Biographies

Inauguration Keynote Speaker:

Jack Welch is the president of Jack Welch, LLC, where he serves as special partner with the private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, and is a consultant to IAC (Interactive Corp). Welch earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Massachusetts, and an MS and PhD in chemical engineering from the University of Illinois. He began his career with the General Electric Company in 1960, and, in 1981, became the company’s eighth chairman and CEO. In 2000, he was named “Manager of the Century” by Fortune magazine.

Alumni Entrepreneur Hall of Fame Honorees:

Robert J. Davis M’85 is a managing general partner at Highland Capital Partners. He is the best-selling author of Speed is Life: Street Smart Lessons from the Front Lines of Business (Currency). Prior to joining Highland, Davis served as the chief executive officer of Terra Lycos. Before the October 2000 combination of Terra and Lycos, he was president and chief executive officer of Lycos Inc. from its inception in 1995. Davis is a member of Babson’s Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs.

Jonathan Carson ’79 is a “serial social entrepreneur.” He is chairman and CEO of cMarket Network, a provider of online auction services for the nonprofit community. Clients include nonprofits in the arts, health care, faith-based, and education sectors. Prior to cMarket, he was the co-founder of Family Education Network, which helped school systems build their Web sites. In 1983, he wrote Making College Pay: How to Earn Money While You’re Still in School (Addison-Wesley).

Deborah DiSanzo M’89 is CEO of Philips Healthcare Informatics and a member of Philips Healthcare’s executive team. She formerly served as senior vice president and general manager of Philips Healthcare’s Patient Monitoring business, and before that she oversaw growth and operations for the Cardiac Resuscitation and Cardiac Systems businesses. At Cardiac Resuscitation, DiSanzo was instrumental in launching the HeartStart Home Defibrillator.