Karl Gemperli
Co-Founder
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Seasoned public company CEO and Board Member who has generated significant long-term shareholder value through technical leadership, strategic business development, and disciplined operations management. Founder and CEO of Elecsys Corporation (NASDAQ: ESYS), a pioneer of industrial wireless, IoT, and cloud data management solutions that was acquired by Lindsay Corporation (NYSE: LNN) in 2015. Elecsys was named 3 times to Fortune’s “Small Business 100” list of fastest growing public companies and to Forbes “America’s Best Small Companies” in 2014. Previously President of DCI, Inc., Vice President of Operations at Airport Systems International, and Director of Manufacturing at Goodrich Aerospace. A native of New York and member of the Investment Committee at Castor Ventures, the MIT alumni VC Funds.
BS, Massachusetts Institute of Technology MEng, Boston University |
Brendan Fallis
Co-Founder
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Former Region President of Verizon Wireless who drove Annual Recurring Revenue from $1 Billion to $2 Billion in six years. An experienced technology executive with over 20 years’ experience in senior leadership roles in sales, distribution, go-to-market, business development, and strategy. Previously Director of B2B Sales, Director of Consumer Sales, and Director of Wireless Data Sales at Verizon Wireless. Personally executed over $8 Billion of revenue committed contracts with 25% of the Fortune 500. Current member of the Board of Advisors at the University of Kansas School of Business. A Silicon Valley native named to the Top 40 Under 40 Business Leaders.
BA, Pomona College MBA, Norwich University Executive Programs at Harvard Business School and Stanford School of Business |
Todd Daniels
Managing Director
General Partner |
An experienced CFO for both publicly traded and private companies with over 25 years’ experience managing financial and administrative operations at multiple technology businesses. Most recently, CFO of Pivot International, an electronic design and manufacturing organization operating ten facilities in six countries on three continents. Previously CFO of Elecsys Corporation (NASDAQ: ESYS), Manager of Corporate Reporting at Epiq Systems (NASDAQ: EPIQ), and various financial management roles at Honeywell Aerospace, KPMG, and Deloitte. A native of Kansas City and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
BS, University of Kansas |
Patrick Ryan
General Partner
Investment Committee |
Senior Executive at TikTok where he leads technical policy and governance initiatives. Previously, Dr. Ryan was a Senior Executive at Google where he led global cybersecurity governance initiatives and internet governance and international public policy with the United Nations and ICANN. Dr. Ryan is considered an authority on Blockchain technology applications in enterprise financial systems. Dr. Ryan regularly authors academic articles and lectures on technology policy internationally and serves as the Faculty Director of the Interdisciplinary Telecommunications Program at the University of Colorado at Boulder.
BA/MBA, Middlebury Institute of International Studies JD, University of Texas, Austin MBL, Universität St. Gallen, Switzerland PhD, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium |
Bob Taylor
Investment Committee
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Retired Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Executive AirShare Corporation, a significant regional fractional and managed aircraft fleet operator. He is a lifelong entrepreneur and a recognized financial expert. An experienced public company executive and board member, Mr. Taylor has served on the Boards of Directors and Audit Committees of Inergy LP, Blue Valley Bancorp, Elecsys Corporation, Commercial Federal Corporation, Rent-A-Center Inc., and Railroad Financial Corporation, as well as numerous private companies. Mr. Taylor is a Trustee of the Kansas University Endowment Association, and a member of the Board of Advisors of the KU School of Business.
BA, University of Kansas MBA, University of Michigan |
George Semb
Investment Committee
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Professor Emeritus at the University of Kansas, an independent research analyst, and a successful small business entrepreneur. An experienced board member of public, private, and nonprofit corporations, Dr. Semb was the Founder and CEO of Trilogy Systems, a software development company providing networked learning and testing systems to publishers, educational institutions, and the U.S. military. Dr. Semb participated as an investor/board member in the acquisitions of 14 publicly traded companies, including: Dillons, BHA, and BATS Global Markets. Dr. Semb has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific studies and is a member of the Johnson County Community College Foundation Board and a member of its Investment Committee.
BS, University of Washington ScM, Brown University PhD, University of Kansas |
Kip Wiggins
Investment Committee
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Retired Partner at Stinson Leonard Street LLP and past Vice Chair of the firm’s Corporate Finance Division and past Chair of its Venture Capital and Private Equity Capital Practice Group. Since 1975, he has built an extensive practice including numerous financing transactions for national, regional and local emerging businesses. He represents venture capital, private equity, and individual investors structuring debt and equity financing packages to facilitate growth of businesses from start-up to exit. Mr. Wiggins was selected to The Best Lawyers in America, for Corporate Governance and Compliance Law, Leveraged Buyouts and Private Equity Law, and Mergers & Acquisition Law. He was also recognized with the Outstanding Angel Contribution Award by the Mid-America Angels.
BS, University of Missouri - Columbia JD, University of Missouri - Kansas City |
