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Aaron Tainter

Director of Accelerator Programs at Innovation Works

Greater Pittsburgh Region

Invests in

Stages:

  • Min Investment:

    $100,000.00
  • Max Investment:

    $150,000.00
  • Target Investment:

    $125,000.00

Work Experience

  • Director of Accelerator Programs

    2023

    Focused on formalizing the collaboration across Innovation Works' family of accelerators including AlphaLab, AlphaLab Gear, AlphaLab Health, and the Robotics Factory, elevating the performance of these programs to a world class level, strengthening innovation by enabling a continuous improvement mindset, and elevating professional development by creating a community of practice to benefit each team member of the accelerator team.

  • Portfolio Executive, AlphaLab

    2023 - 2023

    Providing guidance and assistance to entrepreneurs and early stage technology companies. Identified high-potential companies with the potential to drive significant economic growth and partner with them to define a business and financial plan to help them execute against growth objectives. Worked with companies to define a strategic operating plan and provided coaching, assistance, and resources to help companies reach their objectives. Led the organization’s efforts in due diligence of the market and growth potential of candidate investment companies while managing a portfolio of seed fund companies, including representing the organization’s interests as a Board Observer for those companies.

  • Senior Manager, AlphaLab and Portfolio

    2022 - 2023

  • Senior Program Manager, Software and AlphaLab

    2018 - 2022

  • Program Manager at AlphaLab

    2014 - 2018

    Program Manager of Innovation Works’ AlphaLab accelerator programs that provides investment, mentorship, education and network-building for technology startups to help companies rapidly iterate through early stages of product and customer development. Oversaw the day-to-day operations of the AlphaLab accelerator program and worked closely with AlphaLab companies to help guide the companies through their initial stages of development.

2015 - 2018

  • Adjunct Professor

    2015 - 2018

    BUS550 Innovation and Commercialization

  • Senior Manager - Continuous Improvement & Metrics

    2012 - 2014

    Focused on leading the strategy and implementation of global cross-functional initiatives that deliver significant operational enhancements and cost savings.Collaborated with senior leaders across the R&D organization to conceptualize, manage, and deliver continuous improvement imperatives. Acted as an internal consultant while determining the strategic options, developing pragmatic solutions, implementing recommendations, and establishing metrics to measure success. Served as program manager for the BMS MBA R&D Strategy & Operations Internship Program

  • Research & Development Strategic Operations MBA Summer Intern

    2011 - 2011

    10 week summer MBA Internship Led a project to analyze the Investigator Sponsored Trials software market and procure an application management system for external investigators wishing to partner with BMS.

  • Associate

    2005 - 2010

    Key responsibilities included: • Business Analysis: Screened startup companies and targeted industries to assess growth rates, addressable market sizes, current and future competitive positions, and venture deal economics. • Business Development: Researched new markets for venture investment and remained at the forefront of emerging investment and technology trends. Leader on the deal sourcing team and built a high-quality deal flow pipeline which led to a series of successful investments. • Financial Analysis and Forecasting: Developed models to determine future revenue and gross margin estimates for early stage enterprises. Conducted financial forecasting as a basis for investment decisions.

  • Analyst

    2005 - 2006