Our Team

Michael Matesic

Michael M. Matesic (Chief Executive Officer)

A seasoned business executive experienced in working with businesses at a variety of stages of development, Michael Matesic had served as Chief Executive Officer for two start-up companies and Chief Financial Officer for MetalSite, Inc. participating in the rapid growth of the company and public registration process. While at MetalSite, Mr. Matesic led the startup of the company's subsidiary, ScrapSite.

Before that he served as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for Anker Coal Group and its subsidiaries, where he was responsible for Human Resources, Information Technology, Tax and Finance functions. During his 10 years with Anker Coal, Mr. Matesic led a successful registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission, managed the company's substantial growth, established and invested in various start-up companies and completed many acquisitions. A 1987 graduate of Duquesne University with a B.S. in Business Administration, he spent two years on the audit staff of Ernst & Young, LLP in Pittsburgh.

Mr. Matesic and the team at Idea Foundry are active board members, advisors or committee members of a wide variety of economic and technology initiatives in Western PA, including:

This level of connectedness in Western PA results in a network to both identify attractive projects and evaluate those projects.

Email: MMatesic@ideafoundry.org

Nehal Bhojak

Nehal Bhojak (Director, Strategic Life Science Initiatives)

Nehal Bhojak brings a multi-disciplinary background to Idea Foundry with considerable experience in technology and management consulting. Prior to joining Idea Foundry, she served as Senior Consulting Engineer with i2 Technologies' Supply Chain Management practice at Dallas & Pittsburgh. In that role, she was responsible for the full lifecycle implementation of i2's suite of SCM solutions for clients across industry verticals such as aerospace, automotive, retail, transportation and logistics. She has also served as Consultant in the technology strategy and implementation group at Whittman-Hart Inc. (later known as marchFirst Inc.), Chicago. While at Whittman-Hart, she engaged with several Fortune 500 and start-up client companies on projects spanning the areas of e-Commerce and e-Business - specifically online trades and auctions, CRM, ERP, SCM and database migration. She has also served as an independent consultant on enterprise application development projects as well as management consulting projects for development of tactical models and business process frameworks.

Nehal holds a Master of Information Systems Management degree from the Heinz School of Public Policy and Management at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, where she was awarded the W.W. Cooper Scholarship. She also holds a Master of Science in Architecture degree with a concentration in Computer Applications Development from the Taubman School of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Her undergraduate education in Architecture and Design was completed in Bombay, India.

Email: nbhojak@ideafoundry.org

Mary Beth Guzzetta

Mary Beth Guzzetta (Communications & Fellowship Evaluation Manager)

Mary Beth Guzzetta joined Idea Foundry in 2004 with over 15 years of experience in technical and corporate communications, Web design, and software development. During her career at Weirton Steel Corporation, Mary Beth led the creation, launch and ongoing management of the corporate Internet and Intranet sites, and she contributed to the design, development, and management of the corporation's – and the steel industry's -- first online marketplace. That endeavor was successfully spun out by Weirton Steel Corp. into the Pittsburgh-based start-up, MetalSite Inc.

Mary Beth holds an M.S. in Multimedia Technology from Duquesne University and a B.A. in Professional Writing with a minor in Computer Science from Wheeling Jesuit University.

Email: mbguzzetta@ideafoundry.org

Gary Gardiner

Gary Gardiner (Manager, Entertainment & Education Initiatives)

Gary Gardiner joined Idea Foundry in 2009 and brings a wide range of experience, including business planning, software engineering, design, sales, and marketing. Gary is passionate about entertainment technology, education, and innovation.

He pursues a whole-brain approach to the world, combining his creativity, design, and story-telling talent with his passion for structures, systems, and quantified results. He does graphic design, business planning, software engineering, digital media, and interactive entertainment. He develops, hones, and refines ideas, and then he transforms them into businesses.

Gary holds an MBA from Carnegie Mellon's Tepper School of Business and a B.A. from Brigham Young University in International Relations and Chinese language. Prior to coming to Idea Foundry Gary worked at Goldman Sachs & Co.

Email: ggardiner@ideafoundry.org