Ron Erd
Fractional Growth Executive at Unlocking Growth
Ron Erd
Fractional Growth Executive at Unlocking Growth
San Francisco Bay Area
Overview
Work Experience
Advisor, Consultant, Fractional Growth Executive
2020 - Current
I partner with Founders and Executives to catalyze growth. I build Go to Market strategies that create customer pull and revenue. I build Growth Strategies to meet and exceed revenue targets. Advise executives to uncover customer pain points and drive revenue. I develop executive leadership, presence, and ability to navigate uncertainty. I design Partnership Strategy.
Advisor & Leadership Council
2023
Activate empowers scientists to reinvent the world by bringing their research to market. Through a fellowship, they develop as leaders, mature their ideas, and learn what it takes to build a viable, scalable business. After two-years, nearly all of them achieve the milestones needed to set them on that path. Evaluate and advise effective business models. Co-create go-to-market strategy. Advocate for Activate to build brand. Connect entrepreneurs to my expansive networks and the opportunities for growth, impact and funding
Advisor
2023
SkyDeck offers all the benefits of a traditional accelerator along with the vast resources of the world’s number one ranked public university. SkyDeck offers a powerful environment for startups to grow and launch. The robust and vibrant ecosystem includes a deep network of advisors, industry partners, and accredited investors. I partner with Founders to build growth strategies that increase revenues. I create business models to position companies for future funding.
Mentor
2022
Startup accelerator connecting blue chip corporations with the brightest startups across the globe Mentor early-stage startups. Guide entrepreneurs to uncover customer pain points. Advise entrepreneurs on customer, business model and financing strategies to scale startups.
Mentor
2022 - 2024
Guided graduates of the incubator program to build GTM strategies to get early wins. Advised on market segmentation, targeting and messaging.
Mentor
2022 - 2023
Non-profit that facilitates the advancement of young professionals in the global energy industry Advising mentees on the clean energy industry.
Mentor - NSF I-Corp Program
2022 - 2022
Entrepreneurial training program for technical innovators to understand customers and create impact. Evaluated and assessed strategic assumptions and product market fit for early-stage startups. Led early-stage founders on building go-to-market strategies. Coached startup founders on mastering customer development conversations.
Senior Advisor
2022 - 2022
• Re-built GTM for EV charging software market. • Narrowed list of 1,000 target customers for EV charging software to the top 20 targets ready to do deals. • Re-built branding and sales messaging to increased customer engagement from 1% to 30%. • Uncovered customer pain point not seen by executives. • Mapped the EV charging ecosystem to determine which use cases would benefit most from the product.
Business Development, Strategy & GTM Consultant for Hydrogen Market
2021 - 2021
Navigated uncertainty, built GTM and Business Development Strategy for Bloom’s entry into emerging Green Hydrogen Market. Drove over 100 customer development conversations to define strategic partnerships to help customers achieve Zero Carbon Emissions goals, globally (North America, South America, EU and Asia). Created GTM strategies to enter new use cases and vertical markets. GTM and Strategy: • Developed strategy to find beta customers. Partnered with customers to develop Zero Carbon strategy • Drove process to determine product market fit for different verticals: nuclear, wind, solar, and industrial. • Strategic understanding of market dynamics. Customer Development, Product Vision and Company Growth: • Defined customer needs for product use cases, industries, and timelines to create product roadmaps • Drove product roadmap to match long term customer use patterns. • Identified new opportunities by finding gaps in the value chain. • Uncovered high potential use cases, building upon unique competitive advantages. • Orchestrated deal flow. Connected the dots to uncover new vertical markets and product uses cases. Leadership and Creating a Culture of Innovation: • Servant leader. Drove cross-functional team to create and publish product specifications. • Fostered cross-functional culture of innovation, creative thinking & risk taking. • Led executive team through the uncertainty of an emerging market and manifest new opportunities.
Founder, President & CEO
2008 - 2018
Founded Independence Bio-Products (IBP), a Clean Tech company to capture power plant carbon dioxide emissions. IBP partnered with FirstEnergy and Luminant (now Vistra) to capture power plant carbon emissions. IBP created a strategic partnership with the US Air Force to produce renewable jet fuel. • Created strategic partnerships with First Energy and Luminant (now Vistra) to capture power plant emissions. • Created a strategic partnership with the US Air Force to produce renewable jet fuel. • Built 25-person cross-functional team to bring products to market and fill orders • Built an innovation culture to create a scalable production system for algae products. Reduced production costs 34%. Increased capacity 100% by identifying and clearing a key bottleneck • Created KPIs and simple dashboards to improve efficiency from 74% to 99%. • Developed high potential employees with leadership roles in strategic projects.