Charlotte Alumnus Bryan Delaney Designated 2025 Influential Leader
UNC Charlotte Belk College of Business alumnus Bryan Delaney ’03 is one of 24 business school graduates chosen as a 2025 Influential Leader by AACSB International, the world’s largest business education association. Honorees are innovative entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs who graduated from AACSB-accredited business schools around the world.
“It is humbling to receive this global recognition of our work, as I, my business partner and many others support the success of entrepreneurs in Charlotte and the surrounding region,” Delaney said. “I do not do this work alone. I am particularly grateful that this honor allows us to expand awareness of all we are achieving in this great city through collaboration and creativity. This recognition is for all who are committed to these efforts.”
Delaney, who earned a B.S.B.A. in management information systems, is a founding partner with Post Ventures, a company that partners with other entrepreneurs and founders to facilitate fair deals as they sell their own businesses. Previously in 2005, Delaney and Belk College roommate James Hartsell ’02 co-founded Skookum, a technology partner for custom software solutions and user-experience design services, a company they sold in 2019.
Throughout his career, Delaney has been instrumental in the creation of strategies and systems to develop the next generation of entrepreneurs in Charlotte.
As a leader in the establishment of the Charlotte chapter of the Entrepreneurs’ Organization and as EO’s current president, he lends his expertise and insights to help other entrepreneurs and small business owners scale their ventures. He is a dedicated partner with the Belk College and UNC Charlotte, including through service on the UNC Charlotte Foundation Board. In 2016, Delaney and Hartsell received the Belk College Distinguished Young Alumni Award.
“Bryan has been an important leader with the new CO-LAB at UNC Charlotte Center City,” said Belk College Dean Richard Buttimer. “Our focus on innovation and collaboration aligns with EO Charlotte’s work and with Bryan’s personal commitment to strengthening the entrepreneurial landscape. He has led in the decision that EO Charlotte will occupy space in CO-LAB as a critical partner. We are grateful for his guidance in this and other efforts to develop the North Tryon Tech Hub.”
With EO Charlotte, its Accelerator Program has driven over $25 million in local economic development while helping more than 25 businesses achieve new levels of growth and success. The program provides world-class coaching, mentorship, and curriculum to businesses that are generating at least $250,000 in annual revenue. Participants work closely with coaches to expand their businesses beyond $1 million in revenue, which is the threshold for full EO membership.
“Some of our core values with EO are to think big, be bold, have a thirst for learning, build trust and show respect,” Delaney said. “As a leadership board, we looked at how we could create a program that would help other entrepreneurs in town. EO global had put together a curriculum. We’ve turned that into a unique experience for our participants, the coaches and the other people who get involved here in the Charlotte region.”
Delaney’s impact also is seen with the Cabarrus College of Health Sciences Governing Board, the Board of Visitors at Cannon School, Discovery Place Board of Trustees and other community boards. He also serves on the Remington & Vernick Engineers Board.
The Delaney and Hartsell families have provided support and named the technology studio “The Mill” at Cannon School in Concord, where middle schoolers engage in virtual and augmented reality, robotics, media arts, videography, and electronics and circuitry; and also attend classes in creative design and engineering, computer science and robotics.
Throughout his fast-paced days of business development and management, mentoring, other volunteerism and family life, Delaney follows the advice he gives to emerging entrepreneurs to stay true to the culture they have established. For the Charlotte region, the culture of service that this AACSB Influential Leader has nurtured continues to spark innovation and spur economic growth.