About Us

About Balance Innovation Center

Bringing together a diverse team of talented engineers and
scientists, creating innovative technologies to launch medical device startups

OUR MISSION

Pushing Past Hurdles
To Reach Our Potential

Balance Innovation Center (BIC) will recruit the top engineers, scientists and medical advisors from around the country to brainstorm challenges in the medical field. Using market research concepts will be vetted for the technologies with the most potential from a market and benefit perspective.

As a team, we will create functional prototypes of concepts and after input from users and our advisors, when appropriate a green light will lead to BIC spinning off a company based on the new technology.

EQUITY

When BIC spins off a company from a concept developed by the BIC Team, Balance Innovation Center will maintain some of the equity. We strive to reach a point where we are a self-sustaining enterprise.

EQUALITY

BIC provides equality for those most likely not being paid an equivalent salary to that of their white male peers. We also provide opportunities in our start-ups for positions not available to under-represented minorities and women.

OUR PARTNERS and SUPPORTERS

We will continue to recognize our supporters as we move forward in our venture.

OUR MANAGEMENT TEAM

Each member of our management team has over 20 years of industry experience in their area of expertise. We all have experienced the challenges of being women, minorities or minority women in the STEM field. We are all passionate about creating an environment where women and minorities do not have to experience the challenges of just being at work so that we can all focus on achieving excellence.

JIll Mari Embry
CEO
Visionary with over 20 years of experience as a medical device development engineer and progressed to various leadership positions.
Johnathon Davis
Venture Fund Manager and CFO
Venture Fund Manager, CFO
Licensed in Financial Services for over 30 yrs. Managing partner and advisor at JT Davis Asset Management, LLC since 2009.
Ash Alon
SOftware CTO
Visionary serial entrepreneur, and computer scientist with nearly 30 years of experience. Expert in driving innovation, leading diverse teams, and delivering world-class products across healthcare.

Opportunity

The Reality

One of the most exclusive areas of education and employment are the areas of Science, Engineering, Technology and Mathematics (STEM). And yet African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, and women are present in professional STEM occupations in low numbers, despite the fact that they enter STEM programs in college in equal numbers relative to their white male counterparts.

The Problem

The gender wage gap between men and women is wider in STEM occupations than in non-STEM jobs. Women are clustered in lower-paying STEM jobs in the healthcare industry and under-represented in the more lucrative fields of engineering and computer science.  The pattern is similar for Blacks and Latinos, who also tend to be concentrated in less lucrative STEM jobs, widening the measured earnings disparity.

The Hurdle

A report published by Pitchbook revealed that of the over $40 billion of funds raised by venture capital firms, less than 3% of this is allocated to Black and minority-owned start-ups.

A start-up founded by an African-American male may have less than a 1% chance to receive financing from a venture capital firm. However, if the start-up is established by an African-American woman, that figure drastically drops to just 0.2%!

SOLUTIONS

Our Three Tier Solution

Balance Innovation Center

Bring high quality under-represented minority and female engineers and scientists to work with top medical professionals to create innovative medical devices.

Balance Start-ups

When functional prototypes are created, Balance Innovation Center (BIC)  will spin off a start-up company. Talent from BIC will be as the C-Suite of each start-up. BIC will provide board members, mentors, consulting, and services to the start-ups.

BIC will work with its medical advisors to initiate new concepts, hire new talent and continue the cycle.

Leg Up

Leg Up is the non-profit arm of Balance Innovation Center. It is to provide STEM related community outreach for K-12, college and universities and surrounding communities. Students that participate in Leg Up are the future employees of BIC and BIC’s startups.

Leg Up our STEM Outreach