Mentor-in-Residence Winter Recap

The Pennovation Center Mentor-in-Residence (MIR) Program pairs our startup companies with accomplished entrepreneurs and industry leaders who serve as informal advisors. Each month, one Mentor hosts virtual office hours to answer business questions on topics ranging from business strategy to market penetration and fundraising.

In February, Adam Dakin, Managing Director of Dreamit Health hosted MIR office hours.  Adam connected with two founders from the Pennovation Center including Julia Yan, Co-founder and CEO of Baleena. Julia described her MIR office hour experience, “My conversation with Adam Dakin happened right as we were looking to explore some major pivots, so it was especially valuable to hear his expert insights on creating a believable and defendable GTM strategy, milestone planning, and fundraising. Our conversation was an incredible opportunity to soundboard ideas and learn more about the ins and outs of building a brand and raising money.” 

In March, Tom Crowley met with three companies during virtual office hours.  Tom is a seasoned venture/private equity investor, entrepreneur, and corporate executive whose 40+ years of diverse business experience have spanned a broad array of consumer and commercial industries, with special concentrations in digital/online media, telecommunications, computer software/services, and information systems/technologies.  Tiffany Yeh, CEO of Eztia shared that her and Tom, “had a great conversation about go-to-market strategy and targeting different customer segments with tailored messaging and marketing tactics. [She] learned that his brother is an ultra-marathon runner - aka one of Eztia's target audiences for the CryoActive Patch!”

Mentor-in-Residence Winter Recap