| Marc Burch | Marc is an angel investor and executive entrepreneur providing early-stage capital. He is a subject matter expert / judge / mentor for funding grants at the Center of Commercialization of Advanced Technology. His industry experience includes enterprise software, social networking, mobile wireless, collaborative software, manufacturing, telecomm, multimedia and security. Previously, he has over 20 years of marketing, sales, business development and executive management experience in technology companies, including Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Actra (Netscape & GE Joint Venture), and MarketFirst. While at Actra he managed an aggressive sales channel that led to the Netscape acquisition. At MarketFirst, he helped grow the company to over 240 employees with a $450 million valuation. He brings valuable experience as an angel investor investing in start-ups in San Diego and Silicon Valley. |
| | Mark Vilimek | Mark is a cofounder at Marale,
Mark is an innovative and award winning technology leader that has conceived, managed and/or developed more than 50 applications with the love of solving complex problems with simple and elegant solutions. A firm believer in processes, his execution strategy is characterized by moving quickly from concept to a partial solution followed a by rapid succession of iterations until the problem is solved. Delivering a better product with smaller teams, less headaches and with progress measured in day/weeks instead of months/years.
Mark's leadership skill makes him equally comfortable managing teams of hundreds or a small founding team. Success is based on vision, planning, passion and focus; not excuses. His background includes 12+ years in high-tech including software development, hardware design, IC manufacturing and IT systems; with a diverse cross-organization experience in manufacturing, engineering, sales, marketing, support and finance. | | | About Marale
| Marale is a company that has two discrete arms to the company.
The first is our internal development programs which focuses on developing new technologies and companies that we then spinoff or license. These projects align to three major categories, enterprise software with and emphasis on data & security, consumer internet and green tech with an emphasis on application of our SolarDirect technology.
The second is Marale's independent consulting arm. The services here are focused around product development and product delivery which includes marketing, sales and support. They believe that a killer product (or project) is part of an interconnected experience. If any single part is not align, the entire product falls apart.
Speaking of clients, here are a few of their notable clients: Cisco Systems, Lockheed-Martin, Callaway Golf, General Electric and dozens more ranging from small startups to large multi-national firms. Along the way we have built software applications, security systems, conducted R&D work on exotic materials such as Scandium and Nickle-Titanium Alloys, implement/certified ISO, developed robots, manufacturing process/systems, consumer products, LED lighting systems and even a few award winning golf club head designs. Marale is a company that will take on on anything challenging and difficult which requires advanced design and engineering. | | | Sean Murphy
| Sean has taken an entrepreneurial approach to life since he could drive. He has served as an advisor to dozens of startups, helping them explore new options and bring their businesses to new levels. His firm, SKMurphy, Inc., focuses on early customers and early revenue for software startups, helping engineers to understand business development.
Prior to SKMurphy, he worked in a variety of areas including software engineering, engineering management, application engineering, business development, product marketing and customer support. His clients include Cisco Systems, 3Com, AMD, MMC Networks, Escalade and VLSI Technology. Sean holds a BS in Mathematical Sciences and an MS in Engineering-Economic Systems from Stanford University. | | | About SKMurphy, Inc.
| SKMurphy helps software startups transform their technology development focus to a customer development focus and accelerate their business with scalable sales, marketing, and business operations.
Their focus is on early stage and emerging market software companies who are challenged either by new product introduction or the need to diversify beyond their initial success. Some of the SK Murphy clients are in transition from delivering their technology primarily as consulting to a full productization.
Emerging technology marketing is a domain distinct from classical product marketing; most of the traditional market assessment techniques are not effective: focus groups, surveys, etc… Emerging markets require a strong commitment by the founding team to appreciate the customer’s view, a rapid evolution of the product specification in response to feedback and customer experience, and an ongoing refinement and delivery of customer focused solutions.
“Sean is a clear thinker who can frame complex problems in new ways. His unique mix of technology, marketing, and strategic experience are the perfect match for entrepreneurs struggling with formative business ideas. He’s great at keeping you focused and making sure the customer’s perspective is always at the fore of business planning.” (October 7, 2004) Terry Frazier CEO, NearLine Publishing
“Sean brings a fantastic mix of technical, marketing, and business strategy knowledge to the projects he works on. When he doesn’t already have an answer immediately available he has a process ready to help get to an answer. His honest and direct approach to problem solving ensures that time is always well spent.” (April 18, 2004) Michael Rowehl CEO of BitSplitter, Inc.
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