THRIVE - Key Persons
Aidan is an unusual leader. With 30 years of experience in the agribusiness sector, his role has changed so often that his experience covers the full range of executive and managerial challenges. He has direct experience with greenfield start-ups, high-growth environments, turnaround issues, and challenging economic environments in a wide range of political and economic systems.
Job Titles:
- Director of Corporate Programs
Carin Gerhardt is the Director of Corporate Programs at THRIVE, the leading global agrifood tech accelerator, run by SVG Ventures. Previously, she led the TERRA food & agtech accelerator at RocketSpace, supporting global food & ag brands such as Nestle, Graincorp, and Tate & Lyle to connect with strategically aligned emerging growth organizations. By connecting global corporations, startups, investors, and experts, she supports the collaborative transformation of the food system through technology innovation. Starting in a foodtech microbiology lab as a researcher, she has stepped into many roles in the innovation ecosystem, from field to manufacturing and R&D innovation consulting, having developed a broad vision about how its stakeholders engage to develop new solutions and to be leaders in their industries.
Carin holds a Master's Degree in Food Science and Technology and a Bachelor's Degree in Food Engineering from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
Coleton Fisher is a Program Associate for the Academy Program at SVG Ventures|THRIVE. He assists in supporting early-stage agrifood tech companies participating in THRIVE's Academy Pre-Accelerator Program. Coleton is a recent graduate of the University of Calgary with a master's in Biomedical Technology, where he graduated with honors. During his time at the University of Calgary, Coleton completed a practicum with Creative Destruction Lab as a Venture Analyst recruiting and analyzing start-ups in Agriculture, Energy, and Health. Coleton is passionate about the outdoors, based in Calgary, Alberta he takes full advantage of skiing in the Canadian Rockies and hitting the links in the summer.
Job Titles:
- Managing Director EMEA & Global Programs
- Managing Director of EMEA
Danny is the Managing Director of EMEA at THRIVE where he is responsible for leading our expansion in the region, connecting with partners and identifying disruptive startups who are positively changing our food system.
Danny has a background in management consulting and corporate innovation spending a number of years in Dublin, London and New York working closely with corporate clients and startups. In 2017 he founded Idea 2 Scale, a virtual accelerator program and entrepreneurship community which helped hundreds of founders from 33 countries become market and investor ready. At the same time, he started a coworking and innovation hub in Ireland called Business Barn. Danny sits on the Advisory Board of the International School of Agri-Management (ISAM) in Spain where he also teaches Entrepreneurship. He has a particular interest in emerging markets where he sees the potential of Agri-Food Tech to transform the lives of at-risk communities.
He holds a Master's Degree in Marketing Practice from the Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School (UCD) and a Bachelors of Business Studies from DCU.
Job Titles:
- Venture Studio & Innovation Manager
Dawn Trautman is a Venture Studio & Innovation Manager at SVG Ventures |THRIVE. She works with agri-food corporate clients and early-stage companies to discover opportunities for innovation and impact.
Dawn has over 10 years of experience working in agriculture and food research and innovation.Most recently she worked at Alberta's innovation engine, Alberta Innovates, wheres he was involved in designing programs and building relationships with the agri-food and innovation industries and scientific and research communities to help create a profitable and sustainable future forAlberta's agri-food sector.
Dawn obtained degrees in biology (BSc), agricultural economics (MSc), and business (MBA) at the University of Alberta. In 2020 she was selected as a recipient of the Canadian Nuffield Agricultural Scholarships where she is investigating opportunities for on-farm adoption of agriculture technologies.
Job Titles:
- Venture Partner at SVG Ventures
Greg Young is a Venture Partner at SVG Ventures, heading up SVG's venture investing, currently deploying capital from the SVG Ventures Pioneer Fund to startups across the agrifood value chain.
Greg has a lengthy career backing innovative teams and technologies in life sciences & tech, with over twenty years of experience in the biotech industry. His focus areas of investment cover agrifood as well as biological tools and processes that promote sustainability.
Greg serves on several company boards and continues as co-founder and Managing Partner of Spruce Capital Partners, manager of the fully allocated MLS Capital Fund II, with many notable investments in agrifood. Before co-founding Spruce, Greg was an investor for a major life science firm after starting his career behind the bench as a molecular biologist at a San Diego biotech startup.
Greg received his BS in Biochemistry and Cell Biology from the University of California, San Diego, and an MS in Biotechnology from Northwestern University.
Job Titles:
- Corporate Innovation Manager at THRIVE Canada
Haley Macdonald is the Corporate Innovation Manager at THRIVE Canada, helping THRIVE to strengthen and scale technological innovation in the Canadian agriculture and food sectors. She is driven to develop solutions in support of a more environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable future of food, and believes that accelerating adoption of effective and sustainable technology will be fundamental to achieving this.
Haley brings a background in project management, business development, and research and analysis, as well as a keen ability for systems thinking and a strategic, analytical, and creative approach to problem solving. She has over six years of experience in consulting gained through roles at Worley Parsons, a large, multinational engineering firm and at Integrated Sustainability, a boutique Canadian consultancy, where she worked on diverse teams on projects in the natural resources, agricultural, and public sectors.
Haley holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (B.A.Sc.) in engineering from Queen's University. She recently completed a Master of Food and Resource Economics (MFRE) degree from the University of British Columbia, an intensive graduate program encompassing economics, business, and policy specific to food and agriculture, and culminated her degree with a business development internship with Terramera a leading Canadian agtech firm.
Job Titles:
- Chief Operating Officer
- Technology and Operations Executive
Helen Hartnett is a technology and operations executive with 20+ years international experience in the Technology Industry in business planning, supply chain, new products, program management and global operations.
Currently she is Chief Operating Officer at SVG Ventures, a Silicon Valley based innovation and investment platform working with Fortune 500 corporations and global technology startups to advance the future of Food & Agriculture. SVG|THRIVE is the leading investor and agrifood accelerator in the world with over 50 investments in the past decade. Helen is also Executive Director of the Irish Technology Leadership Group (ITLG), a network of global Irish technology leaders who's main focus is to foster the links between the USA and Ireland & heads up the ITLG's Women in Technology Group (WIT) in Silicon Valley. Helen has held senior management positions at some of the world's leading technology companies such as Intel, Intuit, Novell, Lucent Technologies, AST Computer and Digital Equipment.
Helen holds an Hons Degree in Business Studies from the University of Limerick, Ireland and is also CPIM certified
Job Titles:
- CEO
- Founder
- Executive Assistant Reporting
Hozana Sicairos is the Executive Assistant reporting directly to the Founder and CEO of SVG Ventures | THRIVE. Hozana is responsible for managing all matters relating to the office of the CEO.
Job Titles:
- APAC Startup Programmes Manager
Hugo Bieber is based in Melbourne where he manages THRIVE's APAC start-up programmes, supporting founders of scale-up companies in their international growth journey. Prior to joining THRIVE, Hugo was a Partner at Think & Grow, consulting to international tech companies on their Australian market entry and working with Australian companies on international expansion, particularly to the UK. Before relocating to Australia, he spent 7 1/2 years serving as Chief Executive of UK Israel Business, the bilateral chamber of commerce between the UK and Israel, working with Israeli start-up and scale-up technology companies facilitating well over £100m in investment, purchasing & partnerships, enabling the creation of hundreds of jobs between the UK & Israel. As a father to two young boys, he is committed to helping make a more sustainable planet for the next generation. Hugo earned his undergraduate degree in Management & IT from the University of York in the UK.
Job Titles:
- Corporate Innovation Manager
Janelle Jiminez is a Corporate Innovation Manager at SVG Ventures | THRIVE.
Janelle has been working in the agriculture space across Alberta since 2012 and has many years of experience in the animal health and livestock genomics space. She comes from a research driven background and has created a diverse network that spans across Alberta in academia, industry, and government. Janelle is keen on building meaningful relationships between different organizations and helping to develop effective strategic partnerships. She is involved in Alberta's innovation ecosystem and is passionate about developing research and innovation in Alberta.
Janelle has degrees in Cell Biotechnology (Bsc), Animal Health (Msc), and Business (MBA) all obtained from the University of Alberta.
Job Titles:
- Research Associate
- Research Associate at SVG Ventures
Jessica is a Research Associate at SVG Ventures|THRIVE. She assists with managing the growth of the global startup database, conducts startup market research and also supports research for our annual Top50 AgTech & Foodtech reports.
Jessica has a background in retail sales and marketing and previously founded a highly accredited freelance makeup artistry business.
Based in the South of France, Jessica holds a Diploma in Fashion and Media makeup, Digital Marketing and is an Adobe Certified Associate in Graphic Design & Illustration Using Adobe Illustrator. Jessica is also a fluent French speaker.
Job Titles:
- Managing Director Canada
- Managing Director of Canada at SVG Ventures
John Cassidy is Managing Director of Canada at SVG Ventures I THRIVE. He leads the development and implementation of the organization's strategic plans to expand in Canada and is part of the SVG investment team which has invested in 17 Canadian agri-food tech companies.
John has over 13 years of experience in the technology & Investment industry. Most recently, he served as Chief Executive Officer for a fintech SME in Europe. During his tenure, John led the company through its highest growth period which coincided with its first expansion into new markets. These achievements led to honors such as the ‘SME of Year Award'.
John holds an MBA and a Bachelor of Business (Finance) from the University of Limerick, Ireland. He also holds a Certificate in Technology Management from Stanford University and is a member of the Canadian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association.
John is a Founder, CEO, and Investor with 25 years of leadership experience scaling from start up to multi Billion IPO in both B2B and B2C companies across the Technology, Airline and AgriFood sectors. He has a proven track record in leadership, strategy development, building high performing global teams and has extensive operating experience in fast growing global corporations. He has lead and integrated multibillion M&A transactions and served on public & private boards. He is an investor with deep expertise across the Food & Agri Tech sector and is passionate about food, health and sustainability
John is Founder and CEO of SVG Ventures|THRIVE, an innovation and investment platform working with Fortune 500 corporations and global technology start ups to advance the future of Food & Agriculture. SVG|THRIVE is the leading investor and Agrifood accelerator in the world with over 50 investments in the past decade. He is Founder of the Forbes AgTech summit the leading global AgriFood summit which is a joint venture he created with Forbes media. He has partnered with the USDA on the National Innovation Imperative working with the US Secretary of Agriculture.
In his nine year term at Palm, Inc (Nasdaq: PALM) he held the position of Executive Vice President of Global Markets and under his leadership Palm's worldwide smartphone business grew to over $3.5 Billion in revenue. In 2003, he played a lead role in the merger and integration of Palm and Handspring.
At Metacreations, (Nasdaq: MCRE), John was Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing & Operations where he built the International business and integrated Metatools (NASDAQ: Meta) and Fractal to become Metacreations. He also held senior management positions at Claris a wholly owned subsidiary of Apple computer , AT&T /Teradata and Digital Equipment (DEC).
John has served on both private and public boards such as Aer Lingus (FTSE: AERL) Ireland's national airline as well as boards of various technology companies. He has served on the US Secretary of State's Northern Ireland Economic Working Committee in 2009 and he founded the Irish Technology Leadership Group (ITLG) in 2007.
John is a graduate of the Marketing Institute of Ireland, holds a post graduate diploma in accounting and finance and has completed executive management programs at both Stanford and Harvard Universities.
Job Titles:
- Coach
- Project Manager
- Canada Accelerator Manager
Justin Massar is a dynamic entrepreneur, project manager, coach and athlete. With an infectious energy and a passion for building, launching and scaling projects, programs and businesses, to date he has successfully supported over 1000 startup founders through the development and execution of acceleration programs at the League of Innovators, Hunter Hub and Alberta Catalyzer.
As an entrepreneur, Justin built and sold the Fitness Foundation, a high-performance training studio catering to recreational runners and elite youth athletes. He has also consulted for a Startup Visa Program, assisting international entrepreneurs in relocating to Canada. In his spare time, Justin renovates old camper trailers and creates and sells camper kits for various vehicles.
Justin holds a Masters in Management Innovation & Entrepreneurship from Smith School of Business, a Bachelor's degree in Kinesiology from York University, and additional Post secondary education Certifications in UX Design from York University, Strategic Doing, and Agile Leadership from the University of Northern Alabama.
Job Titles:
- Marketing and Events Associate
Laura Parker is a Marketing and Events Associate at SVG Ventures| THRIVE. She assists with event planning, social media management, design work and data analysis.
Laura has over ten years' experience delivering effective marketing in agriculture and horticulture. She has a passion for problem solving and collaborating to develop sales strategies, successful marketing and social media campaigns.
She recently spent 12 years working at Rambridge; developing and adapting international brands of horticultural products for the North American market. Laura most recently teamed with Controlled Environment Agriculture companies looking to expand into North America to develop business strategy, content creation, government liaison and community integration.
Lauren is a program intern at SVG Ventures. She assists with managing the growth of the global startup database, conducts startup market research and outreach for THRIVE's global accelerator programs.
Lauren is a second-year Business & Management Student at Durham University, her main focus areas are finance, investment banking, and environmental sustainability. Lauren is also an intermediate French speaker.
Lisa Merdjan is the Academy Manager at SVG Ventures | THRIVE. She assists in strategy and execution of our THRIVE programs, as well as supports the SVG Ventures portfolio.
Lisa has over four years of experience in program management, client engagement and operations. Previously, she worked at MaRS Discovery District, one of North America's largest urban innovation hubs, where she managed a program that helped early-stage startups raise capital, grow their revenue and build their team. At MaRS, Lisa was exposed to a range of emerging technologies in sectors such as Health, Cleantech, Fintech and Enterprise Software. Over the last few years, she developed a particular interest in AgriFood tech and the significant environmental, economic and social impact of its advancement.
Lisa holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Development with a concentration in Economic Development and Living Standards, as well as a minor in Urban Systems from McGill University.
Job Titles:
- Partnership Operations Manager at SVG Ventures
Job Titles:
- Sales & Marketing Executive
- Operations Manager at SVG Ventures
- Operations Manager I Global
Paula Elliott serves as Operations Manager at SVG Ventures|THRIVE, building our International ecosystem and partnerships with key innovation hubs, accelerators and investors.
Paula is a Sales & Marketing Executive with over 18 years international experience working for AT&T in the EMEA Region and more recently has worked as a self employed Talent Acquisition Specialist successfully placing more than 90 candidates both in Europe and the Middle East.
Based in the UK, Paula holds a Diploma in Business & Marketing from the Henley Institute in London and is a fluent German speaker.
Job Titles:
- Corporate Innovation & Operations Manager
- Manager of Corporate Innovation
Ricky Stephens is a Manager of Corporate Innovation at THRIVE, helping corporate partners navigate the complex AgriFoodTechlandscape and approach innovation more effectively. Heis deeply motivated to advance innovation that moves us toward a more resilient and healing food system.
Ricky brings 6 years of experience in the AgTech innovation sector. Previously, he ran NYC'sfirst incubator and collaborative workspace dedicated to agritech entrepreneurship. Most recently, Ricky served as the Director of Digital Strategy for Agritecture, a global leader in controlled environment agriculture (CEA) planning, strategy, and research. Through a board position with the NYC Ag Collective, Ricky has also led programming for some of the largest urban agriculture conferences in the US.
Prior to his work in the agtech space, Ricky was the Manager of Marketing Analytics at RedVentures, where he helped launch the company's first international office and early partnerships in Brazil. He holds a BA in History from Davidson College.
Job Titles:
- Director of Corporate Innovation
Sean Paquet is the Director of Corporate Innovation at THRIVE, helping corporate partners navigate the complex AgriFoodTech landscape and approach innovation more effectively. He brings a depth of strategic corporate advisory experience to THRIVE's innovation platform spanning high-level business model innovation, partnership development and pilot program design and execution, and tactically managing software development efforts.
Previously, Sean was a founding member of the Food and Agribusiness sector team at EY. In his seven years at the firm, he delivered an extensive portfolio of innovative programs focused on the most challenging issues faced by global Agribusiness firms today - from digitally-driven risk-sharing models in crop inputs markets to shared-value strategy development for emerging market entry. He also played a significant role in the internal development and expansion of the EY Food and Agribusiness offering, both in the US and in Europe.
Sean believes that intentional, structured innovation and purpose-led, cross-value chain collaboration are prerequisites to building better, more sustainable and equitable agri-food systems.
Sean attended Ross School of Business at University of Michigan for his undergraduate studies in Strategy and Accounting and attends Kellogg Graduate School of Business for his MBA focused on Growth, Scaling and Technology Management.
Job Titles:
- Program Associate
- Associate of Corporate Programs
Sofi Aguilera is a Program Associate of Corporate Programs at THRIVE, the leading global agrifood tech accelerator run by SVG Ventures. Previously, she worked as an Associate at AgFunder, sourcing and diligencing tech startups in the agrifood tech space. She has also worked as an Associate at the Liu Idea Lab for Entrepreneurship at Rice University, and most recently as a Program Associate at their Innovation Studio. At fifteen, Sofi became Mexico's youngest published author, and is the author of two published novels.
Sofi holds a B.S in Bioengineering from Rice University, and has experience building medical devices and conducting epigenetic engineering and synthetic biology research.
Job Titles:
- Global Accelerator Manager
- Manager of the Global Accelerator
Victoria Ivanova is the Manager of the Global Accelerator at THRIVE where she plays a critical role in supporting early-stage founders and drives all programmatic, project management, and execution initiatives within the Accelerator. Based in Chicago, Victoria brings a wealth of experience in venture capital, strategy, and operations to her role. Before joining THRIVE, Victoria managed the RelishWorks accelerator program Food Foundry, where she helped startups achieve success through mentorship, strategic planning, and identifying funding opportunities. She also executed corporate pilots at Relish Works to support go-to-market activities for portfolio companies and drive innovation within the $21b parent company. Previously, she was part of the Strategy and Operations consulting team at Slalom Consulting, where she advised Fortune 500 businesses through business transformations and performance improvement initiatives. In 2020, Victoria founded a pro-bono consulting company to assist early-stage founders in navigating the challenges of the pandemic. Passionate about promoting sustainable and equitable agri-food systems, Victoria is committed to supporting and connecting early-stage founders with transformative scaling opportunities through investment, advisory, and corporate support. Victoria earned her undergraduate degree in Finance and Business Law from Pennsylvania State University.