ESF Night Series: Lessons in Leadership, Innovation, Technology and Entrepreneurship
Dear EMBA & Sloan Fellow friends -
Excited to organize these sessions for us to get together, learn, and exchange notes on the topics of leadership, innovation, technology and entrepreneurship.
In our first session, we have Jason Whaley (SF12) joining us to share his learnings and lessons since joining a team of scientists at MIT to form and lead an industrial biotechnology company soon after the Sloan Fellows program. Jason has since continued to work in the area of "deep tech commercialization" transferring the significant experience he gained to form a venture fund focused on deep technology commercialization an incredibly challenging, but highly impactful space. The session will be moderated by Katerina Fialkovskaya (SF13), Investment Director at Philips Ventures. Please see bio below for both Jason and Katerina.
📅 Date: 08/28/2024
🕖 Time:
5:45 PM - 6:00 PM Check-in
6:00 PM - 6:15 PM Start-up showcase
6:15 PM - 7:00 PM Fireside Chat and Q&A
7:00 PM - 7:30 PM Networking
📍 Location: Technology Innovation Studio (TINS), Level 7, Cambridge Innovation Center, One Broadway, Kendall Square.
About the speaker: Jason Whaley is an entrepreneur and investor in Cambridge, MA. He is a general partner at Rhapsody Venture Partners, a venture fund with over $200MM under management that invests in, operates and advises early stage start-ups, with a focus on industrial sciences innovation. He serves on numerous startup boards in the US, UK and Canada. Prior to Rhapsody, he was the CEO and co-founder of Manus Bio, an industrial biotechnology company based in Cambridge, MA that was spun out of MIT. Manus Bio develops methods for sustainable production of natural products for industries including flavors, fragrances, food and agrochemicals. Under his leadership the company secured over $28M in funded collaborations with its customers. Mr. Whaley began his career at Monitor Group, consulting major global companies on strategic issues. He served global clients in the chemicals, biotechnology and financial services industries for 11 years. He received his MBA from MIT, where he was a Sloan Fellow in Innovation and Global Leadership. He received his BA in Computer Science from Dartmouth College.
Moderator: Katerina Fialkovskaya Katerina is an Investment Director at Philips Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of Philips. She focuses on health tech investments that align with Philips mission to improve health and well-being through meaningful innovation. With over 20 years of experience as a financial executive and investment professional, Katerina has expertise in M&A and venture capital within the technology and digital health sectors. She serves on theBoard of Directors for several healthcare companies, including MOVN Health, Orbita.ai, PreciseDx, Babyscripts, Carevive (recently exited), and Noninvasix. Katerina holds an MBA from MIT (SF ’13) and is an ACCA-certified chartered accountant. Previously, as a founding partner at OKM Capital, she led investments for OKM Health Ventures Fund I. Beyond her investment roles, Katerina actively contributes to the innovation ecosystem as a mentor and judge at the MassChallenge startup accelerator, an organizing committee member for the MIT Sloan CFO Summit, a member of the CFO Leadership Council, an ambassador for the AI Innovators Community; and as a speaker at several industry events including LSX, LSI, DHIS, and DigitalHealth InvestorTalk.
Note: This event is by invite only. Attendance fee of $15 (Cash or Venmo) to cover organizing costs & drinks.
#ESFNights #Leadership #Innovation #Entrepreneurship #MIT