In-Residence Program
The Skandalaris Center In-Residence program serves the Washington University in St. Louis community of students, faculty, staff and alumni by providing industry experience and insights to encourage development of new ventures. The goal of the IR program is to help teams learn from professionals with extensive industry experience and motivate the teams to take action on their ideas. The In-Residence program will feature a diverse collection of experts, including artists, designers, entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and executives that will share their experience and networks to exponentially expand opportunities for success.
Shani Bennett
Areas of Expertise: Artificial Intelligence, Data Analytics, Economic Development, Fintech, Legal Technology, Retail Analytics, Public-Private Partnerships, Web and App Development, Customer Discovery
Shani Bennett is a serial entrepreneur with deep expertise spanning law, technology, artificial intelligence, fintech, and economic development. Currently, he is developing innovative fintech and gamification solutions to stimulate economic development across main streets in the US, with notable early success in St. Louis neighborhoods including the Delmar Loop and Cherokee Street. Previously, Bennett founded and served as CEO of Queritel Corp, which created Panvisor, a pioneering data and analytics platform that revolutionized retail visibility in emerging markets by tracking product performance in non-chain retail stores—a previously untapped sector representing up to 60% of CPG sales in Latin America. The platform, which features real-time AI-driven data cleansing and visualization, serves global brands including Procter & Gamble, Red Ventures, and Burger King, alongside government agencies. Queritel secured venture funding and ranks among the top 5 retail tech providers in Latin America. Bennett participated in prestigious accelerator programs including Start-Up Chile, Parallel18, and 500Global, and is a recipient of Arch Grants. Earlier in his career, he worked with the United Nations and LexisNexis.
Guy Friedman
Areas of Expertise: Healthcare
Guy Friedman is the CEO & Co-Founder of SteadyMD. SteadyMD powers high-quality telehealth experiences for digital healthcare companies, labs, pharmacies, large employers, and other healthcare innovators. Previously, Guy was the CEO at HigherNext, a virtual test administration and proctoring solution for higher education & the credentialing industry. HigherNext was acquired by ProctorU in 2013. Guy graduated with his BA & MA in Economics from Tufts University & MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Talia Goldfarb
Areas of Expertise: Branding/Design, Communications Strategy, Consumer Goods, Intellectual Property, Marketing, Customer Acquisition, Sales
Talia Goldfarb graduated from Williams College with a major in Psychology, and then received her Masters in Social Work. After relocating to St. Louis, she worked as a school social worker and therapist for children in foster care. Motherhood altered her professional path, as it was her son’s sagging pants that led to the invention of Myself Belts, a patented, one-handed, easy to fasten belt for children. Talia was on ABC’s Shark Tank Season 6 and partnered with Daymond John. Myself Belts have been featured in numerous magazines such as The Huffington Post, People Magazine, US Weekly, Woman’s Day, and Forbes.com. In 2022, after 20 years of leading Myself Belts, Talia sold the company and is now focusing on her consulting business, Entrepreneurial Insight LLC. Her solution-focused consultation blends her training as a therapist with her entrepreneurial experience and supports business owners by providing a space to be introspective and gain insight, problem-solve, and achieve clarity. Talia has offered support to the entrepreneurial ecosystem in St. Louis through work as an EIR at Arch Grants, as a mentor at WEPOWER, and by serving on the local Venture For America advisory board.
Cesar Keller
Areas of Expertise: Product Design, Product Strategy, Product Research, User Research, Product Management, Go-to-Market
Cesar Keller is a Product & Experience Officer with over 25 years of professional experience guiding the strategy, design, and launch of digital products across industries. In his current role at Object Computing Inc., and as head of Parux, he leads cross-functional teams in delivering user-focused solutions that align business goals with exceptional product experiences. Cesar’s approach blends deep practical expertise with rigorous academic training, holding eight MIT certifications. This combination of entrepreneurial experience and best-in-class education enables him to help organizations navigate product lifecycles from research and validation through market launch. As an Expert in Residence, Cesar shares insights on product innovation, research-driven design, and go-to-market execution, equipping the next generation of entrepreneurs to turn ideas into impactful, market-ready solutions.
Vikram Lakhwara
Areas of Expertise: Venture Capital
Vikram Lakhwara has two decades of experience in the startup ecosystem as an investor, consultant, and business professional. A San Francisco Bay Area native, Vik is the co-founder of Green Cow Venture Capital (GCVC), a seed-stage fund investing in startups leveraging AI and robotics to solve problems in foundational industries. The fund has had two exits from ten investments, including Bear Flag Robotics which was acquired by John Deere for $250M. Prior to GCVC, Vik led business development and partnerships for the Startups & VC practice of technology and life sciences law firm, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati (WSGR). At WSGR, his responsibilities included working with the firm’s startup clients on fundraising strategy and building their pitch, establishing partnerships with accelerators, angels, early- and growth-stage VCs, and acting as a deal flow catalyst. His first experience as a VC was as the first external hire of $100M SK Telecom Ventures. Vik played an integral role in each of the firm’s 15 investments, resulting in exits to Apple, Autodesk, Uber, and Zynga amongst others. Immediately after graduating, he joined executive education consulting firm Reinventures. Vik graduated from Vassar with a degree in Economics.
Shane Larisey
Areas of Expertise: Venture Capital
Shane Larisey is an experienced investor, entrepreneur, and General Partner at Redstick Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on AI, automation, and sustainability within the food and agriculture sectors. With a background in mechanical engineering and global manufacturing, Shane brings a practical, operator-first lens to early-stage investing. He has led and advised investments across FoodTech, AgTech, and B2B SaaS, and actively mentors startups through Techstars, Alchemist, and other national accelerator programs. His investment philosophy emphasizes backing domain-expert founders solving real-world operational problems.
Kim Moos
Areas of Expertise: Branding/Design, Communications Strategy, Consumer Goods, Customer Acquisition, Engineering, Human Resources, Information Technology, Innovation Commercialization, Intellectual Property, Marketing, Operations/Supply Chain, Public Relations/Social Media, Sales
Kim Moos is the founder of Cotton Cuts, an ecommerce subscription provider of designer crafting supplies. Kim has over 15 years of experience in the medical device and pharmaceutical world, holding roles of increasing responsibility in R&D, Business Development, Operations, Project Management, culminating as the Chief of Staff to the President and CEO at Mallinckrodt. Kim has launched over 12 new medical devices with over 20 patents and led acquisition teams in transactions over $10B in value. Cotton Cuts started eight years ago as a side project for Kim, growing from her basement to a full fledged company. Watching YouTube videos, she taught herself how to use Facebook, Instagram and everything about the subscription business model. Today, Cotton Cuts has over 5,000 monthly members in over 15 countries with over 15 new jobs created in St. Louis. Kim has served as a board member on the Entrepreneur’s Organization (St. Louis) and Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association. She is a certified Project Management Professional, Design for Six Sigma Black Belt and has a degree in Biomedical Engineering from Tulane University as well as an MBA from Boston University. She is the proud mother of two boys, Lincoln and Dominic, and calls St. Louis home.
Kelley Robson
Kelley Robson is the Founder and CEO of Pivto Better Learning, a healthcare digital education company that transforms traditional training into engaging, modern educational experiences. With over 25 years of experience in software and learning and development at companies including Siemens, GSK, and Baxter Healthcare, Kelley recognized a critical gap: online learning that people dreaded rather than embraced. Kelley brings deep expertise in software development, healthcare training and development, and digital learning experiences. Under her leadership, Pivto serves leading healthcare organizations including Pfizer, Mayo Clinic, Kaiser Permanente, Centene, and Walgreens. Based in St. Louis, the company was awarded an Arch Grant in 2022 and opened Pivto Studios in midtown to produce all media content and software development in-house.
Jerry Rosen (BFA ’81)
Areas of Expertise: App Development, Branding/Design, Communications Strategy, Consumer Goods, Customer Acquisition, Innovation Commercilization, Intellectual Property, Marketing, Sales
Jerry Rosen is a WashU alumnus with a career spanning over 30 years, having morphed from advertising art director to serial entrepreneur. He has founded multiple marketing and technology-focused businesses as well as serving roles ranging from BOD Chair, CEO, CMO, CRO, and multiple director seats.
Rosen’s experience includes media, content creative, eCommerce, and SaaS software. Throughout his career, Rosen’s client list has included Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Arby’s, Wendy’s, MetLife, Roche/Genentech, Lufthansa, American Express, The Kennedy Space Center, Chicago White Sox, Bulls, Bears, Blackhawks, Fire and Frank Thomas’ Big Hurt Enterprises to name a few.
Rosen recently retired from Sachs Capital Group where he served as Chief Revenue Officer. He currently is the Executive Director of the Webster Groves, Shrewsbury, Rock Hill and Brentwood Area Chamber of Commerce. Rosen proudly is In Residence at Washington University’s Skandalaris Center for Interdisciplinary Innovation and Entrepreneurship mentoring undergraduate and graduate students.
When he isn’t working, he enjoys cooking, painting, and weekend hikes with his wife Andrea, and their dog Skye.
Katie Silversmith (AB, MSW ’12)
Areas of Expertise: Communications Strategy, Human Resources, Operations/Supply Chain, Sales, Customer Acquisition
Katie received her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Social Work degrees from Washington University in St. Louis. After practicing clinical social work in nonprofit and private practice settings for 10 years, she co-founded and served as CEO of ThriveCo, a growing coworking space brand. After completing two expansions and scaling a virtual membership, Katie exited the company in the summer of 2021. In her latest venture, Build My Therapy Biz, she consults with private practice owners (therapists) and social impact startups around increasing their profitability, streamlining operations, scaling, sustainability, and exit planning.
Kaushik Srinivasan, JD, MBA
Areas of Expertise: Accounting, Biomedicine, App Development, Healthcare, Finance, Innovation Commercialization, Intellectual Property, Legal/Contracts
Kaushik Srinivasan, JD, MBA is an accomplished C-Suite executive, entrepreneur, and investor with deep experience in the healthcare industry. Leveraging his cross-functional expertise, he has been a change agent focused on helping pre-commercial and early-stage commercial health-technology companies transition and step-up development through a combination of business strategy, business execution and fundraising efforts.
He serves on the Advisory Boards of several healthcare entities focused on devices, diagnostics, and therapeutics and is a mentor with healthcare accelerators. As a mentor with Sling Health, Penn Health-Tech, and several independent companies in the United States and Canada, he advises entrepreneurs on product commercialization and launching healthcare startups.
Kaushik has a JD from Case Western Reserve University and earned his MBA at WashU. He also received a BS in Healthcare Management and Finance and a BA in Philosophy, Neuroscience, and Psychology from Washington University in St. Louis.
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