Blair Garrou is a co-founder and Managing Director at Mercury, where he focuses on investments in enterprise SaaS and cloud computing startups.

Prior to co-founding Mercury, Blair was the CEO of Intermat, a leader in product information management software (acq. by IHS). Prior to Intermat, Blair was a Principal of Genesis Park, a Houston-based venture capital and private equity firm, where he focused on the firm’s software investments, including Intermat, FuelQuest (acq. by Saracen Energy), and SAT Corporation (acq. by Invensys). Prior to Genesis Park, Blair helped launch and was the Director of Operations for the Houston Technology Center (HTC), the largest technology incubator in the state of Texas, and he led the formation of the Houston Angel Network, one of the largest and most active angel investment organizations in the U.S. Previously, Blair was an investment banker with BMO Nesbitt Burns, and an auditor with Deloitte & Touche. He received a B.S. in Management with special attainments in Commerce from Washington & Lee University.

Blair is also a co-founder of Station Houston, the largest coworking accelerator in Houston, and SURGE Accelerator, a mentor-driven seed accelerator focused on entrepreneurs seeking to solve the world’s energy problems using software. Outside of Mercury, Blair serves in board and/or advisory roles for the Post Oak School, Rice Alliance, Texas Venture Capital Association, UTHealth, and YPO – Gulf States Chapter. Blair is an Adjunct Professor at the Jones Graduate School of Business at Rice University where he teaches a course on venture capital.  Blair also was named to the Houston Business Journal’s inaugural “40 under 40.”

Dan Watkins  is a co-founder and Managing Director at Mercury, where he focuses on startups utilizing software, cloud computing and/or machine learning to drive the next wave of scientific innovation in healthcare, agriculture and other industrial markets.

Dan also co-founded and is co-CEO of Mercury Data Science, an AI insights and product development company providing contract services to fast growing companies.

Prior to co-founding Mercury, Dan served in a number of operational roles including CEO of DNAtrix and Nanospectra Biosciences, both startup oncology companies. Previously, Dan was Vice President at a boutique investment banking firm and Worldwide Manager of Operations and Control Systems for Scientific Software-Intercomp. Dan received his B.S. from Rice University and his M.S. and Ph.D. from Carnegie Mellon University, all in Materials Science.

Dan is also a co-founder of the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship at Rice University. Outside of Mercury, Dan serves on the advisory boards of Northwestern University’s Innovation and New Ventures Office (INVO), the Rice Alliance, and the University of Illinois Proof of Concept Fund Committee.

Aziz Gilani is a Managing Director at Mercury, where he focuses on investments in enterprise SaaS, Cloud and data science startups.

Prior to joining Mercury, Aziz was a Senior Engagement Leader with Infosys Consulting, an early executive at ABB Performance Services, a Senior Consultant at Cap Gemini Ernst & Young, and an Analyst at Lotus Development Corp. Aziz received his BBA from the University of Texas where he was a TILF Scholar, and his MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management where he was an FC Austin Scholar.

In addition, Aziz is a graduate of the Kauffman Fellows Program through the Center for Venture Education, where he completed industry-defining field work on Seed Accelerators.  Aziz is a recognized expert in Seed Accelerators, and has been quoted in several national publications including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, BusinessWeek, ReadWriteWeb, TechCocktail, and The Business Journals.

Outside of Mercury, Aziz serves in advisory roles for the Mayor of Houston’s Tech and Innovation Council, Seed Accelerator Rankings, and SXSW Interactive. He is also an adjunct professor of entrepreneurship at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business where he teaches a course on venture capital.

Adrian Fortino is a Managing Director at Mercury, where he leads Mercury’s Midwest office in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and focuses on investments in enterprise SaaS, industrial IoT and tech-enabled service companies.

Prior to joining Mercury, Adrian was the Managing Director of Detroit Innovate, a seed stage investment fund targeting seed investments in enabling technologies in healthcare, transportation and industrial applications.  During this time, Adrian was also the Managing Director of the First Step Fund, a micro-investment, industry agnostic fund focused on seed-stage companies in Southeast Michigan.  Prior to Detroit Innovate and the First Step Fund, Adrian co-founded three software companies: Sidecar (acq. by GM), ShepherdIS, and FlockTAG. Prior to founding startup companies, Adrian was the Manager of Powertrain Development with Ricardo, a global engineering consultancy focusing on the automotive, cleantech, military and industrial sectors. Adrian received his BSE in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan and an MBA with High Distinction from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan.

Outside of Mercury, Adrian teaches venture capital classes at the University of Michigan College of Engineering. He also serves on the board of Michigan Venture Capital Association and the advisory boards of First Capital Fund and the Ann Arbor Entrepreneurs Fund.

Winston Gilpin  is the CFO of Mercury Fund.  Winston has over 25 years experience in finance and accounting, serving in a number of executive management and advisory positions for publicly traded and privately owned companies.  As the founder and president of Gilpin Consulting, LLC., Winston provides CFO services to many of Mercury Fund’s incubated startup companies.  Prior to Mercury, Winston served as the CFO of Internet REIT, a leader in direct web navigation.  Formerly, Winston was a director and the CFO of Intermat, Inc. (NYSE: IHS).  During his fifteen-year tenure at Intermat, Winston’s responsibilities included managing all of the financial aspects of the company, strategic planning, contractual and legal matters, sales, marketing, operations and executive management. Prior to joining Intermat, Winston held Controller and/or Chief Financial Officer positions at Partner’s Construction (a subsidiary of Century Development Corporation), a multi-state construction company; Fogle Equipment Company, a construction equipment dealer; and Van Leeuwen Pipe and Tube, a wholesale pipe distributor.  Winston also held the position of Chief Accountant with the Municipal Credit Union of New York City.

Winston attended St. John’s University and is currently a CPA in the State of Texas.

Heath Butler is a Network Partner at Mercury Fund, where he manages the organization’s network platform, including corporate, service provider, and startup community relationships. Heath’s investments focus on themes within B2B SaaS, Improved Consumer Targeting and Tech-Enabled Services.

Prior to joining Mercury, Heath co-founded Gestalt Theory Venture Partners, a venture studio and angel investing group that made 20 investments in 15 companies over a 4-year period. Prior to Gestalt, Heath held executive roles as a seasoned go-to-market and corporate development executive at Insperity (NYSE: NSP), the nation’s leading HR outsourcing services provider. Prior to Insperity, Heath led business development for EnergyWorkspace.com, founded a fin-tech startup, and developed his foundational management skills at UPS. Heath received an MBA in Marketing from Texas Southern University’s Jesse H. Jones School of Business and a B.S. in Finance from the University of New Orleans.

Outside of Mercury, Heath is an active angel investor and mentor in the Houston innovation community and was a founding investor in Station Houston, the programming partner of The Ion. He is passionate about educating, empowering and enabling entrepreneurial ecosystems, and most recently co-founded Urban Capital Network, an angel group focused on democratizing the investment ecosystem for a broader range of investors and entrepreneurs.

Andreas Galliker is the Vice President of Finance and Operations at Mercury, where he supports the CFO and the investment team with financial reporting, due diligence and financial modeling.  Prior to joining Mercury, Andreas worked with Cintrifuse, a Cincinnati-based venture capital fund-of-funds, and for Northcreek, a mid-market mezzanine fund.  Prior to that, Andreas was a Mandate Manager for an Audit, Tax, and Financial Advisory Firm, where he was responsible for annual reporting, audit mandates, and investment accounts.  Andreas received his BBA in Finance, and his M.S. in Finance, where he was a UGS Scholar, from the University of Cincinnati.  He received a Swiss certified specialist in accounting and finance degree (CPA equivalent) from the Institute of Higher Business Education in Lucerne, Switzerland and is a CFA charterholder and a member of the CFA Society Houston.

Lilly Liu is a Senior Analyst at Mercury Fund. She works with the investment team on deal sourcing, investment due diligence, and portfolio company support. Prior to Mercury, Lilly was a Senior Strategy Analyst at Accenture and focused on divestiture planning, carve-out design, and merger integration in the energy, technology, and capital goods industries. Lilly graduated with highest honors from Duke University with a double major in Economics and International Comparative Studies.

Moody Heard is an Analyst at Mercury Fund. He works with the investment team on deal sourcing, investment due diligence, and portfolio company support. Prior to Mercury, Moody was an associate at Queen City Fintech in Charlotte, North Carolina where he connected fintech entrepreneurs to technology executives at Fortune 500 financial institutions and technology providers. Moody was also a 2016 Venture for America Fellow. Moody graduated from Washington and Lee University with a double major in Geology and Business Administration.

Jackie Pfister  is the Marketing Director at Mercury Fund where she supports the investment team in their marketing and branding efforts in order to promote thought leadership and relevant industry-related content. She also works directly with many of Mercury’s portfolio companies to assist them in their marketing goals. Prior to Mercury, Jackie worked as a Business Analyst at Trenegy, a Houston-based management consulting firm. While at Trenegy, Jackie focused on project management, change management, and organizational design related to new enterprise software implementations. Jackie received her BA in Communication with a minor in Business Administration at Texas A&M University in College Station.

Jason Bass is a Financial Accountant at Mercury Fund. He works with the finance and operations team on fund administration and reporting and is also involved with the investment team in financial and operational support of our portfolio companies. Prior to Mercury, Jason was a Senior Accountant in the financial services practice at EY where he was responsible for the year end audits of venture capital and private equity clients. Jason received his BS in Accounting from Auburn University. 

Tolonye Williams is the Mercury Fund Executive Assistant and Office Manager where she supports the investment team through deal flow pipeline and database management; performing venture, company, and market-related research. She also works directly with the Mercury Fund Limited Partners. Prior to Mercury, Tolonye supported executive staff members in various fields including commercial real estate, marketing, and non-profit. A native Houstonian Tolonye attended Houston Community College and The University of Houston.

Kurt has been building and leading digital companies for the past 25 years. His career started as the co-founder of Jupiter Communications. Kurt built Jupiter from a small 12-person group to 520 employees worldwide, establishing Jupiter as one of the leading Internet research organizations.  Jupiter went public in 1999 and merged with Media Metrix in. Kurt served as President & COO of the public company.

Kurt joined Google in 2003 to lead global sales efforts for the launch of AdSense. He managed this team of 40 through the initial 18-month launch of one of Google’s most successful products. At Google, he also served as the Director of Global Sales & Operations Strategy and in that role worked on the roll-out of Google’s international strategy. Kurt also was Director of Sales Operations for North America. In that role he managed a team of 100 supporting Google’s entire direct sales organization.

In his last two roles, Kurt has served as CEO of two venture-back companies. He served as CEO of SocialMedia.com, a leader in online display advertising (acquired by LivingSocial).

Kurt joined social media content sharing company ShareThis in 2011. He led the development of the company’s media business model and then transitioned the company to its current data-focused model. As CEO, he raised over $50 million to support the growth of the company. He is now Chairman of ShareThis.

With his deep experience, Kurt has the vision, management skills and leadership capacity to guide an organization to substantial growth and efficiency. He is highly adept in designing and directing sales, marketing and product development initiatives. He has a proven ability to scale operations and raise the capital to transform a start-up venture into an industry leader. 

Guillermo Borda is a Senior Advisor at Mercury, where he counsels the investment team on best practices in team building, fund management and capital formation strategies. Guillermo is an experienced venture capital and private equity professional having spent most of his career at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in California and Texas. Prior to Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Guillermo started his career with Citigroup in New York City. Guillermo has held a variety of venture capital and private equity roles, including managing capital via large fund-of-funds for the four largest public pension funds in the US. Guillermo’s expertise centers on raising institutional capital, investing in venture and private equity funds and directly in portfolio companies, as well as coaching and supporting CEOs, company builders, and management teams in creating valuable enterprises. He has been a board member of various venture and private equity funds. Guillermo received an MBA and B.S. in Finance from The University of Texas at Austin and is also a graduate of the Venture Capital Institute.

Paul Campbell  has significant experience in the materials and bioscience sectors, with a particular focus on industrial and agricultural biotechnology. Paul is the co-founder and Chief Science Officer of Mercury portfolio company GlycosBio.  Prior to founding GlycosBio, Paul was an Associate of DFJ Mercury.  Prior to Mercury, Paul was the President of AsterBio, a Houston-based biotech company providing bacteria and bacterial blends for the bioremediation, wastewater, and agricultural industries.  Paul received his BS from Duke University, and earned a PhD in Biochemistry and Cell Biology from Rice University, and an MBA from the Jones Graduate School of Business at Rice University.  Outside of GlycosBio, Paul serves on the Houston Technology Center’s Life Science Screening Committee and is a member of BioHouston.

Rich Cilento  is a seasoned entrepreneur with extensive experience in energy, banking, and technology.  Currently serving as CEO of Mercury portfolio company GlycosBio, Rich Cilento was previously, the Founder, President and CEO of FuelQuest, Inc. (acquired by Saracen Energy).  FuelQuest provided on-demand supply chain management and tax automation software and services for suppliers, distributors fuel buyers, and traders in Global Downstream Energy.  Prior to FuelQuest, Rich was the co-founder and Principal of The Bollard Group, which provides investment-banking services to petroleum distribution companies and other high-growth business ventures.  Prior to co-founding The Bollard Group, he held senior-management positions with several technology firms, including Xerox Corp, where he served as Vice President of Strategic Services.  Prior to Xerox, Rich was VP of Corporate Services for XLConnect Solutions, where he served as the company’s lead technologist for advanced systems and as an officer supported the organization through its Initial Public Offering and its eventual merger with Xerox, forming Xerox Connect Solutions.  Rich began his career at NASA, where was a space shuttle flight controller. Rich and his flight control team had responsibility for redesigning NASA’s Mission Control Center and implementing NASA’s Software Management Plan.  He holds a B.S. in Aeronautical and Astronomical Engineering from the University of Illinois, an MBA from the University of Houston and serves as an advisor to a number of small businesses in Texas.

Andrew Clark  has a 25 year career spanning many facets of the technology and energy business. Andrew is a founder and principal with The Castell Group, LLC, an investment and advisory firm assisting companies in the technology business while making investments at both ends of the risk curve from short-term arbitrage to long-term venture investing.  In addition, Andrew is a former president of the Houston Angel Network, where he has invested in numerous companies spanning across a broad range of industries such as consumer products, internet-enabled businesses, enterprise software, cleantech, and life sciences.  In several of these investments he serves on the board, advisory board, or as a board observer. Andrew also currently serves as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence with the Houston Technology Center.

Previously, Andrew was an executive at Reliant Energy, where he helped transition the company to a fully deregulated electricity market.  While at Reliant, Andrew was responsible for all interactive marketing efforts including online advertising, online customer service, online customer acquisition, and the company’s website.  Prior to Reliant, Andrew held various management and executive roles with Compaq Computer, including being a member of the start-up team that ultimately led to the iPAQ PDA.  Prior to Compaq, Andrew was a consultant with Coopers & Lybrand, focusing on the telecommunications and computer industries. Andrew holds a B.S. with a concentration in entrepreneurship from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he was named both a Benjamin Franklin Scholar and a University Scholar.

Jay Gardner  has over 35 years experience as a technology executive, particularly in the computing, enterprise software and SaaS markets. Most recently, Jay served as President and General Manager of The Attachmate Group subsidiary NetIQ, a global leader in systems and security management, and helped lead its merger with Micro Focus International (MCRO.L), a global leader in enterprise software. Jay previously served as a Board Director of Phurnace Software, Inc. (acq. by BMC Software), and as VP Business Development with Fluensee, Inc., both Mercury portfolio companies.  Prior to Attachmate, Jay held several executive roles in an 18 year tenure with BMC Software, including CIO, VP of Sales – North America, VP of Global Field Operations, and VP of Corporate Operations. He also launched the company’s On Demand business, which focused on delivering “Software-as-a-Service.” Before joining BMC, Jay worked for 10 years at IBM in various sales and sales management positions.  Jay has a BS in Business Administration and an MBA, both from Texas Christian University.

Jay has also been recognized within the information technology community for his team’s successful initiatives and has served as a featured speaker for leading industry conferences. He was selected as a finalist for the prestigious Gartner Group CIO Choice Award and honored as a 2003 Premier 100 IT Leader by IDG’s Computerworld. Outside of work, he is active in his community and has served in several civic and church roles, as well as coach for several youth sports organizations. Jay has held a variety of board positions, including Young Life and Fort Bend Education Foundation, and has been a Halftime Advisor and member of the leadership team of Halftime, a non-profit focused on helping create a life of significance in the “second half”.  He has served as a member of the Board of Trustees for River Pointe Church in Sugar Land, Texas, and is currently a member of the CIO Advisory Board at Texas Christian University’s e-business school, and serves on TCU’s regional council in Houston.

Misha Govshteyn  has over 15 years experience as a technology innovator and startup executive with web, SaaS and cloud-based technology companies.  Misha is the co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer for Mercury portfolio company Alert Logic, where he is responsible for security strategy, security research and software development at Alert Logic.  Prior to founding Alert Logic, Misha served as a Director of Managed Services for Reliant Energy Communications.  In this role, he developed and successfully launched five major product lines including Managed Intrusion Detection Services and Managed Enterprise Firewall/VPN Products.  Under Misha’s direction, Managed Services was the fastest growing group at Reliant Energy Communications, increasing revenue by 300 percent and reaching profitability in less than a year.  Prior to Reliant Energy Communications, Misha held the position of Director of Advanced Technical Services at Insync Internet Services.

Misha is currently an advisor to numerous startup technology companies, and is a mentor with seed accelerators SURGE and TechStars Austin.

Mark Hasebroock  is the founder and President of Dundee Venture Capital, an Omaha-based venture capital firm investing in growth companies with an e-commerce and web services focus.  He is also a co-founder and Vice Chairman of Hayneedle.com, one of the largest online retailers of home furnishings.  Prior to co-founding Hayneedle, Mark was the co-founder and EVP of M&A and International Development for GiftCertificates.com.  Prior to his entrepreneurial pursuits, Mark served as VP of Strategic Planning of PKS Information Services, VP Mergers & Acquisitions of Level 3 Communications, and Managing Director of investment banking firm McCarthy & Co.  Mark received his B.A. from the University of Nebraska and his MBA from Creighton University.

Ned Hill has over 20 years of experience as an operator, consultant, and investor in technology companies, with a particular focus on communications, computing, and cloud technologies. Prior to joining Mercury, Ned was a Director with Sternhill Partners, a Texas-based early-stage venture capital firm, where he invested in and worked closely with pioneering start-ups in several important emerging markets, including WiFi (Boingo, IPO), WiMAX (Navini Networks, acq. by Cisco); blade servers (RLX Technologies, acq. by Hewlett-Packard); and virtualization (Surgient, acq. by Quest Software). Prior to Sternhill, Ned was with BellSouth Internet Services where he managed broadband operations during the initial deployment and growth of BellSouth’s broadband Internet service. Prior to BellSouth, Ned was a consultant with McKinsey & Co., focusing primarily on the communications industry; BroadBand Technologies, a start-up fiber-in-the-loop, telecom equipment manufacturer that went public in 1992, where he managed deployments throughout the U.S. and Puerto Rico; Alcatel Network Systems; and Siecor Corporation, a fiber optic cable manufacturer owned by Siemens and Corning. Ned earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from N.C. State University and an MBA from The Amos Tuck School at Dartmouth College where he was named an Edward Tuck Scholar.

Ned currently sits on the boards of Mercury Fund portfolio companies Ambiq Micro, DeepField Networks and Macheen, and is a board observer of Contour Energy Systems. In addition, Ned is a mentor with seed accelerators TechStars Cloud (San Antonio, TX) and TECH Wildcatters (Dallas, TX). Outside of Mercury, Ned serves on the boards of the Texas Venture Capital Association and the Rice Alliance for Technology & Entrepreneurship. He is also an Adjunct Professor at the Jones Graduate School of Business at Rice University where he teaches a course on venture capital.

Michael Himmelfarb helps emerging B2B tech companies bring winning products to market. He is a classically-trained product marketer who uniquely understands how tech customers buy and operate.  As Founder of HG Partners, he assists startup leaders in tackling their biggest growth challenges, including finding market opportunity, elevating their product strategy and positioning, and developing winning go-to-market plans. Clients engage Michael as their fractional product marketing lead, seeing it as a cost-effective way to quickly add expertise and experience to their team. Prior to HG Partners, Michael held various leadership roles in multiple technology, data and analytics companies. At Nielsen, he oversaw record growth for a series of $50-$250M global consumer insights businesses. He also developed and ran startup incubators in emerging markets, started Nielsen’s internal “Shark Tank,” and built successful partnerships with multiple startups. He has held various product and innovation roles with startups (with successful exits), manufacturing companies, and financial services businesses. He also actively mentors young companies at Techstars, 1871, and the Food Foundry, a Chicago-based food industry incubator. Michael received his BS from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and MBA from University of Chicago, both with highest honors.

Dan Janiak currently leads strategy and corporate development at Annexon Biosciences. Prior to Annexon, Dan was a Partner at Mercury Fund and focused on new company creation and early-stage investments in biopharmaceuticals. He is actively involved in Mercury’s investments in BlackThorn Therapeutics, Confluence Life Sciences, DNAtrix, Prolacta, and Sinopsys Surgical. In addition, Dan led the formation of Mercury Fund portfolio companies Apsara Therapeutics and Pelagos Pharmaceuticals.

Prior to joining Mercury, Dan worked in the Physical and Biological Technologies practice at In-Q-Tel, the strategic venture investment arm of the U.S. Intelligence Community. Dan received his B.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Maryland where he was a Future Faculty Fellow and held the Robert E. Fischell Fellowship in Biomedical Engineering. He is a member of Class 17 of the Society of Kauffman Fellows.

Emily Keeton  is currently the CEO of Rezzie (d/b/a Flavour).  She was previously SVP of Corporate Development for Scripps Networks Interactive where she was responsible for Scripps’ corporate M&A initiatives, partnerships and international strategic development.

Emily started her career as an investment banker at Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette and has worked with and advised media companies for more than a decade.  Prior to joining Scripps, Emily was with Ascent Media Group, a leading global media services provider controlled by John Malone, where she led the company’s corporate development activities through the sale of the business.  Emily has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BA from Columbia University. She has served on the Board of Directors of Row New York.

Roberto Moctezuma is the Founder and CEO of Fractal River, a fractional Venture Studio that helps growth startups scale faster.  He is also an EIR at Station Houston and at Rice University’s Entrepreneurship program. Roberto has deep experience working with startups, accelerators, angel investor networks, universities and venture capital groups to help entrepreneurs grow and scale. He also created an accelerator program specifically designed for impact ventures and leads the Houston Growth Startups meetup.

Prior to his entrepreneurial work, Roberto began his career as a software developer, cofounded a startup pioneering electronic fund transfers in Mexico that grew to $50M in revenue. In 1995 he joined Compaq (acquired by Hewlett-Packard), and over the next 15 years, he took on multiple roles of increasing responsibility in eCommerce, sales, marketing, product management, operations, IT and general management. He created Compaq’s eCommerce business for all Latin America countries, managed Operations for HP’s $8B direct business in the Americas region, scaled HP’s Desktop Solutions Global Business Unit into a $450M USD global business, and successfully executed the $240M acquisition and integration of Neoware, Inc. Roberto earned a degree in computer science from Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México in 1989.

Dr. Don Schomer is a co-founder of Mercury portfolio companies Sinopsys Surgical and Vertos Medical. He is currently Chairman of Diagnostic Imaging at Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center; and was previously a practicing neuroradiologist at Radiology Imaging Associates and staff member of the Colorado Neurological Institute in Denver. Prior to R.I.A., Dr. Schomer was a tenured Associate Professor at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. He received his M.D. from the University of Texas Health Sciences Center in San Antonio and was awarded a fellowship at the Stanford University Medical Center in neuroradiology. Dr. Schomer is the Founder of Interferometrics, Inc., a non-invasive bio-sensing technology developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory and has served as a member of the Scientific Advisory Boards of MTIX (NASDQ), MedDetec Inc., and Trilix Inc. (acquired by Emed, Inc.).

Rob Schultz  is a Partner with Serra Ventures, a Champaign, Illinois based venture capital firm focused on emerging growth companies in the Midwest.  Prior to Serra Ventures, Rob was a Managing Director at Illinois Ventures, a unique early-stage venture organization focused on commercializing research derived out of the Illinois university systems.  Rob is the Founder and former CEO of DigitalWork, where he grew the company from start-up through an IPO process.  He is also a former McKinsey and Deloitte consultant.  In 2000, Rob was an EY Entrepreneur of the Year finalist.  Rob received his MBA in finance from the University of Chicago and his BA in economics from Northwestern University.

Omair Tariq is an experienced executive in eCommerce, retail, and data science. He is currently COO ofthe largest Home Depot eCommerce subsidiary, Blinds.com. Omair joined Blinds.com as employee #36 in 2010, where he helped them scale rapidly, raise strategic capital, and ultimately exit to The Home Depot in 2014. He has also served Blinds.com as CFO and Head of BI & Data Science.

In addition to his current role at Blinds.com, Omair also sits on the Board of Advisors for small to mid-size companies in the retail and technology space. He is passionate about the use of machine learning and AI in solving complex business problems. Omair has also built and exited a startup in the women’s retail space, is an active mentor with Capital Factory and Ion/Station Houston, and is an opportunistic angel investor.

Omair received his MBA from Rice University and BA in Applied Mathematics and Physics fromUniversity of Cambridge.

John Westwick  is an Entrepreneur-In-Residence with Mercury Fund, where he is actively seeking out new oncology therapies and technologies.  Dr. Westwick’s scientific and biotech career spans over 30 years, with a constant focus on defining cellular mechanisms of cancer, inflammatory and metabolic diseases and translating this knowledge into improved therapeutics.  Dr. Westwick has contributed to multiple drug development programs that are currently marketed or in human clinical trials.  Recent work also involves the development of novel technologies for systems biology and stem cell analysis. He is internationally recognized in the field of cellular signaling and drug discovery technology development, with over 200 podium presentations at international scientific conferences, pharmaceutical and biotech companies and over 60 published scientific articles and patents.  The ultimate goal of these efforts is the creation of novel technologies for biopharma companies and new therapies for patients.

Previously, Dr. Westwick was President & CEO of Odyssey Thera, a privately-held therapeutic company with expertise in cell systems biology.  Prior to Odyssey Thera, Dr. Westwick held executive positions at Celgene Corp. and Signal Pharmaceuticals.  Dr. Westwick holds a B.A. degree in Biology from UC-San Diego, a Ph.D. in Molecular Pathology from the UC-San Diego School of Medicine, and completed post-doctoral studies in Medicine and Pharmacology at the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Medicine, where he was subsequently named the Lineberger Fellow at the UNC Comprehensive Cancer Center.  Outside of Mercury, Dr. Westwick serves on the Board of Directors of Vala Sciences and Visionary Pharmaceuticals.