The Board

get to know the CED board

CED was built by Business Leaders and Entrepreneurs nearly 40 years ago and is still led by them today.  

We are proud to be represented by some of the area’s most talented and successful leaders committed to ensuring the success of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in this area. The formation of the board is intentional to ensure a balanced representation from each component of the ecosystem.  We are split a third entrepreneur, investor, and corporate partner. Learn more about our dynamic board below.

Sanjay Pal and Kelly Rowell are building a path forward leveraging the legacy and impact CED has had on the entrepreneurial ecosystem in North Carolina.

“The CED Board has gained perspective after speaking with the community during a transitional year for the organization. The next step is moving from data collection to informative design to a plan for execution,” says Mr. Pal. “And in doing so, realizing how our collective impact will be transformational for our region.”

2021-2022 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

2021-2022 BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Attorney | Wyrick Robbins

Tom Allen

Carlos Arias

Managing Partner | Bagchi Law

Neil Bagchi

General Partner | Harbert Growth Partners

Brian Carney

Partner | Davis Moore

Matthew Cooke

Vice President, Human Genetics BD | GSK

Neal Curran

Partner | Hughes Pittman & Gupton LLP

Heather Dean

Principal | River Cities Capital Funds

Patrick Dunnigan

Co-Founder | Catalyst Research Alliance

Doug Eisner

Chief Strategy Officer | Allobee

Anne English

Partner | Cherry Bekaert LLP

Ronnie Eubanks

Managing Director | Deloitte

Tim Fleischman

President | Surrey View Consulting

Diane Ignar

Vice President, Investments & Alliances | Foundation Fighting Blindness

Rusty Kelley

Partner | Balentine

John Maddison

Partner | Grant Thornton

Matt McCleary

George Moser

Managing Director | Leeds Illuminate

Stephanie Nieman

Partner | BDO

Will Owens

SVP Workplace Investing, Fidelity

Tony Parham

Senior Vice President, Senior Relationship Manager | Bank of America

Ben Pattison

President | NuPulseCV

Sonna Patel-Raman

CTO Customer Experience | Cisco

Carlos Pignataro

General Partner | Grotech Ventures

Don Rainey

Managing Partner | Pappas Capital

Kyle Rasbach

Managing Director | Duke Angel Network

Kurt Schmidt

General Partner | Hatteras Venture Partners

Christy Shaffer

CEO | Basking Biosciences

Rich Shea

Director of Commercialization | RTI International

Vinay Tannan

Partner | Hutchison PLLC

Anna Tharrington

Executive Vice President | Wells Fargo

John Ward

Senior Vice President | PNC

Lesley Wilson

Director | SAS

Tim Wilson

Shareholder | Manning Fulton & Skinner

Bradley Wooldridge