Mark Agnew
Mark is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, teaching a class called “Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition”. He previously served as President and CEO of Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria. Mark rejoined Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria in 2011 after working there in high school and led the company through significant growth for almost a decade. When Mark was CEO and President, the company employed more than 4,000 people and operated 58 company-owned locations throughout Chicagoland and Phoenix, along with an eCommerce company Tastes of Chicago. Under Mark’s leadership, Lou Malnati’s was ranked as a top workplace eight years in a row by the Chicago Tribune and the company grew revenue by over 200% and cash flow by over 400%.
Marks brings a passion for developing people and creating a unique company culture, employing a management technique that is collaborative, built to scale, rewarding and fun. There are countless examples of bringing out the best in people from within the organization and people that were recruited to join the organization.
Mark has a BS from Cornell University and an MBA with honors from the University of Chicago. Mark resides in Winnetka, IL with his wife Carolyn, and their four children Molly, Elinor, James and Henry.
Will Daly
Will is the lead investor and Board Chairman for two B2B eCommerce businesses, Atlas RFID Store and WarehouseLighting.com. In addition, he is an Adviser and Operating Partner to Chicago private investment firms NextGen Growth Partners, RF Partners, Benford Capital Partners and Periscope Equity.
Will is the former Co-President, COO and CFO of Barcodes, Inc., North America’s leading provider of barcode, RFID and mobile computing services, which he co-led for a 10-year period of significant growth. During Will’s tenure, revenues, EBITDA and employees grew by 10x. Similar to his current investments, Barcodes is a B2B eCommerce business. Prior to Barcodes, Will’s experience includes commercial real estate investment at Equity Office Properties and Orix Real Estate Capital.
Will received a Bachelor of Business Administration from The University of Notre Dame and an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, both with high honors. Will has also previously taught a class at Kellogg called “Launching & Leading Startups”. Will lives in Chicago with his wife Amy and two sons, Owen and Max.