From his time at the beginning of his career at McKinsey & Company to heading up Ventures at IEX, Laurence Latimer *01 has had significant entrepreneurial and investing experience. With over 20 years in the industry, he has deep experience developing early-stage startups and new technology products and services. Now the co-founder and CEO of Dinara — a startup reimagining enterprise financial services for crypto businesses — Laurence provides guidance to prospective entrepreneurs through OfficeHours, the Princeton Entrepreneurship Council’s “flash” advisory platform for startup founders. 

In an interview with Laurence, I learned about his experience with the platform and the motives behind why he serves as a mentor. Important to him, Laurence described how the insight, wisdom and guidance he received from more experienced entrepreneurs played a pivotal role in the development of his own career. 

“It seemed only right that since I had been helped in immeasurable ways, that it was now my turn to help other entrepreneurs – many first time founders or those with an idea – break through particular challenges,” he said. “As a serial entrepreneur, I spent my life learning…This is an opportunity for me to learn more about some new area I may not know about and to continue to learn — which is important for any entrepreneur at any age,” he added.

On OfficeHours, Laurence specializes in providing guidance on go-to-market strategies and capital raising. When asked to elaborate, he explained, “I give advice on product strategy — how to develop a product and launch it in the market and what steps are necessary for that to happen. I also give advice on fundraising — what do you need to do, where should you look, and how do you put yourself in a position to succeed. And I give general advice on business development and strategy.” 

With OfficeHours, Laurence believes he has had the privilege to provide access and opportunities to prospective entrepreneurs. “At this stage in my career, I have the ability to provide folks access to the information I have that may be valuable to them and hopefully provide some opportunities for them,” he said. “To change the trajectory of a person’s entrepreneurial journey, in some small or large way, is personally rewarding,” he added. 

Laurence believes OfficeHours fulfills Princeton’s motto of serving humanity, as the advisory platform fosters relationships and creates a rich ecosystem of entrepreneurial discourse.

OfficeHours is available to all Princeton entrepreneurs – alumni, students, faculty and staff – at no cost. You can search for a mentor on the OfficeHours platform by a particular set of skills, review their background, and then schedule a meeting with them; all with just a few clicks. Get started at entrepreneurs.princeton.edu/officehours.