William "Bill" Weiss has built an international reputation as
a visionary business strategist and special advisor to leadership teams,
boards of directors, and investors worldwide.
As chairman and CEO of The Promar Group, a strategic business advisory firm, he has provided global companies with innovative guidance on how to embrace change, leverage technology, and create new business possibilities. For over 25 years, Bill and The Promar Group have been sought by corporations such as Ericsson, General Electric, IBM, International Telecommunications Clearing Corporation, Qualcomm, Steelcase, and Toshiba.
Bill is also a partner in Quantum Capital Management, a venture capital firm for early-stage, business-to-business technology companies. He is on the board of directors of New Directions for News, a think-tank organization that promotes innovation in news media and on the advisory board of ZoomOn, a Swedish mobile Internet technology firm. He and Promar have been involved with and featured in publications including Work Naked, a fast-selling business book about the virtual workplace and the Fast Company magazine's article "Fast Pack 2000, the follow-up article about a gathering of the movers and shakers for the year 2000 and beyond".
Bill has been asked to share his unique viewpoints and experiences by speaking at corporate and high-level industry events. His presentations include "Driving Revenue and Profits from Information Technology" for the G.E. Leadership Team Session sponsored by the CIO; "The Future of Technology" at the Cyber Conference 2001 by the Independent Insurance Agents of North Carolina; "Mobile Internet in Scandinavia and North America" at an international seminar held in Stockholm Sweden; and "Design the Future that Will Attract Investments" at the New Directions for News Roundtable in Boston, Massachusetts.
Bill also devotes time and the resources of his firm to projects that help young people. His corporate sponsorships include the Duke University Children's Hospital.
While pursuing his undergraduate degree in computer science at NC State, Bill started The Promar Group and several other businesses including a retail electronics chain, two direct marketing companies, a recording studio and an advertising agency.
He remembers vividly A.R. Manson's statistics class that taught him the structural thinking that has been essential to his work. He also remembers the community spirit that surrounded the computer science department at that time. Last but certainly not least, Bill recounts selling stereo equipment his sophomore year from a gutted out Winabago he would park at various 'hot spots' on campus. By the time he completed his degree in 1976, these businesses had grown into multi-million dollar enterprises.
As other executives and investors from around the world began to approach Bill to tap his insights, he transformed The Promar Group into one of the first virtual enterprises and began to selectively engage executive associates to form the basis of his continued success and those of Promar.
The computer science department is honored to have Bill as one of our newest members on our Strategic Advisory Board. His experience and innovative ideas will be an asset to the department in this important role.
- posted 2003 - Ken Tate -
