AARON CORNELL

With nearly 20 years of experience, Aaron specializes in management of finance, governance, and strategic human resource functions for high-growth, venture backed start-up companies.  In addition to leading the finance function as CFO of Breakwall Analytics, he is currently the Co-Founder and CFO of Tech Elevator, a bootcamp teaching novices how to become computer programmers over a 14-week program; the Managing Partner of The Gypsy Brewery, operating out of the former Leisy Bottling Works building in Cleveland; the part-time CFO of RxREVU, a physician-founded leader in Prescription Decision Support; and co-founder of Cleveland Concert Company, an investment company that has retained AEG to bring an annual music and lifestyle festival to the City of Cleveland.

Serving as Explorys' first CFO from its launch in 2009 through late 2012, Aaron supported Explorys’ fundraising activities of over $20M and led Explorys’ finance and HR activities.  He came back to Explorys in December 2014 and managed the due diligence process that lead to the company’s acquisition by IBM in April 2015.

In parallel with his work for Explorys, Aaron also served as CFO for YouBeauty, a website that converged the biological and psychological aspects of human beauty, style, and attraction in a consumer-facing commerce and data business.   As CFO of YouBeauty, Aaron was responsible for all finance, HR, and governance functions, helping the company raise over $16M of venture backed financing (debt and equity).  The company was acquired by Caivis Acquisition Corp. III in May 2014.

Prior to his work with Explorys and YouBeauty, Aaron served as the CFO and Treasurer of Axentis, Inc., a developer and leading provider of governance, risk, and compliance management software. Axentis was backed by leading VC firms and was sold to CCH, Inc., a division of Wolters Kluwer, in July 2009.

Through his company, Cornell Financial Consulting, LLC, Aaron has worked as part-time CFO and/or consultant with numerous companies, including but not limited to: Cleveland HeartLab, Enforcer eCoaching, FlexLife Health, Groupmatics, ImageScan, IntellisEPM, Kindt-Collins, Little Borrowed Dress, Movable, Phenom, Post and Gold, Vocon, Votem, Winston Products, Within3, among others.

Aaron graduated magna cum laude from Youngstown State University with a BA in Finance and minors in Accounting, Economics, and Psychology.