Center for Entrepreneurial Innovation (CEI) Announces New Executive Director

The Center for Entrepreneurial Innovation (CEI) has named Tom Schumann as its new Executive Director, effective in early July.

Schumann has an extensive background in business and entrepreneurship, formerly serving as the Executive Director of the Inventor’s Center of Michigan and President of the Michigan Business Incubation Association. http://inbusinessphx.com/wp-admin/media-upload.php?post_id=12956&type=image&TB_iframe=1

Most recently, Schumann worked as a business analyst for the Maricopa Small Business Development Center, where he provided counseling and technical assistance to small- and medium-sized businesses.

“It is an honor to be appointed to this position at this exciting time in CEI’s history,” Schumann said. “The program is becoming recognized nationally as a model for business incubation and extending this success by ensuring the support services we provide will continue to meet client needs, and working to relocate the graduating businesses into the Phoenix community will be important next steps.”

Nate Curran, CEI’s entrepreneur-in-residence and former GoDaddy director, has filled the executive director position on an interim basis since former director, Jeff Saville, assumed the role of Marketing Director at Phoenix-based clean room consumables company, Valutek, in March 2016.

CEI also recently named Patti DuBois, a former business owner and analyst, as the incubator’s Assistant Executive Director. Previously, DuBois served as the Operations and Business Manager for Business Beyond Barriers, where she provided support for small businesses. She has worked as the Chief Operating Officer for the Arizona Animal Welfare League as well.

Prior to her current position, DuBois worked as a business analyst for the Maricopa Small Business Development Center. During this time, she worked closely with current CEI clients, making the transition a smooth one for both DuBois and the companies CEI serves.

Dr. Eugene Giovannini, president of Maricopa Corporate College, is confident that this new leadership team will help CEI continue to serve its clients and the local entrepreneurial community. CEI is a division of Maricopa Corporate College.

“We are fortunate to have these passionate small business advocates joining CEI’s leadership team,” Giovannini said. “CEI has become a leader in business incubation on both a local and national level. This leadership team will ensure that the organization continues to expand upon this success in order to better serve its clients and the surrounding business community.”

About CEI
A division of the Maricopa Corporate College, the Center for Entrepreneurial Innovation is a community-based business incubator located in the heart of Discovery Triangle. With funding from the US Economic Development Administration, City of Phoenix and Maricopa County Community College District, CEI provides targeted business services and proactive business support to create a systematic link between technology development, compelling markets and opportunities; entrepreneurial and managerial talent development; early stage capital sourcing; and education and training, interns, coaching and business counseling from Maricopa Small Business Development Center (SBDC) analysts and other leading industry specialists. For more about CEI, visit www.ceigateway.com.