CONNECT. ENGAGE. INSPIRE.

 

Brad Keywell, Founder and Managing Director, Lightbank – Illinois Innovation Council Chair
Brad Keywell, 41, is a Chicago-based serial entrepreneur. He is cofounder and director of Groupon as well as several other companies such as MediaBank and Echo Global Logistics. He is a cofounder and managing partner of Lightbank, a venture fund investing in disruptive technology businesses where Lightbank’s financial and operational resources can add unique value. In addition, Brad was appointed by Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley to the Mayor’s Committee on Technology Infrastructure. He is a trustee of the Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurship at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, and he is on the advisory board of the Directors College for Global Business at the University of Michigan Law School.
Curtis Baird, CEO, Neon Internet and Former President SchoolCenter
Curtis Baird is the current CEO of a Carbondale technology company — Neon Internet — located in its new building in the Carbondale Business Park East. He has founded and successfully led four different technology companies during his career as an entrepreneur. Today, Neon provides high speed internet access to businesses throughout Southern Illinois. Recently, Curtis sold SchoolCenter to another Chicago educational technology company, Edline. He is in the process of helping several small businesses located in southern Illinois with initial startup funding. Curtis serves as chairman on the Southern Illinois Research Park Board of Directors and as a member of the Carbondale Business Development Corporation. He has received various awards for his businesses over the past several years.
John Clark Jr., Founder and CEO, Reggio’s Pizza
John M. Clark and his wife, Pearl, launched Reggio’s Pizza, Inc. as a food operation in 1972. Today, Reggio’s, the only African-American frozen pizza manufacturer for retail sales in the world, operates a 36,000 sq. ft., state-of-the-art, USDA-inspected processing facility in Chicago, Illinois, and five restaurants in the Chicagoland area. Reggio’s Pizza was selected as the National Minority Supplier of the Year-2010 by the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC). John is one of the nation’s most respected African-American business leaders: he has received numerous awards for entrepreneurial excellence and was one of a small, distinguished group of Chicago-based entrepreneurs inducted into the Chicago State University Business Hall of Fame in 1992.
Lisa C. Freeman, Ph.D., Vice President of Research and Graduate Studies, Northern Illinois University
Lisa C. Freeman has focused her academic career on bringing people and resources together to solve complex problems. Lisa joined Northern Illinois University in July 2010 as the vice president for Research and Graduate Studies and a professor of biology. Previously, she spent 15 years at Kansas State University rising from assistant professor to assistant vice president for Innovation. Lisa holds a bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and a doctor of veterinary medicine from Cornell University, as well as a doctoral degree in pharmacology from the Ohio State University. Lisa also worked as a postdoctoral fellow and research scientist at the University of Rochester, School of Medicine. In the past, Lisa’s research efforts were focused on ion channels as drug targets for therapeutic intervention in diseases such as cardiac arrhythmias, gastrointestinal ulcers, and ovarian cancer.
Chris Girgenti, Managing Partner, New World Ventures
Chris Girgenti joined New World Ventures in 1996 and has served as managing partner since 1998. During this time, he has led the organization and capital formation for four technology venture funds and has led or overseen investments in more than 50 companies. Chris graduated with a B.S. in applied mathematics-economics from Brown University and earned his M.B.A. in finance and accounting from Columbia Business School. He is also a chartered financial analyst. Chris currently serves on the Boards of Advantage Optics, HyperQuest, Univa Corporation, Sportvision, TopSchool, and Zinch and as a board observer of The Active Network and FleetMatics Group.
Antonio Gracias, Founder/Chief Executive Officer & Chief Investment Officer, Valor Equity Partners
Antonio Gracias is Valor’s CEO and chairman of the Investment Committee. He holds a joint B.S. and M.S.F.S. (honors degree) in international finance and economics from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service and a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. Antonio serves on the board of directors of the Grand Victoria Foundation and The Economic Club of Chicago, the board of trustees of the Illinois Institute of Technology, the board of visitors of the University of Chicago Law School, and as a trustee of the Field Museum. He is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.
T. Kendall “Ken” Hunt, Founder, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, VASCO Data Security International, Inc.
Ken Hunt is the founder, CEO, and chairman of Vasco Data Security, which serves more than 11,000 companies. Ken is also chairman of the Midwest Council of TechAmerica (formerly the AeA), the nation’s largest high-tech trade association; the former president of the Belgian Business Club of Chicago; and a member of The Economic Club of Chicago. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Miami, where he was a starting halfback as a sophomore. He also holds an MBA from Pepperdine University, where he was recently honored with the school’s Distinguished Alumnus Award.
Eric D. Isaacs, Ph.D., Director, Argonne National Laboratory
Eric D. Isaacs is president of UChicago Argonne and director of Argonne National Laboratory. He distinguished himself both as director of the Center for Nanoscale Materials at Argonne and as professor of physics in the University of Chicago’s James Franck Institute. Eric received a Ph.D. degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1988 in the area of magnetic semiconductors. He is a fellow of the American Physical Society and has served on a number of national scientific advisory committees, including the Basic Energy Sciences Advisory Committee. Eric is author or coauthor of more than 140 scientific papers and presentations.
Neil Kane, President, Illinois Partners Executive Services, LLC
Neil Kane is the president of Illinois Partners Executive Services, LLC. Before assuming this position, he was the CEO of Advanced Diamond Technologies, Inc. Neil is the former co-executive director of the Illinois Technology Enterprise Center at Argonne and was entrepreneur in residence with Illinois Ventures, LLC at the Research Park at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In these roles he was founding CEO of several startup companies based on university or federal laboratory research in areas such as nanotechnology, software, renewable energy and printed electronics. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and also holds an MBA from The University of Chicago.
Raja Krishnamoorthi, President, Sivananthan Laboratories
Raja Krishnamoorthi currently serves as president of Sivananthan Laboratories. Before joining his current company, Raja served as Deputy Treasurer for Illinois. In 2006, Raja was appointed by Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan to serve as Special Assistant Attorney General to help start her Public Integrity Unit. Prior to that, he served as a member of the Illinois Housing Development Authority where he was chairman of the Audit Committee. Raja served as issues director for Barack Obama’s U.S. Senate campaign in 2004 and as an advisor to his presidential campaign in 2008. Raja holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Princeton University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.
Tom Kuczmarski, Senior Partner and President, Kuczmarski & Associates
Thomas D. Kuczmarski is a senior partner and the president of Kuczmarski & Associates, an innovation-focused consultancy. Tom has also taught product and service innovation at Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management for 27 years. He is the founder, with Dan Miller, of the Chicago Innovation Awards. Before founding Kuczmarski & Associates, Tom was a Principal at Booz • Allen & Hamilton. He earned an M.B.A. from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business, and holds a master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University’s Graduate School of International Affairs, where he was named an International Fellow of the University. He received a B.A. in French from the College of the Holy Cross.
Matt Maloney, Co-Founder and CEO, GrubHub
Matt Maloney is the cofounder and CEO of GrubHub.com. The rapidly growing company works with more than 4,000 restaurants for online ordering and shows menus from over 13,000 restaurants in 13 major U.S. cities. Matt currently serves on the alumni board for the computer science department at the University of Chicago. He received his B.S. in Human Physiology (1998) from Michigan State University, M.S. in computer science from the University of Chicago (2000), and M.B.A. from University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business (2010).
Caralynn Nowinski, M.D., Associate Vice President for Innovation and Economic Development, University of Illinois
Dr. Caralynn Nowinski comes to the University of Illinois as associate vice president for innovation and economic development. Previously, she served as a senior vice president in the Chicago office of Sikich Investment Banking. She has also been a principal with venture capital firm ARCH Development Partners and cofounder/CEO of SanoGene Therapeutics, a biotechnology spin-out from the University of Illinois. Among her honors, Caralynn was named to the Crain’s Chicago Business 2008 “Forty Under Forty” list.
 Ameya Pawar, Alderman, 47th Ward, City of Chicago
Ameya Pawar was on staff at Northwestern University’s Office of Emergency Management prior to his election as Chicago’s 47th Ward Alderman. While at Northwestern, Ameya was responsible for the development of a university-wide business continuity program, and also co-authored a textbook on emergency management based on a social intelligence model he helped develop. Ameya holds a M.S. in Threat and Response Management from the University of Chicago and a M.P.A. in Public Administration from the Illinois Institute of Technology, and is currently enrolled the University of Chicago’s school of Social Service Administration Master’s program. In 2009, Ameya was a U.S. State Department Scholar. Ameya sits on the board of directors on the 47th Ward’s Common Pantry and the Illinois Center for Violence Prevention.
Norbert G. Riedel, Ph.D., Corporate Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer, Baxter International
Dr. Norbert G. Riedel has served as corporate vice president and chief scientific officer of Baxter since March 2001. Before assuming this role, Norbert served as president of the recombinant proteins business unit and vice president of research and development within Baxter’s BioScience business. He is on the board of directors at Medigene AG and serves as a member of the advisory board of Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management Center for Biotechnology, the McCormick School of Engineering and the University of Vienna. He is also a member of the board of trustees of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
Dennis A. Roberson, Vice Provost, Research and Corporate Relations, Illinois Institute of Technology
Dennis A. Roberson is vice provost for research and corporate relations, and a research professor in computer science at the Illinois Institute of Technology. He is a co-founder of IIT’s Wireless Network and Communications Research Center (WiNCom) and an educator in the wireless networking arena. Dennis is the president and CEO of Roberson and Associates, LLC, an IIT spin-out consulting firm. He also serves on the FCC’s Technology Advisory Council and Open Internet Advisory Committee, the U.S. Commerce Spectrum Management Advisory Committee, and recently served as an Invited Expert on the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology Working Group on Spectrum Policy. Prior to IIT, he was executive vice president and CTO at Motorola. Dennis has previous corporate experience at IBM, DEC (now part of HP), AT&T, and NCR. He holds BS degrees in Electrical Engineering and Physics from Washington State University and a MSEE degree from Stanford.
Lawrence B. Schook, Ph.D., Interim Vice President for Research, University of Illinois
Lawrence (Larry) B. Schook, the Edward William and Jane Marr Gutgsell Professor, is vice president for research at the University of Illinois. He oversees and advises the university president on matters related to research, intellectual property, technology commercialization, and related economic development activities. Larry is also responsible for the university’s major offices and entities engaged in technology commercialization and economic development. He also serves as the university’s spokesperson for the research enterprise in local, state, and federal settings.
Jeff Semenchuk, Chief Innovation Officer, Hyatt Hotels Corporation
Jeff Semenchuk is the Chief Innovation Officer of Hyatt Hotels Corporation. In this role, he leads the company’s enterprise-wide, cross-functional innovation efforts intended to create new experiences, offerings, and ways of operating that generate significant new value for guests, colleagues, and owners. He does this through deep customer and market insights, risk-taking entrepreneurship, and balanced investments and partnering. Prior to joining Hyatt, Jeff served for six months as a Senior Advisor with the Monitor Group (2011). He’s also worked for Citigroup, Pfizer Consumer Healthcare and Doblin, and co-founded VIA International. Jeff earned his MA in communications at Northern Illinois University and a BA in Communications Studies from Wheaton College.
Matthew Summy, Regional Vice President, Government and Regulatory Affairs, Comcast Corporation
Matthew Summy is the vice president, government affairs, of the Greater Chicago region for Comcast Corporation. He has two decades of experience in economic development, community investment and public policy advocacy. Prior to his leadership at Comcast, Matthew served as president & CEO of the Illinois Science & Technology Coalition (ISTC), where he developed public-private partnerships to secure resources for research, development and innovation. He has also held senior positions with the State of Illinois, the City of New York and worked as an aide in the United States Senate. Matthew has served as a 2009 Marshall Memorial Fellow and in 2010 completed a fellowship awarded by the America Council of Young Political Leaders. He holds an MPA from New York University and a BA from the University of Iowa.
Howard A. Tullman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy
Howard A. Tullman has more than 35 years of start-up, management, IPO, and turnaround experience and an extensive operations background in technological development and information systems. He has designed and developed GUI and natural user interfaces; interactive and immersive games, instruction systems, and other electronic entertainments; training products and services; and other information-based products and services in a variety of fields including automotive, insurance, CRM, employment, real estate, consumer goods, and social media. He currently serves as president and CEO of Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy and is the former president of Kendall College in Chicago.
Joseph (Jay) Walsh, Ph.D., Vice President for Research, Northwestern University
Joseph (Jay) Walsh is Northwestern University’s vice president for research. He formerly served as senior associate dean of McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science (MEAS), where he is a professor of biomedical engineering. Jay received his B.S. and M.S. in electrical engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his Ph.D. in medical engineering from Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His early research on laser-tissue interactions formed the scientific foundation for now-standard laser-based procedures in medicine and surgery. In the past decade, his research has focused on diagnostic and therapeutic applications of light.
Kevin Willer, President, CEO, Chicagoland Entrepreneurial Center
   Kevin Willer is the president and CEO of the Chicagoland Entrepreneurial Center, an organization that identifies and enables high-potential entrepreneurs to build the next generation of high-growth companies in the Chicago area. Kevin cofounded Google’s Chicago office in late 2000. From 2005–11, he led the Telecom Industry practice, where his teams managed the Google marketing partnerships with several of the largest telecommunications corporations including AT&T, Sprint, and Motorola. Kevin earned his bachelor’s degree from Boston College and his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He also studied at the London School of Economics.