Changes at ATIF

To say the least, the Fall of 2009 has been a transition period for ATIF.

In August, the founder of ATIF, Tom Duening, left the Fulton School of Engineering at ASU to take a new position with the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. As a result, we needed to elect new leadership, develop a board of directors, and create a new organization structure outside of Arizona State University.

I’m excited to say that Tom Duening, our members, and key Fulton School faculty have embraced this change as an opportunity to grow ATIF and continue our mission for investors and tech entrepreneurs in Arizona. We wish Tom well with his new (and snowy) adventures in Colorado.  Tom remains an emeritus member of the ATIF board of directors and we look forward to seeing him at future ATIF meetings.

Here are just a few of the changes under way:

1) ATIF is now an independent, non-profit organization. We are happy to continue to have close ties to ASU, but we no longer require ASU staff to manage our group and provide administrative support.

2) We now have our own website. Yes, www.atif-az.org is the official website of ATIF. Take a look around and let us know what you think.  We will continue to update the site with more useful information for entrepreneurs and angel investors.

3) We are reaching out to more Arizona universities, entrepreneur organizations, angel investor groups, venture capitalists and others to ensure the best deal flow for ATIF investors.

4) We will have four Investor Meetings a year (previously was three meetings) to allow more startups to present to ATIF members. Three startups present at each meeting – so that’s 12 presenting startups a year.

5) And then there’s me. I’m Paul Winandy, the new director of ATIF.  I am honored to help lead such a dynamic organization of investors and community leaders.  Our mission remains the same … to be the most active and engaged technology investor group in Arizona.  I look forward to helping ATIF achieve that lofty goal.

We have a number of other changes in the works, so keep an eye out for more announcements.

Don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions about ATIF or see any opportunities for us to work together.

Paul Winandy
ATIF Director
paul.winandy@atif-az.org