How to Raise Money for Your Business with Deb Parsons, Eric Weaver, Stuart Rudick, Kirk Inglis, Jonathan Storper and Ed Lambert
Have an idea for a new business or project, but need some serious money to get it off the ground?
All of our experts (top venture capitalists and small-business lenders) concentrate on helping small businesses get off the ground and succeed. They will share their wealth of experience, advice and strategies on: * How to get the money you need for your business * Creating a business plan that will get attention -- and action * What lenders and VC investors really want to hear in your pitch * How to grow a start-up business.
Need money to jumpstart your dream? Come to this class.
Our expert panel includes:
Deb Parsons - ModeratorDeb Parsons, Co-Director of Investors' Circle. She has spent last six years working in the social venture capital sector. Prior to IC, she was Vice President at Good Capital, managing the fund's operational aspects, investor relations and deployment of capital. Deb was an associate at SJF Ventures during business school, a community development venture fund focusing on cleantech and the LOHAS sector. Prior to school, she spent six years in business development, marketing, and partner management at WGBH, Intuit and The North Face. Deb received her MBA from Kenan Flagler Business School, UNC-Chapel Hill, where she was a Carolina Venture Fellow with a focus on sustainable enterprise and entrepreneurship. As the Net Impact chapter leader, Deb launched the Sustainable Venture Capital Investment Competition (SVCIC), an event that puts MBA student teams in the role of VCs evaluating real business opportunities of socially responsible businesses actively seeking capital.
Eric WeaverEric Weaver, founder and CEO of Opportunity Fund, has combined his background as a community organizer with an education from Stanford Business School to develop an innovative not-for-profit financial institution that uses market principles to effect systemic change.
Under his leadership, Opportunity Fund has gown into one of the nation's largest and most effective microfinance institutions, with an emphasis on both savings and credit. Opportunity Fund operates one of the nation's largest Individual Development Account (IDA) program, and is the largest provider of micro-loans to low-income entrepreneurs in California.
In 2006, Eric was named one of the first seven recipients of the James Irvine Foundation Leadership Award, awarded to individuals who are successfully tackling some of California's most challenging problems. In addition, the Skoll Foundation has twice selected Opportunity Fund for the Skoll Award for Innovation in Silicon Valley; and the Small Business Administration named Eric Weaver its Financial Services Advocate of the Year in 2006.
Stuart RudickStuart Rudick has been a practitioner, leader and investor in the health and wellness community for over 30 years. Mr. Rudick is the founding partner of Mindful Investors Fund 1, an investment partnership focused exclusively on opportunities in the rapidly growing healthy, organic, sustainable, consumer products market. Prior to Mindful Investors, Mr. Rudick was a founding partner of Uplift Equity (2003-2006), a private family office that focused on investments in health and wellness. In 1994, Mr. Rudick founded Mindful Partners, L.P., a $140 million hedge fund which focused on public and private investments.
Before founding Mindful Partners, Mr. Rudick was an Associate Director at Bear Stearns Inc. from as well as a partner with Shearson Lehman/Davis Skaggs.. Rudick earned a B.S. in Business from the University of Colorado and has attended the University of Lancaster, UK and MBA course work in Finance at Golden Gate University. He has served as a Director of the University of Colorado Alumni Association and was a founding Board member and Chairman of the Waterkeepers/Baykeeper of Northern California. He currently serves as Board member of Blue Planet Run and a Foundation Board Member of the Mill Valley Library. Over the past two decades, Mr. Rudick has been actively supporting leading environmental groups including NRDC, Rainforest Action Network, Blue Water Network/Friends of the Earth and Outward Bound Youth at Risk. Mr. Rudick's is an active member of B Corporation, Investors' Circle and Environmental Entrepreneurs.
Kirk InglisMr. Inglis brings over 15 years of experience in the financial services industry to Prosper Marketplace. Throughout his career, he has been successful at improving the operating performance of businesses by creating a focus on core variables and improving the productivity of resources.
Most recently he consulted Wells Fargo Bank on the effectiveness of their online marketing programs. Prior to that, Mr. Inglis spent 9 years with Providian Financial Corporation. While at Providian, he was President of First Select Corporation, the largest purchaser of charged-off credit card debt in the United States. In addition, he served as Chief Financial Officer of GetSmart.com following its acquisition by Providian. Mr. Inglis also developed the financial planning and control infrastructure for Providian Financial Corporation following the spin-off from its parent in 1996.
Mr. Inglis earned a MBA in Finance from Memphis State University and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Texas at Austin. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and a member of the CFA Society of San Francisco.
Jonathan StorperJonathan chairs the Corporate, Securities, Tax and Sustainable Business Practice Groups. He counsels for profit and nonprofit entities and their investors in connection with business and intellectual property transactions, including formation and finance, such as initial and secondary public offerings, contracts and licenses, joint development agreements, mergers and acquisitions, intellectual property licenses, e-commerce, technology-related matters and general corporate law. He has a special affinity and expertise in social entrepreneurship."
Ed LambertEd Lambert is a Senior Vice-President with Bridge Bank-focusing on creating and expanding relationships with Emerging Growth to Public High-Tech, Green and Life Science Companies. He began his 27 years of banking/lending experience with Bank of America and has achieved significant success wherever he has worked including Silicon Valley Bank, Imperial Bank and Comerica Bank. Ed also began the Tech Practice for Coast Business Credit, building to $20-30MM in annual commitments. He contributes this success to being an overall "solution source" partner to clients, prospects, referral partners and colleagues - for any problem. Ed has employed this focus on providing solutions to companies from seed to public--including such well known companies as Cisco, Atmel, CNET, Biomarin, Cepheid, Mattson, Read-Rite, Pandora, Solar City, Serious Materials and Cadence to name a few. At Bridge, his focus is to provide a combination of "virtual" and human support to clients that will allow them to grow domestically and internationally.
Ed holds an MBA from Santa Clara University and a BA in history from the University of California at Santa Cruz.
Ed has sat on several boards, including the executive committee of the American Electronics Association, the Silicon Valley Assoc. of Software Entreprenuers (SVASE), He has spoken at Tech events in the U.S. and Europe and is a contributing blogger on banking and VC issues to AlwaysOn Networks.
