Team

Cynthia Reifsnider

Cynthia (Cindy) Reifsnider leads data, impact and research services for Innovate Carolina. Cindy is the lead developer and database administrator for UNC-Chapel Hill’s startup metrics and innovation/economic development metrics and databases. She insures Innovate Carolina’s ability to track progress of the commercial and social success of University-born firms with our Innovate Carolina Startups Database. Through the Innovate Carolina Network Database, she coordinates across UNC’s innovation and entrepreneurship program partners to support related impact and program evaluation metrics.

Cindy also oversees the patent landscaping, market and funding opportunities research service, for which she is the lead patent researcher, and assists researchers and entrepreneurs in developing business/technology development strategy. She has broad subject matter expertise across business and sciences. She is knowledgeable in multiple types of information research and analysis, including patents, scientific/technical literature, business and markets.

Cindy holds a master’s degree in information science from UNC-Chapel Hill and a bachelor’s degree in meteorology from UNC-Asheville. Previously, Cindy worked at the Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise, Hewlett-Packard, and Virginia Tech University (working with Virginia’s Center for Innovative Technology), where she also supported R&D and commercialization efforts for new business creation.