As the Director of the Innovation Adoption Grant Fund, Bob Starzynski oversees the operations of IW’s programs focused on providing assistance to regional manufacturers.  In that role, he manages the fund and provides companies with direct connections to regional centers of excellence. Bob joined IW in 2000, and worked both as Director of External Business Services and as an Investment Associate before assuming his current role.

Bob brings nearly 15 years of business experience to the team at Innovation Works.  Prior to joining IW, he worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, where he helped launch and manage a weekly technology business section for the newspaper.  Before that, Bob was an entrepreneur and the Editor-in-Chief of TECHcapital magazine, a venture capital publication, owned by the Washington Post Company, serving all East Coast markets. At TECHcapital, Bob oversaw most aspects of the business, from the management of content to the growth and development of operations and strategic initiatives. In less than three years, Bob built the magazine to employ 25 professionals and reach an audience of 200,000 readers.

Prior to TECHcapital, Bob worked as a reporter and technology finance columnist for the Washington Post’s Washington Technology magazine and for the Washington Business Journal. He began his career at American City Business Journals, where he was the Securities and Exchange Commission Bureau Chief for 40 newspapers across the U.S. Bob has a degree in Political Science and Economics from North Carolina State University.

Bob is actively involved in Pittsburgh’s entrepreneurial community, serving on the board of directors of the MIT Enterprise Forum, as well as on the steering committee for the Three Rivers Venture Fair.  In addition, Bob also serves on the board of trustees’ education committee of the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation.

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