CONNECT announced that Greg McKee has joined the organization as its new CEO. Greg has nearly 30 years in the healthcare and investment management and banking industries, including co-founding a specialty drug company and serving as chairman and CEO of Akela Pharma Inc. He succeeds Duane Roth who passed away last year from a bicycling accident.
Since 1985 CONNECT has fostered the formation and development of high-tech and life sciences companies in the San Diego region by providing the tools and resources needed to launch and accelerate commercialization. By providing superior individualized service to companies, entrepreneurs, academic and research institutions, investors and professional service providers in the region, CONNECT continues to drive its mission to build the entrepreneurial capacity of San Diego and put the region on the map as one of renown for its innovative, collaborative culture that is prosperous and globally competitive.
CONNECT’s efforts to work toward its mission gains strength through the support and enthusiasm of its dedicated 200-plus members and community partners. Another key to CONNECT’s success is credited to San Diego’s unique “culture of collaboration” among research organizations, capital sources, professional service providers and the established science and technology industries.
As a result of its efforts, CONNECT has assisted in the formation and development of more than 3,000 companies in the San Diego region, and is widely regarded as one of the world’s most successful organizations linking inventors and entrepreneurs with the resources they need for commercialization of innovative products in high-tech and life sciences. CONNECT’s flagship Springboard program has helped 725 companies raise $1.4 billion in the past nine years, and 65% of those companies are still active in business. The program has been modeled in more than 50 regions around the world, most recently in New York City; Bogotá, Colombia; and Saudi Arabia.
For more information please visit www.connect.org.