Boomtown Accelerators

Ken Durand is Head of Accelerator Operations for Boomtown, where he leads the design and delivery for the founders participating in Boomtown programming.

An insightful strategist with a wide range of experience, Ken engages with clients and startup founders internally and externally to find hidden value within ideas and opportunities.

With a wide and varied background of startup and corporate business experience, Ken has extensive expertise in guiding teams through the strategic processes of evaluating ideas and solutions that complement the business vision. A veteran of four startups, Ken has experienced both successful exits and bankruptcy alike. He works directly with Boomtown’s startups for multiple programs that accentuate open innovation opportunities for clients. Through interactions with customers, internal stakeholders, partners, and the startup community, Ken has keen insight into the needs and desires of both the consumer marketplace and the providers who serve it.

After a successful startup exit, Ken became a pioneer in the corporate adoption of the Lean Startup movement for disruptive innovation in the enterprise. He led groundbreaking work at Ericsson in the effort to identify “explorers” inside the enterprise who are capable of driving innovation in high risk/low certainty ideas, and led multiple teams in the development of new products and services.  Having been a vital part of both corporate product strategy and startup leadership, Ken is a rare combination that can notice hidden value from every side of a collaborative initiative.

Classically trained at Wake Forest University in accounting and finance, Ken has amassed a set of eclectic experiences in a wide array of industries including sports, media, manufacturing, telecommunications, banking, automotive, healthcare, and water sustainability.  He has had the privilege of traveling the globe while leading teams with different cultures and backgrounds across the technology landscape.

A self-described sports nut, Ken and his wife, Dr. Debbie Durand, can be found with their two dogs in the metro Atlanta area (or on a local golf course).