I’m a General Partner at TechStars, the #1 startup accelerator in the world. I’m also the co-founder and Managing Partner of Highway 12 Ventures. After 35 years of big city living (NY, Chicago, SF & Boston), I found myself living in the mountains of Idaho. Almost 15 years later, no place has ever felt more like home.
In the spirit of the same transparency that I hope to get from the entrepreneurs I work with, I am not a geek. I can’t code and technology per se doesn’t make my heart beat fast. I am however obsessed with human the side of business, the component that really makes startups tick. I focus much of my energy on creating connections. I’m actually sort of a savant at it. There’s a huge part of my brain that’s labelled “resources” and I’ve got an uncanny ability to mine it. I also pride myself in helping to create great board dynamics, working intimately with founders and ceos and being a never-ending resource for them and their management teams. I’ve been investing and working closely with startups since 1995 and feel fortunate to spend my days with entrepreneurs. I can think of no nobler pursuit in business than someone starting their own company.
I’m married to Pam who (after a successful career in marketing & PR), put aside professional pursuits to focus on the much bigger challenge of producing two young adults ready to contribute to society. She spends a great deal of time working to improve the quality education in Boise, contributing her time and effort to various non-profit organizations in that vein. We feel lucky that we get to be the parents of Sophie and Cameron and marvel at watching them learn and grow into young adults. We also have a stable of pets though the number rotates depending upon neighborhood stray traffic and vacancy opportunities in our home. All of their names are associated with the Grateful Dead. Our yellow labs are named Maggie (Sugar Magnolia) & Rosie (Ramble on Rose). We also have 2 cats, Jerry & Bobby (named for Jerry Garcia & Bob Weir).
A jack of many trades and master of none, my pursuits outside of family, friends & work revolve around being outdoors in this amazing state of Idaho and change often depending upon the season. Somewhat obsessed with photography, I also have a photo blog called My F-Stop.
Thanks for stopping by.
-Mark
