energy. vision. experience.
With over forty years of experience, William H. Draper III is one of the West CoastÕs first venture capitalists. He is General Partner of Draper Richards L.P., a venture capital fund focusing on early-stage technology companies in the U.S., and Draper International, a venture capital fund investing in private companies with operations in the U.S. and India. Mr. Draper was founder of Sutter Hill Ventures in Palo Alto, California. During his twenty years as the senior partner of Sutter Hill, he helped to organize and finance several hundred high technology manufacturing companies. Mr. Draper served from 1981 to 1986 as President and Chairman of the Export-Import Bank of the United States. In 1986, he became the head of the world's largest source of multilateral development grant assistance, the United Nations Development Program. In addition to serving on many corporate boards of directors, Mr. Draper has served on the boards of the Atlantic Council, Draper Richards Foundation, Hoover Institution, Institute of International Studies at Stanford University, World Affairs Council of Northern California and the United Nations Association-USA. Mr. Draper formerly served as the Chairman of the World Affairs Council of Northern California, Chairman of the Institute of International Education, as a Trustee of Yale University and as Chairman of the Board of the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco; he was a former Board member of Population Action International, George Bush Library Foundation, the Advisory Council of the Stanford Graduate School of Business, and the World Rehabilitation Fund in New York. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the President's Council on International Activities at Yale University. In 2005, he received the Vision Award from SD Forum and was inducted into the Dow Jones Venture Capital Hall of Fame. In 2006, he received the Silicon Valley Fast 50 Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Distinguished Service Award from the Institute of International Education. Mr. Draper has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale University, and a Master of Business degree, with distinction, from the Harvard Graduate School of Business.
Robin Richards Donohoe has over fourteen years of experience in international venture capital. She has served on the boards of many portfolio companies including Kana Communications, Selectica and Digital Impact. Prior to managing the Draper funds, she served for four years as Managing Director of Seaboard Management Corporation, a venture capital firm based in Atlanta, Georgia investing in media and technology companies. Ms. Donohoe has also worked in Prague, Czech Republic for a venture capital fund and in Paris for an investment bank. Ms. Donohoe is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of North Carolina and has a Master of Business degree from the Stanford Graduate School of Business. She currently serves on the boards of the Stanford Business School Trust, University of North Carolina College of Arts and Sciences, Advisory Council of the Gladstone Institute at UCSF, Bay Area Discovery Museum, and Gateway High School. She is the Secretary for her Stanford Business School Class and an Advisor to Room to Read.
Howard Hartenbaum focuses on investments in enterprise and consumer software and services, wireless network solutions, and peer-to-peer technology. His current directorships include LucidPort, NearbyNow and Zimbio. He led the founding investment in Skype (acquired by eBay), and was also a former member of the board of directors where his achievement resulted in his joining the Forbes Midas List of top venture capitalists for the years 2006-2007. Prior to joining Draper Richards, Mr. Hartenbaum held positions at Hughes Electronics, where he was responsible for supporting business development, marketing and sales of satellite, information security and automotive technologies developed by HRL Technologies. He has also worked in engineering positions at Honda Motor Company and Teledyne Relays. Mr. Hartenbaum has worked overseas for a total of ten years in Luxembourg and Japan, is professionally fluent in Japanese and a graduate of M.I.T.
Don Plaisted has over 11 years of management experience and is responsible for the day to day management of Draper Investment Company and advisory to Mr. Draper. Formerly a Senior Manager with Deloitte & Touche's Enterprise Risk Services Group, Mr. Plaisted was responsible for advising clients in operations, technology and finance. Most recently, he was with Northrop Grumman's Information Technology Group responsible for developing, reviewing and implementing solutions in emerging technologies, including managed IT services, network design, infrastructure management, systems integration, project management and disaster recovery planning.
Cynthia Lam is a CPA with extensive experience in financial management in both small and large companies. Prior to joining Draper Richards, she served in a variety of financial roles at Air Touch Communications, and as the Corporate Controller of a high-growth, high-tech company. She was also an audit manager at Price Waterhouse. Ms. Lam is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of California, Berkeley with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration.
