KENNESAW, Ga. | Jun 28, 2016

Business incubator IgniteHQ, a partnership between Kennesaw State University and the Cobb Chamber of Commerce, has a new leader.

Michael Salvador, director of executive education programs at KSU’s Coles College of Business, has been named interim executive director of the incubator, according to a news release. Salvador replaces outgoing executive director Nancy Whatley, who has led IgniteHQ since it began in March 2015.

Whatley has left the incubator to join TRC Staffing Services as its national vice president of franchise operations, the release states.

“It has been an honor to lead IgniteHQ since its inception almost a year and a half ago,” said Whatley. “What began as a partnership between academia and business will soon grow to be the entrepreneurial hub for the region producing new technology and business ventures poised to revolutionize various industries. It has been exciting to be part of IgniteHQ’s birth,” she added.

Salvador will remain on KSU’s staff while leading the incubator until a permanent executive director is named. The search for a new permanent executive director will begin in July.

“Nancy has done a wonderful job during this startup phase of Ignite HQ; we appreciate her leadership and wish her much success,” Kennesaw State Interim President Houston Davis said. “Through Mike’s appointment, we will develop stronger ties between IgniteHQ and the Coles College of Business, particularly the College’s Doug and Robin Shore Entrepreneurship Center, as we continue to build a premier innovation center that will serve as an economic engine for our region and the state of Georgia.”

IgniteHQ works to support the entrepreneurs by providing startups and new businesses resources, advice and a physical space to grow. Its headquarters is on Waddell Street in Marietta.

-Marietta Daily Journal