{"id":1288,"date":"2010-01-15T09:43:56","date_gmt":"2010-01-15T14:43:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/engineering.jhu.edu\/magazine-archive\/?p=1288"},"modified":"2017-07-31T10:16:14","modified_gmt":"2017-07-31T14:16:14","slug":"master-500-hats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/engineering.jhu.edu\/magazine-archive\/2010\/01\/master-500-hats\/","title":{"rendered":"Master of 500 Hats"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"dave_mcclure_JHU_engineering_alumni\"<\/a>
Dave McClure ’88. (Photo by Robert Scoble)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Software developer. Startup advisor. Blogger. Angel investor. Internet marketing guru. Since graduating from the Whiting School in 1988 with a BS in mathematical sciences, Dave McClure has filled each of these roles\u2014sometimes simultaneously\u2014in Silicon Valley. Ask him to pinpoint a common thread that runs through his lengthy career in the high-tech mecca\u2019s ever-evolving information technology industry, and McClure responds matter-of-factly: change.<\/p>\n

A self-described \u201cmaster of 500 hats\u201d (also the name of his blog<\/a>), McClure has never been satisfied with the status quo. When he entered Hopkins as a freshman, he was just 16 years old. \u201cI was bored in high school,\u201d McClure says, but he is quick to add that when he reached college he had a lot more to learn than he realized.<\/p>\n

Shortly after graduation McClure headed west, where he\u2019s been pursuing his entrepreneurial dreams ever since. He cut his teeth as a consultant with Microsoft, where he helped develop a production system used by Intel\u2019s manufacturing facilities worldwide. In 1994, he started an Internet and eCommerce consulting company, Aslan Computing. The basement-born company quickly grew to a 20-employee business, and in 1997 won Microsoft\u2019s Solution Provider of the Year award for Northern California. After Aslan Computing was acquired by Servinet Consulting Group, McClure rode out the rest of the 1990s primarily as an advisor and consultant to various tech-based companies.<\/p>\n

McClure didn\u2019t merely survive the dot-com bust of the \u201990s. His experience during those tumultuous times landed him premier positions between 2001 and 2005 with PayPal and SimplyHired, where he executed marketing, branding, and product strategy. He credits working in these environments\u2014surrounded by professionals he describes as bright, geeky, and entrepreneurial-minded\u2014with his next career move.<\/p>\n

Having found his own niche in Silicon Valley, McClure now helps others make their entrepreneurial dreams come true.<\/p>\n

As an advisor and investor, he\u2019s been involved in more than 40 early-stage startups in Silicon Valley since 2004, including Mint.com, a personal finance startup recently acquired by Intuit for $170M.<\/p>\n

As a guest lecturer at Stanford university in 2007, McClure taught the nation\u2019s first-ever course on Facebook application development. The students caught on better than expected: Collectively, they developed applications that generated more than $1 million in advertising revenue. One team even raised venture capital.<\/p>\n

Most recently, he\u2019s become active in the StartupVisa.com movement, a grass-roots initiative to change U.S. immigration policy and make it easier for foreign-born students and entrepreneurs to start U.S. businesses. \u201cI\u2019m having a blast,\u201d says McClure. \u201cIf I can make a significant difference in whether startups are able to get capital or turn a profit and get to the next level, that\u2019s incredibly rewarding.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ALUMNI MAKING NEWS: Dave McClure ’88: Making Entrepreneurial Dreams Come True.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[75],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1288","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-research-development","issue-winter-2010"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMaster of 500 Hats - JHU Engineering Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/engineering.jhu.edu\/magazine-archive\/2010\/01\/master-500-hats\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Master of 500 Hats - JHU Engineering Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"ALUMNI MAKING NEWS: Dave McClure '88: Making Entrepreneurial Dreams Come True.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/engineering.jhu.edu\/magazine-archive\/2010\/01\/master-500-hats\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"JHU Engineering Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2010-01-15T14:43:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2017-07-31T14:16:14+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/engineering.jhu.edu\/magazine-archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Dave_McClure_JHU.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Abby Lattes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Abby Lattes\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/engineering.jhu.edu\\\/magazine-archive\\\/2010\\\/01\\\/master-500-hats\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/engineering.jhu.edu\\\/magazine-archive\\\/2010\\\/01\\\/master-500-hats\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Abby Lattes\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/engineering.jhu.edu\\\/magazine-archive\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0244393be370fbc3ead8ec26062e9742\"},\"headline\":\"Master of 500 Hats\",\"datePublished\":\"2010-01-15T14:43:56+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-07-31T14:16:14+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/engineering.jhu.edu\\\/magazine-archive\\\/2010\\\/01\\\/master-500-hats\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":459,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/engineering.jhu.edu\\\/magazine-archive\\\/2010\\\/01\\\/master-500-hats\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/engineering.jhu.edu\\\/magazine-archive\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2014\\\/07\\\/Dave_McClure_JHU.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Research & Development\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/engineering.jhu.edu\\\/magazine-archive\\\/2010\\\/01\\\/master-500-hats\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/engineering.jhu.edu\\\/magazine-archive\\\/2010\\\/01\\\/master-500-hats\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/engineering.jhu.edu\\\/magazine-archive\\\/2010\\\/01\\\/master-500-hats\\\/\",\"name\":\"Master of 500 Hats - 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