We are excited to officially announce the judges for the Innovator of the Year Award, Powered by PECO.
We are currently accepting applications from local entrepreneurs and inventors.  Semi-finalists will be announced in August and invited to a HeadRoom workshop which is designed to help them prepare and hone their presentation to the judge’s panel. Finalists will present ‘Shark Tank’ style to our judges.
 The winner of the competition will be announced on September 24, 2015 in Media, PA, and will receive a $5,000 grant from PECO along with a one-year residency at HeadRoom to support the development of their innovation.
Read more to find out who you will have to face!
John McDonald
PECO VP of Technical Services
With more than 30 years of experience at PECO, McDonald is responsible for electric distribution system engineering, project management, long-range planning, and vegetation management for PECO. He also oversees PECO’s advanced metering technology program and grid modernization initiatives. McDonald earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and master of business administration from Drexel University.
J. Patrick Killian
Commerce Director of Delaware County
Pat Killian has lead responsibility for and supervision of all economic development programs in Delaware County. Killian also serves as Executive Director of the following: Delaware County Economic Development Oversight Board, Delaware County Industrial Development Authority, the County Redevelopment Authority, the Chester Delaware County Waterfront Industrial Development Authority and is Executive Director and Secretary/Treasurer of the Delaware County Industrial Development Corporation. He is Chairman of the Board of the Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union, a county based Credit Union, with $850 million in assets. Pat is a graduate of the University of Scranton and U.S. Navy veteran.
Karina Sotnik
Professor – University of Pennsylvania
Karina Sotnik is a serial entrepreneur, mentor, adviser and an educator. She spent over a decade in Silicon Valley in senior positions helping companies grow globally. She also launched three ventures of her own. In the last five years her concentration has been on growing WorldUpStart, a consulting practice focused on providing mentorship, consulting and advice to academic incubators, including PCI Ventures at UPenn, Accelerace Life (Scandinavia) and ITMO QD (Russia). In addition, Karina recently conceived and launched AppITUP, an accelerator program for Mobile Apps at the University of Pennsylvania.
T.J. Greco
Strategic Architect – eBay Enterprises
TJ Greco has a strong track record of distilling business strategies into effective programs across people, process and technology. TJ is a proven team leader, architect, development manager and strategic thinker capable of balancing strategic and tactical to achieve business value. He is focused on building high performance teams though coaching, mentoring and team building.
Bob Simpson
Managing Partner – Brinker, Simpson & Co.
Bob Simpson is the Founder and Managing partner of Brinker, Simpson & Company. He has a varied background of entrepreneurial pursuits, and established the firm in 1989. He’s also owned retail businesses, entertainment and computer consulting firms. He enjoys the world of small business, and is especially proud of the success of many companies he’s advised from start-up operations to 2ndand 3rd generations. Bob has also taught Entrepreneurial Courses at a local college, and consults on budgeting and finance issues with many local charities and non-profit groups.
JB Braun
Publisher – Main Line Today Magazine
JB Braun is a publishing professional with over twenty years of publishing industry experience in all aspects (Digital, Print, Production, Sales, Marketing, Business Development, Strategic Planning, Advertising, Editorial, Circulation and more) assimilating into the very niche of what makes a publishing house successful. He has been involved in creating, managing and launching new digital and print products, events, and services.