He is President of Vencon Management, Inc., "VMI", located in New York City and has broad experience in the growth of enterprises and advises on the complexities and implementation of long range business planning and the management of company growth particularly those firms experiencing high growth, which are usually vulnerable to improper asset deployment. He has been chairman of industrial companies. Since the early 1980's, VMI has been involved in all aspects of renewable energy including photovoltaics, solar thermal, biopower, ethanol, hydrogen, fuel cells.
Mr. Barash participates in the championing of entrepreneurism. He is a mentor and/ or judge in several university based business plan contests. He is an exponent of social entrepreneurism and has been involved in the Global Social Ventures Competition, GSVC, at the Columbia Business School and Business Plan Competitions at the New York University (NYU), Baruch (City College of New York), Drexel University, and the University of Colorado.
Prior to VMI, Mr. Barash held executive positions with the BASF Corporation, one of the world's largest chemicals and related products businesses, $70 Billion. At BASF, Barash lead successful acquisitions of companies in the U.S. to build the company's business. His team was responsible for accessing deals, review, negotiation and post closing implementation. .In prior affiliations, Barash was responsible for mergers & acquisition at W.R. Grace, Belco Petroleum, EBS Industries. At Belco Petroleum Company, an international petroleum and coal producer, Barash was Assistant to the President.
Mr. Barash has been involved in solar energy ventures and other renewables from the outset of the industry in the early 1980's. In this regard, he provided expertise to Atlantic Richfield. Texas Instruments, Westinghouse, RWE/ASE. Barash was chairman of a silicon materials company. In the mid-1990's, Vencon, under contract to the U.S. Department of Energy, and working with the DOE Director of Renewables and Energy Efficiency Activities, created a venture forum initiative, called the NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) Growth Forum. This Forum, in continued existence, created an outreach program for the U.S. Government with universities, local governments and industry regarding various new renewable energy technologies.
Mr. Barash is an accomplished speaker. Recent speeches include: Venture Capital in Superconductivity, Annual Superconductivity Meeting, Washington, June 1996; Financing Renewable Energy in the Pacific Rim, APEC Conference, Denver, June 1996; Venture Financing of Environmental Technologies, U.S. Department of Energy Conference, Washington, February 1997; Investment Opportunities in International Solar Electricity, Third International Solar Energy Conference, Sharjah, UAE, March, 1998; Venture Capital, Seventh Arab Energy Forum, Sharjah, UAE, February, 2001; Private Equity and New Energy Industries, American Chemical Society National Conference, Chicago, August, 2001. Financing New Energy Technologies, Marketing and Economics Group, New York, April 2002; Private Equity and Sustainable Technologies, Commercial Development Association, Baltimore, May, 2002: New Business Growth Models, Utility Photovoltaic Group, Phoenix, October, 2003. Financing the Hydrogen Economy, National Hydrogen Association Annual Conference, Los Angeles, April, 2004: Renewable Energy Equity Financing, World Renewable Energy Conference, Denver, September, 2004, Financing and the Chemical Industry, American Chemical Society, National Meeting, Washington, August 2005. Financing the Hydrogen Economy, National Hydrogen Association Annual Conference, April 2009.
Barash has been on numerous U.S. Government panels regarding the commercialization of alternative energy, photonic and other technologies. During the early 1970's, Barash was Director of Economic Studies for the Price Commission, a White House initiative to stabilize pricing.
Mr. Barash is active in a number of professional organizations including: The Commercial Development Association, CDMA: Association of Corporation Growth, ACG; American Chemical Society, ACS; American Institute of Chemical Engineers, AICHE; Society of Plastics Engineers; Societe Chemie.
Vencon Management, Inc (VMI) is a venture capital firm which invests primarily in "new era" chemical and energy technology-based companies in the United States. Established in 1973, VMI is one of the oldest venture capital firms in the U.S.
Located in New York City's mid-Manhattan, VMI's deal flow averages about 1500 per year.
VMI continually monitors new ventures throughout the U.S. Although Vencon Management, Inc. does not invest in pre-seed stage enterprises, it continually monitors numerous companies to observe their progress into more advanced growth businesses. In various situations, Vencon provides advice to fledgling entities regarding growth matters as alternatives, regarding facilities expansion financing, site locations, strategic partnering options, and international alliances. For these reasons, Vencon Management, Inc. particularly emphasizes its efforts in "scouting" potential venture investments by maintaining close contacts with Incubators.
As a participant in the venture capital industry from the genesis of its growth, when it included only a handful of companies, to today when hundreds of venture capital firms are re-examining their missions, Vencon has remained small and focused with regard to its area of technology expertise. Vencon's venture capital activities have been across the entire universe of the industry from minority capitalism, Community Development Corporations (rural venture development), Indian Enterprise, to traditional venture capital. In its venture capital activities, Vencon considers each of the usual categories of venture deals.