David HesslerDavid Hessler has been affiliated with High Tech Rochester since 2003 with a specialty in entrepreneurial finance, capital strategy, and deal structure. He is an Entrepreneur-in-Residence and served as Interim President in 2008.
In addition to his responsibilities at HTR, Mr. Hessler also currently serves as Chief Financial Officer of PharmaNova, a specialty drug development firm.
He is an entrepreneurial business executive experienced in both operating management and in private equity financing. David has management experience in both large and small technology businesses, including as CEO and business owner. In addition, he has financing transactional experience as a principal of a small venture capital fund and as Managing Director of two middle market investment banking firms. From 1986 to 1996, David was Chairman, CEO and owner of Information Transfer Inc., a privately-held manufacturer of defense electronic equipment.
Prior to investing in ITI, David was co-manager responsible for investing a small venture capital fund in six early stage entrepreneurial companies.
His corporate background includes twelve “fast track” years in a variety of increasingly-responsible positions in many phases of strategic, financial and product planning at Xerox Corporation during a period of dynamic growth.
Since the time of his management of a venture fund and of running his own entrepreneurial company, David has been a recognized leader in the regional new business/entrepreneurial community. He has:
- Prepared business plans for several Kodak internal ventures seeking corporate
funding as “spin outs”.
- Served as interim CEO of a privately-held manufacturer of products for Harley
Davidson motorcycles.
- Served as financial advisor and mentor to hundreds of early stage companies seeking
growth capital.
- Taught entrepreneurship in an adjunct capacity at both Rochester Institute of
Technology and the Simon Business School of the University of Rochester.
David holds an MBA (with honors) from the University of Michigan; an MS in Engineering from the University of Michigan, and a BS degree in Mechanical Engineering from Clarkson University. He received additional training at the NASBIC Venture Capital Training Institute, and the Xerox/Harvard Executive Program (Exeter). He has held National Assoc. of Securities Dealers (NASD) Series 63, Series 7, and Series 24 securities licenses.
In his community, David is a founding member of the Rochester Venture Capital Group and the Rochester Angel Network; served as a Delegate to the 1995 White House Conference on Small Business, and serves on the Boards of several Rochester, New York non-profit organizations.
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