Nancy Philippart, PhD

President - WON Foundation and
General Partner and Co-Founder of BELLE Michigan

Nancy Philippart is General Partner & co-founder of BELLE Michigan, an early stage venture fund that invests in women led start-ups. She serves as Co-Director of the Global Executive Track Doctorate Program at Wayne State University and is adjunct faculty in the College of Engineering and Ilitch School of Business. She consults with new business ventures and is currently on the boards of several technology start-ups, mentors in International Women in Leadership, Menttium and Women Up & Pitch Programs and is an Automotive News PACE Innovation Award Judge. Nancy has been an engineer and global business executive for 30 years in the automobile industry. Most recently, she was Executive Director, GM Accessories, a $1 billion plus General Motors Corporation new venture that helps sell vehicles and grow corporate profits by enabling vehicle personalization at point of sale. She has extensive experience in international management and operations, product development, strategic planning and new venture start-ups. Nancy has a PhD in Industrial and Systems Engineering, MA in Economics and BS in Industrial Engineering from Wayne State University and MS in biomedical engineering from Carnegie-Mellon University. She is passionate about education and female leadership development. Nancy is the current President of the Women Officials Network, former board chair of Girl Scouts of Southeastern Michigan, currently serving on its advisory board and is an elected trustee on the Troy Board of Education. She is also a member of the Hospice of Michigan Foundation Board. She and her husband are proud parents to three adult children and guardian of a college student.