Accessible, world-class experience
These folks have walked in the same shoes you have, and they’ve also walked down a few business paths you’re looking to travel, but may not have — yet.
The bottom line is these people are more than marquee names. They will actively serve as allies to help your company grow, whether by opening doors for your company or by rolling up their sleeves and sitting in on your strategy sessions. Just a few of the areas where our advisory board will be able to help you:
- Guidance on operating and financing needs
- Introductions to strategic partners and customers
- Counsel on mergers and acquisitions
- Expertise on broadening distribution channels
- Assistance in soliciting key management recruits
Art Berry
CEO, Arthur Berry and Company
Art Berry is Founder and President of Arthur Berry & Company, which manages a selective mergers and acquisitions practice as well as a business appraisal practice. He formerly maintained a successful 20-year affiliate relationship with Geneva Business Services. He has served on the Board of Directors for numerous companies in the industries of banking, insurance, manufacturing, distribution, real estate, education and community service. Art has an undergraduate degree in Corporate Finance, an MBA from Boise State University, and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Idaho. He is a former adjunctive professor at Boise State University in the School of Business, a Certified Business Appraiser with The Institute of Business Appraisers and is a Broker member of the International Business Brokers Association.
“Having sold hundreds of Intermountain West companies during the last 25 years gives us a better understanding of the ‘classic western entrepreneur’ which is attracted to this wonderfully unique region.”
Barbara Wilson
Former Regional Vice President, Qwest;
Former Director, San Francisco Federal Reserve Board
Barbara worked in the telecommunications industry for the better part of three decades, retiring from a senior post as regional vice president for Qwest. She began her career with Pacific Northwest Bell, progressing to senior-level roles there and at US West. Barbara has extensive experience in sales and marketing, operations and public policy/external affairs. She became a corporate level Officer for U S West in 1986 and served in a variety of positions since that time including president for U S West Information Systems.
Barbara was selected to participate and represent the state of Idaho at President Clinton’s Economic Summit held in 1992. She spent a total of 9 years serving as a Board Member for the Federal Reserve System: Three years at the Salt Lake City Branch Board, which she chaired for two years and then the maximum allowable two three year terms at the Head Office Board in San Francisco. She was on the Executive Committee for her full term and chaired the Audit Committee at the San Francisco Bank for the past four years. She has a BA in Economics and Finance from the University of Puget Sound and an MBA from the University of Washington.
“For me, the focus on companies in Idaho and the Intermountain West is more than geographical in nature. It’s an added bonus to be able to help create business success and growth in the area I love.”
Bill Shiebler
Former CEO of the Americas, Deutsche Asset Management, Deutsche Bank
After a distinguished career as a Senior Executive in the asset management business, Bill is currently active in a variety of business, community, and charitable organizations. Until January 2007, he was an Advisory Vice Chairman and former CEO of the Americas of Deutsche Asset Management, the asset management arm of Deutsche Bank. Prior to that, he was a Senior Managing Director of Putnam Investments, and President and COO of Dean Witter’s Intercapital Division.
He is currently active in family investment businesses; TreeTops Investment LLC and TreeTops Corporation LLC. He is a Director of Oxigene Inc. and Attensity Corp., as well as an advisory board member of several corporations. He was a member of the Presidential Commission on Medicaid, a Trustee of the Salt Lake Olympic Committee, a Trustee of Kean University and is currently Chairman of the Park City Center for Public Policy, and a Trustee of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Team Foundation, among other charitable and community organizations. Bill is a resident of Park City, UT.
“The physical beauty and outdoor recreational opportunities drew my family to the mountains of Utah and Idaho. We have all become involved in the vibrant and exciting business communities in our respective towns. Highway 12’s mission to serve the financing needs of growth companies in the Intermountain West benefits the people and communities of the land we love; providing career opportunities and other benefits that will allow this wonderful place to prosper and grow.”
Bob O’Connor
Partner, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
Bob is a corporate partner at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, where he is a leader of the firm’s clean technology practice and maintains the Number 1 law practice within the venture capital community in the State of Utah and perhaps the Intermountain Region. In addition, he is a founding partner of the firm’s Salt Lake City office.
Bob’s practice focuses on helping technology and emerging growth companies form, organize, and capitalize businesses; raise capital through private and public debt and equity financings; buy and sell companies and technologies; and engage in mergers and acquisitions and other strategic transactions. He has served as the lead attorney in the initial public offerings of Omniture, Overstock.com, and Altiris. Among other honors, Bob received a Number 1 ranked corporate lawyer by Chambers USA: America’s Top Business Lawyers in the State of Utah and named one of the top “40 under 40” by Utah Business magazine in 2005.
Bob is an advisory board member for the CleanTech Venture Network, a board member of Utah Clean Energy, and a member of the Energy Policy Advisory Board of the Office of the Governor of the State of Utah. Bob is a former member of the Boards of Trustees of the Utah Information Technology Association and the Utah Life Science Association and serves on the Board of Directors of the University Venture Fund, a student Venture fund affiliated with the University of Utah. Bob is the co-author of “The Initial Public Offering: A Guidebook for Board of Directors and Executive Officers” and he is a frequent speaker on topics relating to venture capital, public offerings, and corporate governance.
Cheryl Bunnett Schrader PhD
Dean, College of Engineering, Boise State University
Cheryl became the Dean of Boise State University’s College of Engineering and Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering after twenty years of leadership in academia and industry, including McDonnell Douglas Astronautics Company, University of Texas at San Antonio, Rice University, and Chimera Research. She authored more than 80 technical publications in the areas of systems and control, robotics, and intelligent systems, with biomedical, networking and aircraft applications. Her grant and contract funding exceeds seven million dollars.
Cheryl received the Exemplary Online Course Award from WebCT and was Senior Fellow with the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. Other awards include the 2002 Engineering Excellence Award from Steven Myers & Associates for excellence in engineering, 40 Under 40 Rising Stars Award from the San Antonio Business Journal for leadership, career success and community involvement, and 2005 Idaho Women Making History Award. In 2005 the White House presented Cheryl with The Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring.
In addition to advisor to Highway 12, Cheryl currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Discovery Center of Idaho. She is Past President of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Control Systems Society, a professional organization with 9,000 members worldwide. For her many contributions to the Society, she recently received its Distinguished Member Award.
Cheryl completed her PhD and MS degrees in control systems at the University of Notre Dame, and received her BS degree in electrical engineering with high distinction from Valparaiso University, where she was an honors college graduate.
“Highway 12 offers the opportunity to bring the next big idea to fruition. It is an integral part of the high tech continuum in the northwest region, from academic research and development to technology transfer. I am pleased to be part of the team that shapes the future.”
Ed Mahoney
Vice President Information Systems, Micron Technology, Inc.
Ed has been Vice President of Information Systems at Micron since 1997. He joined the company in 1981 and for the next 15 years developed his technical perspective by working in a variety of areas in information technology. This included creating software applications in multiple programming languages for all of Micron’s major functional areas, ranging from manufacturing to engineering and administration. For the following 10 years, with Micron’s transition from a small memory chip company in Boise to an international semiconductor provider with global reach, Ed oversaw the overhaul of Micron’s IT infrastructure and IT business processes. More recently, his efforts have been focused on sponsoring an enterprise architecture approach to align information technology capabilities with Micron strategic objectives.
Ed graduated from Boise State University in 1981, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Systems. A former member of the Boise State University College of Business Advisory Board, he is an active member in the Boise CIO Forum sponsored by BSU.
“Information Technology is not a core competency of just a global semiconductor manufacturer - it is at the root of every core competency.”
George Harad
Former CEO and Chairman, Boise Cascade Corporation; Former Executive Chairman, OfficeMax
George had a long career with Boise Cascade Corporation, serving as Chairman and CEO from 1994 to 2004, when the company sold its forest products businesses and adopted the name OfficeMax for its combined retail and contract office products business. George continued with OfficeMax as Executive Chairman, until his retirement in 2005. He is currently a director of the Clorox Company, and heads a small private investment company.
“An acquisition never looks better than the time you first conceive of it.”
Gerry Langeler
General Partner, OVP Venture Partners
For over than 30 years, Gerry has started and grown technology-based companies. Most recently, he has served for more than 15 years as General Partner in the most successful venture capital firm in the Pacific Northwest, OVP, with offices in Seattle and Portland. With over 50 liquidity events, including 22 IPOs, OVP has proven that venture firms and entrepreneurs can thrive outside the traditional meccas of Silicon Valley and Boston. Gerry’s board seats cover the gamut from software to semiconductors to wireless communications and biotechnology.
Prior to OVP, Gerry was co-founder of Mentor Graphics Corporation (NASDAQ: MENT) where he served as President, and helped lead Mentor through its IPO to over $400M in worldwide sales and over $1B in market capitalization. He is the author of The Vision Trap (Harvard Business Review, 3/92). He also authored a chapter in Venture Capital Best Practices, Aspatore Books, 2005. Gerry holds a degree in Chemistry from Cornell University and a MBA from Harvard Business School.
“The most successful startups happen when world-class teams tap into fundamental technology shifts that change existing market dynamics. I always ask entrepreneurs to help me understand why they don’t just have a good idea, but a big idea. If they can explain that simply, then we have a lot to talk about.”
Gorden Gates
Sr. Director, Business Development, Micron Technology, Inc.
Gorden currently heads Business Development within Micron’s Imaging Group, the world leader in camera phone image sensors. His team is responsible for acquisitions, licensing arrangements, and cultivating new market areas for imaging camera systems. Gorden started Micron’s Corporate Development Group and led the acquisition, which became the seed for Micron Imaging. He was also the head of Strategic Communications. Prior to Micron, Gorden spent 5 years with the Boston Consulting Group in Los Angeles and Sydney, Australia.
Gorden has an MBA from Harvard’s Graduate School of Business and graduated Summa Cum Laude from Whittier College with a BA in Economics and Political Science. He is a Board member of the Discovery Center of Idaho.
“Being an Idaho native, I have a strong commitment to helping the region develop greater economic diversity and venture funding is a key component.”
Joe Daltoso
CEO, IntelliScience Corporation
Joe Daltoso is the President and CEO of IntelliScience Corporation, a technology company specializing in automated pattern recognition data analysis. Previously Joe was the Chairman and CEO of Micron Electronics, a publicly traded manufacturer and marketer of high-end personal computers and contract assembly services. In between those efforts, Joe and his family volunteered for two-and-a-half years at an orphanage located outside of Santiago, Chile. Joe graduated with honors from the University of Portland and lives in Boise with his wife, Martha, and three children.
“Mark Twain said, ‘Prophesy is a good line of business, but it is full of risks’ – I think he’d say the same thing about funding and working at a start-up company.”
John Stedman
Retired Senior Vice President and General Manager, Hewlett-Packard Imaging Products
John spent 31 years at HP, spanning nuclear instruments, computers, disk drives, tape drives, inkjet technology, laser printers, network printers, scanners, digital imaging and cameras, and several start-up activities within HP. During that time, he managed HP Labs in Cupertino CA, San Diego CA, Corvallis, OR, and Bristol, England, and Business entities in Boise, Bergamo, Italy, Guadalajara, Mexico, Greeley, Colorado, and Roseville, CA. Prior to his career at HP, John worked at NASA’s Ames Research Center as a Research Engineer. John received his BSEE from Walla Walla College and his MSEE from California State University at San Jose.
“The economic health of Idaho and our region depends on jobs and revenues generated by small start up hi-tech companies. Highway 12 Ventures plays a key role in this cause by identifying, supporting, guiding, and funding these new businesses. It is rewarding to be able to be associated with the talented Partners and Advisors of Highway 12 Ventures.”
Kurt Liebich
Former Vice President Marketing, Weyerhauser
Kurt Liebich recently stepped down as Vice President of Marketing for iLevel by Weyerhaeuser to focus on business development opportunities. Weyerhaeuser is one of the world’s largest integrated forest products companies and iLevel is the company’s offering of structural wood products to the residential homebuilding industry. Kurt has been a member of Weyerhaeuser’s top management team since 2005.
Kurt joined Trus Joist in 1994 as a Corporate Finance Manager. Kurt has served in numerous roles, including General Manager for Industrial Operations, Project Manager for Strategic Planning, Vice President of Marketing for Trus Joist, and Vice President of Custom Operations. In early 2005, Kurt succeeded Tom Denig as Vice President of Trus Joist.
Kurt graduated with a BA in Economics from Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine and received his MBA in General Management from Harvard University in 1994. He also serves on the board of OptiFrame Software, New Home Technologies and as a trustee of the Charitable Leadership Foundation.
“Early on I learned something valuable about the concept of risk and reward: you have to embrace risk, but your chances for reaping reward become far greater when you add experience and capital to the equation.”
Mark Peterson
President and CEO, Saber Holding, Inc.
Mark Peterson is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Saber Holding, Inc., a venture capital firm in Boise, Idaho. Prior to joining Saber Holding, Mark was the President and CEO of SCP Global Technologies from 1996 to 2005. Mark joined SCP in 1995 as the Chief Engineer and served in that role until his promotion to CEO in 1996. Prior to his time at SCP, Mark was the President of Preco Electronics, then a sister company to SCP. Mark started with Preco in June of 1984. He worked in Product Development Engineering in Boise, Idaho during 1984 and 1985. In 1986, Mark moved to Morton, Illinois as a staff Engineer and ultimately served as Plant Manager at Preco’s manufacturing facility. In 1991, Mark moved back to Boise as the Director of Engineering for Preco Electronics and became President of the division in 1994.
Mark graduated with a BSEE from the University of Colorado in June of 1984. He served on the Board of TJ International until its acquisition by the Weyerhaeuser Company. Mark currently serves on the Board of the St. Luke’s Regional Medical Center Health Foundation.
“In my opinion, the key to the success of an organization is in the people. Building a great team is the most important skill of a business leader.”
Meg Carlson
Principal and CBI, The C&H Group, LLC
Meg has an extensive background in strategic business development and general management gained through nearly 20 years of experience in corporate management for consumer packaged goods companies. Her executive leadership skills were honed as Vice President and member of the Management Board of Ore-Ida Foods, Inc., a subsidiary of the H. J. Heinz Company. During her tenure, she created a new business unit and directed its expansion from $100 million to $240 million in sales revenues over five years. She has a successful track record of building national brands, scaling high performance organizations, and creating innovative solutions to create sustained profitability. In addition, as VP of Business Development, she actively investigated up to 20 acquisition and joint venture prospects annually, and negotiated the successful purchase or sale of five businesses ranging in size from $10 million to $100 million.
More recently, she co-founded and serves as principal of The C&H Group, a mergers and acquisition advisory firm to privately held companies. C&H brokers both business buy and sell transactions, joint ventures, inside transfers, spin-offs and spin-outs, and offers transition consulting to family-owned businesses to better execute ownership transfer. In the past four years, C&H has provided business buy-sell advisory services to more than 40 clients across multiple industry segments.
“Successful startups are begun by good founding management teams that hire for commitment and attitude as much as for skills and experience. They identify market needs that are not being met and own that niche behind a brand that people will not forget. They expect to innovate and change to market conditions so they make certain to invest early in resources that focus on market and not only in resources that focus on products.”
Pat Steele
EVP and CIO, Delta Dental of California
Pat is the Chief Information Officer at Delta Dental of California, a $5 billion dollar enterprise and the largest dental insurance provider in the country. Prior to Delta Dental, he was the Chief Information Officer at Albertsons, a $37 Billion retailer. During his career there, he had experience in all aspects of retail, wholesale, supply chain, merchandising, information technology (IT), and worldwide retail exchange functions. As member of the executive management team, Pat led numerous strategic projects, including both large and small mergers and acquisitions.
At Delta Dental Pat is leading a complete business transformation project to position Delta Dental for the marketplace of the future. Tech savvy, Pat is focused on the new landscape of strategic marketing and business transformation. Pat holds a BA in Business Administration and a BS in Mathematics, both from the University in Washington. Pat has been active in numerous civic organizations and served on the Boards of many of these institutions.
“I was blessed with many wise mentors and advisors over my entire career, hopefully working as a Highway 12 Advisor, I can return the favor to these innovative young companies being formed in our region.”
Pete Gombert
CEO and Founder, Balihoo
Pete has extensive enterprise software experience primarily in the energy, financial services and media space. He has been the founder or co-founder of four businesses in the enterprise and application software space and has proven abilities to foster the growth and infrastructure necessary to return significant value to shareholders. Pete is currently the Founder, Chairman and CEO of Balihoo.com a web based application providing services to the media industry.
Prior to Balihoo Pete was the Executive Vice President of International Operations for KW International, a London based enterprise software company focused on the energy trading space. Pete came to KWI after the company acquired Enerx, an enterprise software company that he had founded four years prior and grown to significant profitability. Pete graduated from Villanova University with a Bachelors in Accountancy and began his career with Arthur Andersen in the audit practice in both Chicago and Phoenix. He eventually moved to the Operational Consulting Group and provided consulting services to large financial services and energy companies such as American Express and Mobil Oil.