Jane H. Allen, incoming CEO of The Nashville Entrepreneur Center
NASHVILLE, TN (October 2, 2019) – Jane H. Allen, entrepreneur and founder of Counsel on Call and Hanner Clarke, will take over as the CEO of the Nashville Entrepreneur Center (EC). Her experience taking a business from the idea phase to a fully scaled, successful company will help the EC strengthen its role as a significant support system for the vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem in Nashville.
Allen will take the helm from Michael Brody-Waite, who announced his departure earlier this year. Allen was selected after a rigorous search process, led by a Board Search Committee, which was chaired by Beth R. Chase, a Senior Managing Director of Ankura Consulting Group and EC Board Chair.
“Jane brings a wealth of experience to this position. We are excited about the future of the Entrepreneur Center with her at the helm,” said Chase. “Jane not only brings a great deal of wisdom and experience taking an idea from concept to launch to sustainable business, but she also understands firsthand, the power of collaboration and connectivity of the entrepreneur community to the broader corporate community. That expertise is crucial as we look to grow the EC’s ability to accelerate entrepreneurial success and strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem of the city.”
“The Nashville Entrepreneur Center is a meaningful organization that has done incredibly impactful work over nearly a decade in existence. I’m excited to work with the board and the community to help it move it to the next level and to help entrepreneurs achieve their goals,” said Allen. “Nashville is an amazing community that is welcoming to entrepreneurial ventures. It is a great time to be in Nashville and frankly, an even greater time to be an entrepreneur in Nashville. We’re going to make sure the EC continues to serve as a critical entryway for entrepreneurs – helping bring more great ideas to market and ensuring successful start-ups can scale their impact and success.”
Allen is an attorney by training, having received her JD from the University of Kentucky College of Law. She first moved to Nashville in 1994, where she was an attorney at Doramus & Trauger (now Trauger & Tuke). In 2000, she left the firm to start her own business, Counsel on Call, an on-demand legal services company, which she grew into a nationally acclaimed business, known today as Legility. Since exiting Legility, she has reviewed many business ventures, and started Hanner Clarke – a handbag company she co-founded with her sister, Rebecca White. She is on the Board of Business Advisors for Gridiron Capital and remains a Board Member of Legility. She is married to Greg Allen and the mother of four.
“Jane is the perfect person to help cultivate the city’s deep entrepreneurial spirit and take the Entrepreneur Center to the next level as we serve this vital part of the city’s economy and creative class,” said EC Board Member and Sarah Cannon CEO Dee Anna Smith.
Media contact: Zach Hunt, 615-321-3110, zach@tsgnashville.com
About the Nashville Entrepreneur Center (EC):
The Nashville Entrepreneur Center (EC) is a non-profit 501(c)3 founded in 2010 as an initiative of the Nashville business community with a vision to become the best place in America for entrepreneurship. The EC’s mission is to connect entrepreneurs with the critical resources to create, launch and grow businesses. The EC community includes over 650 alumni and more than 450 members. The Center’s advisor program connects entrepreneurs to over 280 mentors, experts and industry leaders. Core programming includes community events, entrepreneur education, portfolio-type programming for all industries (PreFlight and InFlight) and tech focused industry-immersion programs in healthcare (Project Healthcare) and music (Project Music).
Website: www.ec.co // Twitter: @entrecenter // Facebook: /NashvilleEntrepreneurCenter
