Clay Thorp

Examiner
DISC Type : cs

General Partner at Hatteras Venture Partners

Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States

Overview

Clay Thorp is a co-founder and General Partner at Hatteras Venture Partners, focusing on early-stage investments in biotech, medtech, and healthtech. With a history of co-founding eight life science companies, he holds a Masters from Harvard Kennedy School and a BA from UNC-Chapel Hill and serves on boards like Clearside Biomedical and GeneCentric Therapeutics.

Thorp is deeply committed to North Carolinas innovation and educational ecosystems. He serves on the board of the NC School of Science and Mathematics Foundation and is involved with UNC-Chapel Hills Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, actively fostering regional growth in the life sciences.

He frequently uses a branded mobile office, the "#HatteBUS, " to travel and meet with entrepreneurs, showcasing a unique approach to venture capital networking.

Personality Overview

Tough To Convince

Unexpressive

Status Quo Seeker

They tend to be clear about their needs and limitations and are unlikely to promise too much.  They are heavily focused on quality and prefer doing things the right way, even if it takes time. They are thorough and always follow a systematic approach.

Topics They Care About

Early-Stage Investing
Co-founded and leads Hatteras Venture Partners, a firm focused on seed and early-stage investments in health innovation, demonstrating a commitment to nurturing new companies.
Life Science Ecosystems
Actively works to build and support the life science community in North Carolina through his firm's investments and various board memberships, including at UNC.
Biotech Commercialization
Serves on the boards of multiple public and private biotech companies, guiding them from the development stage through strategic transactions and to market readiness.

Media Appearances

Episode 28: Hatteras Venture Partners' Clay Thorp. Featured in Apple Podcasts

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Clay Thorp, Hatteras Venture Partners – VCIC. Featured in VCIC

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Clay Thorp, Co‑Founder and General Partner of Hatteras Venture Partners. Featured in ABC7 News (Facebook)

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Work History

5-2000
General Partner at Hatteras Venture Partners
General Partner at BioVista Capital (now Hatteras BioCapital)
General Partner at Catalysta Partners
8-1996 - 7-2000
Director, Corporate Development at Novalon Pharmaceutical Corporation
Director of Corporate Development at Novalon Pharmaceuitcal Corp

Education

1992 - 1994
Master’s Degree from Harvard Kennedy School
1986 - 1990
BA from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 29 Location : Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States Job Level : Mid-senior Designation : General Partner at Hatteras Venture Partners
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Insights For Selling To Clay

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • First of all, focus on building their confidence by sharing examples, case studies etc.
  • Ask them which other stakeholders would be important for this purchase decision
  • Expect them to be slow and cautious, encourage them to ask more questions

DONT's

  • Don't be very accepting if that is your natural style, stay firm
  • Don't rely on relationship building even if they act pleasantly
  • Don't push them too hard to make fast decisions, give them time

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Clay is

  • Low-risk, adoption by others are very important to them, followed by confidence in ROI.
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Clay

  • Often, they don't say no, or keep going about it in circles.

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Clay move?

  • They do not like to rush and therefore can be quite slow in their decision-making.
  • Can Clay take some risk or not?

  • They have little risk-appetite and prefer to take measured decisions.

You And Clay

Personality Compatibility


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