Share This Article
This week, we invite you to meet the second of our three distinguished mentors hosting a youth entrepreneur in the Spotlight on YouthBiz Stars business competition. Jeff Bennis is Vice President of Rifkin and Associates, Inc.
Mr. Bennis was the President and Chief Operating Officer of Rifkin & Associates, Inc. (R&A) from 1994-2003. The privately held company operated cable television systems in 21 states, serving 560,000 customers and generating nearly $300 million in annual revenues. Most of the cable television operations were sold to Charter Communications in 2001 for approximately $1.5 billion.
During his tenure at R&A, Mr. Bennis served as a board member of the National Cable Television Association (NCTA), C-SPAN and Telesynergy (a television programming buying consortium). After the sale of R&A’s cable television systems, Mr. Bennis and several colleagues founded 5280 Partners, LLC, a successful venture capital company focused on early stage investments in outsourced business services and technology companies in the Rocky Mountain region.
Mr. Bennis is currently Vice President of R&A (Rifkin family office) and is responsible for sourcing and evaluating investment opportunities across a variety of industries, including senior housing (assisted and independent living), commercial real estate, apartments, hotels and numerous operating entities. He also serves as a board member for several private companies.
Mr. Bennis graduated with a B.S. in Business Logistics from Pennsylvania State University and earned his MBA from the University of Connecticut. He is involved with numerous philanthropic organizations in the Denver area, including Colorado Uplift, Teach for America, Big City Mountaineers and Young Americans Center for Financial Education.
Bennis looks forward to working with a young entrepreneur and tapping into his personal network and resources as appropriate based on the young business owners’ needs.
Bennis will introduce his mentee and business competition winner at the Spotlight on YouthBiz Stars gala and awards ceremony on October 7, 2021. Limited tickets and table sponsorships are still available.
