Dave Summa is an experienced CEO and former McKinsey partner with a track record of making growth happen in the life science, material science and clean tech industries. With 10 years in middle management in large corporations (Monsanto, P&G), 10 years in consulting (McKinsey, Technology Pathfinders) and 10 years as CEO of science-based start-ups (Mendel, Acumen, Kinestral), Dave’s experience allows him to be an effective consultant and acting management team member.

Dave is known for his ability to conceive new business models. While most examples remain confidential, a few include:

• In commercial agriculture, adapting the software end-user license agreement to capture incremental $400M revenue annually which increased the client’s market cap by more than $10B.

• In consumer products, Dave adapted the software-as-a-service business model to residential lawn care.

• In biofuels, Dave shifted an asset-intensive business plan into a zero-capital, plug-n-play business model and secured a large oil company as a business partner.

Dave has also focused on validating new business models, especially through strategic partnerships.

• At Monsanto, Dave led negotiations with Cargill, resulting in a large joint venture.

• In Alzheimer’s, Dave secured Merck as a business partner for his startup.

• In genomics, Dave secured 2 corporate sponsors to validate the business model and help fund the company.

• In renewable oils, Dave is currently in negotiations with global chemical companies to secure strategic supply agreements.

At McKinsey, Dave led the Global Innovation Practice, exposing him to diverse business cultures and many different value chains. Dave’s recent clients include Cargill, Scott’s Lawn & Garden, Elanco, ScanCafe, DSM, The Emir of Qatar, Synthetic Genomics, Digital Power, Mascoma and several venture capital funds including Versant Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, and Khosla Ventures

Dave joined BMI as a partner who specializes in business model innovation in the life science, material science, clean tech and consumer product sectors. Dave can be reached at (650) 533-7574 (m) or at dave@bmi-llc.com