Jessica Sublett, J.D., LLM, president and chief executive officer of Bounce Innovation Hub in Akron, will be the VITALS speaker from noon to 1 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 11 via Zoom.
The talk, free and open to all, will be moderated by Monica Robins, WKYC-TV’s senior health correspondent.
Register for Jessica Sublett’s talk.
Biography
Jessica Sublett is passionate about technology, innovation and entrepreneurship and has dedicated her career to supporting entrepreneurs and economic development in Northeast Ohio. In May 2022, the Bounce Innovation Hub Board of Directors unanimously named Jessica as the next President & Chief Executive Officer of the organization beginning January 1, 2023.
In the role of president and CEO at Bounce Innovation Hub, Sublett is responsible for overseeing the vision and strategic direction of the organization. Sublett is responsible for developing and implementing fundraising strategies, overseeing finances and budgets, developing partnerships and collaborations with other organizations, and advocating for the organization’s mission and objectives in the broader community. Overall, Sublett plays a crucial role in setting the direction and vision of the organization, driving growth and financial sustainability and ensuring its long-term success.
Prior to being named CEO, Sublett served as Chief Operating Officer at Bounce from January 2018-December 2022. As COO, Sublett’s work focused on ensuring that the organization had the wherewithal to execute on its strategic plan. Between 2018-2022, she led the organization’s efforts to secure over $6.4M in public grant funds and $1.75M in private grant funds to sustain the organization’s program operations and financial well-being. In addition, she was deeply involved in corporate development, which, combined with grant funds, supported a total 5-year contribution amount of over $10.5M. She was responsible for creating and executing the rental model for the incubator and coworking facility, which generated an additional $4M in those same 5 years.
Sublett led programming structure and team development to implement and execute on programmatic priorities and strategic initiatives, where she was instrumental in launching Bounce’s Technology Incubator Program, Software Accelerator Program, and GROW Program. She worked closely with entrepreneurs, stakeholders, and community partners to ensure that programming offered by Bounce effectuated positive economic impact in the community. As COO, she oversaw the daily operations of the organization, which included community impact reporting; financial forecasting and management; HR management; strategic plan execution and reporting; governance and compliance activities; programming oversight; facility management; and resource development. In 2020, she oversaw the strategic planning process for the organization, which culminated in Bounce’s first three-year strategic plan.
As a licensed attorney in Ohio, Sublett uses her background in technology transfer and intellectual property law to help shape programming that supports the region’s most innovative startups and is keenly focused on developing and building inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystems. She works closely with other entrepreneurial support organizations to build partnerships that ensure that entrepreneurship is accessible to all of community members.
Sublett earned her J.D. and a certificate in intellectual property from the University of Akron School of Law, her LL.M in Intellectual Property from the University of Akron School of Law, and her B.S. in Business Management from the University of Findlay. She held many leadership positions throughout her academic career, including president of the Intellectual Property and Technology Law Association at the University of Akron, vice president of the Student Bar Association at the University of Akron, vice president of the Sports and Entertainment Law Society at the University of Akron, and president of the Student Chapter of the Society of Human Resource Management at the University of Findlay. Sublett is a graduate of Leadership Akron’s Signature Class 38, a 2021 Greater Akron Chamber 30 For the Future award recipient, a 2023 Crain’s Cleveland Business Forty under 40 award recipient, and a quarterly contributor to Smart Business Magazine.