Fireside chat with Chris Gardner, Early Stage Investor at Underscore VC
2024-10-21 18:00 - 19:15 (America/New_York) | Joyce Cummings Center, 177 College Ave, Medford, 02155, United States
Chris Gardner, Partner at Underscore VC, will join us for a fireside chat about all things early-stage investing: what they look for in a team, the attributes of a great opportunity in a great market, the kind of validation and traction that get investors excited and more.
About Chris Gardner:
Chris is Underscore VC’s resident builder, happiest when he’s hands-on with a project. At Underscore VC, that means identifying and investing in uniquely qualified founders, and then helping to build their company in any way needed: networker, salesperson, mentor, coach, psychotherapist, even drinking buddy.
His tinkering and building extend to his personal life, where you’ll find him getting hands-on in any manner of project. Car maintenance? He has a lift in his garage. Music? He’s recording an album in his barn studio. Cooking? His BBQ ribs are the stuff of legend. In short, if he can get his hands on it, he can master it (except golf; don’t ever ask Chris to play golf).
Though he’s known as a FinTech entrepreneur, Chris is a self-professed nerd and technology omnivore who, prior to Underscore VC, spent nearly three decades at companies focused on speech recognition, video streaming, mobile marketing, mobile messaging, e-billing, and document management. His last five roles all resulted in exits that created good outcomes for employees and investors.
Most recently, Chris was an executive at PayPal and led their P2P, PayPal Here, and In-Store payments products after Paydiant, the company he co-founded and built, was acquired by PayPal in 2015. Prior to that, Chris was CMO and head of products at ExtendMedia, a video content delivery and commerce platform software company that was acquired by Cisco in 2010; SVP of Products and Marketing at m-Qube, North America’s leading premium SMS mobile payments provider that was acquired by Verisign in 2006; and VP of Products and Marketing at edocs, Inc., an e-billing, payments, and customer self-service company that was acquired by Siebel Systems in 2004.
Chris earned a BA in Communications from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst a really long time ago.
This event is part of the Entrepreneurial Speaker Series, hosted by the Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts University.

Women Entrepreneurial Leaders In Action
2024-10-22 18:00 - 19:30 | Joyce Cummings Center, 177 College Ave, Medford, 02155, United States
In support of Women Entrepreneurship Week (October 19-24), DEC will be hosting four young alumna in our “Women Entrepreneurial Leaders In Action” panel where they will share how they apply the entrepreneurial method in their respective roles:

Mitchie Qiao, MSIM23 (Moderator): Analyst @ Innosight
Tisa Berman, A11: Senior Product Manager, advisory @ The Bridgespan Group; Cofounder & former CPO, StartupTree
Judy Charamand, E22: UX Designer
Hillary Sieber, A12: Investor

Discover how innovation thrives in the workplace, learn about the challenges and rewards of leadership at any level, and explore how you can apply your entrepreneurship education at Tufts to future internships, jobs, or ventures.

David Meerman Scott
2024-10-29 19:00 - 20:00 | JCC 270, 177 College Avenue, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
David Meerman Scott is a WSJ bestselling author of “The New Rules of Marketing and PR” and “Fanocracy”. A leading marketing strategist, he focuses on real-time engagement and building passionate communities around brands. With extensive experience in technology and media, Scott has consulted for companies globally, helping them leverage digital strategies to connect authentically with their audiences. His impactful insights make him a sought-after speaker and thought leader in the marketing field. Register using QR code on graphic.

Fireside chat with Eunice Chapon, Impact Investor, Screenwriter, Filmmaker
2024-11-07 15:00 - 16:15 | Room 180, Joyce Cummings Center, 177 College Avenue, Suite 390, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
Join us for a fireside chat with impact investor, independent movie producer/director and Tufts Alumna, Eunice Chapon.
About Eunice Chapon
Eunice is a Director of Impact at BrightEdge, an investment arm of the American Cancer Society. BrightEdge operates at the intersection of impact, innovation, and investment to accelerate the American Cancer Society’s goal to reduce cancer mortality. Eunice brings a unique blend of business, operational, legal and technology. She has extensive experience serving senior roles at complex and highly matrixed financial organizations. Additionally, Eunice is an up-and-coming film producer/director. Her short film, “The Shape of Money“, has been featured in several film festivals.
Eunice holds her bachelor degree from Tufts University and Law Degree from William and Mary. She is an active volunteer of many organizations that includes a long-term member of the Asian-American Lawyers Association of Massachusetts and has served on the Board of Trustees for the International School of Boston.
This event is part of the Entrepreneurial Speaker Series, hosted by the Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts University.

Fireside chat with Matt Cillis, Chief Sales Officer at Bitwarden
2024-11-12 18:00 - 19:15 | Joyce Cummings Center, 177 College Ave, Medford, 02155, United States
Join us and hear about sales and marketing from Matt Cillis, Chief Sales Officer at Bitwarden. Matt is one of the best value-based sellers in software sales. With a background in Civil and Environmental Engineering coupled with decades of sales experience, Matt brings a unique cross disciplinary perspective to enterprise sales.
About Matt Cillis
Matt Cillis is an accomplished Vice President of Sales with extensive experience in software sales. He has a proven track record of driving success in the industry. He is currently the Chief Sales Officer at Bitwarden. Previous to Bitwarden, he served as the Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) or head of Sales for a series of innovative software companies, including Ably, Instana (acquired by IBM), CloudBees, Splunk and Dell EMC. Matt built his distinguished career in software sales after serving as a project engineer in engineering consulting companies.
Matt holds a Master’s degree in Engineering – Civil & Environmental from Cornell University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Clarkson University.

This event is part of the Entrepreneurial Speaker Series, hosted by the Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts University.

Hardware Startup Panel
2024-11-13 18:00 - 19:15 | Joyce Cummings Center, 177 College Ave, Medford, 02155, United States
Creating a growth style startup is hard. Creating and building a hardware startup is even harder. Come hear the founding stories of Macauley Kenney, MIT Entrepreneur-in-Residence, expert maker and serial social entrepreneur, and Max Makeev, Cofounder of Gopher Motion and OwlLabs, as they recount what it takes to build a startup around hardware products that cost more and take longer to build than most software products.
The fireside chat will be moderated by Professor Elaine Chen, who herself is a hardware startup veteran.
This event is part of the Entrepreneurial Speaker Series, hosted by the Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts University.

Starting Small And Making It Big: The Cummings Way
2024-11-18 15:00 - 17:30 | Joyce Cummings Center, 177 College Ave, Medford, 02155, United States
Join us at Tufts University for a fireside chat and book signing event with successful real estate entrepreneur and renowned philanthropist Bill Cummings, A58, H06, J97P, M97P, moderated by Professor Usha Pasi, who teaches Nonprofits, Philanthropy and Impact. Refreshments and book signing for the 7th Edition of Bill’s book, “Starting Small And Making It Big”, will follow after the fireside chat.
About Bill Cummings
Bill is the founder of Cummings Properties. In 1986, Bill and Joyce Cummings established Cummings Foundation, which has grown to be one of the three largest private foundations in New England. They were the first Massachusetts couple to join the Giving Pledge, an international philanthropic organization founded by Bill Gates, Melinda French Gates and Warren Buffett, and they have been honored to receive dozens of community accolades and honorary degrees.
Bill recently published the seventh edition of his self-written memoir, Starting Small and Making It Big. Following the fireside chat, Bill will host a book signing, and refreshments will be served at a reception with students, faculty, staff and community members.
This event is part of the Entrepreneurial Celebrity Series and is hosted by the Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts University. Learn more: https://derbyecenter.tufts.edu

Entrepreneurial Speaker Series: Dan Tyre, Founder and CEO, Tyre Angel
2025-01-30 11:45 - 13:00 | Tufts Venture Lab (JCC301), 177 College Ave, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
Join us to hear from Dan Tyre, Founder and CEO of Tyre Angel and former HubSpot executive, as he shares his expertise on entrepreneurship and the science of sales. As HubSpot’s sixth employee, first salesperson, and longtime head of sales, Dan played a key role in growing the company from its earliest stages to a $37 billion valuation.
About Dan Tyre
Dan Tyre is a visionary entrepreneur, speaker, author, and mentor with over 20 years of experience at HubSpot, where he was instrumental in shaping the company’s sales and partnership strategies. Since leaving HubSpot, Dan has dedicated himself to “Doing the Most Good for the Universe” through Tyre Angel, supporting entrepreneurial ventures as an investor, advisor, and board member. He has a portfolio of 30+ investments and is a Limited Partner in Stage 2 Capital.
Dan’s engaging and direct approach, coupled with his lifelong commitment to empowering entrepreneurs, makes him a sought-after speaker worldwide. Don’t miss this chance to learn from one of the pioneers in sales and marketing.
This event is part of the Entrepreneurial Speaker Series, hosted by the Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts University.

Fireside Chat With Donna Levin, Educator, Business Leader and Entrepreneur
2025-03-04 13:30 - 14:30 | Room 140, Joyce Cummings Center
Join us for an inspirational fireside chat with Donna Levin, educator, leader and entrepreneur. Donna is the CEO of the Arthur M Blank School for Entrepreneurial Leadership at Babson College. She is cofounder of care.com, an online marketplace for families to find childcare, senior care, care for those with special needs, care for home, tutoring support and pet care.
About Donna Levin
Donna is an accomplished entrepreneur and business leader with a broad and impressive portfolio of academic leadership credentials, She joined Babson from Worcester Polytechnic Institute, where she served as the college’s first executive director of innovation and entrepreneurship. In addition to cofounding Care.com, she also served as vice president of operations for UPromise. Levin received a BA from Emerson College and an Executive MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.
This event is part of the Entrepreneurial Celebrity Series and is hosted by the Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts University. Learn more: https://derbyecenter.tufts.edu

Building and leading software teams
2025-03-04 15:00 - 16:15 | Tufts Venture Lab (JCC301), 177 College Ave, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
Join us in an interactive fireside chat about software leadership with Tufts alumni Max Makeev and Mark Schnittman, cofounders of Gopher Motion, which is developing an autonomous mobile robot for last-mile delivery of goods. Max and Mark have a wealth of startup experience in robotics, AI and software development, having built products at iRobot, Romotive and Owl Labs prior to cofounding Gopher Motion.
This event is part of the Entrepreneurial Speaker Series. Hosted by the Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts University. Learn more: https://derbyecenter.tufts.edu

Fireside chat with two Jumbos: Molly Ryan and Lyn Ferreira of ColdSnap®
2025-03-04 17:30 - 19:00 | Joyce Cummings Center, Room 160, 177 College Ave, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
Join us to hear about ColdSnap®’s founding story from Molly Ryan, A22, Entrepreneurship Minor graduate, and Lyn Ferreira, MS Nutrition Science And Policy, 2019.
The idea for ColdSnap® came to founder Tufts MSEM and Ph.D. Graduate, Matt Fonte, through a bedtime brainstorming session with his two daughters. The company went on to create and launch a single serve ice cream that uses completely recyclable cartridges that do not need refrigeration, eliminating cold storage and transportation from the frozen treats supply chain.
We will also hear the career path planning story of how Molly, a Child Studies and Human Development major with a double minor in Education and Entrepreneurship, and Lyn, who has experience in marketing and sales and in nutrition science and policy, leveraged diverse professional experiences to explore different fields, which led to their current roles at ColdSnap®.
This event is in-person only. We will be offering ice cream tasting before the speaker event while supplies last.
This “Inside the Classroom” event is hosted by Derby Entrepreneurship Center in partnership with two entrepreneurship courses at Tufts: ENT100 Creativity, Innovation & Entrepreneurial Thinking & ENT164 Introduction To Making.

Entrepreneurial Speaker Series: Catherine Popper, Angel Investor
2025-04-14 18:00 - 19:15 | Room 260, Joyce Cummings Center, 177 College Avenue, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
Join us to hear from Catherine Popper, an angel investor and advisor to early-stage startups, as she shares her expertise on early-stage investing and the keys to successful partnerships. Catherine, a proud Jumbo, brings a wealth of knowledge on how to turn innovative ideas into reality through financial investment.
About Catherine Popper
Catherine Popper is a seasoned angel investor and advisor to startups, with extensive experience guiding early-stage ventures to success. She has worked closely with founders to navigate the complexities of early-stage funding, providing strategic insights and fostering valuable partnerships. As a Tufts alum, Catherine brings a unique perspective to supporting entrepreneurial ecosystems and driving innovation.
This event will include time for Q&A, so bring your questions and prepare to gain actionable insights into the world of startup investing.
This event is part of the Entrepreneurial Speaker Series, hosted by the Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts University.

Student Event: Alpha Kappa Psi Spring Speaker Series
2025-04-17 18:00 - 19:30 | Tufts University

Building Backwards To Tech: Three Robot Startup Stories
2025-09-12 10:30 - 11:30 | JCC170, 177 College Avenue, Medford, 02155, United States
As technologists, we often spend too much time inventing point solutions, and not enough time thinking about how to turn what we invent into practical, deployable, systems-level solutions that solve real problems and create real impact. In this talk, we will share stories of startups that failed by fixating on tech, and startups that are making a difference by building backwards from the impact they know they can have. You will come away with insights that will help you reframe your approach to research and development, so you can develop cutting edge technologies that matter.
We will have time at the end for an AMA (ask me anything) session where we can discuss anything from corporate innovation to career options for technologists in a variety of professional settings.
*The name of the talk is inspired by the book, “Building Backwards To Biotech” by Stephanie A. Wisner.
About Elaine Chen
Elaine is the Cummings Family Professor of the Practice in Entrepreneurship and the Director of the award-winning Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts University. She is also the Founder and Managing Director of ConceptSpring, a corporate innovation and entrepreneurship consulting company.
Elaine has served at the VP level at six companies, including Rethink Robotics, Zeo, Zeemote and SensAble Technologies. She has brought numerous hardware and software products to market and holds 22 patents. Elaine has been teaching startup and corporate entrepreneurship in higher education since 2011 at MIT and Tufts University. At ConceptSpring, Elaine leverages her rich entrepreneurial experience to help clients make their organizations more entrepreneurial via innovation consulting services and custom training programs.
Elaine holds a BS and an MS in mechanical engineering from MIT.
This event is hosted by Derby Entrepreneurship Center. Learn more at https://derbyecenter.tufts.edu

Hardware Product Panel: Robots, 3D Printing, warehouse automation, oh my!
2025-10-16 13:30 - 14:45 | JCC 301, 177 College Ave, Medford, MA, United States
Are you curious about how hardware companies are built and how hardware products are developed? Hear from industry veterans who have built a wide variety of hardware products, spanning wearable consumer electronics, mobile phones, industrial robots, warehouse automation, and somersaulting and cycling robots. Come away with an understanding of the hardware product development process, spanning ideation, advanced research and development, product development, manufacturing and operations, and product launch.
Our confirmed panelists include:

Dr. Jenny Barry, Research Lead, Robotics AI Institute. Jenny is a roboticist with more than ten years of experience making robots move smoothly, work autonomously, and get taught new tasks more easily. Jenny holds a Bachelor of Arts in Physics from Swarthmore College and a Ph.D. in Computer Science from MIT.
Jon Bond, General Manager, Fused Filament Fabrication, Nano Dimension. Jon has a wealth of hardware experience, having worked on everything from decorative hardware products to sports equipment, industrial robotics, and 3d printers. Jon holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Tufts University.
Dr. Mike Caine, Director of Hardware Operations at the Robotics AI Institute, who has a wealth of experience building different types of hardware products. Mike holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Tufts University and an MS and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT.
This panel is moderated by Professor Elaine Chen, a hardware startup veteran and recovering roboticist who had worked with Jenny and Mike to build collaborative manufacturing robots in a prior life. Elaine holds a Bachelor and Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from MIT.

This is an Inside the Classroom event hosted by Professor Thomas Van de Velde, who teaches ENT164 Introduction to Making and ENT193.02 Lean Software Leadership at Tufts University.

Tackling Climate Solutions With Heather Takle, President & CEO, PowerOptions
2025-10-16 15:00 - 16:00 | JCC 170, 177 College Avenue, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
Join us in a fireside chat with climate entrepreneur, Heather Takle. With 20+ years of leadership and innovation experience, Heather Takle is a dynamic executive and veteran leader in the climate and energy sector. She has a track record of driving innovation, business growth, and operational excellence with a mission-driven focus on climate change impact. Her deep industry experience includes investing in, innovating and scaling businesses and products including solar + storage, microgrids, grid-interactive buildings and efficiency, waste-to-energy, vehicle electrification, and software-enabled solutions. Throughout her career, she has focused on both energy independence in North America and in achieving access in the developing world.
This is an Inside the Classroom event hosted by Professor Moneer Azzam, who teaches ENT101 Entrepreneurship and Business Planning. Moneer himself is a serial climate entrepreneur and is currently the Founder and Principal of Beacon Climate Innovations.

"All Profits To Nonprofits": How Cummings Foundation Supports 1400+ Local Organizations
2025-10-20 15:00 - 16:15 | First Floor Lobby, Joyce Cummings Center, 177 College Avenue, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
Join us for a fireside chat with Joyce Vyriotes, Executive Director of Cummings Foundation, one of the largest private foundations in New England and learn why Cummings Properties donates all net income each year to Cummings Foundation, which supports 1400+ local organizations with their local grant program.
Joyce Cummings and Bill Cummings (A58, H06, J97P, M97P) established Cummings Foundation, Inc. in 1986. Woburn-based Cummings Foundation has awarded $ 600 million in grants to greater Boston nonprofits alone. Its giving is concentrated in Middlesex, Essex, and Suffolk counties plus several abutting communities in Norfolk county, and it benefits a broad range of causes.
The Cummings also have a special interest in Rwanda, where the Foundation collaborates with Partners In Health and a limited number of other organizations to aid in that East African country’s post-genocide recovery and rebuilding.
The Cummings quietly contributed to the local community for many years. Then, in May 2011, they joined The Giving Pledge, an organization founded by Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffet through which some of the world’s wealthiest individuals and couples have publicly pledged to donate at least half of their assets for philanthropic purposes. Bill and Joyce had already donated 90 percent of their wealth.
This is an Inside the Classroom speaker event hosted by Professor Usha Pasi who teaches ENT142 Nonprofits, Philanthropy and Impact at Tufts University.
About Joyce Vyriotes
Vyriotes came to the Cummings organization as marketing manager in 2010 and, over the years, established a communications department that supports both Cummings Properties and Cummings Foundation. During much of this time, she also served as deputy director of the Foundation, and was one of the chief architects of its major annual grant-making initiative and volunteer program.
In 2021, Vyriotes became the third executive director in the Foundation’s history. She is, however, still employed by Cummings Properties and retains her responsibilities as director of communications and marketing for the commercial real estate firm.
Vyriotes began her business career doing sales and marketing for Boston Duck Tours, before moving to Arizona, where she spent a decade in fundraising and patient services for nonprofit organizations. A graduate of Mount Holyoke College, she also earned a master’s in Integrated Marketing Communications from West Virginia University. Vyriotes was raised in Melrose and currently resides in Reading with her husband, Paul.
About Usha Pasi
Usha Pasi has spent her career serving as an advocate for donors and institutions pursuing their philanthropic and programmatic aims, and she has advised boards and organizations about best practices in governance. Her experience includes increasingly responsible roles at Columbia University, Yale University, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Facing History and Ourselves, the Cambridge Community Foundation, and consulting roles with local and international organizations including Stanford University. Her consulting practice includes work as an executive coach, development and governance guidance, scaling of entrepreneurial organizations, and counseling on building inclusive organizations.
She serves on the boards of the Boston Book Festival, Be Well Be Here, the Arlington Libraries Foundation, and she is also a member of the Harvard Graduate School of Education Alumni Council. Usha is committed to expanding professional development opportunities for her colleagues in the field, and as a board member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals served as a mentor in AFP’s Diversity and Inclusion Fellowship program. She also served as President of Women in Development of Greater Boston.
Usha holds an Ed.M. degree from Harvard University and her undergraduate degree from SUNY-Binghamton. She was awarded a Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship in Improved Fundraising Capabilities. In addition, she holds an Executive Certificate in Nonprofit Management from the Harvard Kennedy School and a certificate in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University.

Women in Entrepreneurship
2025-10-21 18:00 - 19:15 | JCC 260, 177 College Ave, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
In support of Women Entrepreneurship Week (October 19-24), DEC will be hosting women leaders in our “Women in Entrepreneurship” panel, where they will share how they apply the entrepreneurial method in their respective roles.
Our confirmed panelists are drawn from different settings, spanning startups, small to medium businesses, nonprofits, and established corporations. Confirmed panelists include:

Abbeygale Anderson, Founding Partner, Cross Impact Capital
Jazmine Colman, Cofounder, QuiltHealth
Julia Hallman, Owner, Formaggio Kitchen
Moderator: Julia Giatrelis, A24, MSIM25, Product Marketing Associate at CarGurus

This is an Inside the Classroom event hosted by Professor Betsy Goodrich, who teaches ENT100 Creativity, Innovation and Entrepreneurial Thinking.
About Abbeygale Anderson
Abbeygale is the Founder of Cross Impact Capital. Previously, Abbey was an Investor at Stone Point Capital, where she focused on investing in businesses within the global financial services industry.
About Jazmine Colman
Jazmine Coleman, Co-founder of Quilt Health and Boston native, is dedicated to transforming the healthcare experience. Throughout her career, she has driven healthcare innovation and championed a more patient-centered future.
About Julia Hallman
Julia Hallman is the owner of Formaggio Kitchen, a specialty food store dedicated to discovering and providing the finest artisan cheese and specialty foods available domestically and abroad.
About our moderator, Julia Giatrelis, A24, MSIM25
Julia Giatrelis is a double Jumbo who is currently a Product Marketing Associate at CarGurus. She is also the Founder & CEO of GlutenFreedomForAll, a gluten free snack company for people with celiac disease.

Fireside Chat with Gabi Zijderveld
2025-10-22 18:00 - 19:15 | JCC 260, 177 College Ave, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
In celebration of Women Entrepreneurship Week, please join us for a fireside chat with Gabi Zijderveld, Cofounder of Blue Tulip Ventures, an VC firm that invests in early stage startups building human-centered AI.
Blue Tulip Ventures is cofounded by Gabi and Rana el Kaliouby, two women power houses who had already built a successful startup, Affectiva, before generative AI came about. Learn about the in’s and out’s of the fundraising process not just from the startup founder’s perspective, but from the perspective of first-time VC’s with a strong track record and ambitious vision, who are raising their first fund in a crowded market.
This is an Inside the Classroom event hosted by Professor Joe Volman, Partner and Co-Chair of the Boston Office of Blank Rome LLP. Joe teaches ENT163 Entrepreneurial Business Law.
About Gabi Zijderveld
Gabi is a seasoned technology executive, innovator and startup mentor with 10+ years building and commercializing AI products. She has decades of operating experience at 7 startups and two public companies, including IBM. She has led product and marketing teams, and built partnerships and ecosystems. She has created new technology categories, devised go to market strategies and launched numerous v1 products. Gabi loves mentoring early stage AI startups in all aspects of growing their business.
About Josef Volman
During his 30-year career, Joe Volman has become known as a go-to lawyer in the middle-market community, particularly with respect to mid-market mergers and acquisitions (“M&A”). Through his creative, results-driven approach, Joe partners with his clients as a strategic adviser, and leverages his vast network to help clients source deals and raise capital in order to effectively drive growth and maximize returns on their investments.
He is particularly skilled in negotiating in a constructive and collaborative fashion, made evident by an illustrious career grown through referrals of past clients and industry-leading companies seeking his proficiency with buy- and sell-side transactions. On the sell-side, Joe helps clients prepare for the sale process, including tax and other structuring. He assists strategic and financial acquirors with tax, structuring, and negotiating transaction documents.
Joe is a deal maker and is known to take a highly commercial approach to move transactions over the finish line. He constantly strives to be the lawyer clients call to solve their problems, operating as if he is in the office next door and available to help when needed. His sell-side clients know that he treats their business as if it were his family business—he cares very deeply about them, their family, and their business. They know he has their back and that he’s going to help them achieve their wealth and liquidity goals. On the buy-side, private equity (“PE”) firms trust him to help them make the best choices, acquire the right companies, to achieve success for their limited partners. As a firm leader, he is also able to command the best resources for their transactions.
In addition to his M&A work, Joe represents entrepreneurs and investors, startups and emerging companies, and PE / venture capital funds through all phases of the fundraising and investment process. Joe also has significant experience representing small and mid-cap public companies and investment banking firms that work in the small and mid-cap markets. He helps early-stage companies with formation and financing, and guides venture funds with the structure and negotiation of venture capital financings. For small and mid-cap public companies, he helps them comply with securities laws, attain public and private financings, and execute M&A transactions.
Joe has a deep understanding of several dynamic sectors, including technology (particularly software as a service (“SaaS”) and FinTech companies), business services, professional services, consumer businesses, life sciences, manufacturing, logistics, healthcare, sports, food & beverage, and hospitality.

An Insider's Guide to Product Management
2026-01-16 15:00 - 16:15 | JCC 180, 177 College Avenue, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
Curious about product management but not sure what the role really is? In this dynamic panel, senior product leaders from consumer tech, fintech, and edtech share what product managers do, how the role varies across industries, and how students can get started.
Our confirmed panelists include:

Nakul Arora, Senior Product Manager for Stays Search at Kayak. Nakul has a wealth of experience in the travel and hospitality sector, including founding the Hotel Silver Palace, a 30-room hotel catering to 18,000 guests annually. Nakul holds a BS of Technology in Mining from Indian Institute of Technology (Banaras Hindu University), Varanasi, and an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth University.
Alo Mukerji, Senior Vice President of Product Management at US Bank. Alo has led product teams across industries, including Constant Contact (marketing SaaS), Buildium (property tech), Toast (retail point of sales) and many more. Alo holds a BS in Industrial Engineering and an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.
Chimuanya Okoro-Dorisca is the Group Product Manager at Meazure Learning. She also teaches EM51 Engineering Management at Tufts. She has also worked in diverse sectors, from Paytronix (a marketing platform for restaurants and convenience stores) to edX (edTech – online learning platform) and Examity, now part of Meazure Learning (edTech – proctoring software). Chimuanya holds a BA in Computer Science and American Studies from Wellesley College.
This panel is moderated by Professor Elaine Chen, a hardware startup veteran who has run numerous engineering and product management organizations prior to joining Tufts. Elaine holds a Bachelor and Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from MIT.

This is an Inside the Classroom event hosted by Professor Elaine Chen, who teaches ENT162 Bringing Product to Market at Tufts University.

How Products Get Launched
2026-02-12 13:30 - 2026-03-11 14:45 | JCC 180, 177 College Avenue, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
How do products move from being built to being used? In this fireside chat, Julia, a Product Marketing Associate at CarGurus, offers a clear, real-world introduction to how products get launched. She will break down what product marketing is, how it differs from product management, and the day-to-day work involved in bringing products to market.
Our confirmed speakers include:

Julia Giatrelis is a double Jumbo who is currently a Product Marketing Associate at CarGurus. She is also the Founder & CEO of GlutenFreedomForAll, a gluten free snack company for people with celiac disease.

This panel is moderated by Professor Elaine Chen, a hardware startup veteran who has run numerous engineering and product management organizations prior to joining Tufts. Elaine holds a Bachelor and Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from MIT.

This is an Inside the Classroom event hosted by Professor Elaine Chen, who teaches ENT162 Bringing Product to Market at Tufts University.

Product Management: Startup vs. Bigco
2026-02-26 15:00 - 16:15 | JCC 180, 177 College Avenue, Medford, MA, 02155, United States
In this panel, startup product leaders share how they work and explore how their work differs from product roles in large companies. The conversation will explore how rapid product iterations works in a startup setting, where the team defines, designs, develops, and launches new products and services without being constrained by legacy products or an existing customer base.
Panelists will discuss how startup product teams operate with lighter, right-sized processes that can be fast-moving, informal, and occasionally chaotic, while still staying grounded in product thinking. Students will gain a clear view of how product roles are implemented in a startup environment–and how those skills translate across career paths.
This is an Inside the Classroom event hosted by Professor Elaine Chen, who teaches ENT162 Bringing Product to Market at Tufts University.
