Main Street Ventures, one of the startup ecosystem’s biggest drivers, has tapped a new leader, and it’s a Cincinnati native with nearly 20 years of BigCo experience.
Sean Parker is the new executive director for the Over-the-Rhine-based entrepreneur support organization, effective immediately. Parker most recently served as the global senior director of finance and strategy communications at Nike with prior stints that include Procter & Gamble, Fifth Third Bank and Kroger.
The hire comes one year after former executive director Kelly Bonnell left the organization for a C-suite position with Constellation Wealth Management. In July, Main Street Ventures promoted Brianna Dzuricsko and Abby Ober to director-level roles as part of a “refreshed leadership structure.” The two have since split the traditional executive director responsibilities, including development, funding programs, community engagement and entrepreneurial support.
Dzuricsko and Ober will remain with the organization although their roles will shift slightly with respect to development and fundraising responsibilities, Main Street Ventures said.
Parker specifically will lead the team responsible for grant management, entrepreneur outreach and special events, while serving as the chief fundraiser for the organization.
“Every business starts small – and to create the next P&G, Cintas, TQL or Medpace in our region – smart entrepreneurs with good ideas need access to financial capital," Parker said in a release.
Parker is a graduate of Walnut Hills High School and earned his bachelor of arts in public relations from Howard University in Washington, D.C.
He serves as a board member for the Cincinnati Film Commission and Mortar, a small business development group for underserved founders based in Pendleton. He has completed Leadership Cincinnati through the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber and is a recipient of the Business Courier's Forty under 40 award.
Robert McDonald, a Main Street Ventures founding board director, called Parker a “well-respected and visionary leader.” He said Parker’s experience working with some of the biggest companies in the Midwest “will inform how entrepreneurship and innovation can solve some of our community’s most pressing issues.”
“Sean shares our commitment to supporting entrepreneurs that are taking risks to start the next big tech company or lively neighborhood bakery, brewery or coffee shop,” McDonald said. “We are thrilled to have him join Main Street Ventures to help further our mission of creating a more vibrant Cincinnati through entrepreneurship.”
Main Street Ventures, a nonprofit, offers several programs and provides equity-free funding to companies across the Tri-State region. Since 2018, the organization has distributed more than $3 million to more than 100 local startups through its signature Launch and Leap grants. Main Street just awarded its largest cohort at 19 companies earlier this month.
Grants are made possible by individual giving and funding support from Ohio Third Frontier, Cincinnati City Council ARPA funds, the Hubert Family Foundation, the McDonald Family Foundation and Northern Kentucky Entrepreneurship Fund in collaboration with Blue North and Horizon Community Funds.
Main Street Ventures opens its next grant cycle April 3.
