Meet face-to-face with 32 prominent leaders from BC’s tech community participating in CONNECT’s Structured Networking event. Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity to get advice, feedback and share war stories with industry experts. Come prepared with questions, check out the leaders’ complete bios and areas of expertise.
Andrew’s vision and leadership established what Vision Critical is today. Coming from a background of Internet advertising and market research, Andrew started the company in 2000 because he saw the opportunity to use the web as a way to improve market research for both the client and the respondent.
/ Chief Executive Officer / Digital Payment Technologies
Andrew Scott has been CEO of Digital Payment Technologies (DPT) since 2005. Andrew is a seasoned business/community leader with a record of over 30 years delivering results in a wide range of senior business roles. For 15 years he worked as an investment banker/business builder at CIBC Wood Gundy Securities, with ten years as the leader of regional investment banking offices.
Chris Goward is Co-Founder and CEO of WiderFunnel Marketing Optimization. The agency's Conversion Optimization methods have helped clients improve conversion rates by up to 400% for lead generation and eCommerce sales.
/ Entrepreneur In Residence / Yaletown Venture Partners
Most recently, joining 6N Silicon pre-A Round as VP of Business Development, David secured $2.7 billion in revenue commitments in three years and shepherded the company’s acquisition by its customer Calisolar.
David is the COO and a founding Partner of Lions Capital Corp. Lions is a boutique investment bank which provides investment banking services to small to mid-cap companies in multiple verticals.
/ Chief Financial Officer / Lignol Energy Corporation
Mr. Turner is a chartered accountant with extensive business and corporate development experience in a variety of industries. Mr. Turner was previously a Regional Director of a business in Asia engaged in the marketing and distribution of pharmaceuticals and medical device products with responsibility for revenues exceeding $1B.
Eric Jordan co-founded PureEdge Solutions, a spin-off from UVic. PureEdge was a venture-backed software company with over 5 million end-users including organizations such as the US SEC and the US Air Force. In July 2005, IBM acquired PureEdge Solutions and began deployment to the existing 100 million Lotus Notes users.
Geoff is a registered professional engineer and has 14 years of experience in industrial automation and process control and over 9 years of venture capital experience. Prior to joining BDC Venture Capital in 2001, he worked for Bailey Canada and Asea Brown Boveri -- large multi-national industrial process automation suppliers.
/ Founder / Vancouver’s Medical Device Development Centre
Geof has worked in the medical device field for more than 25 years, developing new medical technology that spans surgical robotics, laboratory automation, implant technology and sterile surgical drapes. His most recent venture, (Neoteric Technology Limited, acquired by Haemonetics Corp. in 2009) makes systems for managing blood transfusions in hospitals.
Mr. Aasen was the founder and the chief strategy officer at PMC-Sierra up to June 2007. Previously he was vice president and general manager of the Communications Products Division. Prior to that, Mr. Aasen was chief operating officer and chief technology officer of the Company. Bringing over 20 years of experience to the semiconductor industry, Mr.
Greg is an entrepreneur first and a finance guy second. He bootstrapped his first software company at the age of 24 and sold it 7 years later in March 2000. After spending two years in a VP-Product Marketing role, he joined BDC Capital as part of their Technology Seed Investment group—a $100M early stage venture fund.
/ Vice President, Studio Operation, Disney Interactive Studio / The Walt Disney Company
Howard Donaldson is currently Vice President, Studio Operations for Disney Interactive Studios of The Walt Disney Company. Prior to this, Donaldson co-founded Propaganda Games in Vancouver, BC. Propaganda Games is one of six internal studios for Disney Interactive Studios.
Jim Mutter is a lawyer with Benson Salloum Watts, having recently moved from Vancouver to Kelowna, specializing in corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, particularly in the technology field.
/ VP, Business Development; Serial Entrepreneur / BCIC
As VP, Business Development at BCIC, Lisa Payne has over 20 years of senior leadership experience at public and private companies. She has founded three companies and serves as a mentor and advisor to several technology startup companies.
Mark Dance graduated from UBC in 1986 with a BApSc (hons) in Mechanical engineering. From 1986 to 1994 Mark worked at a small robotic surgery start up called Andronic Devices. Mark holds a number of US patents and their foreign filing equivalents from his time at Andronic.
Mark Longo is a Partner with Clark Wilson LLP's Technology and Corporate Finance Practice Groups. Through this experience, Mark brings a practical skill set and business perspective that are invaluable in advising multinational technology clients throughout the entire life cycle of their companies, from start up through to exit.
/ President; Founder; Director of Commercialization / Western Universities Technology Innovation Fund; Vancouver Angel Technology Network; SFU
Michael C. Volker is an Entrepreneur active in the development of new high technology ventures. A University of Waterloo Engineering grad, Mike started his own company (Volker-Craig Ltd) in 1973. He sold this company in 1981 and then decided to work with entrepreneurs in building new companies. Since coming to B.C. in 1988, he has continued this work as Executive Director of the B.C.
/ President & CEO / BC Technology Industry Association
Pascal Spothelfer is President and CEO of the British Columbia Technology Industry Association (BCTIA). Prior to joining BCTIA in November 2007, he was President and CEO at Spectrum Signal Processing, a Vancouver-based provider of advanced wireless communication systems.
/ Managing General Partner / Vanedge Capital Partners Ltd.
Paul Lee is the Managing General Partner of Vanedge Capital Partners Ltd., a venture capital fund focusing on the interactive digital media space. Lee is former President of Electronic Arts, Inc.
A successful technology start-up veteran, Peter van der Gracht has over twenty-five years of experience leading companies through multiple financings, operational build-outs, acquisitions, mergers
/ Lead Mentor; Founder & Past-CEO / ACETECH Growth Strategy Program; Class Software Solutions
Ralph Turfus, B.A.Sc., M.A.Sc., M.B.A., P.Eng., has launched eight startup companies in his career, and spent 28 years as the founder and CEO of Class Software (originally Escom Software), which be
/ Founder, Director, President & CEO / Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Dr. Pimstone is a founder, Director, and President and Chief Executive Officer at Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc., one of Canada’s leading privately owned biotechnology companies.
