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VENTURE FORUM ANNOUNCES LEADERSHIP TRANSITIONS AND NEW BOARD MEMBERS
Central Massachusetts Start-Up Community Builds on Strong Foundation of Supporting Entrepreneurs with Pitch Events, Mentoring Programs & More
WORCESTER, MASS. (May 7, 2025) – Venture Forum, a startup community that helps entrepreneurs launch and scale their businesses in central Massachusetts, announces key leadership changes and new appointments to its board of directors.
Greg Dalle-Molle, who joined the Venture Forum board in 2024, has stepped into the role of Chair effective January 2025. “I’m excited to build on the strong foundation set by Venture Forum’s previous leadership and continue expanding our support for the startup community in Worcester and Central Massachusetts,” he said.
Dalle-Molle holds an MS in Experience Design and brings a wealth of knowledge in new product development and entrepreneurial programming to Venture Forum. He previously served as Director of Operations for the Northeastern University Center for Entrepreneurship Education and has built innovation programs for other universities in Massachusetts and abroad.
Ron Fraser has stepped down as board chair after guiding Venture Forum successfully through the COVID-19 pandemic. Fraser, a commercial loan officer with Avidia Bank, remains involved as a board member. Zachary (Zak) Dutton, former Executive Director of Venture Forum, has transitioned to launch Auxilium Worcester, a new incubator supporting regional startups. Zak continues to serve as a Venture Forum board member.
The new Venture Forum board members include:
Rosanna Garcia, Ph.D., Beswick Endowed Chair of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) Business School. Dr. Garcia has extensive experience in entrepreneurship and innovation research and is co-founder of Vijilent Inc., a data science company serving the legal industry.
Ernesto C. Martinez-Villalpando, Ph.D., former Head of Corporate Development and Innovation at MassChallenge. Dr. Martinez brings deep experience in technology commercialization, corporate innovation, and venture acceleration, and currently serves as an Adjunct Professor and Entrepreneur in Residence at WPI Business School.
Punit Shah, Head of Growth at Allsmith Growth. Shah is an experienced entrepreneur and marketer who has successfully scaled multiple ventures. He has been deeply involved in mentoring startup founders globally and locally through MassChallenge, TiE, Venture Forum, and MIT Sandbox.
About Venture Forum
Venture Forum is a startup community sparking economic growth and job creation by helping entrepreneurs launch and scale their businesses in Central Massachusetts. The organization promotes a culture of entrepreneurship and innovation through impactful, inclusive mentorship and programming.
Learn more at theventureforum.org and follow on LinkedIn and Facebook.