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Contact: Kerry McGagin
KMA Communications
310.258.9801
kerry@kmacommunications.com
Voyager Capital Announces Investment Team Promotions
New Managing Director and Principals Bring More Than 30 Years of Software and Wireless Experience to the Team
SEATTLE, WA- September 10, 2004 - Voyager Capital, an early stage information technology venture firm, today announced investment team promotions of Erik Benson to Managing Director and Elizabeth Morgan and Jodi Sherman Jahic to Principal. Collectively, they bring to the firm's investment team more than thirty years of technology and private equity experience with extensive knowledge of the software and wireless industries.
"Erik, Elizabeth and Jodi individually have made important contributions to Voyager Capital," said Bill McAleer, co-founder and Managing Director at Voyager Capital.
"As a team, their deep domain experience and broad industry contacts are invaluable as we continue to help build successful businesses and accelerate their growth and success," added Enrique Godreau, co-founder and Managing Director with the firm.
Benson joined Voyager Capital in 1998 and has held various investment roles with increasing responsibility. During his six year tenure, Benson championed the firm's investments in aQuantive (NASDAQ: AQNT), Kryptiq, and Verari Systems, and assisted in a number of other firm investments. He has also been instrumental in extending the firm's presence in the Portland technology market. Benson currently serves as a board member or observer for three portfolio companies including Kryptiq, Fidesic, and Verari Systems. He began his career in the private equity group of Chemical Banking Corporation (now JP Morgan Chase). Benson earned his BA from Pacific Lutheran University and MBA from Harvard Business School. He currently serves as president of the Seattle Association of Young Venture Capitalists and was the past president of the Harvard Business School Club of Puget Sound.
Morgan joined Voyager as an Associate with the Seattle office in 2001. Throughout her three-year tenure, the firm has continued to leverage her more than 18 years of operational experience in enterprise software for deal sourcing and evaluation. She has been active on the boards of five portfolio companies, serving currently as a board observer for Capital Stream, Clear Commerce and Qsent. She also participated in Voyager's investments in Captura (acquired by Concur Technologies) and Kadiri (acquired by Workstream, Inc.). Prior to Voyager, Morgan was the Product Strategy Manager at PeopleSoft responsible for the service industries business unit. While at PeopleSoft, she also served as Corporate Sales Support Manger responsible for financial distribution, manufacturing, and public sector applications. Before that, Morgan was a Sales Manager for Numetrix, a supply chain software company now part of JD Edwards. Previously, she was an Application Consultant at Marcam Corporation, an ERP software company, and a Consultant at Pricewaterhouse Coopers. Morgan serves on the advisory board of the MIT Enterprise Forum of the Northwest. She graduated from the University of Massachusetts with a BBA in finance and earned an MBA from the University of Washington.
As Principal in Voyager's Silicon Valley office, Jodi Sherman Jahic focuses on the firm's investments in wireless and networking technologies, splitting her time between Silicon Valley and Seattle. Jahic joined Voyager in 2001 as a Senior Associate and has been involved in the firm's investments in wireless and mobility. She is a board observer for Contivo, Melodeo and Tropos Networks, and was instrumental in guiding Tropos Networks to its early market strategy. Prior to Voyager, Jahic was with Battery Ventures where she invested in early-stage companies in wireless data, semiconductor process control, and communications software. In 1999 she was awarded a Kauffman Fellowship in venture capital by the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership. Previously, Jahic worked in the technology industry group at Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) and was on the founding teams of two successfully acquired startups. Jahic received her BA degree with high honors from Pomona College and holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. She serves on the board of advisors of the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs and Springboard Silicon Valley.
About Voyager Capital
Voyager Capital is the Pacific Northwest's leading information technology venture capital firm, providing entrepreneurs with the resources, experience, and connections to build successful companies. Voyager invests primarily in early stage business software and services, mobility, digital media and infrastructure companies. Voyager's investment team brings experience from a variety of senior management, business development, and venture capital roles. Voyager's advisory board members and investors provide important contacts for startups, and are among the most successful information technology executives and investors in Seattle and Silicon Valley. With $265M under management, Voyager's investments include, aQuantive (NASDAQ: AQNT), CapitalStream, GoAhead, Kryptiq, Melodeo, Qsent, Tropos Networks and Verari Systems. Voyager is headquartered in Seattle with an office on Sand Hill road in Menlo Park, CA. For more info, visit Voyager's web site at www.voyagercapital.com or telephone (206) 438-1800.
