Wayne manages the Ben Franklin TechVentures® business technology incubator on Lehigh University’s Mountaintop Campus. Forty-one firms called Ben Franklin TechVentures home in 2018, employing as many as 170 people. Since 1983, Ben Franklin’s incubator has graduated 69 successful companies, together grossing more than $1.2 billion in annual revenue and creating more than 6,900 jobs.

TechVentures is a two-time recipient of the International Business Innovation Association’s incubator of the year

Outside of Ben Franklin, Wayne serves as President of the board for the Community Action Committee of the Lehigh Valley (CACLV). In 2017, he was selected as a Startup Development Officer for the National Council on Entrepreneurial Technology Transfer. He is an adjunct faculty member at Lafayette College, creating and teaching a course called ‘Building the High Tech Startup’.

Ben Franklin Technology Partners has helped more than 500 companies get their start in northeastern PA, created more than 18,000 jobs, and retained more than 31,800 existing jobs. Through a combination of investment, mentoring, connecting and incubating, Ben Franklin continues to be modeled globally for its work launching tech startups and accelerating innovation in established manufacturers.

Wayne Barz, Manager of Entrepreneurial Services at Ben Franklin, has spent more than 30 years in business incubation and economic development, including the last 18 managing Ben Franklin TechVentures. In addition to providing a high-level overview of the program, he’ll reveal the 10 most important lessons entrepreneurs have taught him about new venture creation.

Lehigh Valley Engineers can interact with Ben Franklin Technology Partners as a mentor to clients, a business or technical reviewer, as entrepreneurs themselves.