An enormous stretch of opportunity
Ambition: Provide pre-seed and seed stage funding to propel the future of industrial tech
Opportunity: Identify companies pioneering digital transformation to rebuild America’s innovation edge in manufacturing, infrastructure, construction, supply chain and logistics
Iron Prairie Ventures invests in the technologies poised to foster innovation, drive progress and shape the future of these industries. Headquartered in America’s Heartland, the fund leverages unique lines of sight to transformative resources, first-to-market solutions and technological catalysts aiding innovative startups in their pursuit of disrupting markets and elevating competition on a global scale.
Our Team
Maggie Kenefake
At Iron Prairie Ventures, Maggie backs founders rebuilding industrial and infrastructure capacity — the critical foundation for the greatest challenges and opportunities of our era.
Iron Prairie invests at the intersection of technology, industrial capacity, and the built environment, restoring the West’s ability to design, make, and scale hard things without depending on fragile or adversarial supply chains. The fund backs digital solutions that make the our world faster, more resilient, and more self-reliant: increasing productivity in manufacturing and construction, hardening supply chains, securing data and communications, strengthening space and sensing infrastructure, scaling new energy and industrial systems, and transforming how we build, move, power and connect our world.
A Kauffman Fellow with 30 years in entrepreneurship and venture, Maggie activates ecosystems and catalyzes capital. She brings deep domain expertise and a track record of building six funds, making 50+ direct investments, and serving 10+ years as an active investor. Her experience spans Portfolia, ECJC’s Fountain Innovation Fund, Royal Street Ventures, the Kauffman Foundation, and University Venture Fund Crossroads.
Maggie serves on the boards of multiple early-stage companies and two nonprofits: University Venture Fund Crossroads and the Enterprise Center of Johnson County. She holds degrees from the University of Kansas and the University of Missouri and lives in Kansas City with her three children.
Tracy Christian
A licensed CPA with significant experience assisting high-growth companies in a variety of consulting capacities, Tracy has been an integral part of Iron Prairie Ventures’ early and ongoing success. No stranger to the startup space, she previously worked as a manager for international public accounting firm Ernst & Young supervising staff as well as planning, organizing and administering all facets of audit engagements and other consulting projects for businesses in their Entrepreneurial Services Group.
In 1996, Tracy opened her own consulting practice serving businesses primarily in the manufacturing, airline and high-tech industries. Her consulting projects have included developing and performing due diligence procedures for acquisitions, assisting with preparation for financial statement audits, creating initial public offering and SEC registration statements, analyzing and streamlining business processes, and designing models for financial statement and cash flow forecasting.
Lydia Kinkade
Lydia is integral to IPV’s deal sourcing efforts, helping identify and analyze the strength of investment opportunities and support the due diligence process. She also leverages her extensive network to create partnerships and opportunities for collaboration with earlier- and later-stage funds, accelerators, universities and other stakeholders. Lydia graduated from Kansas State University, where she currently serves on the Alumni Association Board of Directors, and spent time teaching prior to finding her fit in the investing ecosystem.
Our Advisors
Strategic Partner Network
