Jim Phillips

Board Officer, EmergeMemphis
Managing Partner & CEO, Pinnacle Enterprises
Chairman, NanoMech

Mr. Phillips began his career holding various management positions with Nortel Networks one of them being Vice President. He was President and co-founder of SkyTel, the nation’s largest messaging company. Mr. Phillips was instrumental in the development of the wireless local loop cellular voice and data telephone, alarm, and telemetry systems while serving as President and Vice Chairman of Telular Corporation. He then served as Corporate Vice President and General Manager of Motorola, PCS and Multimedia divisions, where his team invented the cable modem. Mr. Phillips also co-founded iPIX Corporation as chairman and CEO; he led the company to become what Forbes called “the Kodak of the internet.” The company revolutionized imaging across the internet, inventing virtual tours that are a staple on real estate, hotel and entertainment web sites, and the only 360 x 360 security camera system used by the White House and many government agencies and corporations. In addition, through the acquisition of Bamboo.com and Picture Works he oversaw the development of the popular image submission process millions of users utilize on eBay.

 
Mr. Phillips has held the position of CEO in residence and special advisor to the Private Equity Groups at Morgan Keegan & Company and also holds patents in cell phone, PDA and data modem design.

As founding Chairman and Executive Director of the FedEx Institute of Technology (FIT), Mr. Phillips helped establish this leading research park on the campus at the University of Memphis. Information Week called FIT “the technology industry’s newest center for innovation,” and WIRED magazine compared it to Media Lab and MIT.

In 2004 Mr. Phillips was named one of Information Week’s Innovators of the Year and also became Chairman and CEO of Luminetx Corporation. In this endeavor, Mr. Phillips led the development and commercialization of a breakthrough medical device called the “VeinViewer.” Time Magazine named this milestone the “coolest medical invention of the year” and Red Herring Magazine featured Luminetx Corporation at the top of the list of North America’s 100 Best Technology Startups in 2006.

Mr. Phillips also founded and served as Chairman and CEO of Snowflake Corporation, a leader in biometric identification. Mr. Phillips was honored as Tennessee Businessman of the Year in 1999 by the U.S. Small Business Administration and was inducted into the Memphis Entrepreneurial Society in 2006.

 
Mr. Phillips contributions as an innovator and business leader have been chronicled in many national publications including Forbes, Fortune, Business Week, The Standard, The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and USA Today and has made numerous appearances on Fox News, CNN, CNNfn, CNBC, the BBC and CBS Morning News.

 
He also holds BBA and MBA degrees from the University of Memphis graduating with academic honors. As a student, Jim was President of the Tennessee Student Association, Cadet Commander of the largest ROTC detachment in the U.S., Vice President of the SGA and won the Professor of Aerospace Studies Award and Air Force Distinguished Military Graduate Award. He is married to Barbara, his wife of thirty years, and has three sons, Parker, Preston and Palmer.

 
Mr. Phillips Affiliations:

* CEO, Pinnacle Investments, www.pinnaclenwa.com 

* Board Member of U.S. Council on Competition (Executive Committee)

* Trustee of National Health Museum

* Board Member of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee (Audit & Compliance Committee)

* Trustee of University of Memphis

* Board Member of Memphis Music Foundation

* Board Member of Memphis Bioworks Foundation

* Chairman, Lokion Corporation

* Board Member of Legacy Securities * Board Member Herff College of.  Engineering

* Board Member Fogelman School of Business

* Member, Memphis Entrpreneurial Society                                                                                                                                       * Vice Chairman, Memphis Chamber of Commerce

* Vice Chairman, Luminetx Corporation * Vice Chairman, Tennessee Technology Development Corporation

* Board Officer, EmergeMemphis (Past Chairman)