WCA’s 22nd Annual What’s Hot (and What’s Not) VC and M&A Panel
November 18, 2021
@
4:00 pm
–
5:30 pm PST
Does it make sense to invest in
Wireless Technologies for Industrial IoT?
About this event:
The telecom industry, moving from 2021 into 2022, has changed and will continue to grow. Telecoms are undergoing a digital revolution of both technologies that power the industry and direct how they communicate with customers. There is an acceleration of Industrial IoT and 5G technologies in the telecom industry. The COVID-19 pandemic has intensified the ongoing digital revolution, generating the need for customer-focused services and greater productivity. Industry structural shifts are based on offering new value and ensuring that communication and content services become digital. New trends which had transformed the telecom industry in 2021; including (but not limited to) 5G, AI, Big Data, Industrial IoT, robotic process automation, mobile EDGE and cloud computing, cyber security, OpenEverything, SmartEverything.
At our 22nd annual CenterStage VC Panel, our investor panelists will enlighten us about a few trends reshaping the telecom industry in 2021 and as they are projecting for 2022 and beyond.
Agenda:
4:00 : Event Introductions and Acknowledgements – Moderator Introduction
4:10 : Round Table Discussion
5:00 : Q&A
5:20 : Raffle
5:25 : Q&A
5:30 – end: Thank you note and closure
Moderator and Panelists Bio:
Moderator – Lisa Oshima
Founder, and Managing Consultant Socialize Mobilize
Lisa is a strategy and business development consultant who works with technology companies to help them find product-market fit, make money, expand distribution, form partnerships, market products, create platform ecosystems, and accelerate growth. Working with emerging tech start-ups and assisting well-established corporations in identifying and closing innovative partnerships with start-ups are two of her favorite things to do.
Mark Bagley
Managing Director – Woodside Capital Partners
Mark is the managing director of Woodside Capital Partners. This global independent investment bank provides strategic and financial advisory to leading technology companies, primarily in mergers and acquisitions, equity capital raising, and acquisitions in the middle market and emerging growth companies.
Previously headed up Strategic Global Partnerships for BT for 15 years based in Silicon Valley. This role involved finding, qualifying, and then managing partners and alliances in Silicon Valley relevant to BT’s wide range of markets in consumer & business retail & wholesale markets in the UK and IT and vertical solutions for multinationals globally in around 200 countries.
Rajeev Madhavan
Founder and General Partner – Clear Ventures
Rajeev Madhavan is a founder and General Partner of Clear, where he focuses on early stage technology investments. Rajeev brings operational skills from founding, building and running (as CEO) two highly successful companies. He has the uncanny ability to deeply understand what entrepreneurs are trying to do, and to steer them onto a successful path. He has been a venture investor in over 35 companies.
Rajeev’s notable exits include Apigee (IPO), YuMe (IPO), Virident (acquired), Magma (IPO), Groupon (IPO), VxTel (acquired), LogicVision (IPO) and Ambit (acquired).
Prior to founding Clear in 2014, Rajeev founded three successful startups. The most recent, Magma Design Automation, became the 4th largest Electronic Design Automation company in the world under
Yee Lee Senior Vice President – Cascadia Capital
Yee is a Senior Vice President at Cascadia Capital and spends his time within the firm’s Energy & Applied Technologies (electrification/energy transition) and Robotics, Automation & Artificial Intelligence (digital transformation) practice groups. Cascadia, based in Seattle, is a thesis driven investment bank serving middle market companies by helping its clients raise growth capital and transacting on M&A engagements. Yee leads Cascadia’s Internet of Things (IoT) sector coverage. Additionally, Yee sits on the board of the WA State IoT Council with the goal of creating a leading IoT ecosystem in the PNW.
Tricia Salinero Managing Partner – Stout
Tricia has completed more than 100 mergers and acquisitions in the technology sector, ranging from digital devices and imaging software to SaaS and the Internet, for a total value of nearly $4 billion. She sold businesses to a variety of companies, including Oracle, Google, Red Hat, and Tibco, as well as American Greetings and Agilent. She is an expert in mergers and acquisitions, strategic advisory, private placement, software as a service, online marketing, digital media, and imaging.
Henry is an investment associate with TDK Ventures, a $200 million corporate VC fund investing globally in early stage hard-tech companies. Henry focuses on technology sectors including connectivity and computing. Prior to TDK Ventures, Henry had extensive experience in technology development, engineering operation, product management and technical sales in both Silicon Valley startups (NextG Networks, 3TEN8 and Tarana Wireless) and Fortune 500 company (AT&T).
Raffle:
We will raffle a set of Grill BBQ Gloves, 932℉ Heat Resistant Oven Gloves Must be present at time of the raffle. We will send the gloves directly to the winners.
As a trained physicist, Dr. Jeff Yen has a strong entrepreneurial mindset that made him embark on the journey of business and co-found a company that is developing wireless power technology. He received his bachelor’s degree in physics and astrophysics at UC Berkeley and Ph.D. in physics at Stanford University. He is a co-author of multiple IEEE papers and co-inventors for 30 patents worldwide.
Bio Chris King
Chris is an accomplished leader of sales, and channel development teams focused on the customer journey, acquisition strategy, operational efficiency, and post-sale service evolution. For over 20 years, he has led and closed large complex sales opportunities. Chris’ experience in Product Marketing, Technical Sales, Sales, and Sales Management, a forward-thinking leadership style, attention to detail, curiosity, and a strategic mindset delivers growth and long-term value for customers.
Zeki is Founder and CEO of CRATUS. For 20+ years he has been a senior in business and technical leadership in commercializing Energy Storage, Battery, IoT, sensors, sensing systems, AI and machine learning technologies. Managing a global business with three product lines. CRATUS provides Engineering Innovation solutions in hardware and software for IoT Technology: Sensors and Sensing Systems, Battery and Energy Management, Electrification, Machine Vision, Machine Learning, Operational Intelligence, Real-Time Location Services. CRATUS offers consulting services for UI/UX development for software, electromechanical hardware and industrial designs for products. The nature of these services are oriented towards achieving business goals by placing the emphasis on usability and users of the products.
Paul is leading the TNL U.S.A. Mobility Business Unit, a Technolution subsidiary and engages with municipalities and public transit agencies to solve their hardest problems. As proven in San Francisco where they reduced public transit delay on red by 72.5%, reduced CO2 emissions by 26.1%, and build all the processes, roles & responsibilities, and technology, to deploy to potentially hundreds of intersections.
As a strategy execution consultant who specializes in helping transportation agencies, he helps realize high-impact improvements to the safety and experience of the people in the streets and in the public transit vehicles.
Paul is a regular speaker at conferences and webinars. He holds a Master of Science degree from Twente University, The Netherlands.
Pui San Tam is a manager with a strong background in international community building and a passion for innovation. She leads projects focused on driving entrepreneurship and innovation in the technology sector. Based in San Francisco, she has served as a consultant to the European Institute of Innovation and Technology. Fluent in three languages — Dutch, Chinese and English — she has successfully delivered projects for some of the world’s leading private and public organizations, spanning multiple areas such as startups, scale-ups and cross-Atlantic entrepreneurship in general. She is skilled at organizing fact-finding and trade missions, and she plays a crucial role in organizing events and moderating seminars as a panelist on topics in emerging technologies, including climate and sustainability. She is known for her excellent communication and collaboration skills and her passion for teamwork. Pui San is committed to driving positive change through her projects at Amplify.
Andy Do is the Founder and President of Embedded Works and a Board Member of the Wireless Communications Alliance (WCA.org) his focus area is wireless IoT technologies. Mr. Do has over 20 years of wireless industry experience, with an emphasis on GPS, WiFi, Cellular, and LPWAN radios and applications. He has launched several IoT brands, including TrackingForLess and SensorWorks. He holds bachelor’s degrees in electrical engineering and music from Santa Clara University. He has held management positions at Cisco Systems, Hewlett-Packard, and Proxim.
As Executive Manager Peter brings with him about 40 years of extensive experience in Engineering, Sales, Marketing, Business Development and Executive Leadership, in all market segments of the Wireless Industry, Big Data, FinTech and SaaS. Since 2008 Peter has been operating as an independent business consultant, consulting domestic and international companies to become successful in getting.
In Germany Peter was Head of Department of Debis (Daimler Benz InterServices).
Jeremy is Leader of Research and Development, Product Line Management, and Open Innovation directing teams of up to 30 people with $80M+ in revenue responsibility, for global companies with 5,000+ employees and $2B+ in revenues in Industrial Automation, Semiconductors, Wireless, Computer Hardware, and Electrical/Electronic Manufacturing.
Jeremy Vice President of Research and Development at Azbil North America R&D
www.linkedin.com/in/jeremytole/ Jeremy has served on the WCA Board since 2016. Email: Jeremy.tole@wca.org Mobile: +1-408-431-6397
Bio Tom Hunt
Tom is a successful entrepreneur who has launched and grown products and companies in highly competitive and emerging markets. Experienced in sales, business development, go-to-market strategy, and execution as a general manager. Tom presently serves as the Managing General Partner of Axcellex, LLC. This strategic consulting firm assists technology firms in overcoming significant business obstacles, seizing new market possibilities, and achieving tangible outcomes.
www.linkedin.com/in/tom-hunt-b403/ Tom has served on the WCA Board since 2018. Email: tom.hunt@wca.org Mobile: +1-408-205-0313
Bio Marcel Verheijen
As a Global Business Developer in Breakthrough Technology, Marcel has accumulated over two decades of experience in (digital) marketing, start-ups, go-to-market (GTM), and access-to-market (A2M) strategies. Additionally, he recently co-founded “Amplify your Globalization,” a platform designed to accelerate the growth of start and scaleups. Marcel’s analytical thinking skills enable him to excel at converting complex problems into solutions. He is a team-oriented motivator who takes a hands-on approach to leadership. Furthermore, Marcel is an expert in innovation, and his passion for leading and motivating teams helps him to develop strong interpersonal relationships.