Ellen Levy recently joined the management team of professional social networking site Linkedin as the head of Corporate Development & Strategy, having been on the Advisory Board for the past five years. In addition, she is the founding Managing Director of Silicon Valley Connect, working with large corporations and entrepreneurs on opportunities for innovation; and is the Network Advisor to global venture firm Draper Fisher Jurvetson.

Before founding Silicon Valley Connect, Ellen spent two years running a groundbreaking program at Stanford University, facilitating collaboration between industry partners, Silicon Valley, and the University research community by championing questions having to do with people, technology & innovation. Today, Ellen focuses much of her time on issues pertaining to the Consumer Internet, the dynamics/implications of social networks, innovation ecosystems and supporting organizational models.

Ellen has held formal roles in venture capital (Softbank; NeoCarta; DFJ), startups (WhoWhere; Softbook), technology think tanks (Interval Research), big companies (Apple Computer; PriceWaterhouse), foundations (Clinton Global Initiative) and universities (Harvard; Stanford).

Her advisory relationships have included non-profit boards (Business Innovation Factory; CFHI; SSRC; MIND Institute), startup advisory boards (WeeWorld; CareerCore; Progress Financial; Change.org; TrustedID; SimplyHired; Permuto; Rhythm NewMedia), universities (USC Stevens Institute; UC Santa Cruz College 8), and entrepreneurship organizations (TiE).

She has a BA from the University of Michigan, and MA/PhD from Stanford University in Cognitive Psychology.