Our Associates

WILLIAM H. HARRINGTON REEM YARED DONALD L. DARNELL WILLIAM H. HARRINGTON William H. Harrington is the founder and principal of Vista Ventures, LLC, a venture capital consulting firm that specializes in assistance to investors and entrepreneurial companies both in the US and Latin America.  Vista Ventures provides advisory services and due diligence for investors in early stage companies.  The firm also advises emerging companies on issues related to business strategy, marketing plans, management team, strategic alliances and procurement of outside capital.  In his prior capacity Mr. Harrington served as executive vice president of the Ben Franklin Technology Center which is widely recognized as perhaps the leading example of effective public/private partnerships in economic development in the US .  Mr. Harrington operated the nation’s largest seed capital investment program with a portfolio of over 200 companies.  Investments ranged from $25,000 to $300,000 through five different investment funds, including one fund devoted to microenterprises.  Over 70% of the companies in which these funds are invested are still in business, a remarkable figure considering the early stage of the ventures.  On average, each dollar of investment in these early stage companies subsequently generated $20 in additional outside capital from private investors, venture capital funds, and public offerings.   Mr. Harrington was responsible annually for marketing to generate over 150 new applicants, due diligence evaluations of about 80 investment candidates and closing investments in approximately 40 start-up or emerging companies. These efforts combined (a) investment capital, (b) management training for entrepreneurs and (c) transfer of technology into the commercial sector.  In addition, he oversaw a program of assistance to the management of small business incubators and a network of private investors who finance entrepreneurial ventures.  Prior to the eight years spent in this capacity, Mr. Harrington served five years as chief executive of an organization that provided volunteer executives to assist small and emerging businesses.  His position for the previous four years was as the chief executive of a non-profit community development corporation engaged in housing rehabilitation, industrial redevelopment, commercial revitalization, and employment training for youth.  Mr. Harrington has a BS in mechanical engineering from Lafayette College and a master’s degree in city planning from the University of Pennsylvania .  He has been selected annually since 1999 by the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania to serve as a judge in its business plan competition. He has been a frequent public speaker on entrepreneurship and financing early stage ventures. He has invested in privately held  emerging companies and is conversant in Spanish.   Vista Ventures was highlighted in a front page story on venture capital in the Philadelphia Business Journal on May 28, 1999. Return to Top REEM K. YARED Reem Yared has more than 13 years of consulting expertise which is focused on launching new products and services.  Before joining the Vista Ventures team, Ms. Yared was a consultant at Arthur D. Little for two years and maintained her independent consulting practice, GrowthWise, for more than ten years. Ms. Yared integrates a thorough analysis of user needs, market dynamics, competitive and technological trends to determine and optimize the set of features and attributes a new product or service must have to offer compelling value.  Ms. Yared has served as a business advisor to a number of Fortune 1000 companies as well as successful startups, including several in the online service provider space.  She has advised clients on market entry strategy, all aspects of product definition and creation, and has developed business plans and financial projections around new products and services.   Ms. Yared has also researched and published on entrepreneurship jointly with the World Bank.  Her work includes Women Entrepreneurs in the Middle East and North Africa: Building on Solid Beginnings with Nadereh Chamlou which was published by the World Bank in 2003.  Ms. Yared holds a BA from Harvard College and an MBA in New Product Development from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Return to Top DONALD L. DARNELL Donald Darnell is a management consultant, engineer, and published researcher with 13 years of industry experience which spans the range from heavy industry to high technology.  He has worked with the Management Strategy practice at Booz-Allen & Hamilton; and the Operations Management practice at Pittiglio, Rabin, Todd, & McGrath. As an independent consultant, he partnered with several other organizations, including Ivy Technology Management and the Ben Franklin Technology Center, before joining Vista Ventures. Mr. Darnell’s consulting experience includes work in strategy development, process redesign, market research, business plan development, and technical project management.  He has worked with over 30 client organizations, spanning the spectrum from emerging ventures to mature multinationals.  Example projects include: ·         Investigating strategic alliance opportunities for a $30 million industrial controls firm. ·         Identifying and investigating potential strategic acquisition targets for a multi-billion dollar technology firm.                                                                             ·         Developing a commercialization strategy for a new tactile sensor technology. ·         Facilitating a division-wide systems overhaul for a major computer producer, including process redesign that encompassed order processing, manufacturing, and delivery operations. ·         Structuring a business plan for a firm specializing in new battery technology. ·         Advising a leading commercial fuel cell company on business strategy and planning issues.                                                                                      ·         Researching total market and identifying target customers for a proposed commercial ship repair venture. ·         Conducting Due Diligence investigations and Portfolio Management for an Emerging Ventures Fund. ·         Conducting customer surveys and developing strategy recommendations for a scientific instrument company. Mr. Darnell’s background includes six years as an engineer with Hewlett-Packard, including work in new manufacturing system development and automation, radio frequency test equipment production support, and project management.  Research publications include works, co-authored with professors at The Wharton School and the London School of Business, on business ethics, legal compliance, and the small firm. Mr. Darnell holds an MBA in Strategic Management from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania , and a Bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering from Michigan Technological University .  Return to Top E-mail us for more information VISTA VENTURES, LLC 327 Calvert Road Merion Station, PA 19066-1533 Telephone: 610-949-0460 ©1999-2007 Vista Ventures, LLC. All Rights Reserved.