Richard A. Bendis
President & CEO
Bendis Investment Group LLC and
Mr. Bendis has distinguished himself as a successful entrepreneur, corporate executive, venture capitalist, investment banker, innovation and technology based economic development leader, international speaker and consultant in the technology, healthcare and innovation development industries.
He currently serves as the founding President and CEO of Innovation America (IA), a national 501c3 not for profit, private/public partnership focused on accelerating the growth of the entrepreneurial innovation economy in America. He also founded the Bendis Investment Group LLC, (BIG), a financial intermediary and consulting firm which has a joint venture with the Fortress Investment Group (NYSE, FIG) and is responsible for the origination of debt and equity investments located in BIG’s Network. Mr. Bendis, recently provided interim CEO consulting services to the National Association of Seed and Venture Funds (NASVF) and strategic growth and repositioning services to the Pennsylvania Biotechnology Center.
Previously, Mr. Bendis served as President and CEO of True Product ID, Inc., a global publicly traded anti-counterfeiting technology company (NASDAQ, TPID). Mr. Bendis also founded and served as the President and CEO of Innovation Philadelphia (IP), a 3 state regional public/private partnership dedicated to growing the wealth and workforce of the Greater Philadelphia Region. IP managed a portfolio of programs in four distinct areas: Direct Equity Investment/Financing Assistance; Technology Commercialization; Global/Regional Economic and Workforce Development; and Market Research and Branding. Mr. Bendis is on the IP Board of Directors.
Previously, Mr. Bendis successfully leveraged a career in the private sector (with Quaker Oats, Polaroid, Texas Instruments, Marion Laboratories and Kimberly Services) and the venture capital industry (RAB Ventures) to lead the Kansas Technology Enterprise Corporation (KTEC). As its president and CEO, he developed KTEC into a globally recognized model for technology-based economic development. Mr. Bendis also successfully built an Inc. 500 healthcare software company, Continental Healthcare Systems, Inc., which he took public on NASDAQ and later sold to an international conglomerate. In addition, Mr. Bendis manages his own angel investment fund.
Mr. Bendis is a frequent consultant and speaker to the United Nations, NATO, the European Commission, METI, AKEA, National and International technology based economic development organizations, as well as over 20 states, several U.S. cities and regions and 16 countries. Mr. Bendis serves on several regional and national not-for-profit boards and committees including the National Association of Seed and Venture Funds (NASVF) and the State Science and Technology Institute (SSTI), both of which he was a founding Board member. He was a nominee for the 2005 Ernst and Young National Entrepreneur Supporter of the Year Award (EOY) and was the 1996 recipient of the Regional Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award; he currently serves as an EOY Judge. He also serves on the board of FlagshipPDG (NASDAQ, PDGE).