Columbia University

Technology Ventures

2014

Robert Colao

Area of expertise: 
Tech, Energy
radiusIP, Nokia, IBM
Year Served: 
2014
Bio 

Robert Colao is the founder of radiusIP, Inc. - an Intellectual Property consulting and licensing services company serving a client base which includes Fortune 100 companies and individual inventors. radiusIP provides a broad set of IP services addressing client’s IP needs and issues including patent licensing, licensing program development, patent sales and acquisitions, IP negotiations, patent portfolio analysis/development, technology licensing - as well as other areas relating to effective management and monetization of IP. From 2008 to 2012 as Director of Outbound Patent Licensing at Nokia Inc., Bob led the company’s global outbound patent licensing activities/organization. Upon first joining Nokia in 2008 as Director of Patent Licensing, he also formulated and directed the business development of new opportunities expanding the licensing and monetization of the Nokia patent portfolio beyond the mobile handset space. Additionally, he drove the IP elements of numerous Nokia M&A activities (e.g. joint ventures and divestitures), which included the divestiture of Nokia’s wireless modem business. From 2000 to 2008, Bob was with IBM’s Corporate Intellectual Property Licensing organization and held the position of Director of International Licensing. His responsibilities at IBM included: the licensing of patents, technology and copyrights; IP related M&A (divestiture) activities and negotiations; patent pool participation (DVD-6C); as well as leading and establishing IBM’s patent sales process. Prior to 2000, Bob held management positions at IBM which included: hardware and software development in the area of high performance computing; marketing & business development; and strategy & planning. Bob holds a BS/MS in Electrical Engineering from Union College, as well as an MBA. More detailed information can be found here.

 

Bruce Conway

Area of expertise: 
Biomedical
CPG Consulting, Pars Pharmaceutical Consulting, Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development
Year Served: 
2014
Bio 

Bruce is the founder and CEO of CPG Consulting where he provides advisory services to Universities and emerging biotech/pharmaceutical companies. He serves as an independent consultant for Pars Pharmaceutical Consulting and as a Senior Advisor to several start-up companies. Bruce has over 18 years of R&D experience progressing projects from early discovery through the clinic. He has held positions of increasing responsibility at Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research and Development (1996-2006) and The Institutes for Pharmaceutical Discovery (2006-2012). At J&J, Bruce presided over numerous high-profile projects including a novel program which led to an approved therapeutic for type 2 diabetes (Invokana™). Bruce has successfully executed and managed across diverse scientific functions (in vitro biology, in vivo pharmacology and ADME/DMPK) and he possesses a deep understanding of the Drug Discovery and Early Development processes. He also has significant expertise in the identification, evaluation and vetting of novel targets and technologies for incorporation into the R&D portfolio. He has served on cross-functional compound development- and life-cycle management teams in early development and has worked closely with academic scientists and key opinion leaders to assess start-up opportunities. Bruce holds a B.S. in Toxicology from the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia and a Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the Medical College of Virginia. He received postdoctoral training at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. More detailed information can be found here.

 
 

 

Rana K. Gupta

Area of expertise: 
Biomedical
HistoRx, Navigator Technology Ventures, yet2.com
Year Served: 
2014
Bio 

Rana Gupta has spent the last 12 years investing in and developing novel technologies. His passion for entrepreneurship is concentrated in entrepreneurial finance and technology development. Most recently, Mr. Gupta was CEO of HistoRx, a cancer diagnostics company and Yale University spin-out. He ran HistoRx for six years until selling it to Novartis AG in September 2012. Prior to HistoRx, Mr. Gupta was Managing Director at Navigator Technology Ventures (NTV), an early stage technology venture capital firm spun out of Draper Laboratory and based in Cambridge, MA. Six of NTV’s investments were laboratory or university spin-outs. Prior to his position with NTV, Mr. Gupta was Product Manager for Global Services with yet2.com, a B2B marketplace for technology transfer. Before yet2.com, Mr. Gupta founded IndoSine U.S. Link, Ltd., a business development company that helped clients expand international businesses between India, China, and the U.S. While running IndoSine, Mr Gupta co-founded a wireless software company, International Solutions, for which he served as Vice President of Sales and Marketing. Previous to IndoSine, he served as Manager, PRC Investment Strategy for Zeneca Pharmaceuticals in Beijing, China. At Zeneca, Mr Gupta was responsible for the China manufacturing strategy, for which he secured a $22M investment from the Board of Directors. For the last eight years, Mr Gupta has been teaching in BU’s entrepreneurship program in the areas of entrepreneurial finance and technology development. He holds an MBA in Finance and International Business from New York University's Stern School of Business, an MS in Operations Research from Stanford University, and a BA in Mathematics from Earlham College. More detalied information can be found here.

 

 

Brian P. Phillips

Area of expertise: 
Tech, Energy
TechnoServe, IBM
Year Served: 
2014
Bio 

Brian is a serial technology entrepreneur who now specializes in helping entrepreneurs create, build, and grow their companies. As an entrepreneur, mentor, advisor, CEO, and board member, Brian has worked across a wide range of industries including B2B and B2C software, life sciences and biotech, government / defense industry, manufacturing, supply chain / distribution, agribusiness, and retail. He has worked in 30+ countries on five continents, with strong knowledge of emerging market economies and international business development. Brian has personally been involved in the early stages of a dozen companies, five of which eventually had an exit (two went public, two were acquired, and one was sold via a management buy out). He has raised over $28 million in venture capital. In addition, he launched a new enterprise software division within IBM and was a consulting manager in the Tech practice at Arthur Young & Company (now Ernst & Young). Most recently Brian served for three years as the Global Entrepreneurship Director for TechnoServe, an international nonprofit organization that specializes in economic development in emerging markets. At TechnoServe, Brian was responsible for providing growth services and developing access to finance for over 60,000 SME entrepreneurs globally. As part of this work, Brian has played a leadership role in promoting women’s economic development and female entrepreneurship in emerging economies. Brian serves on the Aspen Institute’s ANDE women’s entrepreneurship task force, which he co-founded. He is an advisor to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), and has worked with both the U.S. and a number of international governments. He has partnered with and advised a number of multinational corporations including Goldman Sachs, Coca-Cola, Nike, MasterCard, and Walmart, and works closely with the Clinton Foundation. Brian has a passion for bringing good ideas to fruition, for making productive connections, and for leveraging his experience to help entrepreneurs succeed. More detailed information can be found here. 

 

Adam Siegel

Area of expertise: 
Tech, Energy
Amazon, Fluid, Google [X], Booz & Company
Year Served: 
2014
Bio 

Adam is a serial entrepreneur who has spent the past 10 years developing and launching new companies focused on the interface of computing, electronics, and healthcare. His passion for entrepreneurship focuses on the "lean startup", a method that centers on early customer engagement and hypothesis-driven product development. He is currently CEO and co-founder of Fluid, a mobile health company focused on urology and infectious disease that participated in the fifth class (v5) of the Rock Health accelerator in San Francisco in 2013. Prior to Fluid, he worked at Google [X], where he directed needs assessments and business development for new projects, including Google Glass and the Smart Contact Lens projects. Before Google, he was a management consultant for Booz & Company in Europe and the US, serving Fortune 500 companies in the life sciences and consumer products industries. From 2002-2009, Adam was a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Fellow in the George Whitesides Group at Harvard University, where he co-authored nine publications and eight patent applications, and designed devices that became the founding technologies for Claros Diagnostics (acquired by Opko in 2011) and Diagnostics-for-All, a social enterprise building medical tools for resource-limited settings. Adam hold a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan, and a Ph.D. in Engineering and Applied Sciences from Harvard. He was a Fulbright Scholar to Germany from 2001-2002. More detalied information can be found here.

 

 

Kathy Timko

Area of expertise: 
Tech, Energy
Virendia LLC, Canoe Ventures, IDT Telecom
Year Served: 
2014
Bio 

Kathy is the founder and CEO of Virendia, LLC where she provides advisory and consulting services to emerging and mid-stage, technology-focused companies. She holds key management and Advisory Board roles in several NY-based start-ups focused on Social Network Engagement, Personalized Online Career Resources, Crowd-sourced News Reporting, and Social Media Marketing for local businesses. In 2009, Kathy was appointed Chief Operating Officer of Canoe Ventures and became interim CEO in 2011. Canoe Ventures, a joint venture of the six leading cable companies, was formed to provide TV networks, advertising agencies and brand managers access to national advanced advertising products and media analytics. Before joining Canoe, Kathy held several senior management positions at IDT, serving as COO and CTO of IDT Telecom where she oversaw the unit's more than $2B retail and wholesale businesses, Kathy also served as COO of Carrier Services and was appointed to the IDT Telecom Board of Directors in 2001. Prior to IDT, Kathy was the EVP of Development and Operations at Call Sciences, a start-up company focused on Personal Number Services, and worked on communications and software systems at Bellcore, and Bolt, Beranek and Newman (BBN). From 2006 - 2010, Kathy served as an independent director on the board of Motionbox, Inc. She holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Virginia Tech and an M.S. in Computer Science from Boston University. More detailed information can be found here.