Massimo Vanzi has over 30 years of experience in management in the semiconductor and EDA industries. After earning his Dr. Eng. degree in electronics in 1976 from the University of Genoa (Italy) and his Master’s of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science in 1979 from Stanford University (California), Massimo worked, among others, with Signetics Inc., SGS-Thomson and STMicroelectronics. In 1993 Massimo founded Accent S.r.L., and in the role of General Manager from 1994 to 2005 he transformed a small startup of five engineers into the leader IC design and fabless ASIC Company in Europe and one of top 20 in the world. In early 2006 Massimo completed an LBO process while becoming CEO and shareholder of the new Accent S.p.A. In October 2008 Massimo left Accent, while remaining shareholder, and started his own business on advising and supporting high-tech startups and SMEs.