Jan 2022 – Present · 4 yrs 3 mos · Denver, Colorado, United States

• Staffing services for hourly workers in agriculture

Jan 2022 – Present · 4 yrs 3 mos · Seattle, Washington, United States

Jan 2021 – Present · 5 yrs 3 mos · Austin, Texas, United States

• Helping people live 100 healthy years

Jan 2021 – Present · 5 yrs 3 mos · London Area, United Kingdom

• Pioneer in synthetic media/AI. Acquired by DNEG's AI arm. dneg.com

Jan 2021 – Present · 5 yrs 3 mos · Paris, Île-de-France, France

• Acquired by Crowdcube. crowdcube.com

Jan 2020 – Present · 6 yrs 3 mos · New York, New York, United States

• Travel gear and accessories

Jan 2020 – Present · 6 yrs 3 mos · Denver, Colorado, United States

Jan 2015 – Present · 11 yrs 3 mos · Chicago, Illinois, United States

• Award-winning collection of super premium whiskeys created in partnership with iconic singer-songwriter Bob Dylan (brand named after his song Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door)

Jan 2015 – Present · 11 yrs 3 mos

Jan 2013 – Present · 13 yrs 3 mos · New York, New York, United States

Jan 2011 – Present · 15 yrs 3 mos · Chicago, Illinois, United States

• North America's leading parking marketplace. Acquired by Uber (February 2026).

Jan 2011 – Present · 15 yrs 3 mos · New York, New York, United States

• Curated products from the world’s best small brands

Jan 2010 – Present · 16 yrs 3 mos · Chicago, Illinois, United States

• Merged with Techstars in 2013. techstars.com

Jan 2008 – Present · 18 yrs 3 mos · San Francisco, California, United States

• Luxury hotels and spas for much-loved dogs and cats. Seed investor in Paradise4Paws (merged with Wag Hotels) operating across the United States

Sep 2000 – Present · 25 yrs 7 mos

• Teach coursework in Executive Education on entrepreneurship, growth strategy, innovation, and organizational transformation.

Jan 2000 – Present · 26 yrs 3 mos · Chicago, Illinois, United States

• Authored several books on innovation and venture including The Riddle: Where Great Ideas Come From and How to Have Better Ones (selected as one of Fast Company's "Smart Books"), Bend The Curve: Accelerate Your Startup's Success (published by Brad Feld and Techstars), and The Upside of Down: How to Innovate Through Recessions. Agency represented speaker at industry conferences and events.

Aug 1997 – Present · 28 yrs 8 mos · Greater Chicago Area

• Helping companies grow. Advisor to Family Offices, Founders, Owners, Boards of Directors, CEOs, and C-Suite executives on driving growth. Work across Private Equity, Venture Capital, and Fortune 500 companies. Clients served such as Adventist Health, Allstate, BNP Paribas, Danone, Exelon, Guy Carpenter, Kisco Senior Living, Marsh, MetalExchange/MX Holdings, Owens Corning, PepsiCo, McDonald’s, Qualcomm, Paramount CBS, Tricorbraun, and several large privately-held and family-owned businesses.