At Best Startup US we track over 1,000,000 US startups and over 3 million people who hold key positions in these companies. We use this directory of startups to highlight top employees, founders and board members we think deserve more appreciation than they are currently getting.
This list showcases the top United States based Founder operating in the Commercial space. If you think a Founder is missing from this list, feel free to contact our editor on editor@beststartup.us.
The individuals on this list have been included because of exceptional performance in one of the following categories:
- Innovation – Operating as a key part in an extremely innovative business or startup.
- Growth – Operating as a key figure in the growth and upscale of a market leading business or startup.
- Management – Showing exceptional management skills.
- Societal impact – Putting their business on the map for their positive societal or environmental impact.
Our Data – We source our data from OSINT (open source intelligence) and public directories such as Crunchbase, SemRush and many more. The data from these sources should be treated with a degree of caution and verified yourself.
Sky Dayton
Co-Founder of City Storage Systems
Sky has a long history as a successful entrepreneur in the Internet industry, having founded, co-founded, and helped build companies with a combined market value of over $3 billion. Best known for founding the Internet service provider EarthLink in 1994, Sky also founded Boingo Wireless in 2001 and co-founded eCompanies, Business.com, and several other companies. Sky was an investor and active board member at NeoPets leading up to its sale to Viacom in 2005. As chairman of Age of Learning, he works closely with our management team to help guide our growth.
Follow Sky Dayton:
About Boingo Wireless, City Storage Systems, eCompanies: City Storage Systems is a startup that focuses on re-purposing distressed real estate assets.
Jonathan Wasserstrum
Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer of SquareFoot
Jonathan graduated from Columbia Business School in May 2012. Prior to business school, Jonathan worked in the International Capital Group at Jones Lang LaSalle where he advised foreign and domestic clients on more than $3 billion worth of transactions globally.
Follow Jonathan Wasserstrum:
About MetaProp, MetaProp, SquareFoot: SquareFoot is a marketplace that helps companies find office spaces.
Max Simkoff
Founder & CEO of Doma
Max started States Title in 2016 after personally experiencing the friction and labor caused by title insurance in the homebuying process. Since then he has worked to provide an innovative solution to homeowners, brokers, and mortgage bankers. Max is an entrepreneur with experience founding and operating technology companies. Prior to States Title, Max was Founder and CEO of Evolv, Inc., an enterprise predictive analytics software company, which he led through their acquisition by Cornerstone (NASDAQ: CSOD) in 2014 where he served for two years on the senior executive team post-acquisition as the Vice President of Strategic Initiatives.
Follow Max Simkoff:
About Doma: Doma is an insurtech platform that uses machine intelligence to remove friction from residential real estate transactions.
Rodney Sampson
Founder, Executive Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of OHUB
Rodney Sampson is heralded as the leading inclusive innovation, entrepreneurship and investment ecosystem builder in the world, particularly given his mission to ensure that everyone, everywhere, particularly socially disadvantaged communities, have equitable access to the new multi-generational wealth creation opportunities afforded in the future of work and fourth industrial revolution as definitive paths to reducing poverty and the racial wealth gap everywhere. Throughout his twenty-year entrepreneurial career, Sampson has co-founded startup companies that have overcome the odds by collectively raising more than $20 million in angel and venture capital, created hundreds of new jobs, and generated tens of millions in revenue before the acquisition or going public. At the beginning of the 21st century, Sampson co-founded, built, and sold Multicast Media Technologies (Streamingfaith.com) and EFactor (EFCT). He was one of three Black co-founders during this era whose high growth technology startups raised over $1 million in angel and venture capital and were subsequently acquired for eight-figures. During this time, Sampson also built Intellectual Currency, a world-class integrated go-to-market, publishing, and advisory firm with clients ranging from major Hollywood film studios, cable networks, tech companies, global corporates, publishers, the United States government, African heads of state and leading Black church denominations. Since 2007, Sampson has worked closely with high growth startups and seed-stage venture funds as a selective advisor, investor, and limited partner. His current investment and advisory portfolio include Cross Culture Ventures, TechSquare Capital, Digit, York Exponential, Plum.io, Patientory, The Mentor Method, and Momentum Learning. In 2013, Sampson co-founded Opportunity Hub as a follow up to the highly successful Kingonomics’ book release and large-scale conferences in Atlanta, GA, and Washington, DC. OHUB scaled quickly to become the leading multi-campus coworking space, entrepreneurship center, and tech hub featuring over 300 events a year, a startup pre-accelerator, coding boot-camp, and scholarship initiative and angel investing platform for founders from underestimated and under-tapped communities. Over 15,000 people walked through OHUB’s doors each year. From 2015-17, Sampson was a Partner at TechSquare Labs, a tech hub, seed-stage venture fund, and creator of the $100,000 Atlanta Startup Battle. Today, TechSquare Labs’ portfolio companies have raised follow on the capital of nearly $300 million, are valued at over $1.5 billion, generate over $100 million in annual recurring revenue, and employ over 1000 people and growing. He remains the largest minority limited partner in the fund. Today, as Executive Chairman & CEO of Opportunity Hub and OHUB Foundation, Sampson is focused on scaling OHUB as the definitive global future of work, opportunity, and wealth-creating platform by ensuring that everyone, everywhere has early exposure to tech, startup, and venture; in-demand technology education, training, and talent placement; inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem building; and capital formation. This is driven by the thousands of college and young professional members and growing from hundreds of colleges and universities across America and beyond. OHUB is a supplier, vendor, and partner to over 50 tech companies, major corporations, high growth startups, venture funds, municipalities, foundations, associations, colleges and universities and growing. Current national initiatives include OHUB@Cities, OHUB@Campus, OHUB@SXSW, 100 Black Angels Fund I and DEIS, a new strategy, service, and future software platform to operationalize diversity, equity, and inclusion across the major divisions of growing enterprises. Sampson is also a Nonresident Senior Fellow in the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brooking Institution in Washington, DC, and a Professor of Entrepreneurship at Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA. Sampson previously served as the 1st Head of Diversity at Mark Burnett Productions, executive producers of the hit ABC show, ABC’s Sharktank. A strong believer in philanthropy and its role in social impact and advocacy, Sampson supports and serves on the boards of Artificial Intelligence for All (AI4All), Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council (MMTC), International Bishops Conference, and GA Technology for All Policy Summit. Sampson was educated at Tulane University, Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, and Keller Graduate School of Management. Sampson resides in Atlanta, GA with his wife and six children.
Follow Rodney Sampson:
About Huddle Ventures, OHUB, Plum.io, ROHO: OHUB is an ecosystem building platform to ensure authentic diversity, equity, and inclusion in the fourth industrial revolution and beyond.
Rick Rudman
Co-Founder, Chairman, President & CEO of Curbio
Rick Rudman is the Founder, Chairman, President & CEO of Vocus & he attended University of Maryland in 1980.
Follow Rick Rudman:
About Curbio: Curbio helps realtors and their clients get homes ready for market or move-in fast.
Matthew Siegal
Founder & Chief Strategy Officer of Curbio
Matthew Siegal is the Co-Founder and CSO at Curbio.
Follow Matthew Siegal:
About Curbio, MaxSalePrice, Transformania: Curbio helps realtors and their clients get homes ready for market or move-in fast.
Ryan Simonetti
CEO & Co-Founder of Convene
Ryan is the Co-Founder and CEO of Convene, commercial real estate’s first workplace-as-a-service platform. His unique expertise in real estate acquisitions, development, and structured finance has helped catapult Convene to become a pioneer in the industry.
Follow Ryan Simonetti:
About Convene: Convene designs and services premium places to work, meet, and host events.
Chase Gilbert
Co-Founder, President, Chief Executive Officer of Built Technologies
Chase Gilbert is the CEO at Built Technologies, Inc.
Follow Chase Gilbert:
About Built Technologies: Built Technologies is an enterprise technology company that provides cloud-based construction lending software.
Andrew Sohr
Co-Founder – Director of Enterprise Accounts of Built Technologies
Follow Andrew Sohr:
About Built Technologies: Built Technologies is an enterprise technology company that provides cloud-based construction lending software.
Michael Patterson
Founder & CEO of Battle motors
Follow Michael Patterson:
About Battle motors: Battle motors is a technology leader in the electrification of commercial vehicles.
Ari Rastegar
Founder & CEO of Rastegar Property Company
Ariah-Hossein Rastegar was a successful real estate investor and lawyer before founding Rastegar Capital, which provides transparency, access and service to its growing investor base across a range of commercial real estate investments. He is now CEO of the company and is dedicated to building wealth for clients through extraordinary investments. Rastegar Capital is based in the Dallas, Texas area.
Follow Ari Rastegar:
About Forbes Real Estate Council, Rastegar Property Company: Rastegar Property creates value through strategic real estate investments.
Alok Chanani
Co-Founder & CEO of BuildOps
Alok Chanani has been serving as Chief Executive Officer at BuildOps since 2018.
Follow Alok Chanani:
About BuildOps: Industry leading all-in-one software solution for subcontractors driving profitability through best-in-class technology
Steve Chew
Co-Founder & COO of BuildOps
Accomplished leader in Entrepreneurship, Product Management, Business Development, and Marketing with over a decade of experience at both Consumer and Enterprise technology companies. Demonstrated versatility in both start-up and corporate environments.Early employee at two Silicon Valley startups that successfully exited through acquisition. Launched the European business for a “unicorn” startup valued at $1.2B+. Led technical product management for two of Microsoft’s largest cloud-first products – Outlook and Exchange Online (Office 365). Proven track record of success in the following areas: Mobile Apps, Cloud Computing, SaaS, Social Networking, Crowdfunding, and eCommerce. Engineering degree from Stanford and MBA from Harvard Business School.
Follow Steve Chew:
About BuildOps: Industry leading all-in-one software solution for subcontractors driving profitability through best-in-class technology
Aaron Block
Co-Founder, Managing Partner of MetaProp
Aaron is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of MetaProp, a New York-based venture capital firm focused on the real estate technology (“PropTech”) industry. Founded in 2015, MetaProp’s investment team has invested in 100+ technology companies across the real estate value chain. The firm manages multiple investment funds for both financial and strategic real estate investors representing a pilot- and test-ready sandbox of 15+ billion square feet across every real estate asset type and global market. Aaron served as Chairman of Chicago-based BayRu, LLC, the US-Russia ecommerce shopping and shipping specialist and eBay.com’s exclusive drop shipping partner for Russia/CIS consumers. After Aaron joined the company in 2010 as an investor and CEO, BayRu grew to become the 8th largest international online retailer in Russia. In 2013, BayRu was #11 on the Inc5000 “Top 100 Retail Companies” list and was named “Exporter of the Year” by the official export promotion magazine of the U.S. Department of Commerce. Prior to BayRu, Aaron was a commercial real estate executive with Cushman & Wakefield and oversaw more than 270 professionals as leader of the Chicago region. Aaron received numerous honors and awards during his real estate career including Top Producer, Most Creative Deal, Agency of the Year and Most Promising Brokerage Professional. Aaron has a BA from the Univesity of Illinois and an MBA from DePaul University. He is co-author of PropTech 101 (proptech101.com) published by Advantage Media. He has also been featured in dozens of international publications and media including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Yahoo Finance, Chicago Tribune, Crain’s, CBS Radio, The Moscow Times, RIA Novosti, RBK, Vedomosti, and Kommersant. Outside of work, Aaron served as a board member of numerous organizations including Young Presidents Organization (“YPO”), New York City Community Board Five, and Friends of the Chicago River. In addition to English, Aaron also enjoys speaking Spanish and Russian.
Follow Aaron Block:
About MetaProp: MetaProp is a venture capital firm focused on the real estate technology industry.
Zachary Aarons
Co-Founder and Partner of MetaProp
Zach Aarons currently works as the Co-Founder and Partner for MetaProp.VC. He previously worked at Millennium Partners as the Project Manager.
Follow Zachary Aarons:
About MetaProp: MetaProp is a venture capital firm focused on the real estate technology industry.
Manuel A. Henriquez
Founder, and Former Chairman, President & CEO of Hercules Capital
Manuel A. Henriquez is the co-founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Hercules Technology Growth Capital. Henriquez is a 25-year veteran of the venture capital and financing community. Under his leadership, the firm has completed investments of more than $3.6 billion to over 230 companies. Prior to co-founding the Company, Henriquez was a Managing Director at VantagePoint Venture Partners from August 2000 through July 2003 where he focused on technology investments. He is also the former president and chief investment officer of Comdisco Ventures, a division of Comdisco, Inc., a leading technology and financial services company, from November 1999 to March 2000. Prior to that, from March 1997 to November 1999, Henriquez was a Managing Director of Comdisco Ventures and a senior member of the investment team that originated over $2.0 billion of equipment lease, debt and equity transactions from 1997 to 2000. Henriquez received a B.S. in Business Administration from Northeastern University and is a member of the University’s Board of Directors. He also serves on the Board of Directors for the Lucile Packard Foundation as well as the Children’s Health Council and is a long time advocate for children’s health and education. He also previously served on the Board of Directors for Charles Armstrong School, an independent elementary and middle school that serves students with language-based learning differences.
Follow Manuel A. Henriquez:
About Hercules Capital: Hercules Capital is a capital market company that lends to technology, life sciences, and sustainable technology companies.
Mandeep Dhillon
CTO/CPO and Co-Founder of Be Me Health
Follow Mandeep Dhillon:
About Be Me Health: Be Me Health is operating in stealth mode.
Scott R. Cousino
Founder of Be Me Health
Scott Cousino has successfully built and led high-growth organizations, most recently a $110 million web-based learning platform. Prior to myStrength, Scott was an Internet executive at Alta Colleges, a higher education services company offering associate and bachelor degree programs to more than 18,000 students. As President of the 600-employee online college, he and his team were responsible for the initial launch and rapid growth of Alta’s fully accredited e-learning platform. Scott also served as Senior Vice President for Fidelity Investments, with oversight for the Company’s emerging growth offshore/international mutual fund division. Scott has an MBA from the University of Colorado and a BBA with distinction from the University of Michigan.
Follow Scott R. Cousino:
About Be Me Health: Be Me Health is operating in stealth mode.
Nicoletta Tessler
CEO and Co-Founder of Be Me Health
Nicoletta Tessler is the Founder and CEO at Be Me Health.
Follow Nicoletta Tessler:
About Be Me Health: Be Me Health is operating in stealth mode.
L.D. Salmanson
Co-Founder of Cherre
Follow L.D. Salmanson:
About Cherre, The Salmanson Fund: The Leading Real Estate Data Management and Analytics Platform
Ben Hizak
Co- Founder of Cherre
Follow Ben Hizak:
About Cherre: The Leading Real Estate Data Management and Analytics Platform
Ragnar Lifthrasir
Founder of velox.RE
Follow Ragnar Lifthrasir:
About International Blockchain Real Estate Association, velox.RE: Comprehensive real estate transaction and asset management platform built on Bitcoin blockchain and distributed file storage.
KP Reddy
Founder-General Partner of Shadow Ventures
Pramod “KP” Reddy is the Founder-General Partner of Shadow Ventures. To know K.P. Reddy is to experience boundless enthusiasm for creating new ventures. Reddy’s multidisciplinary career spans the innovation continuum. Over 25+ years, he has been a technologist, subject matter expert, founder, CEO, advisor, investor, professor, author and coach. K.P. effortlessly combines expertise in advanced technologies with critical, in-the-trenches experience as an entrepreneur. He is a globally recognized authority in AEC environments, artificial intelligence, robotics and automation, collaborative communication, mobile applications and cloud computing. His passion is in launching game-changing startups, raising substantial investments, and leading organizations to meaningful acquisition and IPO exits. In 2012, K.P. published BIM for Building Owners and Developers, a book on the adoption of advanced technology in the infrastructure space employed by leading companies and universities. K.P. is also a prolific public speaker delivering addresses to audiences at universities across the U.S., various tech and startup events in the Southeast, and SXSW.
Follow KP Reddy:
About Amenify, ICON Technology, Klickly, Shadow Ventures: Shadow Ventures is a venture capital firm focused exclusively on technology that drives innovation in the built environment.
Darren Nix
Founder, President of Steadily
Darren is a cofounder at Steadily.com. Previously he cofounded Interviewed (YC S15) and Leaky (YC S11) and Silver Financial (not-YC S06).
Follow Darren Nix:
About Steadily: Steadily is offers fast, affordable landlord insurance to rental property owners.
Datha Santomieri
Co-Founder, Vice President of Steadily
Datha Santomieri is the co-founder and vice president of Steadily.
Follow Datha Santomieri:
About Steadily: Steadily is offers fast, affordable landlord insurance to rental property owners.
Jude Regev
Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Jointer
Follow Jude Regev:
About Jointer: World’s first COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE BACKED DeFi
Johnny Hanna
CEO & Co-Founder of Homie
Associate Entrepreneur Founders Organization of BYU
Follow Johnny Hanna:
About Homie: Homie is the future of home buying and selling. Customers save thousands of dollars—we’re not focused on commissions. #wegotyourback
Mike Trionfo
Co-Founder & CTO of Homie
Mike Trionfo is a Co-Founder & CTO at Homie.
Follow Mike Trionfo:
About Homie: Homie is the future of home buying and selling. Customers save thousands of dollars—we’re not focused on commissions. #wegotyourback
Mike Peregrina
CFO & Co-Founder of Homie
Follow Mike Peregrina:
About Homie: Homie is the future of home buying and selling. Customers save thousands of dollars—we’re not focused on commissions. #wegotyourback
Guy Goldstein
CEO and Co-Founder of Next Insurance
Guy Goldstein is the founder and CEO of Next Insurance. He was the founder and chief executive officer of Pageonce, and member of the company’s Board of Directors, brings nearly two decades of management, strategy and product development experience to his role as CEO. Since founding Pageonce in 2007, Guy has raised $10 million in venture capital funding and grown its membership from zero to more than four million. He has a proven track record in corporate development, mergers and acquisitions and as research and development leader. At Hewlett-Packard, Guy led inorganic growth expansion acquisitions to develop HP’s Business Intelligence strategy. During his seven year tenure at Mercury Interactive (later acquired by Hewlett-Packard) Guy helped establish the company-wide inorganic growth roadmap and strategic planning process, resulting in three acquisitions and $200 million in revenue. He was a key member of the executive team that developed the business plan for Mercury Interactive’s $5 billion acquisition by Hewlett-Packard. As Senior Director of Mercury Interactive’s R&D division, Guy managed an international team of engineers and QA that built products generating $350 million in sales. Early in his life Guy was handpicked for an elite group of candidates to train for the Israeli Air Force based on his record-level test scores and technical aptitude. He excelled and rose to the top military rank of major and fighter pilot in one of world’s most respected air force programs. Ever the prolific innovator, he holds two patents. Guy graduated cum laude from Tel-Aviv University with a bachelor’s degree in Business and Computer Science.
Follow Guy Goldstein:
About Mint Bills, Next Insurance: Next Insurance is an online-based insurance company for entrepreneurs and small businesses.
Jack Ryan
Co-Founder & CEO of REX – Real Estate Exchange
Follow Jack Ryan:
About REX – Real Estate Exchange: REX is a digital platform and real estate service company where homeowners can list, discover, and purchase homes outside the MLS.
Lynley Sides
Co-Founder, President & COO of REX – Real Estate Exchange
Lynley Sides As CEO of The Glue Network, Lynley was recognized as one of “15 Founders & CEOs to Watch” in Women 2.0. In 2001, she founded an interim executive and consulting services firm that has remained profitable while giving back along the way. While leading Sides & Associates and as a consultant with A.T. Kearney, she’s helped companies and non-profits including Genentech, HP, Touch Revolution, Levi’s, Outlook Ventures, and the Sierra Club assess, develop, and market new products and grow responsibly. In 2010, she partnered with The Glue Network founders to launch a platform that enables companies of all sizes to improve their bottom lines through giving and social media. As a member of the Gratitude Network leadership team Lynley created and leads a global award program that recognizes new ventures that create positive social change and systemic impact through innovation and entrepreneurship. A serial entrepreneur herself she is a passionate supporter of social causes, founding and supporting many organizations to operate sustainably while encouraging her companies to contribute to the social good.
Follow Lynley Sides:
About REX – Real Estate Exchange: REX is a digital platform and real estate service company where homeowners can list, discover, and purchase homes outside the MLS.
Joe Du Bey
Co-Founder & CEO of Eden Workplace
Joe Du Bey is the co-founder and CEO at Eden. Joe is a Stanford MBA who was formerly in venture capital and on the growth team at Tilt.
Follow Joe Du Bey:
About Eden Workplace: The complete suite of workplace software for hybrid companies.
Jim Chu
CEO and Founder of dloHaiti
Jim Chu is the Founder & CEO at Untapped Global.
Follow Jim Chu:
About dloHaiti, Untapped Global, Untapped Global, Watering Minds: DloHaiti is a for-profit venture providing safe drinking water to Haitian consumers in underserved areas in Haiti.
Jerry Coleman
Founder & Director of Offerpad
Jerry Coleman is co-founder and co-CEO of OfferPad. Coleman is a seasoned entrepreneur and has extensive experience in real estate contract law, management and finance. Coleman is a pioneer in the institution single family rental industry; he partnered with the Blackstone Group, a private equity firm, to create Invitation Homes, bringing in more than $10 billion in investment into the single family rental industry. During his partnership with Blackstone Group LP, he acquired, renovated and managed upwards of 50,000 investment properties and managed more than $108 billion in investment capital within the single-family space. Coleman also co-founded Alliance Investment Group, which has acquired and entitled, developed and help over 10,000 acres of land in Southwest, and Elevation Solar, which is focused on bringing clean, affordable solar power to thousands of homes and businesses across the United States. He holds a bachelor of science degree from Arizona State University and a JD from Brigham Young University.
Follow Jerry Coleman:
About Elevation, Offerpad: Offerpad is a tech-enabled real estate company that provides a platform for buying or selling homes.
Randy Wilcox
Co-Founder & Partner of Wilcox Communities
Randy Wilcox was founder and former CEO and Chairman of SARCOM, Inc., a national leader in IT consulting and distributed computing support focused on integrating technology to produce measurable business results. SARCOM’s proven practices and technical expertise assist organizations in all phases of the IT lifecycle. Randy is also founder of Quest (conference center services), Insight Bank and Long & Wilcox Real Estate. Randy is a past board member of Norvax Inc., SARCOM and HTP, Inc. Randy is also director of OhioHealth and Chairman of their Investment Committee. Randy is also on the advisory board of the Kayne Anderson Private Equity Funds.
Follow Randy Wilcox:
About Wilcox Communities: Wilcox Communities, a family-owned, award winning company who are proud to be one of the fastest growing builders in the Midwest.
David Fontain
Founder and CEO of Foresight Commercial Insurance
Founder and CEO at Foresight, the insurtech for mid-market workers compensation. At Foresight, we’re rewarding proactive insureds with lower premiums and rewarding brokers with higher commissions.
Follow David Fontain:
About Foresight Commercial Insurance, Foresight Risk and Insurance Services: Foresight is the commercial insurtech that ties safe work practices to insurance savings.
Casey Berman
Founder and Managing Partner of Camber Creek
Casey Berman is the Managing Partner at Camber Creek. Prior to Camber Creek, Casey was President of Operations for one of the Washington, DC area’s largest privately held real estate development and management companies.
Follow Casey Berman:
About Camber Creek: Camber Creek is a venture capital firm that offers capital and advisory services for real-estate businesses.
Jared Stenquist
Co-Founder of HqO
Jared is CEO and Founder of CampusLIVE. A 24 year-old entrepreneur living in MA, Jared was named one of BusinessWeek’s Top 25 Entrepreneurs under 25 in 2008.
Follow Jared Stenquist:
About Dailybreak, Fullstack Ventures, HqO: HqO helps building owners and property teams thrive with technology that engages tenants and creates the most value for their assets.
Greg Gomer
Co-Founder of HqO
With a reputation for driving conversations that connect communities of entrepreneurs, Greg has been a founding team member with Chase and Kevin at Pinyadda, Streetwise Media, and VentureApp. A systems analyst at Fidelity Investments prior to these ventures, Greg is now heavily involved in the local startup community and advisor to Flybridge Capital Partners. At VentureApp, Greg conducts the teams and processes that connect founders and businesses with custom business solutions from premium vendors across the country. Greg received his BS in entrepreneurship and management information systems from Babson College.
Follow Greg Gomer:
About Fullstack Ventures, HqO: HqO helps building owners and property teams thrive with technology that engages tenants and creates the most value for their assets.
Skip Brittenham
Co-Founder & Senior Partner of Ziffren Brittenham
Harry Brittenham, born Port Huron, Michigan. Admitted to the California Bar in 1971; Education: United States Air Force Academy (B.S. 1963); UCLA (J.D. 1970); Senior partner of Ziffren, Brittenham, Branca, Fischer, Gilbert-Lurie, Stiffelman, Cook, Johnson, Lande & Wolf, LLP, an entertainment law firm founded in 1978; Ziffren, Brittenham, Branca, Fischer, Gilbert-Lurie, Stiffelman, Cook, Johnson, Lande & Wolf, LLP, has one of the largest television, music and motion picture practices in the world; it also specializes in entertainment oriented merger, acquisition and financing transactions. Brittenham has served on the board of numerous corporations including Pixar and Loews Cineplex. Brittenham has served on the board of numerous charitable organizations, including Conservation International, The American Oceans Campaign and the Environmental Media Association.
Follow Skip Brittenham:
About Ziffren Brittenham: Ziffren Brittenham provides strategic planning and consulting services.
Yaakov James Zar
Co-Founder and CEO of Lev
Yaakov Zar is the Co-Founder and CEO of Lev.
Follow Yaakov James Zar:
About Dispatch, Lev: Lev is a commercial mortgage marketplace.
Gilles Gade
Founder, Chief Executive Officer, Chairman of Cross River Bank
Gilles Gade is a founder of Cross River Bank (CRB) and has served as its Chairman, President and CEO since its inception in 2008. Gilles is steering CRB as an innovation-driven state-chartered bank and a provider of fully compliant financial solutions to the marketplace lending and payments sectors. Gilles possesses over 20 years of experience in investment banking and venture capital including Co-Founder and Managing Director of Chela Technology Partners and Chela Internet Ventures, a boutique investment bank and venture fund focusing on emerging technologies and telecommunications; technology investment banker at Barclays Capital; and FIG investment banker at Bear Stearns. Gilles started his career in 1990 at Citicorp Venture Capital. Gade graduated from the MBA Institute IMIP (Groupe IPESUP) in Paris with an MS in International Management.
Follow Gilles Gade:
About Cross River Bank: Cross River is a financial institution that offers technology and banking services to consumers and businesses.
Thomas McConom
Founder of Calgon Carbon Corporation
Tom is chairman of the board and a founder of Calgon Carbon Corporation—the world’s largest manufacturer of granular activated carbon.
Follow Thomas McConom:
About Calgon Carbon Corporation: Calgon Carbon Corporation is the leader in the activated carbon industry through unmatched innovations in the purification,
Christopher Bently
Founder & CEO of Bently Holdings
Christopher Bently moved to San Francisco in 1984 where he immediately developed a deep love for the city, its architecture, and its people. Today he is an avid environmentalist, musician and businessman with an affinity for foreign languages and travel. In 2001 he founded Bently Holdings, an environmentally conscious investment and holding company focused on architecturally significant and historic buildings as well as preserving open land. Working to maintain the harmonic balance between nature and civilization also prompted the endeavor of Bently Biofuels, which produces biodiesel processed from waste vegetable oil for consumer and agricultural use. It was his first voyage to Black Rock City that revolutionized his life. The Playa is where he learned of a community based solely on gifting, art, music, self-reliance, and love. This profound experience prompted a major course correction in his life and made him the awarded philanthropist he is today. He advises and sits on the board of several organizations, both for-profit and nonprofit, that are associated with preserving the environment or the arts. Chris is a very proud member of the communities of San Francisco and Black Rock City, and is always working to improve, maintain and merge the spirit and integrity of both.
Follow Christopher Bently:
About Bently Holdings: Bently Holdings is a private asset holdings and management company.
Peter Spradling
COO and Co-Founder of Marco
Peter Spradling is the COO and Co-Founder at Marco.
Follow Peter Spradling:
About Marco: Marco provides a tech-enabled financing platform designed for small and medium-sized businesses.
Michael Jansen
Chairman, Founder & CEO of Cityzenith
Michael Jansen is a sought after Smart City industry leader and public speaker with numerous awards and accolades to his credit, and has been featured on CNN, CNBC, and myriads of business, technology, and AEC publications worldwide, including Architectural Record, ENR, Business Week, Domus, Contract Magazine, et. al. In 2007, Michael was awarded Building Design + Construction Magazine’s prestigious “40 Under 40” award honoring top CEOs in the architecture, engineering, and construction industry under the age of 40. An impassioned architect, urbanist, and entrepreneur, Michael founded Satellier in 2004, a CAD and BIM production services company backed by venture capital firm Sequoia Capital. Under his leadership, in just four years Satellier experienced explosive growth from a team size of 10 to over 450 and fundamentally changed the way AEC firms deliver services. In 2010, Michael assumed the helm of Cityzenith to pursue his dream of transforming life in cities all over the world. Michael was educated as an architect at Yale and Cambridge; earned a Fulbright scholarship; studied art and architecture in China and India; speaks four languages and has traveled to more than 80 countries; designs high-end, exotic furniture, and is an avid guitar player.
Follow Michael Jansen:
About Cityzenith: Cityzenith is a technology startup that provides data visualization platform software and applications for IoT and Smart Cities.
Mustafa Gulam
Co-Founder, CTO of ProjectFRED
Mustafa was born in Detroit and raised in its metro area. His fascination with technology began in high school when he started designing webpages and was chosen by Microsoft to test their early suite of office software. At the University of Michigan, he played in active role in student groups focused on improving access to medical care across the globe such as developing a battery powered surgical lamp for surgical theaters in areas with poor access to electricity through MHEAL. He attended medical school at Michigan State University and focused on the intersection of medicine and technology. He conducted research on artificial intelligence in healthcare and joined the Brain-Computer Interface group at the University of Michigan in where he assisted in finding a solution to using EEG technology to communicate with ALS patients. In 2013 he joined the Congress of Neurological Surgeons Education committee and became a published author for Neurology and Neuroanatomy for the medical board exam. After completing several subinternships in Neurology, General Surgery and Neurosurgery Mustafa decided to focus his efforts on how blockchain technology can maintain the integrity of healthcare records and improve communication between different EMR systems. After his medical studies he pursued an education and certification in Python coding through the University of Michigan and Blockchain engineering and design through the hyperledger project with IBM. He has a passion for teaching medicine and is the current chief medical educator and master trainer at the Princeton Review and has held teaching posts through TPR at Boston University, University of Central Florida and the University of Michigan where he continues to lecture on biochemistry, medical physiology, neurology, neuroanatomy and molecular biology.
Follow Mustafa Gulam:
About ProjectFRED: ProjectFRED deploys smart contracts and hyper-targeted marketing, providing fractional commercial real estate ownership.
Itai Ben-Zaken
Co-Founder and CEO of Honeycomb Insurance
Itai was previously a General Manager at QuinStreet (NASDAQ: QNST – Silicon Valley based internet company) for 4 years, heading a business unit responsible for a substantial part of the company’s revenue. Before joining QuinStreet, Itai was a strategy consultant at BCG, an engineering team lead at Intel, and an officer in the Israeli Defense Forces. Itai holds a BSc in Computer Engineering from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Follow Itai Ben-Zaken:
About Honeycomb Insurance: Honeycomb Insurance is a Commercial Real Estate Insurance Reinvented.
Keith B. Gelb
Co-Founder and Managing Member of Rockpoint Group
Keith B. Gelb is a Co-Founder and Managing Member at Rockpoint Group, L.L.C. He is Founding Member of the firm. Keith Gelb is responsible for the overall operations and management of the firm, with particular focus on the oversight, origination and structuring of the firm’s United States investment activities.
Follow Keith B. Gelb:
About Rockpoint Group: Rockpoint Group, L.L.C. (“Rockpoint”) is a real estate private equity firm
William H. Walton
Managing Member and Co-Founder of Rockpoint Group
William H. Walton is a Managing Member and co-founder of Rockpoint and is responsible for the overall operations and management of Rockpoint, as well as overseeing the origination, structuring and asset management of all of Rockpoint’s investment activities. William Walton maintains offices in Jacksonville and Boston. Prior to co-founding Rockpoint, William Walton co-founded and was a managing member of Westbrook Real Estate Partners, L.L.C. (“WREP”). Prior to co-founding WREP in 1994, William Walton worked at Morgan Stanley as a Managing Director in the Real Estate Group for 15 years. William Walton is involved with several real estate industry organizations and has served as a Director or Trustee on the Boards of several public companies, as well as non-profit organizations, with a particular interest in educational institutions. William Walton received an A.B. from Princeton University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.
Follow William H. Walton:
About Rockpoint Group: Rockpoint Group, L.L.C. (“Rockpoint”) is a real estate private equity firm
Michael DeGiorgio
Founder & CEO of Crexi
Michael DeGiorgio is the CEO & Co-Founder of CREXi.
Follow Michael DeGiorgio:
About Crexi: Crexi is a technology solution that consolidates commercial real estate tools into a single platform for brokers, investors, and tenants.
Luke Morris
Co-Founder of Crexi
Follow Luke Morris:
About Crexi: Crexi is a technology solution that consolidates commercial real estate tools into a single platform for brokers, investors, and tenants.
Mike Sroka
CEO & Co-Founder of Dealpath
Mike is the Co-Founder and CEO of Dealpath. He is a member of the Urban Land Institute, NAIOP and ICSC. Previously, Mike has spent nearly a decade growing venture backed software companies including Fanhood (acq. by FOX), Zynga (ZNGA) and OneSeason (acq. by Cantor Fitzgerald). Mike started his career at Hudson Advisors, managing agent for the Lone Star Funds and graduated from Southern Methodist University with a B.S. degree in Economics with Finance Applications.
Follow Mike Sroka:
About Dealpath, Forbes Real Estate Council: Dealpath is the intelligent software solution empowering smart investment decisions with data-driven insights and digital collaboration
Carey Anne Nadeau
Founder & CEO of ODN
Carey Anne Nadeau, is founder and CEO of ODN and an award-winning MIT-trained city planner and urban data scientist. Previously she worked in the data analytics industry at the Urban Institute and Brookings Institution Metropolitan Policy Center. Her work has been called transformational by the Open Data Institute (UK) and MIT and has been published in numerous outlets, including: the New York Times, The Atlantic, and GovTech Magazine. She was an invited speaker at the White House Open Innovation Conference in 2016 and Insuretech Connect 2017 and 2018.
Follow Carey Anne Nadeau:
About Loop, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, ODN: ODN operates as a risk rating roads to measure the environmental hazards of driving.
D. Kent Lance, Jr.
Founder of HPI Real Estate Services & Investments
Prior to co-founding HPI in 1992, Kent spent eight years at Trammell Crow Company’s Austin office. Kent joined Trammell Crow after graduating with a business degree from The University of Texas in 1984. While at Crow, Kent served as a marketing principal from 1984 to 1989 and as a project partner of the industrial division from 1989 to 1992. In 1986 and 1987, Kent earned several Trammell Crow National Leasing Awards.
Follow D. Kent Lance, Jr.:
About HPI Real Estate Services & Investments: HPI Real Estate Services & Investments is the largest and most established full-service commercial real estate company in Central Texas.
Kent Lance
Co-Founder & Partner of HPI Real Estate Services & Investments
Kent Lance co-founded HPI in 1992 and is directly active in all aspects of HPI’s business from leasing to capital investments to multi-family. He brings over 30 year’s experience in the Central Texas commercial real estate market. Kent earned a degree in business administration from the University of Texas in 1984, later working for Trammell Crow for eight years before co-founding HPI in 1992. While at Trammell Crow, Kent served as a marketing principal from 1984 to 1989 and as project partner of the industrial division from 1989 to 1992. Kent was one of the most successful leasing agents at Trammell Crow, earning National Annual Leasing Awards from the company in both 1986 and 1987.
Follow Kent Lance:
About HPI Real Estate Services & Investments: HPI Real Estate Services & Investments is the largest and most established full-service commercial real estate company in Central Texas.
Robert Schwartz
Co-Founder and Principal of S3 Capital
Robert Schwartz is co-founder and principal of Spruce and S3 Capital, and leads acquisitions, financing and day-to-day management for the firm. Prior to founding Spruce and S3 Capital, Robert helped run a successful family business where he established and grew the family’s real estate investment program. Robert began his career as an investment banker at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette and UBS, in their Financial Institution Coverage groups. He is a graduate of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Follow Robert Schwartz:
About S3 Capital: S3 Capital is a private construction debt lender in New York City and focuses on loans between $1M to $20M and $20M to over $250M.
Joshua Crane
Co-Founder and Principal of S3 Capital
Joshua Crane is co-founder and principal of Spruce and S3 Capital and is responsible for sourcing and executing on all aspects of the business. Prior to founding S3 and Spruce Capital, he was at Irongate, where he developed the Trump International Hotel and Tower at Waikiki Beach Walk. Joshua also worked at Stellar Management, where he was involved in the acquisition of Independence Plaza, a 1,330-unit rental building in New York City’s Tribeca neighborhood and 2,000 units in Washington, D.C. Joshua began his career at Solomon Brothers in its Mergers and Acquisitions group. He graduated from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Follow Joshua Crane:
About S3 Capital: S3 Capital is a private construction debt lender in New York City and focuses on loans between $1M to $20M and $20M to over $250M.
Lynne Zydowsky
Chief Science Officer and Co-Founder Alexandria Summit of Alexandria Real Estate Equities
Lynne Zydowsky is West Coast Board Member at buildOn.
Follow Lynne Zydowsky:
About Alexandria Real Estate Equities: Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc., Landlord of Choice to the Life Science Industry, is the largest owner and pre-eminent
Thomas Barrack
Founder & Executive Chairman of Colony Capital
Thomas J. Barrack, Jr. is the Founder and Executive Chairman of Colony Capital, Inc. Prior to founding the Colony Capital business in 1991, Mr. Barrack was a Principal with the Robert M. Bass Group, the principal investment vehicle of the Fort Worth, Texas investor Robert M. Bass. Prior to joining the Robert M. Bass Group, Mr. Barrack also served in the Reagan administration as Deputy Undersecretary of the Department of the Interior. Additionally, in 2010 French president Nicolas Sarkozy awarded him France’s Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur. From June 2010 to February 2020, Mr. Barrack served on the board of directors of First Republic Bank, a full service bank and wealth management firm. From January 2016 through June 2017, Mr. Barrack served as co-chairman of the board of trustees of Colony Starwood Homes (NYSE: SFR), a leading single-family rental real estate investment trust. From January 2014 to May 2016, Mr. Barrack served on the board of directors of Carrefour S.A., a French multinational retailer and the second largest retailer in the world. From January 2006 to April 2013, Mr. Barrack served on the public board of directors of Accor, S.A., a major global hotel group listed on Euronext Paris. Mr. Barrack has also served on the public board of Challenger Financial Services Group Limited, a diversified financial services organization listed on the Australian Securities Exchange from November 2007 to October 2010. From August 1994 to September 2007, Mr. Barrack served on the board of Continental Airlines, Inc., one of the largest passenger airlines in the United States, including as a member of its Corporate Governance Committee, Executive Committee and Human Resources Committee. Mr. Barrack received a Bachelor of Arts in 1969 from the University of Southern California. He attended law school at the University of San Diego and the University of Southern California, where he was an editor of the law review, and received a Juris Doctor in 1972 from the University of San Diego. Mr. Barrack is the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate of Jurisprudence degree from Pepperdine University and a Trustee at the University of Southern California.
Follow Thomas Barrack:
About Colony Capital: Colony Capital operates as global digital infrastructure, real estate, and investment management firm.
Justin Bedecarre
Co-Founder & CEO of Raise Commercial Real Estate
Follow Justin Bedecarre:
About Raise Commercial Real Estate: Raise Commercial Real Estate is a technology-powered commercial real estate brokerage helping companies search for office space.
Carrie Nyden
Co-Founder of Raise Commercial Real Estate
Follow Carrie Nyden:
About Raise Commercial Real Estate: Raise Commercial Real Estate is a technology-powered commercial real estate brokerage helping companies search for office space.
Robert Friedman
Co-Founder of Ten-X
Follow Robert Friedman:
About Ten-X: Ten-X provides online real estate services.
Potter Polk
Founder and Partner of Kalyx Development
Potter Polk is the President of Kalyx Properties Inc. He brings to Kalyx more than 25 years of business management experience in wire- less communications, international tourism, and tech- nology. Since 2009, Potter has been actively engaged in the legal marijuana industry evaluating a broad range of cannabis opportunities including cultivation, infused product manufacturing, enterprise management software development and real estate. He has built a network of top industry professionals as well as cannabis specific regulatory and operational expertise. As the CEO of Mingleridge NJ, Potter drafted the third highest scoring application for New Jersey’s MMJ program. He participated in providing testimony on medical marijuana business regulations to NJ legislators and assisted in the re-draft the program’s regulations on behalf of the Coalition for Medical Marijuana NJ (CMMNJ) under request for recommended changes by the office of NJ State Senate Nicholas P. Scutari, co-sponsor of NJ’s Compassionate Use law. As Founding Director and CFO of the Happy Travels Group, Potter grew the company’s Australian and New Zealand retail travel centers to 25 locations. Potter was also the Founder and CEO of The Internet Outpost Group now trading as part of The Global Gossip, and a provider of public internet access solutions to more than 400 hotels and resorts in 6 countries. Mr. Polk holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Skidmore College and currently serves as the Chairman of Greener Pastures, a not-for-profit equine rescue sanctuary in Cecilton, Maryland.
Follow Potter Polk:
About Kalyx Development: Kalyx Development Inc. has amassed an unlevered, multi-state portfolio of cannabis properties.
Lisa Yu
CEO & Founder of OFFICEBOOK
Lisa Yu is a Venture Capitalist, Angel Investor, Entrepreneur, Startup Advisor, and Humanitarian. She is an advocate for Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. Her mission is to create a more sustainable world and equitable society.
Follow Lisa Yu:
About Ark VC, Dream Teamers, OFFICEBOOK: Airbnb for Offices – Find & List Workspace
Benjamin Clarke
Co-Founder & CDO of Bold Penguin
Technology executive with background in data science, application development and cloud engineering – range of experiences in insurance, financial services, energy, life sciences, and home services.Building solutions for 7 of the top 10 financial services companies, thousands of insurance agents – and some of the world’s most significant companies like Nationwide, Angie’s List, L Brands, Scotts Miracle Gro, Progressive, and Internet Brands. Built companies up to 200 people from start – member of the United States Chamber of Commerce advisory board in washington, DC focused on university technology transfer and technology policy. Led the single largest tech transfer deal in Ohio State’s history – an ETL technology for healthcare data. Member of Create Columbus Commission – trying to help build a city young people want to live in. Published author in Fast Company, Huffington Post, and Ad Week on a variety of technology and data related topics.
Follow Benjamin Clarke:
About Bold Penguin, The Shipyard: Bold Penguin is a commercial insurance exchange that connects customers, agents, and carriers to match the right quote in record time.
Ilya Bodner
Founder of Bold Penguin
Ilya has been tinkerer in the insurance industry for 14 years. His started his career as a captive insurance agent by becoming the principal and opening up two Allstate offices in central Ohio. He continues to innovate by launching ventures that deal with solving for the complexity that exists in the current way we buy, manage and think about insurance. He has started multiple companies with a heavy focus on insurtech initiatives.Ilya is currently the day-to-day CEO of Bold Penguin, a commercial insurance agent portal dedicated to making business insurance simpler for customers, agents, and carriers.
Follow Ilya Bodner:
About Bold Penguin, The Shipyard: Bold Penguin is a commercial insurance exchange that connects customers, agents, and carriers to match the right quote in record time.
Tamir Poleg
Founder and CEO of Real
Tamir Poleg is the Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Real. He earned a BA in Economics at The College of Management Academic Studies.
Follow Tamir Poleg:
About Real: Real is a technology-powered real estate brokerage that empowers agents in the industry.
Tomas Vykruta
Co-Founder & CEO of EvolutionIQ
Follow Tomas Vykruta:
About EvolutionIQ: Leading the artificial intelligence transformation for insurance carriers. AI Guidance for Disability and General Liability Carriers.
Michael Saltzman
Co-Founder & COO of EvolutionIQ
Follow Michael Saltzman:
About EvolutionIQ: Leading the artificial intelligence transformation for insurance carriers. AI Guidance for Disability and General Liability Carriers.
Pavan Maheshwari
Founder & CEO of FleetPanda
Follow Pavan Maheshwari:
About FleetPanda: FleetPanda provides a logistics platform that helps manage fleet operations.
Jon Hodges
Founder, President & Chief Executive Officer of Evergreen Industrial Services
Jon founded Evergreen Industrial Services in 2000 and through his leadership the company has grown from a regional contractor into a diversified industrial service provider serving industry nationwide. With over 35 years of experience, Jon’s emphasis on safety and service quality are key ingredients to the company’s employee-focused culture and can be attributed to the company’s growth trajectory. Jon has been featured in numerous motivational books and has received multiple customer accolades and is well known for his benevolence throughout the Houston area.
Follow Jon Hodges:
About Evergreen Industrial Services, Evergreen North America: Evergreen Industrial Services is a leading provider of environmental and industrial cleaning solutions.
Patrick Nelson
Founder, CEO of Nelson Partners
Patrick Nelson is the Founder and CEO at Nelson Partners Student Housing.
Follow Patrick Nelson:
About Nelson Partners: Nelson Partners specialize in developing, acquiring, and managing quality purpose-built student housing assets.
John Meadows
Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Bowery Valuation
Prior to co-founding Bowery, John worked at Leitner Group, now BBG, the largest independent appraisal firm in New York City. In his 4+ years there he valued over $3 billion of commercial property across all asset types. Frustrated with the antiquated process of appraising, but excited by the need for a better solution, he left to start Bowery with Noah and Cesar in June of 2015. John graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in US History. He still aspires to become a chef, a filmmaker, and the first left handed shortstop for the San Francisco Giants.
Follow John Meadows:
About Bowery Valuation: Bowery Valuation is a technology-enabled commercial real estate appraisal that powers appraisers with cutting edge software.
Noah Isaacs
Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Bowery Valuation
Before co-founding Bowery, Noah worked for Butler Burgher Group, valuing over $2.5 Billion worth of commercial real estate in New York. In 2010 he started his career in Baseball Operations, running numbers for the Toronto Blue Jays. The following year he became the youngest plenary speaker in the 29 year history of the International Conference of the System Dynamics Society. Noah graduated from McGill University with a major in Statistics and a double minor in Operations Management and Labor-Management Relations.
Follow Noah Isaacs:
About Bowery Valuation: Bowery Valuation is a technology-enabled commercial real estate appraisal that powers appraisers with cutting edge software.
Thatcher Milholland
CoFounder of Biproxi
Thatcher has over 20 years of experience in commercial real estate investment and technology. Previously Thatcher was at Ten-X, where as a Senior Director he managed multiple states, institutional investors, and property types. Throughout his career Thatcher has completed over $4 billion in acquisitions of all property types nationwide. Prior to Ten-X, Thatcher was at Unico Properties in Seattle and JP Morgan in San Francisco.
Follow Thatcher Milholland:
About Biproxi: Biproxi equips commercial real estate sellers & brokers with a single, cloud-based platform to power transactions from list to close.
Ramit Arora
Co-Founder & President of Biz2Credit
Co-Founder & President at Biz2Credit
Follow Ramit Arora:
About Biz2Credit: Biz2Credit is a digital-first provider of small business funding and offers its Biz2X Platform to help financial institutions manage risk.
Rohit Arora
CEO & Co-Founder of Biz2Credit
Rohit Arora is the co-founder and CEO of Biz2Credit. He is known for his immense expertise in the field of small business finance. Under his tutelage, Biz2Credit has witnessed a stupendous growth since its inception. Rohit Arora was named Crain’s NY Business “Entrepreneur of the Year 2011.” due to his pioneering business model and entrepreneurial vision. His expert opinions on small business lending have been covered by major news media that include New York Times, The Wall St. Journal, Bloomberg, Entrepreneur, American Banker, CNNMoney, MSNBC, Inc., and Washington Post. Besides, he is a frequent guest speaker for small business lending seminars and conferences. Rohit’s columns are published on SMB finance for FOX Small Business Center, SmallBizTrends, Franchise Handbook, NewJerseyNewsroom and New York Enterprise Report, just to name a few.
Follow Rohit Arora:
About Biz2Credit: Biz2Credit is a digital-first provider of small business funding and offers its Biz2X Platform to help financial institutions manage risk.
Josiah Gordon
Co-Founder & Chief Marketing Officer of Drinks
Follow Josiah Gordon:
About Drinks: DRINKS is disrupting the way wine is sold by bringing consumers the highest quality wine at the lowest prices, direct to their door
David Goel
Founder & Managing General Partner of Matrix Capital Management
David Goel is Co-Founder and Managing General Partner of Matrix Capital Management, a $3.2 billion investment fund focused on technology and the life sciences. Mr. Goel is responsible for the firm’s day-to-day management. Prior to forming Matrix in 1999, he was a Member and Technology Research Analyst at Tiger Management. Previously, Mr. Goel was an Associate at General Atlantic Partners and an Investment Banking Analyst at Morgan Stanley. He is a member of the Board of Trustees of The Winsor School and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA. Mr. Goel serves as a Director of Adaptive Biotechnologies, Bento Dental, nFerence A.I., Qrativ Biotech, and Zeno Pharmaceuticals and former Director of Popular Bank and Univision Communications. Mr. Goel attended Phillips Exeter Academy before graduating magna cum laude with a B.A. from Harvard University.
Follow David Goel:
About Matrix Capital Management: Matrix Capital Management is an employee-owned hedge fund sponsor focused on public equity markets.
Andrew C. Florance
Founder & CEO of CoStar Group
Andrew C. Florance founded the Company in 1987. As President and CEO of CoStar, Mr. Florance has directed CoStar Group’s successful expansion from start-up, to its IPO in July 1998, to its market-leading position today with a staff of approximately 2,300 worldwide, a client base that includes the commercial real estate industry’s leading brokerage firms and property owners and an international service platform that includes the entire United States, London, England, other parts of the United Kingdom and Paris, France.
Follow Andrew C. Florance:
About Apartments.com, CoStar Group: CoStar Group (NASDAQ: CSGP) is the provider of commercial real estate information, analytics and marketing services.
Gene Eidelman
Co-Founder of Azure Construction
Gene was born in Kiev, Ukraine and was a political refugee from the former Soviet Union. He immigrated to the US when he was 18, and conducted his undergraduate work at the University of Southern California, dropping out of college in his senior year to move his real estate development business from Los Angeles to Atlanta.
Follow Gene Eidelman:
About Azure Construction: Azure Construction provides a unique experience for our clients by using the newest technology and transparent pricing.
Rick Caruso
Founder & CEO of Caruso
Rick J. Caruso is founder and chief executive officer of Caruso Affiliated, one of the largest, privately held real estate companies in the U.S., whose portfolio of world-class retail and mixed-use properties attracts tens of millions of guests each year. Combining architectural and design excellence, open- and green-space elements, one-of-a-kind guest experiences and a commitment to serving the local community, Caruso Affiliated is an undisputed leader and the industry’s most admired real estate development firm in the country. Some of its properties include the highest-grossing retail centers in the world, including The Grove; The Americana at Brand; The Residences at The Americana at Brand; The Commons at Calabasas; The Promenade at Westlake; Waterside, Marina Del Rey, along with 8500 Burton Way, Caruso Affiliated’s premier luxury residential property. A native of Los Angeles, Caruso earned a bachelor of science degree with honors from the University of Southern California in 1980, and a J.D. degree as a Margaret Martin Block Scholar from Pepperdine University in 1983. He started his professional career as a real estate lawyer at Finley Kumble as a member of the firm’s corporate finance department. Thereafter, Caruso chose to pursue his passion of real estate development and transitioned from law in 1987 to establish Caruso Affiliated. Eschewing the traditional mall approach to retail, he revolutionized the industry with imaginative shopping and entertainment destinations that serve as “town centers,” reflecting the unique character of their surrounding communities. Caruso has been an active civic leader for nearly three decades. In 1985, Mayor Tom Bradley appointed him commissioner for the L.A. Department of Water and Power, the nation’s largest municipal utility, becoming the youngest commissioner in the city’s history. In 2001, Mayor James Hahn appointed him to the L.A. Board of Police Commissioners. Caruso was soon elected the commission’s president and led the selection process for William Bratton to become the new Los Angeles Chief of Police. Charitable efforts define Rick Caruso as much as his many business and civic accomplishments. In 1991 he founded the Caruso Family Foundation, dedicated to supporting organizations that improve the lives of at-risk children in Los Angeles, with a special focus on healthcare and education. Caruso is involved with Operation Progress, St. Lawrence of Brindisi School (K-8), and Verbum Dei High School—all part of his commitment to providing opportunities, including education and mentorship, to the kids in the Watts community. He is lead donor and on the board for Para Los Ninos, and he is also on the boards for St. John´s Health Center Foundation and The California Medical Center, and serves as a trustee for the University of Southern California and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation, as well as Pepperdine´s School of Law Board of Visitors. Most recently, he endowed the Caruso Catholic Center and Our Savior Parish Church at USC. Among his numerous awards and honors, Caruso was named one of the city’s most influential leaders by the Los Angeles Times, “Developer of the Year” by the Los Angeles Business Journal, and in May 2013, he received the “True Blue” award from the Los Angeles Police Foundation. In 2006, public television station KCET honored Caruso with its “Visionary Award,” recognizing him as a leader dedicated to positive change in Southern California through philanthropic, business and civic leadership. Recently, Ernst & Young LLC bestowed upon him its 2012 “Master Entrepreneur of the Year” Award for Greater Los Angeles. A coveted speaker on real estate and business trends, Rick Caruso is a regular keynote speaker and panelist at global forums such as the Urban Land Institute, Milken Institute Global Conference, National Retail Federation, Pepperdine University and International Council of Shopping Centers, among other forums. He has also lectured at USC, UCLA, and the Kennedy School of Public Administration at Harvard University.
Follow Rick Caruso:
About Caruso: Caruso Affiliated continues to be the leader in the industry for sales, popularity, growth and the highest quality portfolio.
Ben Mizes
CEO & Co-Founder of Clever Real Estate
Follow Ben Mizes:
About Clever Real Estate: Clever Real Estate company that specializes in the fields of commercial real estate and online marketplace.
Luke Babich
Co-Founder & COO of Clever Real Estate
Follow Luke Babich:
About Clever Real Estate: Clever Real Estate company that specializes in the fields of commercial real estate and online marketplace.
Andrew Scott Duncan
Founder and chief executive officer of The Duncan Duo & Associates
Andrew Duncan is the Founder, CEO and Co-Owner of Tampa’s Best Real Estate Agent Team, The Duncan Duo , co-owner of RE/MAX Dynamic, and the host of The Duncan Duo Real Estate Show Sundays at 10am on 970AM WFLA. As the team’s Founder, CEO & Co-Owner, Andrew’s focus is on the growth of the company, marketing and promotion initiatives as well as motivating and coaching the team’s agents and leadership. Andrew also helps provide the guidance and vision regarding helping get the team’s listings marketed and sold and created the team’s exclusive Guaranteed Home Sale in 29 days program in Tampa Bay. His marketing expertise and attention to innovation has allowed the team to grow dramatically #1 with RE/MAX in the State of Florida and #4 in the U.S. for RE/MAX and has ranked as high as #1 Nationally at RE/MAX. Andrew has constantly sought out new and innovative ideas to continue to help The Duncan Duo’s clients achieve their real estate goals . He’s been interviewed as a real estate expert by The Tampa Tribune, St Pete Times, Florida Realtor Magazine, Realtor Magazine, 970 Fox News WFLA, Tampa Bay’s 10, ABC Action News, RE/MAX Above Magazine, as well as several national real estate websites. You can check out The Duncan Duo’s Tampa Bay Real Estate Video Blog for more updates about their team and news regarding the Tampa Bay Real Estate Market. Andrew & Angela Duncan are the only Realtors in Tampa Bay endorsed by the following national and local media celebrities: Jack Harris, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity from 970AM WFLA, Ron Diaz from the Ron and Ian Show on 620 WDAE and Veronica from Marc and Veronica on Tampa Bay’s Country 99.5 WQYK – and you can click here to see videos of their ads and get your Tampa Bay Home Value estimate. Additionally, The Duncan Duo team are the Official Real Estate Agents of The Tampa Bay Lightning, ranked as one of America’s Fastest Growing Companies by Inc Magazine and have consistently been ranked in the Top 20 in the Real Trends / Wall Street Journal ‘The Thousand’ Ranking of millions of real estate agents for homes sold. All of the accolades and awards for The Duncan Duo are fantastic – but they have been earned by focusing on taking great care of the team’s customers and its team members. By doing all they can to help their clients and their community, The Duncan Duo have earned a solid reputation with 1000’s of 5-star reviews from customers on the major review websites. Andrew graduated from Indiana University and grew up in Indiana before relocating to Tampa Bay 17 years ago. He enjoys all sports but his favorite is basketball as he still plays regularly but he also loves hockey and baseball. He enjoys traveling, is an avid car collector and enthusiast, reading and investing, technology and is always looking for new things to learn.
Follow Andrew Scott Duncan:
About The Duncan Duo & Associates: The Duncan Duo & Associates specializes in real estate services.
Robert Attea
Founder of Life Storage, Inc.
Chairman of the Board and Director of the Company since 1995 and Chief Executive Officer of the Company from March 1997 to February 29, 2012. Robert is one of the founders of the Company and has more than 40 years of experience in the commercial real estate industry and over 30 years in the self-storage industry. Robert brings to the Board of Directors extensive experience in the acquisition, disposition and development of commercial real estate. He also is a key contributor in the development and execution of the Company’s business strategy and provides invaluable expertise related to the self-storage industry. This industry experience coupled with his intimate knowledge of the Company enables him to make invaluable contributions to the Board of Directors and the Company’s success. Robert is the brother-in-law of Edward F. Killeen, Chief Operating Officer of the Company
Follow Robert Attea:
About Life Storage, Inc.: Life Storage, Inc. is a fully integrated, self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT).
Darren Powderly
Co-Founder of CrowdStreet
Darren has transacted hundreds of millions of dollars worth of commercial real estate investments. Darren is a driven leader who loves people, property, technology and deal making. As a CCIM,Darren is recognized as an expert in the disciplines of commercial and investment real estate and is in the top 6% of commercial real estate practitioners nationwide. Darren has successfully negotiated $200,000,000 of commercial real estate transactions since 2003. In addition to taking care of clients, Darren served as President of Compass Commercial, a leading Oregon commercial real estate company. Darren has been an entrepreneur since the age of 19 in Boulder, CO. After earning his BS in Business from the University of Colorado, Darren worked with an international software company in downtown San Francisco where he was quickly promoted and eventually managed a team of 17 sales people. In this executive position, Darren negotiated multi-million dollar deals with companies ranging from VC-funded startups to Fortune 100 corporations. At home, he’s a loving dad, husband and weekend warrior.
Follow Darren Powderly:
About Compass Commercial, CrowdStreet: CrowdStreet is a provider of online commercial real estate investment offerings and technology connecting investors with CRE firms.
Logan Soya
Founder & CEO of Aquicore
Prior to founding Aquicore, Logan worked extensively in the IT and Telecom industries and has delivered numerous complex multi-million dollar management systems both domestically and internationally for high-profile global telecom and media operators. Logan also helped start a research initiative based on highly secure Quantum Encryption. Logan Soya received a BS in Physics, an MS in Systems Management and has his MBA from Georgetown University and London Business School. During his MBA at Georgetown he worked with Foundation Capital, a top-tier Silicon Valley Venture Capital firm. Logan has always had a passion for energy and is excited to take some of the best practices in IT and Telecom management systems to create better building energy management.
Follow Logan Soya:
About Aquicore: Aquicore is an information technology company that offers a cloud-based software designed for asset operations platform for the CRE sector.
Shayne Skaff
Co-Founder/CEO of Blooma
Follow Shayne Skaff:
About Blooma: Blooma is the leading digital underwriting platform powered by artificial intelligence for commercial real estate
Ryan Letzeiser
CEO and Co-Founder of Obie
Follow Ryan Letzeiser:
About Mac Properties, Obie: Obie is an insurtech startup that offers insurance and risk management for real estate investors.
Aaron Letzeiser
Co-Founder & COO of Obie
Forbes called me a Political Animal. Retired from the policy world in order to bring innovative tech solutions to commercial real estate.
Follow Aaron Letzeiser:
About Obie: Obie is an insurtech startup that offers insurance and risk management for real estate investors.
Chris Loeffler
Founder and CEO of Caliber
We say it all day, every day. And we mean it when we say it. Caliber is defined as the quality of someone’s character or the level of their ability. Caliber is synonymous with distinction, worth, excellence, competence, and expertise. These are our values. These are our commitments. These are non-negotiable. Every employee has a mousepad with the words “integrity” and “respect” printed on them. And it’s included in the guiding principles document that all new hires sign. CEO, Chris Loeffler exemplifies these values. Chris Loeffler’s leadership and forward-thinking vision 10 years ago have propelled Caliber into the full-service real estate investment firm we have today, with a private equity portfolio valued upwards of $500 million across five states and more than 700 employees. Chris Loeffler is actively involved in Arizona’s civic and business community, serving on Greater Phoenix Leadership and speaking before the Maricopa County Association of Governments, the City of Scottsdale Economic Development, Sun Corridor Joint Planning Session and more. And if that’s all you knew about Chris, you’d be impressed. But what’s more impressive about Chris is his courage and fortitude. It took courage to walk away from PWC, where he had a clear path to be a partner. It took courage and fortitude to start a company – especially a real estate company in the depths of a recession caused by the real estate crash. But one of the things that makes him so special is his moral fortitude. His character. His world view. Chris gets to know Caliber’s clients and their stories. He knows that when Caliber is successful, you will create more good in the world. He has fired clients who were jerks. Good people are what motivate him. When the system was bad and people got screwed and they needed someone to trust, Chris found his purpose. Chris Loeffler grew up in a military family. His dad retired an admiral and his mother’s service to others earned her the highest civilian honor that can be bestowed. He took a different path, but fundamentally, he, too, leads a life of service. He is motivated by the idea of leveraging relationships to create a bigger impact. And he is grateful. Grateful for his success, grateful for your trust in him, and grateful for his family. He proudly charts every significant Caliber milestone to a milestone with his wife, Abbie. their beautiful daughter, Elsie. Chris is without pretense, he knows what matters and he devotes his life to making the world a bit better every day. Headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, Caliber – The Wealth Development Company is a full-service real estate investment company specializing in commercial, residential, and hospitality properties. Since its inception, Caliber has invested more than $250 million in client equity across the southwest with, currently, more than $400 million in assets under management and $500 million in assets under development. Caliber is a vertically integrated real estate private equity company offering Fund Sponsorship, Asset Management, Development, and Brokerage. The Company applies a values-driven approach to decision making and caring for the ever-growing base of High Net Worth clients and Registered Investment Advisers it serves. Learn more at Caliberco.com or follow Caliber on social @CaliberCo.
Follow Chris Loeffler:
About Caliber, Qwick: Caliber is a full-service real estate investment company specializing in commercial, residential, and hospitality properties.
Jennifer Schrader
President, COO & Co-Founder of Caliber
As a co-founder of Caliber and currently the Company’s President & Chief Operating Officer I ensure that our portfolio of single family homes, apartments, office buildings, and hotels is performing with a maximum positive outcome. I am charged with setting investment strategy for incoming properties in concert with Caliber’s Executive Committee and I further ensure each strategy is implemented or modified as market conditions change. Prior to this role, I served as the Designated Broker for Caliber Realty. During that time I set up an internal system to manage the purchase and sales of over $50,000,000 in investment property. I have spent my entire career as a real estate entrepreneur, preceded by an education in several years of architecture & design school. My designs and contributions can be seen throughout Caliber’s portfolio of investments – including the $8.5M renovation of the Crowne Plaza Phoenix Airport Hotel.
Follow Jennifer Schrader:
About Caliber: Caliber is a full-service real estate investment company specializing in commercial, residential, and hospitality properties.
Eric Fischgrund
Founder/CEO of FischTank PR
Eric Fischgrund is the founder and CEO of FischTank PR, a boutique communications and marketing firm headquartered in New York City. A career MarComm executive, Eric has worked both agency side and in-house prior to launching FischTank PR. The firm specializes in a number of corporate practice areas, including but not limited to B2B and B2C technologies, renewable energy and sustainability, financial services and personal finance products, and non-profits. Eric resides in North Jersey with his wife Monica and dog (Buddy), and enjoys spending time with family and friends, biking, golfing, hiking, reading, and writing.
Follow Eric Fischgrund:
About Boom Local, FischTank PR: FischTank PR is a public relations and marketing firm specializing in media relations, content writing, branding, digital/social, & more.
Perrin Quarshie
Founder & CEO of RealBlocks
Perrin is the Founder of RealBlocks. RealBlocks democratizes access to alternative investments by digitizing shares of the funds over a blockchain-enabled network. The network is designed to create unmatched levels of liquidity and transparency in the traditionally complex world of alternatives, thereby enabling fund managers, financial intermediaries and investors greater control and impact over their performance,
Follow Perrin Quarshie:
About RealBlocks: RealBlocks is a technology platform that delivers online access to alternative investments.
Tanner McGraw
Chief Strategy Officer & Founder of Apto
Tanner is the founder of Apto and a commercial real estate veteran with a decade of brokerage experience. Before Apto, Tanner served as Vice President of Healthcare Advisory Services at Transwestern and as a Senior Associate at Marcus & Millichap.
Follow Tanner McGraw:
About Apto, BlueSuit, Techstars: Apto is a web-based broker software for managing contacts, properties, listings, and deals.
Ross Gordon
Founder and CEO of Mystery Tackle Box
Ross Gordon is CEO/Founder Catch Co.
Follow Ross Gordon:
About Catch, Mystery Tackle Box: Mystery Tackle Box is a retail company that deals with fishing products at affordable prices.
Toby Hervey
CEO & Founder of Bravely
Toby Hervey is the CEO and Founder of Bravely, a new kind of employee benefit in support of workplace health—connecting people with professional coaches for confidential conversations about their performance, growth, relationships, and company culture. Previously, Toby was part of the founding team member at Pager — a mobile platform for patient engagement and on-demand healthcare — serving as the VP of Operations and General Manager and overseeing the company’s national operations group, expansion efforts, and growth initiatives. During Toby’s time with Pager, the company raised $30mm in venture financing and built a team of 60 full-time employees based in New York City. Before Pager, Toby directed strategy and business development for several early-stage, high-growth companies: Waywire, a video-based social network founded by Senator Cory Booker (then Mayor of Newark) which sold to Magnify.net in 2013; Timehop, a digital time capsule mobile app that has since raised a $10mm Series B round; and at the Gilt Groupe, as a founding team member of local services arm Gilt City and menswear vertical Gilt MAN. Toby also serves on the Board of Directors for Out in Tech, a nonprofit dedicated to uniting the LGBTQ community in the tech industry.
Follow Toby Hervey:
About Bravely, New York University: Bravely connects people to on-demand professional coaching through the moments that matter in their lives at work.
Sarah Sheehan
Co-Founder & President of Bravely
Sarah Sheehan is the founder and chief customer officer of Bravely. She began her career in HR at companies like SiriusXM, Coach, and the Gilt Groupe. At Gilt, she pivoted into a sales role at Gilt City, the company’s luxury experiences platform, where she led a 65-person team and saw firsthand how relationships impacted not just company culture, but the bottom line. She is passionate about providing women and underrepresented employees with the access they need to succeed.
Follow Sarah Sheehan:
About Bravely, Forbes Magazine, Junior Explorers: Bravely connects people to on-demand professional coaching through the moments that matter in their lives at work.