Team

Uncommon Journey

• Moved to the United States from Mexico as a teen
• Three exits (Kahoot!, Udemy, Adaptive Insights)
• Co-founded the Entrepreneur-In-Residence program and currently teaches at Stanford University

Uncommon Thinking

“You can tweak and experiment with sales models and product features, but you can’t teach a founder how to be persistent, how to instill intellectual curiosity, mental honesty, the ability to have a purpose that drives them and draws followers to them.”

Uncommon Ambition

To never lose sight of why we’re doing this work in the first place—to improve the lives of people.

Uncommon Journey

• First and only in family to go to college (Go Ilini!) and get a joint degree (MBA-MPP) at Harvard, with a focus on tech and future of work
• Served as a U.S. Fulbright Scholar to Mexico City working at Endeavor, a global leading entrepreneurial incubator, helping high-potential founders scale their companies through capital and mentorship
• Worked as an operator at a future-of-work startup bringing employee engagement software to deskless workers

Uncommon Thinking

“Entrepreneurs play a unique role in societal innovation, but I've seen up close how difficult and lonely the founder journey can be. My mission now as an investor is to partner with founders to establish a strong foundation for scaling their businesses, their own potential, and the positive impact they can have on humanity.”

Uncommon Ambition

To work side-by-side with early-stage entrepreneurs to reimagine new ways of working and make it easier than ever for any worker to benefit from emerging tech.

Uncommon Journey

• Studied peace & justice at a HWC and international law in Denmark
• Worked in communications for D.C.-area nonprofits
• Served as a U.S. Fulbright Scholar to Kosovo, teaching English and photography at a university level and volunteering at a NATO camp for Afghan refugees

Uncommon Thinking

“We are not helpless against the tide; every interaction with a founder, partner, or colleague is an opportunity to shape the new paradigm of how tech will take over our lives.”

Uncommon Ambition

To break down the barriers to entry faced by millions of workers—economically, professionally, and socially.

UNCOMMON JOURNEY

• After coxing men’s rowing in high school, she challenged the leadership status quo to change the rule to allow women coxswains on the Cornell men’s crew team
• Started out by founding a nonprofit for under-resourced students, then moved into tech to drive impact on a massive scale
• Pivoted her first startup three separate times before driving it to success and becoming the first woman entrepreneur to sell a company to Google

UNCOMMON THINKING

“Impact is exponential when you amplify the potential of those around you, both your team and your customers. As an entrepreneur, my belief is that the winning formula is creating something extremely high-potential and then empowering others to help take it to the next level. A company’s long-term success is about bringing together the right people (including those who challenge you) and equipping them with the right vision, values, and resources for success. To see that growth process unfold is incredibly rewarding.”

UNCOMMON AMBITION

To help make every team on earth more connected, engaged, and successful at a time when employee morale is at an all-time low from layoffs, return-to-work mandates, and the threat of AI displacement.

UNCOMMON JOURNEY

• Worked as a business consultant and industrial engineering lecturer 
• Built a playbook on launching their product in an entirely new market from the ground up, allowing them to 5x their customers in a period of 6-8 months by thinking global & acting local
• Had to go from being one of the biggest startup CEOs in LATAM to knowing almost no one in the U.S.

UNCOMMON THINKING

“A company values not what the people know inside the company, but the speed at which they can keep learning and developing new skills. There’s a supply and demand economy of skills at play within each organization, as well as skills that specific teams and employees need to accomplish their own goals and strategies. So it’s not just about the content on upskilling platforms, but how to track employee skills and figuring out what to recommend next in order to further develop them.” 

UNCOMMON AMBITION

To personalize the experience of work with lifelong AI assistants and tech-enhanced learning paths.

UNCOMMON JOURNEY

• Got into entrepreneurship as a teen—sourcing phone accessories from China and reselling them in his hometown of Knoxville, Tennessee so he could support himself and his parents who made $20k/year working at fast food restaurants
• Made nearly $90k using Amazon’s $10 referral program for Prime Student; was subsequently flown out to Amazon's Seattle HQ at age 19 and hired to help lead their collegiate brand efforts
• Didn’t think he’d go to college, but went on to graduate summa cum laude from Cornell and work at Amazon, Microsoft, and Facebook

UNCOMMON THINKING

“Nothing on my resume I did because I thought it would be impressive. I was just scrappy. I had bills to pay, wondering how to ends meet. But I think that's the mentality that helps you make really cool products. If you make something that you know you need, there's definitely other people out there who need the same thing, and it's just a matter of getting it in front of them.”

UNCOMMON AMBITION

To build the intersection where humans and AI come together, with tools that 10x the output of everyone–from factory workers to biomedical engineers.

Uncommon Journey

• Came to the U.S. at the age of 26, barely speaking English, and transitioned from the medical field to business & finance at the peak of Web 1.0; volunteered at a tech startup during her MBA, and was so inspired by how much technology could transform our world that she pivoted to tech
• Built and scaled product portfolio management from the ground up for four companies (PayPal, Shutterfly, Bigcommerce, and Feedzai) as they scaled to global enterprises, IPOs, and unicorns
• Founded the Product Ops Community and Responsive Product Portfolio Management training for thousands of members passionate about outcome-focused product management

Uncommon Thinking

“I believe rising tides lift all boats. We are both a platform and the partner to our customers for their success.”

Uncommon Ambition

To create a holistic product portfolio management platform that meets the demands for integrated data and relevant workflows across an entire organization. Every company is now a software company. Making software products and creating value from them requires collaborative decisions across all levels and roles in a company— from product and engineering to marketing, sales, success, finance, legal, and operations.

UNCOMMON JOURNEY

• Started working as a system administrator at 23 without a college degree
• Linden Lab, Facebook, and EMI Music engineering veteran
• Both she and her cofounder are women, immigrant engineers and serial entrepreneurs—and were in their 40s when they started Compaas

UNCOMMON THINKING

“We spent a fair amount of time thinking about how our products could be potentially misused, not just used. There are plenty of things that people build with a good heart, but then they forget how they could potentially impact people, especially people who are underrepresented, which is the majority of humans in companies. There are a few things we chose not to build because of that.”

UNCOMMON AMBITION

To create thoughtful, intentional tools that positively impact the buyer as well as the people in their orbit.

UNCOMMON JOURNEY

• Grew up connecting with her disabled father through video games, but never thought she could be in the gaming industry due to its white, male bias
• Worked on some of the world’s most recognizable and profitable mobile games as a tech lead at Supercell at a time when the genre wasn’t taken seriously, and helped generate over $12B in revenue over 6 years
• Went on to work at Google before starting Tiny Comet and joining A16Z GAMES’ SPEEDRUN accelerator

UNCOMMON THINKING

“Our youngest developer is 16 and our oldest developer is 22, which is very different from the AAA world where you need a bunch of really experienced people to do things right. But because our team is so young, they're much braver about trying new ideas, which also allows us to have a very aggressive weekly update cycle. Most games don't do that. We want to learn and fail as fast as possible, to really figure out at what point player engagement is heightened and learning is happening.”

UNCOMMON AMBITION

To build a fun and engaging game that adds value to the player’s life outside of the hours they spend with it.

UNCOMMON JOURNEY

• Worked at KONE, one of the largest companies in Finland
• Came from outside of the gaming industry, with educational experience from her time designing educational programs for Aalto University in Helsinki
• With her co-founder, was one of few women out of the 80 participants in A16Z GAMES’ SPEEDRUN accelerator program

UNCOMMON THINKING

“When my daughter was born, I really started asking myself what I wanted to do in life. Everything goes back, in a way, to my kids. I want to do something that will impact them, to build something that will make the world better for them. I want to work on a product that maybe my daughter can take advantage of, something that I wish I had when I was a kid.”

UNCOMMON AMBITION

To build alternative modes of learning that better serve younger learners.

UNCOMMON JOURNEY

• In touch with the lived realities of LATAM teachers and students
• Went from an analyst at McKinsey to Chief of Staff at Descomplica before starting Teachy

UNCOMMON THINKING

“Underdogs attract underdogs. There are people here coming from jobs that pay 3x or 4x more, but they really believe in our mission and want to work with people who are like them—not only amazingly accomplished and smart, but are humble, really open to learning, and willing to go above and beyond to make a huge impact.”

UNCOMMON AMBITION

To empower over 70 million teachers worldwide to not only teach better classes and reach more students overall, but to have more time outside of the classroom for themselves and their families.

Uncommon Journey

• Father worked at a steel factory to pay off his debts; mother convinced him to seek an education and move to the U.S.
• Self-taught coder, high school friends with cofounder
• Went through Y Combinator straight out of college

Uncommon Thinking

“We both have this chip on our shoulder; something about our parents being immigrants, wanting to do something greater, not just going down the conventional path…it's definitely what makes us want to constantly take things to the next level. The journey of immigration is similar in many ways to the journey of entrepreneurship: you're taking such a big leap of faith. But our parents were able to do it, and it’s really their stories that manifest as our drive.”

Uncommon Ambition

To redefine work and change the paradigm of upskilling in order to minimize AI job displacement; as AI automates entry-level roles, workers promoted up need to be trained faster and more effectively than ever before.

UNCOMMON JOURNEY

• Built an online university in Colombia to upskill industrial workers and provide them with access to higher education opportunities
• Worked in marketing for an ad agency and Red Bull before co-founding UBITS
• Took her entrepreneurial journey into her own hands and adapted quickly as the company grew from 5 employees to 250 employees

UNCOMMON THINKING

“Starting from a place of scarcity has given us a frugal mindset that has helped us make better business decisions, as a company, on how to do more with less—but we still feel comfortable taking big risks in new markets because our vision has never strayed from how to make people inside of companies better.”

UNCOMMON AMBITION

To help people build better careers by capitalizing on the increasing demand for soft skills in the workplace; it’s not just about having faster learners in an organization, but better people overall.

Uncommon Journey

• Taught and volunteered in a foreign language at community college
• Mentored local robotics teams
• High school friends with co-founder

Uncommon Thinking

“I think there's a lot to be said for learning while you're teaching, and I’m a very big proponent of that. Honestly, that's exactly what we're doing right now. We're teaching people how to do sales while we learn how to do sales, which allows us to anticipate certain issues and resolve them before they become problems. I think that's a pretty core part of who I am.”

Uncommon Ambition

To help bridge the gap in entry-level jobs that AI will create, and upskill every worker starting from the ground floor.

UNCOMMON JOURNEY

• Came to appreciate the value of education after watching his mother teach five grades of students simultaneously in a one-room elementary school in Durulova, Turkey
• Was able to teach himself chess and mathematics once his family purchased a computer; he became so advanced that he won the Turkish National Mathematical Olympiad and placed second at the International Mathematical Olympiad
• Built Udemy while working a full-time job in order to maintain his visa in the U.S., and shepherded its growth to become one of the largest edtech companies in the country

UNCOMMON THINKING

“To really improve your life, you need two things: You need the tenacity to keep trying and take failures, but you also need access. That’s where the Internet comes into play; it gives people the opportunity to try. Access is the key for people to change their lives.”

UNCOMMON AMBITION

To build technologies in education and healthcare that enable individuals from all walks of life to reach their full potential.

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• Currently spearheads brand and marketing strategy as Managing Partner at Revel, which delivers growth-centric solutions to companies from startups to established public entities
• Introduced a new era of consumer-focused performance marketing as VP of Marketing at Thumbtack
• Guided eBay’s marketing activities and infrastructure as the VP & Head of North America Marketing for 10 years; was later the CMO of One Kings Lane for nearly 4 years
• Launched the Simply Orange brand while at the Minute Maid Division of Coca-Cola

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CLAIM TO FAME

Can develop a differentiated brand and marketing strategy; oversaw marketing budgets for some of the most exciting brands in the world.

• Four-time CFO and financial executive (Drift.com, Actifio, LogMeIn, IMlogic)
• VP of finance and international CFO at PTC Software from 1992-2003
• Served on the BoDs of Fleetmatics Group PLC and Adaptive Insights, a Workday company
• Currently an Angel Investor and Advisor to Dathic (consumer data & analytics), OutPut (sports wearable company), and SaaSworks (Boston-based AI startup)

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CLAIM TO FAME

Can help identify finance gaps and needs for any startup; finance executive with expertise in establishing first-in-class financial operations for companies of all sizes.

• Currently oversees global practice for retained executive search at DHR Global
• Established Vantage Partners’ first CEO recruiting practice and doubled the company size in 12 months
• Secured $20+ million of capital in 15 months while President & CEO of Clarus Systems, a software testing company later acquired by OpNet

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CLAIM TO FAME

Can recognize the talent needs in a startup and identify critical executive hires.

• Drives growth strategy as the Global VP of Strategic Alliances at Hitachi Digital LLC
• Led sales and global growth at Microsoft for 8 years
• Led SAP Alliance Marketing and multiple sales initiatives over 22+ years at Hewlett Packard

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CLAIM TO FAME

Can mentor startup founders on how to create effective large-scale partnerships and large enterprise go-to-market.

• Co-founded Stanford GSE’s Entrepreneur in Residence Program and Digital Learning Design Challenge Program
• Former CTO of the University of Phoenix
• Founded Seeds of Empowerment, a 501(c)(3) non-profit global education incubator for social innovations leveraging mobile technologies
• Has advised Saudi Arabia’s national online education initiative, the national evaluation of Uruguay’s One Laptop Per Child project, Rwanda’s national ICT planning, and institutional advancement efforts for numerous universities

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CLAIM TO FAME

Can evaluate new technologies in education, especially when catering to elite higher educational institutions such as Stanford.

• Former founder with 19+ years of experience scaling innovative schools, coaching founding teams globally, and investing in FoW companies
• Former Career+Life Vision Coach at Stanford Graduate School of Business
• Grew ARR to 8 figures and successfully exited her first company in 5 years, then went on to help scale a venture-backed startup through Series B
• 1000+ hours of 1:1 coaching with LAUNCH COACHING LAB alumni around the world. Clients referred by top VCs: General Catalyst, Sequoia, Khosla, M13 and accelerators

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CLAIM TO FAME

Can mentor founders through the ups and downs of building a cutting-edge company; coach and trusted advisor to leaders, startup founders, executives, investors, and female athletes, with over 500+ clients at venture-backed startups across industries, Fortune 100 & top NGOs.

• Current BOD member at Workday, AspenTech, Catapult Sports, and Reltio
• Previously Chairman at Citrix and Vice Chairman at Workday and CEO at Adaptive Insights, (acquired by Workday in August 2018 for $1.6B)
• Former President of Rational Software, CEO and partner at Greylock Partners
• Former BOD member at Citrix Systems, Apptio, PTC, Rally Software, Acquia, and other SaaS companies

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CLAIM TO FAME

Can advise founders on building the right BoD and running effective board meetings; experienced board member and active mentor for entrepreneurs and new board members on proper BoD development, culture, and operations.