Flywheel's Team
Flywheel's Strategic Advisory Board
Colin Jones, Fellow alumni class of 2006
Biography
Mr. Jones was born and raised in Seattle, graduated with honors with a BSBA in Marketing from New Mexico State University, and spent two years as an entrepreneur before returning to school. While pursuing his MBA from the William & Mary Mason School of Business, Mr. Jones was selected as the portfolio manager for the Frank Batten Investment Fund, a student-managed equity fund specializing in small and mid-cap stocks. During his tenure, the fund returned 1815 basis points of alpha (a ratio of risk-adjusted return) over the Russell 2000. In addition, Mr. Jones served as Chief Justice of the Honor Council, served as an MBA Community Fellow, and was elected to Beta Gamma Sigma, the national business honor society. When not working, the former Nike High School Athlete of the Month enjoys golfing, hiking, and fine red wine. This fall, Mr. Jones will begin his PhD (Finance) at Pennsylvania State University and intends to pursue a career in the capital markets.
Fellows Report
"My summer as a Flywheel Fellow was a fantastic opportunity to learn the intricacies of the venture capital industry. It was an intense 10 week experience where I was not only trusted with responsibility, but expected to deliver meaningful results. This is not a sideline internship, but a real opportunity to engage in the process of venture investing. I evaluated business plans and market opportunities, spoke with entrepreneurs, developed financial analysis tools for a portfolio firm, and sat in on pitch meetings. In addition to working hard, the team would regularly get together to have fun as well (hiking, barbeque, baseball game, etc). The Flywheel Fellows are an incredible group of people, and I am proud to be a part of it."
Jim Dempsey, Fellow alumni class of 2006
Biography
Mr. Dempsey began programming computers over 25 years ago. After completing a bachelor's degree in Computer Science at Binghamton University (SUNY), he held various software management, architecture, and development roles in Silicon Valley and New York. He has led the development of production websites and software development tools, as well as applications for the medical and aerospace industries. Most recently, Mr. Dempsey managed the software development process at Iron Speed, a Silicon Valley start-up. In July 2006, Mr. Dempsey moved to North Carolina in order to pursue an MBA at Duke's Fuqua School of Business. When school is not in session, he spends his time in Silicon Valley. Upon completing his MBA in May 2007, Mr. Dempsey looks forward to working in the venture capital field.
Fellows Report
“Deciding whether to accept Flywheel’s internship offer was a “no-brainer.” It was clear that Flywheel takes mentorship seriously—from my preliminary conversations to my first day at Flywheel when founder Trevor Loy gave a venture capital presentation with wonderful depth and breadth. My experience at Flywheel was multifold. I spent a week onsite at a portfolio company, and then periodically met with its CEO to discuss the company’s challenges. Next, I coordinated the four law firms that were to close Flywheel’s investment in the Company. Concurrently, I evaluated more than a dozen prospective companies in Flywheel’s deal pipeline, ranging from laboratory software projects to semiconductor, material science, and optics companies. I experienced life as a Venture Capitalist by balancing these diverse responsibilities. Also, I had the unique opportunity to collaborate and socialize with the five other Fellows from business schools around the country, as well as the rest of the Flywheel team. We hiked with Flywheel’s partners and their families, explored Santa Fe, and gave our final presentations at a barbecue. At summer’s end, it was difficult to leave Flywheel for my experience exceeded even my highest hopes.”
Navdeep Saini, Fellow alumni class of 2006
Biography
Mr. Saini has professional experience encompassing areas such as project planning and execution, team supervision, process improvement, customer interaction, and managerial ethics. During his five years of work with Motorola, Inc. and Freescale Semiconductor, he worked with people in six time zones and served as a catalyst for creative problem solving. At Motorola, he overcame a considerable business challenge, when he worked as part of a development team for low-cost architecture implementation, providing the company an edge over the competition. While at Motorola Mr. Saini also led methodology development, working with cross-functional teams and tool-vendors, and participating in Quality Management. Evident of his commitment to excellence, he received several promotions and performance awards for both himself and his team. Mr. Saini holds an Electronics Engineering degree from Punjab Engineering College and is currently completing his MBA from Duke University.
Fellows Report
“The best way to describe my summer experience with Flywheel Ventures is energetic and intellectually stimulating. As a Fellow, I had the opportunity to take on as much responsibility as I wished and consequently expanded and built upon my skill set. The day-to-day activities called for a dynamic personality, requiring strong communication, team, and creative skills. Some of the projects I worked on during this summer included: reviewing business plans, conducting pitches with entrepreneurs, and representing Flywheel’s interests in the due diligence process. I interviewed senior level management of about ten potential investments to gain a thorough understanding of their overall business, growth opportunities, financial stability, and risks. I also analyzed their strategic fit within the flywheel investment strategy, presented these opportunities to partners at the firm, and answered their questions in their review of these investments. Secondly, I worked directly with senior management of one of our portfolio companies, wherein I advised them on challenges they were facing, developed and presented KPIs to the board, completed a market road mapping effort, and so on. This experience provided me an extensive understanding of the start up working environment. Thirdly, I worked with the Flywheel Ventures team on their day-to-day activities. It was indeed a pleasure working with such high caliber individuals in a team environment. Last, but not least, this summer included a good mix of work and play, providing us ample opportunities to get to know each other outside of work and be better team players. In short, my summer experience at Flywheel Ventures has exceeded my expectations, both from a cultural and career development perspective, having provided me with the opportunity to take on responsibilities that, I am sure, I would not have had if I had worked with a Fortune 500 company.”
Payam Tehrani, Fellow alumni class of 2006
Biography
Mr. Tehrani brings 11 years of engineering and marketing experience to Flywheel. Prior to Flywheel, he was an integral part of the marketing team in the Storage Solutions Group at QLogic Corporation, where he managed the launch and business development activities of their newly acquired product line. Prior to QLogic, Mr. Tehrani played a pivotal role at Troika Networks (acquired by QLogic Corporation), where he started out as a Senior FPGA/ASIC Design Engineer and promoted to Marketing Manager to drive the launch and sales activities of their flagship product. He has a diverse technical background stemming from his experience at Xilinx, INC. (Field Applications Engineer), Ixia Communications (Senior Consultant), and Ameritech Corporation (Design Engineer). Mr. Tehrani holds a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering with Cum Laude honors from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and he is currently the President of the Fully Employed MBA program at UCLA Anderson, where he expects to complete his MBA in 2007 with an emphasis in entrepreneurial finance. Mr. Tehrani currently lives in Los Angeles, California.
Fellows Report
The Flywheel Fellows Program was a great opportunity to gain exposure into the Venture Capital community and learn about business opportunities in New Mexico. My experience at Flywheel superseded my expectations primarily due to the degree of responsibility that was given to the Fellows and the level of support and mentorship provided by each partner. I was engaged in a mixture of responsibilities from screening new investment opportunities and performing due diligence, to working directly with the CEO and CFO of our portfolio firm. The Fellowship allowed me to experience firsthand what it’s like to be on both sides of the fence. Three words describe the team at Flywheel: Courteous, Professional and Sincere. I learned equally from the partners & the other Fellows. Our diverse backgrounds and personalities at times created challenging team dynamics; however working with the team toward a common goal was a rewarding experience, and one that has taught me valuable lessons on teamwork. Although a bit apprehensive at first about living in New Mexico, I was pleasantly surprised to see the level of business activity and social events that are available to the residents. There is something to do for everybody, from art galleries to outdoor adventures to nightlife to the best green chile on the planet.
Ricky Talati, Fellow alumni class of 2006
Biography
Mr. Talati joined the Flywheel Fellows program in 2006 after spending seven years with Pepsi-Cola R&D. During his time with Pepsi, he launched several new products into the marketplace, both domestically and internationally, including work with the Sierra Mist, Mountain Dew, and 7-Up brands. His responsibilities included leading multi-national, cross-functional teams to develop and execute operational launch strategies. His most recent endeavor included various engineering, operations, and leadership roles involved with integrating the Gatorade brand into the Pepsi manufacturing and distribution system globally resulting in approximately $70 million in annual savings to Pepsico. Mr. Talati received his BS in Chemical Engineering from Northeastern University in 1998, his MS in Chemical Engineering from Columbia University in 2002, and his MBA from the NYU Stern School of Business in 2007 with specializations in Corporate Finance and Entrepreneurship. He is currently working as an Associate with PRTM, a management consulting firm focusing on Operations and Operational Strategy. Mr. Talati is originally from the metropolitan NYC area.
Fellows Report
“My experience in the Flywheel Fellows Program greatly exceeded all expectations. I learned a great deal about the industry and about myself. I was given tremendous responsibility within both Flywheel and the portfolio company I was assigned to. In addition, the Flywheel team was easily accessible and always ready to help. Finally, New Mexico has great weather, food, and activities for the outdoor enthusiast. I had a lot at stake when I joined the Fellows Program since I left a well-paying, full-time job to do so. But, if I had to, I would do it all over again in a heartbeat.”
Shweta Agarwal, Fellow alumni class of 2006
Biography
A native of New Delhi, India, Ms. Agarwal obtained her undergraduate degree in Business Management in Marketing and Finance from the University of Queensland, Australia. Her work experience includes managing grant budgets for the Ford Foundation in India, leading in a business turnaround at a large metal castings foundry, and handling regional account payables for Air France. She also founded her own apparel design business. Ms. Agarwal is currently obtaining her MBA from the F.W. Olin School of Business at Babson College, the premier institution for entrepreneurship.
Fellows Report
"This internship is like buying an option; there is no downside and the upside potential is huge. I was welcomed into the Flywheel family last summer and have a lot of enthusiasm for this very unique experience. It worked for me as it helped me get a good overall outlook on the workings of a fund, the portfolio companies and the venture capital industry. At the same time, it allowed me to build depth in areas I wanted to pursue further. The work environment was very friendly, accessible, open and mostly informal. It was six of us and our ideas were always welcomed with the entire Flywheel team having an open door policy. We could basically pick up a previous deal file and go to any one of the partners to discuss and learn if it was something that interested us. We participated in everything including the weekly partner meetings and deal reviews. I worked with Lingotek, one of the portfolio companies, and their working environment there was equally pleasant. My experience at Flywheel has opened up so many new opportunities for me that seemed out of reach before. Flywheel, I want to reiterate, has been a key to really moving me ahead with my career and I am once again glad I am one of the Fellows. Flywheel was a great experience!”
