Emory Goizueta

Entrepreneurship Summit

March 21 - March 22, 2024

2024 Emory Goizueta Entrepreneurship Summit Founder's Address

Photo of Cyril Berdugo

Cyril Berdugo

Cyril Berdugo is the Co-Founder and CEO of Landis, a company that helps Americans reach homeownership through tailored coaching and a unique rent-to-own model. Landis was started in 2018 and has raised over $220 million from investors including Sequoia Capital, Google Ventures, Jay Z and Will Smith. Landis currently operates in over 60 cities across the United States. Prior to building Landis, Cyril was a Director at Crown Acquisitions, a NY-based real estate investment firm focused on retail and office real estate assets. Before joining Crown, he worked at Houlihan Lokey, where he advised companies on mergers and acquisitions and financings. Throughout his career, he has completed over $5 billion in transactions. Cyril is also an investor in dozens of early-stage companies and a director at TP NYC, a real estate investment company and itrek, a non-profit organization that organizes trips for students from the United States to Israel. He holds a BBA from Emory University's Goizueta Business School and an MBA from Stanford University's Graduate School of Business. He is a recipient of the Forbes 30 Under 30 award.

2024 Summit Schedule

THURSDAY, MARCH 21
4:00 - 5:15PM
FIRESIDE CHAT WITH CYRIL BERDUGO
GBS 130

5:15 - 7:00PM
SUMMIT x KEGS NETWORKING RECEPTION
Coke Commons + Jenkins Courtyard

FRIDAY, MARCH 22
9:00 - 9:50AM
EMORY IMPACT INVESTING GROUP DIVERSITY IN ENTREPRENEURSHIP PANEL + BREAKFAST
GBS 208

10:00AM - 12:00PM
LUMINARY SPOTLIGHTS + LIGHTNING ROUNDS
GBS 301 + 331

12:00 - 1:00PM
LUNCH + SPOT ELEVATOR PITCHES
GFC W525

1:00 - 4:00PM
FINAL ROUNDS OF PITCH THE SUMMIT
GBS 331
Photo of Numan Dharani

NUMAN DHARANI

COO, Co-Founder – Hifive

Numan Dharani is currently the Chief Operating Officer and Co-Founder of Hifive, a B2B SaaS digital tipping company focused on helping frontline workers increasing their compensation as an effort to improve staff retention and engagement at hotels, valets, and other places where there is a missed opportunity to recognize service workers. His journey to this role is marked by a series of diverse professional background. 

Numan Dharani's role at Hifive extends beyond traditional operational oversight, encapsulating key responsibilities that are pivotal to the company's growth and innovation. As the Chief Operating Officer, Numan is deeply involved in outbound sales, engaging in customer discovery and development conversations, and managing product prioritization and road mapping initiatives that align with the company’s long-term vision and growth strategies.

Prior to his current position, Numan honed his expertise in the world of investment banking at Brookwood Associates, a boutique firm based in Atlanta, where he specifically focused on serving the restaurant and fitness market segments. As an Analyst, he played a role in advising on mergers and acquisitions, alongside capital raising activities for franchisees and franchisors amongst these market segments.

Numan's career trajectory took a personal turn when he decided to move back to Texas, a move driven by a desire to contribute to his family's business endeavors. In this new chapter, he was instrumental in the ground development of a travel center/convenience store. His involvement spanned the entire project lifecycle, from the initial planning and layout to the establishment of partnerships and the recruitment, hiring, and onboarding of employees. This experience underscored his versatility and hands-on approach to business, equipping him with a unique blend of skills ranging from operational strategy to human resources management.

Numan graduated from the Goizueta Business School in 2017 with a BBA in Finance. He is a recent pickleball fanatic and currently lives in his hometown of College Station, Texas.
 

DUSTIN FINKEL

CEO – Awakened Foods

Dustin Finkel is an accomplished leader in the Consumer Packaged Goods industry, known for managing multimillion-dollar brands and startups. He has expertise in go-to-market strategies, operations, and financial strategy. Finkel has held transformative roles in companies like Tender Belly and Awakened Foods, contributing to their growth and innovation. Starting his career at Goldman Sachs, he later impacted General Mills, WhiteWave Foods, and Abbott Nutrition. He also appeared on Shark Tank, founded MacGray LLC, and started a snack company (KaPop! Snacks & Awakened Foods), which became the fastest-growing snack in the Natural Channel for two consecutive years and was recognized as the top-selling snack on Amazon in 2021. Additionally, he mentors entrepreneurs and is a Professor at the University of Colorado, emphasizing his dedication to leadership and business education.
 

Photo of Jason Kuo

JASON KUO

Principal – Tech Square Ventures

Jason Kuo is a Principal at Tech Square Ventures, an early stage VC firm based in Atlanta. Tech Square Ventures invests in B2B and Marketplace technology companies at Pre-Seed through Series A; the firm is one of the most active investors in the Southeast with over 100 portfolio companies across 4 funds. Jason also leads Supply Chain Tech for Engage, an enterprise-focused accelerator program run by Tech Square Ventures that includes many of the F500 companies here in Atlanta, companies like Coca Cola, Delta, UPS, Georgia Pacific, The Home Depot, Chick-Fil-A, Cox Enterprises, and more.

Jason has helped build and lead product teams at successful startups in the healthcare tech space and has also helped founders raise capital and navigate successful acquisitions as a software/healthcare-focused investment banker. He holds a BS in Information Systems from Carnegie Mellon University and received his MBA from Emory University.  
 

Photo of Alex Reynolds

ALEX REYNOLDS

CEO, Co-Founder – Vendelux

Alexander Reynolds is CEO and co-founder of Vendelux, the leading AI platform for events and conferences. Prior to founding Vedelux, Alex was VP and GM of Platform Solutions at Shutterstock and he worked on strategic partnerships with start-ups and public companies to generate new relationships with Apple, Google, Uber, and Microsoft. Earlier in his career he was a management consultant for Bain & Company, where he focused on pricing strategy and M&A. Alex earned his Bachelors of Business Administration from Emory University.

OMER SATTAR

Co-Founder, Co-CEO – Sightline Payments

Omer is Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Sightline Payments, playing a pivotal role in establishing the company’s vision as well as overseeing new business development and strategic partnerships. As an early innovator of payments in gaming, he was one of the first to define the omnichannel experience for the industry, envisioning the roadmap and solutions necessary for operators to provide a smoother and richer user experience for its patrons. Previously, he was the president of UB Ventures, a service provider to the prepaid card industry, and the senior vice president of cash access services for Global Cash Access, Inc. (later rebranding to Everi).

Photo of Glen Surnamer

GLEN SURNAMER

COO – Pensare LLC

Glen Surnamer is an interdisciplinarian who brings diverse experience across many industries, including healthcare, finance, ag-tech, publishing, industrial, collectibles, and technology. After 14 years in the public markets as an NYSE Specialist and COO of the US operations of a global broker-dealer, Glen pivoted in 2009 to focus on small businesses.  Over the last 14 years he has been a serial startup founder, an operating partner for a private equity firm, an executive for several early-stage companies, and a strategist/advisor.   He has a deep passion for innovation, digital transformation, and empowering entrepreneurs, inventors, and subject-matter experts to bridge the gap from ideas and vision to products and services in market.  As COO of Pensare LLC Glen works with the firm’s clients and partners on finance, operations, strategy, and governance. A New Yorker by background, Glen now lives in Los Angeles.  He holds an MBA from NYU Stern and a BA in English from Emory University.  He is a very mediocre but extremely enthusiastic guitar player.

 

The objective of the Pitch the Summit competition is to provide Emory undergraduate and graduate students with the opportunity to learn how to effectively pitch an idea for a new venture. Winning individuals and teams will receive guidance, financial support, and in-kind contributions in order to move the venture forward.

An elevator pitch verbally outlines an entrepreneurial concept or idea in a short period of time. Participating individuals or teams will have the opportunity to pitch their idea to panels of judges, with the most successful pitches advancing through three rounds of competition.

Submit pitch

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