Katherine Noesen

start up Advisor, Vator Advisor. CEO/COO

IBM WorkPad; Palm IIIc; Web.com internet platform

I want to change the world.

Uber, Airbnb, Caviar, Square

Frustrating: being ahead of the market
Rewarding: Seeing new products come to life

Raise too much, spend too much

It's all about the story. The technology enables amazing things to happen, but it's all about how the technology can be used to improve lives.

Early hiring of GREAT people is key!

It's really important to listen--to customers, investors, advisors, each other.

Katherine is a visionary leader skilled at assessing complex situations to develop creative yet practical solutions. She is known for working across organizational boundaries and building interdisciplinary teams for both start ups and large multinationals. Specialties include: team building and management, marketing and brand management, breakthrough product development, strategic partnerships and alliances, full lifecycle product management, and fund-raising.

Katherine has over 22 years developing groundbreaking ventures in industries spanning consumer electronics, digital media, environmental technologies, and online services. Most recently she was COO of Strategyn, the leading global innovation strategy firm.  Prior to Strategyn, she served as VP of Flex New Ventures at Flextronics developing a comprehensive innovation platform. She has worked with companies such as WorkingPoint, Phillips Electronics, Palm Computing, and Cellular One. She also has a background in product design which she readliy applies to diverse contexts. 

Katherine earned a BA in Economics from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, where she was a Morehead Scholar. She was a Rotary International Scholar at the Université de Paris IV (La Sorbonne), and earned an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.