Atlanta, Sept. 28, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Comcast NBCUniversal’s Atlanta-based startup accelerator The Farm today announced the appointment of Burunda Prince-Jones as managing director.
Prince-Jones brings a diverse set of leadership and management skills to the new accelerator, which will be located within Comcast’s Central Division headquarters at The Battery complex at SunTrust Park. She most recently operated her own consulting firm, B6 Consulting, providing leadership coaching and process improvement programming to clients. At the same time, she served as a managing partner with Prescott College Consulting, an organization that optimizes educational options for families navigating graduate, collegiate or international application processes.
After receiving a chemical engineering degree from MIT and an MBA from Harvard, Prince-Jones held management positions with Rohm & Haas Company (a Fortune 500 organization acquired by Dow Chemical Company in 2009), as well as Bain & Company, Temple, Barker & Sloane, and Proctor & Gamble. She also has been active in the non-profit sector, serving on the Wissahickon (Pa.) School District Board of Directors, Montgomery County Intermediate Unit Board of Directors, the President’s Council of Gwynedd Mercy College and as chair of the Black Alumni Association for the MIT Alumni Association.
“It was important to find an exceptionally well-rounded leader who can provide the right kind of guidance and support to the teams selected for The Farm,” said Bill Connors, president of Comcast’s Central Division. “Burunda’s diverse range of experience will be vital to ensuring an outstanding experience for the entrepreneurs selected to join our program.”
“I’m thrilled to return home to Atlanta and guide what I believe will be one of the country’s outstanding accelerator programs,” said Prince-Jones. “The centerpiece of our model is first and foremost the entrepreneur, and my energies will be focused on creating the best possible environment for them to develop the strong business skills needed to create true, built-to-last organizations.”
To read more on Prince-Jones’ goals for the program as managing director, please visit our blog.
The Farm will open applications for its first class this fall and launch its inaugural program in early 2018. It will focus on very early stage internet, mobile and IoT startups that can leverage Comcast NBCUniversal technologies, infrastructure and resources to solve major problems across every industry. Qualified startups from around the globe are eligible to participate in its programs, and teams interested in joining The Farm’s first cohort can begin the application process this fall at www.thefarmatl.com .
The Farm is part of Comcast NBCUniversal’s LIFT Labs for Entrepreneurs program, which stands for “Leveraging Innovation for Tomorrow,” and builds on the spirit of entrepreneurship created by Comcast’s founder Ralph Roberts. The flagship location, announced earlier this year, will be located in the new Comcast Technology Center in Philadelphia when it opens in 2018.
About Comcast Corporation Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA) is a global media and technology company with two primary businesses, Comcast Cable and NBCUniversal. Comcast Cable is one of the nation’s largest video, high-speed internet, and phone providers to residential customers under the XFINITY brand, and also provides these services to businesses. It also provides wireless and security and automation services to residential customers under the XFINITY brand. NBCUniversal operates news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures and Universal Parks and Resorts. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.
About The Farm Based in Atlanta, The Farm is located inside the new Comcast Central Division headquarters building at The Battery, a 60-acre development that will include SunTrust Park, the new home for the Atlanta Braves, as well as retail shops, restaurants, an office tower, hotel, entertainment venue, and residential units. Comcast provides video, data, Wi-Fi and voice technology throughout the entire community, powered by the highest capacity network ever built for such a complex. The Farm Startup Accelerator is directed by Boulder, Colo.-based Boomtown. Boomtown has invested in more than 75 companies since its founding in 2014. Of those, 85 percent are in operation and 88 percent are generating revenue. For more information, visit http://thefarmatl.com/ .
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Alex Horwitz (Comcast) 770-559-2803 Doyle Albee (The Farm) 303-736-9156 doyle@mapr.agency
