David Altounian, Associate Dean of Academic Programs and MBA Program Director, St. Edward’s University

Episode 5. In this week’s Trap, Dr. Altounian discusses first-time entrepreneurial traps, taking mentoring advice too literally, traps that founder’s make with their first hires, taking risks at Dell, and hiring for diversity – traps inherent to small companies.

Dr. Altounian earned his Ph.D. at Oklahoma State University and his MBA at Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. He has almost 30 years of management and staff experience in the technology sector.

He was the Founder and CEO of Motion Computing, a leading provider of rugged tablet solutions for business. Prior to founding Motion, he was with Dell Computer Corporation, where he served in marketing executive positions for both the relaunch of the notebook computer business in 1994 and the creation and launch of the Precision workstation product businesses in 1997. He worked for two years in the United Kingdom as the General Manager, Workstation Line of Business for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.  He also served as the Director of Dell Labs.

Dr. Altounian managed marketing and new business development teams for leading technology companies including Motorola, Compaq Computer Corporation, and Ashton-Tate. He is a named inventor on 10 patents and a published author.

He is the Associate Dean and MBA Program Director at The Bill Munday School of Business at St. Edwards University. Dr. Altounian is a Capital Factory Partner/Mentor and former Board Member of the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce and the Austin Technology Council.

 

Podcast

Hosts: Dr. Kris Potrafka and David Hughen