Robert Balk

Robert Balk General Information

Biography

Mr. Robert Balk is a Co-Founder and serves as a Venture Partner at Pier 70 Ventures. He has 22 years of experience in strategy, finance, investments and more specifically venture capital investments. He joined The Boeing Company in 1997 as an analyst and quickly transitioned into Phantom Works: Technology, Planning, and Acquisition (TP&A). At TPA he joined the global venture capital investments team when there was $70M invested in less than 10 funds. Shortly afterward, he was asked to take over and lead the venture capital fund-of-fund investment program and grew it into a $250M portfolio of 32 funds, focused on driving Tier 3 technology and innovation needs. He has a strong understanding of technical concepts and is able to align key technical areas with the right investments. He led fund investments in technical focus areas such as Energy, Materials, Advanced Computing, etc. as well as diversifying the reach of the portfolio globally. While in this role he served on several advisory committees to the funds in which Boeing invested and understands how to manage a venture fund. A critical success factor in the Boeing fund-of-funds was choosing General Partners that were able to grasp the strategic intent of the Limited Partner and who would make the time necessary to serve this need. Since leaving Boeing he has been involved in various entrepreneurial programs in Central New York. He is currently a mentor with The Kevin M. McGovern Family Center for Venture Development in the Life Sciences at Cornell University. He has also served as an Entrepreneur in Residence at High Tech Rochester and a board member with the Syracuse Tech Garden. He has an MBA from the University of Rochester Simon School, concentration in finance, operations, and international business, and a BS from SUNY at Buffalo in management. He serves as a board member of The Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University. He is a member of Rotary International and is active in his local Boy Scouts of America Council and Troop. Additionally, he is a decorated athlete having represented the United States in six Paralympic Games earning six Paralympic medals. He has also been very active in volunteer roles in sports with the International Olympic Committee, International Paralympic Committee, and the United States Olympic Committee. He is a member of the Paralympic Order.