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Office Hours
Are you an innovator, entrepreneur, or creative mind looking to take your ideas to the next level? Join us monthly for Free Office Hours at Innovate Carolina Junction, where you'll have access to a diverse array of subject matter experts ready to help you navigate the challenges of your journey. Whether you need guidance on creative projects, insights into emerging technologies, business strategy support, alumni mentorship, or legal advice, our experts are here to provide personalized, actionable feedback.
Connect with experienced professionals across various fields, gain fresh perspectives, and get the support you need to turn your vision into reality. No matter where you are in your journey, Innovate Carolina Junction is your hub for innovation, collaboration, and growth.
Registered guests will be given priority but walk-ins are also encouraged to stop by. We welcome you to work from the café before or after your appointment. In-person attendance is preferred.
Innovate Carolina is UNC's Vice Chancellor’s Office of Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Economic Development. Innovate Carolina Junction office hours are in-person, free and geared towards innovators, entrepreneurs, and startup companies. You do not need to be associated with UNC.
Enter the building at 136 E. Rosemary St. All walk-ins and registered attendees must check in at the front desk. You are welcome to hang out at Meantime coffee shop before or after your scheduled appointment. If you are interested in a complete tour of the coworking space and innovation hub or learning more about free coworking days, please email julia.lutz@unc.edu.
Office hours are free 1:1 consultations where anyone in the community can connect with entrepreneurs-in-residence and industry professionals for subject-specific guidance, advice, and more.
Office hours are held right at the top of the stadium stairs past the cafe!
Vaccine Development
Todd Ranheim, Todd Ranheim Consulting
Ask me about:
- Chemistry, Manufacturing & Control (CMC)
- Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP)
- Quality by Design (QbD)
- Process Development - scale up thru validation
- AI in CMC development
Todd Ranheim is a molecular virologist with over 28 years’ experience developing and licensing vaccines. Todd started his career in the Merck Vaccine Division and built and managed the analytical development (AD) group supporting RotaTeq® from in-licensure all the way through to commercialization. He left to lead the AD team at Novartis Vaccines in Siena Italy, modernizing their approach to AD and directly leading the development of key assays enabling the licensure of Bexsero®. Following the acquisition of Novartis Vaccines by GSK, he became the head of AD for Takeda Vaccines where he was responsible for the release, characterization and clinical assays to support their vaccine pipeline including QDENGA®. He then joined Resilience, a start-up CDMO with a vision to change the way biologics are developed and manufactured, where he led the Vaccine Franchise and established the Advanced Analytics Core. He left Resilience to consult while also founding PredyctBio.ai which is focused on developing generative AI tools to aid CMC development.
Legal with Hutch Law
Anna Tharrington
Ask me about:
- Business Formation & Structure
- IP: Intellectual Property
- Founders' Agreements
- Fundraising
Anna Tharrington is a managing partner and counsels entrepreneurial clients through various stages of their life cycle, including corporate formation, financings (debt, seed, angel, and venture capital financings), mergers and acquisitions, and other general corporate and contract matters. She works primarily with clients in the technology and biotechnology industries. Anna also represents angel investors and venture capital funds investing in regional entrepreneurial companies.
Small Business Development & Entrepreneurial Strategy
Suling Walker
Ask me about:
- How to start and register a small business in North Carolina
- Business planning and validating business ideas
- Access to capital, grants, and small business loans
- Marketing and branding strategies for early-stage businesses
- Business compliance, licenses, and permits
Business Planning
SBTDC
Ask Joel, Bill, or Patricia about:
Business Plan Development
Business Structure and Legal Considerations
Financial Planning and Projections
Funding and Capital Acquisition
Growth and Scaling Strategies
Ask Sheila about:
Management & Operations
Restaurant Industry KPIs
Marketing & Branding
Working with Local Food Systems
Understanding Profit & Loss Statements
Ask Lindsay about:
Lean Canvas Model
Customer Discovery
Entity Selection
Military Specific Resources
Business Plan Developmen
Lindsay Hinger is an entrepreneur, Air Force Veteran, and business counselor. She is a two-time small business owner, and works as a Business Launch Specialist with the SBTDC. Lindsay is also a Board member of NC Vet Biz, and is a mentor to veterans and military spouses through American Corporate Partners (ACP).
Bill Rollinson is a General Business Counselor with the SBTDC (Small Business Technology Development Center). Before moving to North Carolina in 2020, he spent most of his career in Silicon Valley as an entrepreneur and product manager. He helped to create some of the first software for the Apple Macintosh in 1984 and co-founded the first online retailer on the web, Internet Shopping Network in 1994. He’s been involved in numerous start-ups as an operating executive, founder, investor, and board member. He received a Design degree from UCLA.
Sheila Dalton is a General Business Counselor for the Small Business Technology & Development Center, a collaboration between the Small Business Administration and the UNC System. She is the co-founder and previous owner of Neal’s Deli in Carrboro. She has 25+ years in small business, with extensive experience in the Triangle’s local food system. Dalton is an avid trail runner, a YA fiction fan, a trained cook, and a certified nutrition coach with a private practice. She lives in Carrboro with her two kids, one cat, and a loving community of friends.
Joel Harper serves as regional director with the Small Business Development Technology Center, a no-cost, confidential small business counseling service affiliated with Kenan Flagler Business School and the Small Business Administration. Previously, Harper assisted small business owners as executive director of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce. Overall, he has been helping business owners launch, grow and prosper for 20+ years. In his spare time, Harper enjoys growing vegetables and Dutch oven cooking.
Patricia Breen joined the SBTDC in 2020 as a Business Resiliency Counselor, a temporary position funded by the CARES ACT during the COVID 19 pandemic and has returned to the SBTDC as a General Business Counselor, housed at North Carolina Central University. Before joining the SBTDC, Patricia built a successful consulting practice and has extensive experience guiding organizations and teams through systemic growth issues. She works across multiple functional areas and has lived and consulted in urban, rural and international markets. A few specialty areas of interest include: Assessment and planning, Marketing, branding and communications, technology and data management (CRM), Group facilitation and training and executive and leadership development
Market Fit
Jaap Schut
Ask me about:
- Value proposition building & competitive positioning
- Pitch deck improvement & storytelling/messaging
- Customer discovery & product-market fit
- The 4E Framework of innovation:
- 1. What is it?
- 2. Does anyone care?
- 3. Can you do it?
- 4. Can you make money
- Resume improvement, career advice & networking
Jaap Schut has 23+ years of experience in global consultancy, industrial product development, corporate innovation, materials research, and higher education. As an innovation strategy consultant, startup coach/mentor, venture partner, polymer materials scientist, speaker, and expert witness, he has held roles at UNC and beyond.
As CEO of 4E Innovation Consulting, he accelerates growth and de-risks startups and corporate ventures by refining innovation strategies and commercializing novel materials and products across industries. He also provides technical expertise in litigation cases.
Currently, as Facilitator at FFVC-First Flight Venture Center, he is leading the recurring 8 week “Propeller” Accelerator, mentoring early-stage founders in a structured startup commercialization curriculum: Innovation tool instruction, coaching, feedback, and pitch practice.
During office hours Jaap covers key areas like: value proposition building and competitive positioning, enhancing pitch decks through storytelling, and aligning products with customer needs for product-market fit. The "4E Elements of Innovation" framework asks essential questions—"What is it?", "Does anyone care?", "Can you do it?", and "Can you make money?"—to guide innovation. Additionally, he offers resume improvement, career advice, and networking and resources identification support for professional growth.
Marketing
Sara Holley
- Digital, event and content marketing
- Balancing corporate and freelance work
- Transitioning form UNC to life post-graduation
- Forming mentor/mentee relationships
- Developing personal and professional confidence
Sara Holley (UNC '21) approaches marketing as not just visibility, but also a chance to create connection and inspire action. She builds digital campaigns at Red Hat, one of the world’s leading enterprise software companies, where she combines data, storytelling and strategy to deliver the right message to the right people at the right time.
Sara noticed that founders are often too busy to dedicate time to strategic marketing. She started Tiger Bunny Agency, a freelance marketing agency, to bring her professional expertise to founders who want to elevate their venture's digital, event and content marketing.
While at UNC, Sara studied at the Hussman School of Journalism and Media and the Shuford Program in Entrepreneurship. She also held leadership roles in TEDxUNC and the student campaign that brought an Asian American Center to campus.
IP & Patents
Nathan Letts
- Types of Intellectual Property
- Ownership vs Inventorship
- Is my idea/invention patentable?
- Why get a patent?
- The timing/costs to get a patent
Nathan Letts is a patent attorney with the Olive Law Group PLLC and works with a wide variety of clients and specializes in biotechnology, chemistry, green energy, diagnostics, and pharmaceuticals. Previously, he was the founding CEO of a UNC-CH biotech spinout, KinoDyn, Inc. and Vice President of Intellectual Property and Licensing for diaDexus, Inc. (South San Francisco, CA). Nathan helps his clients get patent protection worldwide. He also has experience in licensing agreements, patent litigation, and trademarks.
Growth Strategy
Verlin Youd & Mark Self
- Business Development
- Partnerships and alliances supporting a market focused strategy
- Getting ready to sell your business before you have an opportunity (or desire) to sell your business
- The nuances of selling your business
- Building a board (and an advisory board) that adds real value
Verlin Youd has held leadership roles in global technology companies for more than 25 years and now advises several early-stage tech firms and accelerators. Verlin’s career spans a broad range of companies, positions, and solutions. Verlin holds a BS in Finance from BYU and an MBA from UNC Chapel Hill. He resides with his family in Chapel Hill where he is an avid collegiate athletics fan and active in local community groups and global charitable organizations. He has lived in four countries, visited 40+ countries for business, and speaks French and Haitian Creole.
Mark Self has a wide range of leadership experience, with successes (and failures) primarily in technology companies of many sizes (Large-IBM, Symbol/Motorola and NCR, Midrange and early stage) with responsibility in all phases of go to market as well as board level responsibilities with a bit of angel investing as well.
Mark earned a BS in English Literature from U.C. Davis and a Masters in Management from Northwestern University's Kellogg School. A four year Division One Athlete (soccer), Mark splits his professional time as an advisor and mentor to early stage companies with time as a personal trainer and group fitness leader, holding certifications for each. Since 2017 he has fought stage four prostate cancer, which has given him a unique and learned perspective on what is truly important in business and life.
Social Impact Tech
Rida Bayraktar
- Innovation with Intention: creating meaning and impact through your startup
- Navigating studies and entrepreneurship
- Utilizing resources at UNC and beyond for your startup
- Working at a tech/AI startup
Rida Bayraktar is a software engineer, social entrepreneur, and AI ethics advocate passionate about advancing women's education in tech. In 2018, she founded Pink STREAM, a nonprofit that empowers young women globally in STREAM fields, impacting over 1,500 students and earning numerous awards. At Bast.ai, she helps develop transparent and sustainable AI technologies. Rida also speaks internationally on AI ethics, women's education, and diversity in tech. A top graduate from UNC with a 3.9 GPA, she has received accolades including the Clinton Global Initiative University Award and the Generation Google Scholarship.
Mark Self has a wide range of leadership experience, with successes (and failures) primarily in technology companies of many sizes (Large-IBM, Symbol/Motorola and NCR, Midrange and early stage) with responsibility in all phases of go to market as well as board level responsibilities with a bit of angel investing as well.
Mark earned a BS in English Literature from U.C. Davis and a Masters in Management from Northwestern University's Kellogg School. A four year Division One Athlete (soccer), Mark splits his professional time as an advisor and mentor to early stage companies with time as a personal trainer and group fitness leader, holding certifications for each. Since 2017 he has fought stage four prostate cancer, which has given him a unique and learned perspective on what is truly important in business and life.
Creative
Emily Almond
- Marketing and Advertising Strategy
- Event and Experiential Marketing
- Social Media Strategy
- Strategic Partnerships
- Marketing Analytics
- Basic Content Creation
Emily Almond is a strategic marketing leader with more than a decade of experience driving growth, brand visibility, and revenue across sports, hospitality, entertainment, and nonprofits. With a background that spans from Minor League Baseball to the nonprofit sector, she brings a blend of creativity, data-driven decision-making, and collaborative leadership to every project. Emily excels at crafting integrated marketing strategies, building meaningful partnerships, and creating engaging experiences that connect brands with their audiences. Outside of work, she enjoys travel, live events, fitness, and time with family and friends.