The story so far

From installing computer networks in the '90s to steering Smart Home strategy at Comcast, my career has been anything but linear. Armed with just a liberal arts degree, I dove into tech when jobs were scarce (’94), eventually building my own internet consulting business and selling it to the predecessor of Razorfish, one of the largest consultancies of the dot com era. This experience would be the prelude to the dot-com bubble burst, and I learned tough lessons about market timing and viability.

My second startup, Lanthorn Technologies (’01) focused on controllable thermostats for utilities – think Nest several years prior and focused on electric utilities. Way ahead ahead of its time, Lanthorn folded despite pilots across the US and Canada. But that experience kept me in clean tech innovation. Eventually I joined the team at EnergyHub (sold to Alarm.com) and then Radiator Labs (recently raised $30m) and had a chance to see the evolution of clean tech first hand.

‍Craving something different, in 2016 I ventured into plus-size women’s clothing - e-commerce. It was an amazing experience to work directly with retail customers – but also gave me some real lessons learned. When retail didn't pan out, Comcast came calling. Running their smart home growth strategy, I identified about a year in that the greatest potential area for success in this market was around insurance. Never one to rely on simply talking to experts - I wanted to become one myself, so I got my insurance licence. Eventually this all led to Comcast investing in insurtech player Hippo, whom I later joined as VP of growth.

‍At Hippo I was exposed to the difficult balancing act of rapid expansion and sound insurance fundamentals. It was a chaotic but transformative period in insurtech and I loved every minute of it. Eventually, I started talking to OMERS Ventures about making a shift back into investing. Today I am part of the fintech team that is particularly interested in financial value exchange - companies operating at the intersection of fintech and commerce. Insurtech plays a significant role in this space.

Founders, here's what you should know about me:

I've been in your shoes. Building a startup is the hardest way to make a living, period. My investment focus leans early-stage, and I expect you to know every facet of your business. Especially when things are tough, I want the founders I back to reach out at any time, and we'll find solutions together.

My stress button? Cap table modelling. Enough said.

So, from pulling cables in ceilings to steering high-stakes strategy, I'm here for the roller coaster that is entrepreneurship. I'm looking for founders who have that same appetite for both chaos and high-potential.