build robust programming around AVANCE Global, seamlessly connect audiences across diverse industry sectors, and transform individual gatherings into an enduring, year-round media-and-events platform.
Furthermore, this alliance strategically positions Hispanic Executive to support a major new initiative: an upcoming media brand focused directly and intentionally on the U.S. Latino audience. Guerrero firmly believes that this crucial demographic remains underserved by mainstream media outlets, which too often approach Latinos exclusively through Spanish-language content or fail to approach them at all.
The forthcoming project is intentionally engineered for an English-speaking audience that is simultaneously Hispanic and American. By offering tailored coverage and authentic representation, the new brand aims to serve this unique, rapidly expanding segment of the population with the depth, nuance, and respect it deserves.
Bridging the Diaspora Across Continents
Beyond the immediate domestic media opportunities and the electric atmosphere in Las Vegas, Guerrero is deeply drawn to AVANCE’s expansive global orientation. He envisions the organization as a vital bridge connecting the United States, Latin America, and Spain—a transatlantic conduit capable of forging robust commercial and cultural connections across the entire global diaspora.
"There is real potential in bringing those worlds into closer conversation, culturally and commercially," Guerrero says. "If our community is a competitor from a GDP perspective, I want to see what becomes possible when our community operates like one with a natural connection to its roots, playing on the same field as the broader international Latin American community."
Whether he ultimately views AVANCE Global as the crowning capstone of a massive year or the launching pad for even greater endeavors to come, the Hispanic Executive leader remains focused on the horizon. As thousands of professionals fill the halls of the Bellagio, Guerrero is ready to watch the unfolding vision take shape, knowing that the journey of elevating Latino leadership has only just accelerated.
