Co-Sponsored by
JPMorgan Chase Foundation
Silicon Flatirons and ATLAS present Dan Caruso as our featured entrepreneur.
Entrepreneurs Unplugged is a meeting place where faculty, students, and community members learn about and get involved in entrepreneurship. In particular, the program offers students, faculty and the Front Range startup community an opportunity to learn how a successful startup is created as well as an opportunity to network. Each Entrepreneurs Unplugged meeting features food, drink and – most importantly – an experienced entrepreneur to discuss his/her start-up experiences
Dan Caruso, Chairman and CEO, Zayo Group
Dan Caruso is Chairman and CEO of Zayo Group. As an angel investor, Dan helped found Envysion, where he served as Chairman from 2006 to 2013. Dan is a former Board Member of GTS Central Europe and Director of New Global Telecom.
Between 2004 and 2006, Dan was the President and CEO of ICG Communications. Backed by Columbia Capital and MC Partners, he led the private buyout of ICG in 2004. In 2006, ICG was sold to Level 3 for $170M, resulting in a total distribution to the buyout group and management team of over $225M and a return on investment of 25x.
As one of the founding executives of Level 3 Communications, Dan was responsible for Level 3’s engineering, construction, and operations organizations. Between 2001 and 2003, most of Level 3’s lines of business and marketing functions fell under his jurisdiction. Earlier, Dan was part of the MFS Communications senior management team. He began his career at Illinois Bell/Ameritech.
In 2014, Dan was named to the Global Telecoms Business Power 100. In 2013, he was awarded the Bob Newman Lifetime Achievement Award by the Colorado Technology Association. In 2011, Ernst & Young named Dan one of the three national finalists for the Entrepreneur of the Year in Media, Entertainment and Communications, and the Denver Post named him one of Eleven Colorado Business People to Watch. The Boulder Chamber of Commerce honored Dan with the 2010 Esprit Award. In 2009, Ernst & Young honored him as the Entrepreneur of the Year in Rocky Mountain Region Emerging Company Category.
Dan is an active supporter of the University of Colorado – Boulder. He co-teaches Entrepreneurship and the Private Equity Process in the Leeds MBA Program. He is on the Entrepreneurship Initiative Advisory Board of Silicon Flatirons, a center for law, technology, and entrepreneurship at the University of Colorado, as well as board member of StartUp Colorado. He is actively involved in the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences as a frequent guest lecturer and supporter of the Engineering Management and Entrepreneurship program.
Sponsored By
JPMorgan Chase Foundation
