Venture capitalist named CEO of entrepreneur-boosting project (+video)

In the latest move to reinvigorate entrepreneurism in Wichita, local business leaders on Tuesday introduced venture capitalist John Dascher as the first CEO of a new business accelerator/incubator.

Much of Wichita’s business leadership attended the announcement Tuesday morning at the Greater Wichita Partnership offices, 501 E. Douglas.

The goal for the e2e Accelerator/Incubator is to give a small group of business owners the skills and contacts needed to make their companies grow rapidly. The plan is for it to be up and running by this summer.

The nonprofit technology accelerator/incubator is a key project of the Entrepreneurship Task Force, led by businessmen Gary Oborny and Scott Schwindaman. The task force, part of the Greater Wichita Partnership, is developing a comprehensive system to support entrepreneurs. Encouraging new companies in Wichita is one of the keys to improving the region’s economic growth, say leaders.

With Dascher now in place, the organization will settle on a location downtown, develop programs, recruit mentors and pick its first group of companies. He said it already has a good list of potential first companies.

“As a trained scientist, I believe in the laws of nature – and breaking them by creating something from nothing,” Dascher said.

Venture capitalist

Dascher worked most recently in Denmark as an investment director for two early stage venture capital funds totaling more than $200 million. He held senior positions with several of the companies in his portfolio.

Before moving to Denmark, he helped establish and operate investment funds and technology accelerators in Texas, Delaware and south Florida. He has also been an aerospace project engineer with top suppliers to Boeing, GE and Rolls Royce.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in applied physics from Albright College in Reading, Pa., and an MBA in finance from Drexel University in Philadelphia.

Dascher and his wife, Helle Isen Olesen, have three boys: Anders, 11; Soren, 9; and Kristian, 20 months. He enjoys being physically active, completing three marathons and two half Ironman triathlons; he also enjoys traveling with his family.

Dascher said he learned of the job in Wichita through an association job posting. He saw other listings, but this one sparked his interest.

The effort in Wichita is privately controlled and privately funded. He won’t spend his time writing grant proposals instead of helping entrepreneurs.

He said he was impressed with Oborny’s and Schwindaman’s efforts. It has the education component and the physical location, and they’ve assembled an impressive venture fund, he said.

“It was well-thought-out,” he said. “These people have done more than just do their homework. It’s the complete package. They’re acting on best practices.”

Jeff Turner, former CEO of Spirit AeroSystems and now one of those investors, was in the audience.

Turner said he loves the idea of the accelerator. An investor wants a good return or, if the company is a failure, he wants it to fail or get redirected fast instead of it lingering and wasting money.

The accelerator speeds up the process of success and cuts the number of mistakes by people who often have no business experience.

“It accelerates learning, accelerates experience,” Turner said. “What John (Dascher) said is true: You’d rather they learn from other people’s mistakes than their own. It saves months of time.”

Bigger picture

The accelerator is just one part of the entrepreneur support eco-system Oborny and Schwindaman are building.

It starts with alliances with 32 local organizations – from Youth Entrepreneurs of Kansas to Wichita State University to the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce – to support today’s entrepreneurs and teach future ones.

The two also envision early stage training for budding entrepreneurs with early stage companies that might be produced by these local organizations.

Oborny and Schwindaman said they have already found investors for $10.6 million for two companies, as yet unnamed, but both are high tech.

In addition, for entrepreneurs, there will be start-up events, networking get-togethers, mentoring and information-sharing meetings. Local leaders recently announced an agreement with Kansas City’s Kauffman Foundation to use its 1 Million Cups program, a weekly gathering that invites early stage entrepreneurs to talk about what they’re doing and how to solve problems.

The new companies don’t have to develop computer technology or smartphone apps. They could be in advanced manufacturing, medical devices, logistics, even restaurants. But Oborny is clear these companies must be able to expand rapidly.

And developing new companies in Wichita is critical to the long-term health of the community, Oborny said.

“People ask: ‘How are you going to keep young kids in Wichita?’ This is the opportunity,” he said.

This story was originally published January 5, 2016 at 11:22 AM with the headline "Venture capitalist named CEO of entrepreneur-boosting project (+video)."