Don Porr is an entrepreneur and former CEO with more than 20 years of experience building and operating a privately held manufacturing business. In 2003, Don and a partner acquired Diamond Fiberglass, an industrial fiberglass tank and vessel manufacturer, through an equity raise and SBA financing. Over the next two decades, they grew the company’s revenue more than tenfold through product expansion, operational improvements, and a focus on quality and customer service. In 2024, Don and his partners sold Diamond to a strategic buyer.

Since 2016, Don has served as a Guest Lecturer and Instructor in Entrepreneurship at Rice University’s Jones Graduate School of Business. He currently teaches Enterprise Acquisition and Enterprise Acquisition E-Lab to second-year Full-Time, Professional, Executive, and @Rice MBA Online students. The courses provide a practical framework for searching for, analyzing, valuing, negotiating, financing, and acquiring an existing small business.

Don is also a founding member of the organization now known as Rice Alumni Entrepreneurs and Innovators and has participated in its CEO Roundtable since 2011. He enjoys advising and investing in entrepreneurial businesses and sharing with Rice students the practical lessons learned from more than two decades of business acquisition, ownership, growth, leadership, and exit.

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