Meet Your Investment Team
These are your classmates who wake up every day on your behalf to assemble a great venture portfolio
Greg Baker
Managing Partner
Greg is a highly accomplished executive with experience in corporate leadership, business development, startups, M&A, strategic planning, and more. He has spent much of his career growing business in the electrical products, packaging, and chemical industries. Throughout, he has been buying, selling, and combining companies to fit strategic goals. Previously, Greg served as President and CEO of 2D2C, developing safer energy-saving products. Greg was also VP Corporate Development and Acting Division President for a high-tech subsidiary at Woodhead Industries and Director Corporate Development for Tenneco. Greg has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin (’86) and an MBA from the Fuqua School of Business, Duke University.
Jason Jacobsohn
Principal
Jason has over ten years of experience supporting and educating small business owners and entrepreneurs, providing them with capital formation, strategic direction, mentorship, and resource development. Most recently, he was a Business Advisor at City Colleges of Chicago, a business management education program funded by Goldman Sachs. He was also the Director of The Founder Institute and the Managing Director of Reliable Venture Partners, providing entrepreneurs with mentoring and a variety of services. Jason has a BBA in Real Estate and Finance from the University of Wisconsin (’96) and an MBA from DePaul.
Investment Committee
Classmates and fellow investors who help create your venture portfolio
Tom Booker
Tom Booker is a Managing Director of the Collingwood Group with offices in Washington DC and NYC. The Collingwood Group is a leading provider of business advisory, consulting, and risk management services to institutional investors, lenders, and service providers in the housing finance industry. Prior to joining the Collingwood Group, he was a Senior Vice President managing the licensing, outsourcing, innovation, and product development agenda’s between CoreLogic and government-sponsored enterprises. He has worked on a wide range of business strategy and business development projects for investors and technology-based service providers, product developers and new entrants to the mortgage business. As the Senior Vice President for business integration and professional services at First American, he was responsible for developing and enabling platforms to support the integration of the myriad First American operational services and analytical offerings into market-facing channels, joint ventures and customers supply chains. As Vice President of the eBusiness Market Development and Strategy at FannieMae, he was a principal in the Fannie Mae eBusiness division responsible for business strategy, and cultivation of markets for digital platforms offered by Fannie Mae, in addition to managing a portfolio of venture capital investments in the eFinance systems provider space.
Mr. Booker began his career in Madison Wisconsin, with IBM and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison as 3-time letter winner on the Badger Football team.
Nidhi Aggarwal
Nidhi is an entrepreneur who co-founded cloud configuration management startup qwikLABS. The company was acquired by Google and remains the exclusive platform used by AWS customers and partners worldwide to create and deploy on-demand lab environments in the cloud. Nidhi most recently led Product, Strategy, Marketing and Finance at data integration company Tamr. Previously, she worked at McKinsey & Company, focusing on Big Data and Cloud Strategy. She is also a recipient of an early career achievement award from UW-Madison. Nidhi holds a PhD in Computer Science from Wisconsin and holds six US patents.
Karen A. Monfre
Karen A. Monfre is the Managing Director of Wipfli Corporate Finance Advisors, LLC, a corporate finance entity that works with clients in the active pursuit of business acquisitions and sales. Her time is spent exclusively working with clients on buying or selling their business, due diligence, quality of earnings analysis, and M&A related litigation support.
She is a Committee Chair and Board Member of the Wisconsin Foundation & Alumni Association, the Treasurer and Board Member of the Women’s Fund of Greater Green Bay Community Foundation, and a Board Member and past Treasurer of the UW-Madison Alumni Club of Brown County.
Karen received her BBA from UW-Madison with a double major in Accounting and Computer Information Systems.
David Polidori
Dave has over 20 years of experience in pharmaceutical research and development. He is currently a Senior Director in Translational Medicine at Janssen Research & Development, the pharmaceutical research division of Johnson & Johnson. In his role at Janssen, he is involved in both clinical and preclinical testing of novel treatments for metabolic diseases and in reviewing potential opportunities for in-licensing and partnering. He was a key member of the team that developed canagliflozin (Invokana®), the first SGLT2 inhibitor approved by the FDA for the treatment in type 2 diabetes. Dave has authored nearly 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and over 100 conference presentations. Dave has a BS in engineering from University of Wisconsin and MS and PhD degrees in engineering from the California Institute of Technology.
Joseph Coyne
Carrianne Basler
Carrianne has 20+ years of business advisory and financial consulting, with management in contingency planning, contract negotiations, litigation management, business planning, and risk management. She is a Managing Director with global consultant AlixPartners, a pioneer in corporate turnaround and restructuring. She served on the management team for Motors Liquidation Co. (fka General Motors), plus helped clients such as Eastman Kodak, Dana Corp., and Lyondell Chemical. Carrianne started her career at Arthur Andersen, then became a consultant for accountant C.W. Amos. She earned her Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting from Wisconsin.
Eliot Saeedi
Eliot works on acquisitions at Angelo, Gordon & Co., a $27 billion alternative investment manager. He has been directly responsible for, or overseen, in excess of $2 billion of assets and currently manages a portfolio of 11 deals with six different joint venture partners. In addition, he is an investor and involved with fintech, big data, CRM, and consumer finance technology companies.
Eliot received BBA degrees in Entrepreneurship and Real Estate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also received MBA and MRED (Master of Real Estate Development) degrees from the University of Southern California.
Gretchen Gilbertson
For the last 15 years, Gretchen has held the title and responsibilities of CEO at Séura, a company recognized by the world’s largest hotel brands and leading custom integration specialists as the premier provider of design-centric technology products. She also serves as an advisor, mentor, and ambassador on the International Board of Directors for the Network of Executive Women in Hospitality (NEWH). Prior to starting her company, Gretchen was employed by Kimberly-Clark Corporation in various market research and product development roles.
She graduated with a BA from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, and participated on the UW Spirit Squad as a cheerleader for the Badger football and basketball teams. During her time at the UW she met and married her college sweetheart – Bucky Badger.
Bryan Jurewicz
Bryan has 16+ years of executive leadership experience in early and growth stage tech businesses. As CEO, he led GradeBeam.com to industry leader in B2B Construction Communication Network—and then a successful exit (acq. by Textura), followed by an IPO and acquisition by Oracle of the integrated company. Bryan now aids companies in developing growth strategies in C-level, consulting, board member, and advisor roles. He is Chief Operations & Revenue Officer at Arrow Payments and CEO of ROI Magnet Strategic Advisors. He graduated from UW (’97)—starting four years for the Badgers, as well as playing in the NFL for the Carolina Panthers and Indianapolis Colts.
Sara Tirner
Sara has been a private investor for over twenty years. As a former Vice President and Director of Toronto Dominion Bank and TD Securities in New York, she specialized in Real Estate Construction Finance, Health Care Finance, Debt Restructuring, and Institutional Equity Sales. Balancing out the intensity of finance and investing, Sara has been a student and practitioner of yoga for over 20 years, taught for 13 years, and in 2003 became certified to apply yogic tools and technology to working with those living with life-threatening diseases. Sara graduated with a BBA in Finance from UW Madison.
Jaal Ghandhi
Jaal is currently the Grainger Professor of Sustainable Energy and the Chairman of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Wisconsin. He has been recognized as a Fellow of both the Society of Automotive Engineers and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers for his contributions. Jaal has published widely in this field. He has served as Director of the Wisconsin Small Engine Consortium and is currently the Director of the Direct-injection Research Consortium. Jaal received a PhD from Princeton.
Scott Richter
Scott is a partner at the law firm of Williams Mullen on their Corporate and Securities team and serves as a strategic advisor to boards and C-suite executives. He also represents issuers and underwriters in initial and secondary public securities offerings, as well as private placements of debt and equity securities. Previously, Scott was a partner at LeClair Ryan in a similar role. In 2015, he was named Richmond’s Lawyer of the Year for Securities Regulation by Best Lawyers. Scott earned his JD degree from Wisconsin and a BBA degree in Management from the College of William & Mary.
Steve Weinswig
Steve has deep experience growing cross-functional teams to deliver world-class design and digital transformation services for some of world’s most successful companies. As the Managing Director of North American Strategic Accounts for Fjord, Accenture’s Design & Innovation studio, Steve is driving key growth initiatives with major clients. Previously, Steve was the Managing Director of R/GA San Francisco and opened their Los Angeles office. He previously led the SF Studio and global headquarters for Frog Design and held several key digital leadership roles with the Publicis Groupe/Leo Burnett in Chicago. Steve has an MBA from Michigan and a BBA from Wisconsin.
Chris Kozina
Chris is Managing Director of ORD Advisors, providing advisory, consulting, and quality assurance services. He also serves as a Director of the University of Wisconsin Foundation & Alumni Association Board, and was a founding member and Director of the University of Wisconsin Accenture Undergraduate Leadership Center Advisory Board. Previously, Chris served as President, Chief Executive, and Chairman of Coors Distributing. Chris holds a Master’s in Education, Globalization, and Educational Policy from the University of Illinois and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance, Investments & Banking, Real Estate & Urban Land Economics from Wisconsin.
Ryan Kipp
Ryan is an entrepreneur, team-builder, and business advisor. He is Managing Partner at Blue Sky Partners, a boutique advisory firm offering sales and strategy expertise in the banking, investment, and financial technology space. Previously, Ryan spent ten years at BAML in the Global Corporate and Investment Banking division in a variety of roles in Chicago, Hong Kong, Denver, and New York. Ryan received his Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance, Investments, and Banking from the University of Wisconsin.
Josh Schwiesow
Josh currently serves as the manager of strategic sourcing and contracting for the pharmacy supply chain at Centura Health, an integrated delivery network system of 17 hospitals and multiple clinics across Colorado and Western Kansas. In 15+ years, Josh has worked in clinical, operational, business/finance, and leadership roles across inpatient, outpatient, and managed care settings. He is interested in improving the health care delivery experience through improved efficiencies and solid business and financial decisions. Josh received his PharmD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and has completed pharmacy residency training at the Medical University of South Carolina and the University of Colorado. He also received his MBA and Finance Certificate from Colorado State University. He enjoys racing bicycles and fly fishing.
Venture Fellows
Select group of young Wisconsin alums participating in our Venture Fellow Program
Jessica Martin
Venture Fellow
Jessica Co-founded and currently leads Forward BIOLABS, a fully functional life sciences laboratory to facilitate the creation and launch of innovative startup biotechnology companies. She brings over 15 years broad experience in life science to Bascom Ventures, including stem cells, tissue engineering, pharmaceuticals, clean tech, and agriculture. She has held leadership roles in operations, marketing, and quality within large pharma, startup, and non-profit environments. Jessica earned an Executive MBA and an MS in Biotechnology, both from the UW-Madison.
Andrew Kadlec
Venture Fellow
University of Wisconsin - Madison
Andy (UW ’11) is a 5th-year M.D./Ph.D. Candidate at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. He is also a member of the Postdoc Industry Consulting Organization, which provides consulting services to life-sciences companies, and serves as an Advisor for Golden Angels Investors, a local angel investment group. Prior to starting medical school, Andy spent two years doing full-time clinical research. Andy received a B.A. in English Literature from the University of Wisconsin.
Christian Kaczmarczyk
Venture Fellow
University of Wisconsin - Madison
Christian (UW ’16) works on the Account Management team at VTS, the leading Leasing and Asset Management platform in commercial real estate. Previously, while in school, he worked at 100state, helping it become Wisconsin’s largest co-working community, and cofounded Madventures Coworking, a student co-working space. He received a B.A. degree in Economics from the University of Wisconsin.
David Mun
Venture Fellow
University of Wisconsin - Madison
David (UW’06) is currently a Senior Manager of Due Diligence with Mallinckrodt, a specialty pharmaceutical company, where he is responsible for assessing business development and licensing opportunities. Prior to Mallinckrodt, David provided consulting services to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies and has managed clinical trials at various academic medical centers. David holds an M.S. in Clinical Nutrition from Columbia University and a B.S. in Molecular Biology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Alexandra Suprise
Venture Fellow
Alex (UW’12) serves as in-house legal counsel at Markable, an AI company identifying fashion products in photos and videos via computer vision. Previously, she worked at a Midwest law firm, helping clients identify strategic opportunities to grow their business. She was also a campaign finance attorney for a political consultant, assisting with one presidential and three successful Congressional campaigns. Alex has a BA from Wisconsin and JD from Marquette.
Prakash Rao
Venture Fellow
Prakash (UW’06) is a Senior Global Product Manager in Patient Care and Monitoring Solutions at Philips, driving product strategy and global commercialization of clinical analytics and decision support solutions for critical care. Earlier, he held marketing and R&D positions at Neuronetics, Boston Scientific, GE Healthcare, and St. Jude Medical. He received an MBA from Michigan’s Ross School of Business and BS in Biomedical Engineering from Wisconsin.
Keaton Nankivil
Senior Venture Fellow
Keaton (UW ‘17) recently returned to Wisconsin after a five-year career playing professional basketball around Europe. He has international experience after spending years living in Germany, Spain, Latvia, and Italy. He originally attended Wisconsin from 2007-11 and returned in 2017 to complete his degree in Kinesiology.
Alumni Ventures Group Support Staff
The team behind The Farm Investment team - freeing them to build you a great venture portfolio
Chris Sacharuk
Investor Relations Manager
Prior to joining AVG, Chris was a Customer Advocate at Graphic Packaging and in Sales & Marketing at Putnam Investments, where he created materials for reps and investors. He’s a graduate of the University of Massachusetts Lowell, Manning School of Business, where he studied Entrepreneurship and Entrepreneurial Studies.
Anne Miller
Investor Relations Manager
Previously, Anne was an Applied Behavioral Analysis Counselor for Melmark and a medical biller for Physicians Resources. She is also a certified Certifiied Personal Trainer and Group Fitness Instructor, with her own clientele. Anne has a Bachelor’s in Psychology from the University of New Hampshire.
Hilary Ncala
Director of Investor Relations
Prior to joining AVG, Hilary was a Staffing Executive and Program Manager at Robert Half. Previous positions include Retirement Planning & Guidance Consultant for Fidelity and an Investor Assistant for an independent investor. She has a Bachelor of Science, Business Management & Marketing from Fisher College.
Jamie Eitel
Community Relations Manager
Jamie was the Clinical Secretary Sr for Pediatric Gastroenterology at Dartmouth-Hitchcock. Earlier, he served as a Claims Processor Associate and then a Senior Associate at Cigna Health. He has also served in multiple church youth ministries for over 15 years throughout Ontario, Canada, in many different cultural contexts. He was part of the adjunct faculty in the youth ministry department at Tyndale University College. He has a BA in Psychology from York University, a Masters of Divinity from Tyndale Seminary, and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary.