Tom Serres

Current

• Board of Director at Texas Ventures
• Co-Founder & CEO at Piryx Inc.

Past

• Business Analyst at Texas General Land Office
• Freelance IT and Political Consultant at TomSerres.com

Education

• The University of Texas at Austin - The Red McCombs School of Business
• The University of Texas at Austin

Recommended

11 people have recommended Tom

Connections

246 connections

Industry

Computer Software

Tom Serres’s Summary

Passion and vision motivate Tom Serres. With a background in Marketing at the University of Texas, he uses both to make a difference - through technology. Serres recently teamed with three college friends to form technology startup Piryx. His company uses the Internet to communicate and educate - to empower the democratic process.

Even At an early age tom was actively involved in entrepreneurship, frequently turning every commodity he could get his hands on in to an opportunity. His fondest memories come from selling candy he would swipe from his mothers war chest to fellow classmates - she was a sales rep for Hershey's chocolate at the time, visiting the flea market on the weekends with his dad, or riding around in the early morning hours helping with deliveries for his Sarah Lee franchise. Strong work ethics were instilled in Tom from the very beginning.

Outside of Piryx, Serres spends time with his wife and daughter. They love to relax on Lake Travis. When things slow up at work, Tom's probably hanging out in Austin's coveted greenbelt, enjoying his new family, or engaging his desire to study and learn Mandarin Chinese. Tom also has a passion for Management Information Systems. He's also highly involved in the community. He's a member of The Texas Breakfast Club, The NexGen Political Action Committee, Texas Ventures, The National Eagle Scout Association, The Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society, Texans for Israel, and The Uptown Circle of Friends.

Serres embraces the entrepreneurial spirit — he loves the thrill of the startup and mentoring young entrepreneurs. He hopes that by helping young entrepreneurs he will sharpen his own skills while assisting Austin to become one of the top places in the country to launch a new venture.

Tom Serres’s Specialties:

Political Consulting, IT Consulting, Process Management, Business Intelligence, Marketing, & Branding.

Tom Serres’s Experience

• Board of Director

  Texas Ventures

  (Non-Profit; 11-50 employees; Non-Profit Organization Management industry)

  January 2006 — Present (2 years 10 months)

  We are an organization in the midst of fabricating a strongly woven foundation that will enable us to reach out to fellow entrepreneurs alike, offering a variety of resources and networking possibilities that will benefit each member.
  
  Texas Ventures aims to instill a competitive attribute personifying determination with the ability to create success. A platform for minds with ambition backed by persistence, aggression backed by wisdom and reason backed by hope, we support the credo of hard work as a matter of principle.

• Co-Founder & CEO

  Piryx Inc.

  (Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Computer Software industry)

  May 2005 — Present (3 years 6 months)

  Def. Piryx (pi-rix) noun:
  1. A collection of nodes that enhance collaboration and connectivity.
  2. An election management platform used to empower democracy.

Tom Serres’s Education

• The University of Texas at Austin - The Red McCombs School of Business

  Marketing, Chinese, MIS 2004 — 2009 (expected)

  At UT I've had a specific focus on entrepreneurship through independent study and self selected electives; applying the principals learned to my own start-up, Piryx Inc, recently backed by Angel investment in May 2008. There are some AMAZING professors at the University of Texas. All of whom have been tremendously helpful as I've worked my way through the Start-up process. Especially people such as Professor Brian Lendecky, Dr. Isabella Cunningham, Dr. Neal Burns, Professor John Highbarger, and of course many others. Some of these folks spent countless hours in their offices and coffee shops mentoring me through the process, truly amazing faculty.

  Activities and Societies:

  Texas Ventures, Texas Entrepreneurs

• The University of Texas at Austin

Additional Information

Tom Serres’s Interests:

Chinese (Mandarin), Management Information Systems, Business Intelligence, Workflow and Process Analysis, Six Sigma, Politics, Renewable Energies, Traveling, and Aerospace Technology.

Tom Serres’s Groups:

Piryx Inc., NexGen PAC, Texas Breakfast Club, MindPetals, Texas Entrepreneur Society, Texas Ventures, University of Texas Entrepreneur Society, Invisible Children Austin, PALS - Partnerships to Advance Language Study, Austin Great Wall Chinese School, OnlyOne - Youth Mentor

•    Texas Ventures
•    Piryx Inc

Tom Serres’s Honors:

Semi-Finalist, National Social Innovation Competition 2008
Eagle Scout, National Eagle Scout Association
Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society
Citation from General of Camp Mabry for service to the community