Mike is passionate about building great companies in Ohio, helping military veterans transition into the business world, and caffeine.

Commissioned as a military intelligence officer in the US Army, Mike’s military career was cut short by an injury. Following his service, Mike was an engineer for Connecticut based Sikorsky Aircraft before pursuing entrepreneurial opportunities in his home state of Ohio. For the last decade, Mike has helped build leading businesses in the advanced materials industry, specifically carbon fiber and nanotechnology. These companies were built on university licensed technology and a combination of corporate strategic investors and non-dilutive state and federal grants, such as the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant program. Currently, Mike is the CEO of S3 Planning, a company dedicated to helping entrepreneurs organize and document their business so they can more easily secure additional growth capital.

Mike has a degree in History from West Point and frequently contributes to the spirited Army/Navy rivalry through humor publication named ‘Center Stall.’ He is currently the chair of Columbus Startup Week and was appointed by Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker to serve on the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship for a two-year term until 2018.