Dr. Rebecca Mercuri

According to her Wikipedia page, "Dr. Rebecca Mercuri is a computer scientist specializing in computer security and computer forensics. She is considered a leading expert on electronic voting systems." While that is a succinct and accurate summary, it barely scratches the surface of her impressive career or journey along the way.

Rebecca's company, Notable Software, based out of Hamilton, New Jersey, was born out of a desire to continue the work she had done while working for RCA. When RCA canceled the project she had been working on, Rebecca asked them to release the rights on the cutting-edge software products she had helped create. For a while, she kept her job at RCA and worked on Notable Software after hours. It wasn't until several years later that she tried to make it her full-time business after earning two Master's degrees and a Ph.D. in Computer and Information Science.

She says, "I had enough money to exist for a year running Notable Software out of my house. At the end of twelve months if I was broke, I would have to get a job. If I was doing well, then I would continue on."

When asked if she always knew she wanted to be an entrepreneur, Dr. Mercuri says it was in her blood. Both of her grandfathers were entrepreneurs, and her parents were teachers, so she's become a culmination of both, part entrepreneur and part academic. In fact, she's leveraged her academic brilliance and unique experience into her business by becoming an expert witness in digital forensics and electronic voting.

Once the pandemic hit, the courtrooms closed, and that facet of her business was put on hold. Rebecca started taking UCEDC's Mercer County Business Survival Series workshops to look for assistance to keep her business afloat. When she was done with those, true to her academic nature, she took a Government Contracting workshop offered by UCEDC. Dr. Mercuri provided the following feedback regarding UCEDC's training programs:

"Inspired by the many forward-thinking topics and information provided by the UCEDC, we took this opportunity to improve our advertising outreach to the legal community, which has started to pay off in increased leads and new contracts. As well, I also used the "down time" to re-apply for approval on the State bidding list for work with the NJ Public Defenders. We had been on this bid list some years ago, but had let our registration lapse, due to the considerable paperwork and documentation that this required. After much effort, we were again approved and have already received new contracts through the NJOPD. Being on the bid list also increases our visibility to Attorneys who are doing work outside of the Public Defender's Office, so this has been helpful as well.

In summary, I would like to say that UCEDC provided many positive ideas and suggestions that were helpful to me and enabled me to reposition my business, in a way that has aided recovery even while COVID-19 continues to pose restrictions. Thank you!"