Jared Weinstein, Malcolm McDonald and Jennifer Ryan Discuss how Endeavor Supports Entrepreneurship
RCB President Chuck Redden with Malcolm McDonald, Jennifer Ryan, Jared Weinstein and Rotarian Drew Honeycutt
This week the Rotary Club of Birmingham welcomed Malcolm McDonald, Endeavor Birmingham General Manager, Jennifer Ryan, BLUEROOT Founder & CEO and Croux Co-Founder & CEO, and Jared Weinstein, Thrive Capital Co-Founder. The panel discussed the Endeavor entrepreneurship network, which facilitates connections between founders and a global network of peer and expert support that transcends borders, helping them reach scale, and multiplying their impact in their local ecosystems and beyond.
About the Panelists
Malcolm McDonald is the Birmingham GM for Endeavor, the leading global community for high-growth Entrepreneurs. Malcolm’s goal is to be a catalyst for Birmingham’s most promising startups, helping them accelerate growth and reach their greatest potential with Endeavor’s community.
Leading up to Endeavor, Malcolm has spent his career in and around startups and small businesses, helping them access the resources and capital they needed to grow. Malcolm was one of the early team members at a venture-backed logistics startup TruckerPath, helping establish them as the leader in the space through key partnerships and user adoption.
Malcolm led sales and marketing for Porter Freight Funding in Birmingham, an A/R financing firm for logistics companies. Most recently, Malcolm was a cofounding partner of Vicinity Capital, an investment crowdfunding platform for startups, SMBs, and real estate projects in the southeast.
Malcolm is passionate about growing startups while leveling up the tech and talent ecosystem in the Magic City.
Jennifer Ryan is the founder and CEO of BLUEROOT, a local, healthy, fast-casual eatery, and the co-founder and CEO of Croux, an app that connects talent with flexible work opportunities in the hospitality industry. Prior to moving to Birmingham, the southern California native spent over a decade working in finance and technology in New York City and Silicon Valley. Since launching BLUEROOT in 2020, she has been recognized as an Alabama Retailer of the Year finalist, an Alabama Environmental Council Gold Partner for outstanding sustainability practices, and the Entrepreneur of the Year by Les Dames d'Escoffier. Jennifer - together with three hospitality veterans and a software engineer - launched Croux last spring to support hospitality talent and businesses alike in an industry rocked by the Great Resignation. In the last year, Croux has won the Alabama Launchpad startup competition; expanded across Alabama through partnerships with more than 65 businesses; filled nearly 3,000 shifts that pay more than double the minimum wage; and raised $1M in funding. Through BLUEROOT, Croux, and other ventures, she is on a mission to fuel the local economy, which she believes begins -- but certainly does not end -- with food.
Jared Weinstein helped co-found Thrive Capital, a New York-based venture capital firm where he served as General Partner from 2011-2022. Thrive grew from $40m in AUM and three employees to $15bn and 70 employees over that time Jared serves as a board member to several Thrive investments including Capsule, Cityblock, Geneva, Justworks, Leaflink, and Raisin, and was on the founding board of Oscar Health. Prior to Thrive, Jared spent 2002-2009 at The White House as Special Assistant to the President and prior to that as Special Assistant to the Chief of Staff. Additionally, in 2013, Jared founded the Overton Project, a privately-funded social investment platform that has focused on accelerating, incubating, and implementing best-in-class impact organizations to Birmingham – specifically Birmingham Talks, Breakthrough Collaborative, Venture for America, TEALS CS training, Strive, and Endeavor Global. Jared received a BA in Public Policy from Duke University and an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.