NORTH BAY BUSINESS JOURNAL EVENT

2008 Construction Conferrence

Building the North Bay: What's on the horizon?
Tuesday, May 20, 2008, 8-11:30 a.m., Hyatt Vineyard Creek, Santa Rosa

Women in Business 2008 Awards Dinner Gala

Thursday, June 26, 2008, Sheraton Sonoma County, Petaluma

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High-tech veteran to lead North Bay Angels

HACKENBURG TO SEEK INTERACTION WITH OTHER REGIONAL FUNDING GROUPS

SANTA ROSA – Long-time high-tech finance and operations executive Jean Hackenburg has become chairman of the board of the North Bay Angels funding group. She’ll serve for the year 2008.

Ms. Hackenburg’s career includes positions at Atari and Sonoma County startups Alantro Communications and Sonoma Design Group as well as operating her own consulting business. She has served on the North Bay Angels board of directors for four years.

There are two areas she’d like to explore during her chairmanship, she said.

“First, I’d love to see the North Bay Angels increase the amount of financial resources we offer to startups by pooling with other angel groups.

“Small startups are happy to receive even a little money, but as investors we should be prepared to take them to a level at which they can attract investment from other sources,” she said.

Increasingly, angel groups are working together, both to share investment opportunities and to sustain funding for a promising startup.

Keiretsu, a well-known angel network with 650 members in 15 chapters worldwide, recently started a chapter in Marin County. Ms. Hackenburg has attended Keiretsu presentations and was impressed.

“Theirs is a much more formal approach to angel funding than the North Bay Angels would want to adopt. They charge companies to present.

“Still, their critical mass is effective. One deal had 97 investors,” she said.

Another networking possibility is the Sand Hill Angels of Silicon Valley, Ms. Hackenburg said.

In addition to extending the North Bay Angel’s investor group network, Ms. Hackenburg would like to strengthen the group’s internal communications.

“Our members need to know each other better to work as a team,” she said.

She’s embarked upon a series of small breakfast meetings with the idea of sharing backgrounds, strengths and areas of interest.

“There’s a lot of energy and enthusiasm among the membership. As we learn more about one another we’ll create access to more deal flow,” she said.

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