THE MARCH GROUP - Key Persons
Adrian is an Investment Professional at TMG. Born in Taiwan and raised in Singapore, where he attended the United World College of South-East Asia (UWCSEA - Dover). Adrian joins TMG from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) after completing his MSc in Finance with coursework centered around corporate finance and venture capital.
At TMG, Adrian is responsible for evaluating early-stage markets and investment opportunities, and returns analysis modeling.
Job Titles:
- Leader
- Founding Managing Partner
Chris is a seasoned investor and venture builder with global experience across the technology sector.
Prior to founding TMG, Chris was co-Chairman of Celsius Holdings (NASDAQ:CELH) and an investor at Horizons Ventures, the private investment arm of Mr. Li Ka Shing, investing across the technology landscape and managing a portfolio spanning the USA, Canada, Israel, France, and China. He is serving or previously served as a member of the Board of Director at Agua Brands, Algama, Apollonia Health, Bevi, Celsius, Digestiva, Endless West, Engage3, Perfect Day, QiFeng Food Technologies, and Rivalz.
A Hong Kong native, Chris is a recognized thought leader in venture capital (Forbes 30 under 30 Asia, Trusted Insight Top 30 Family Office Rising Stars) and a founding VC member and mentor of the postgraduate course on "Advanced Venture Capital Investing" at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Business School.
Chris holds B.A. degrees in Neuroscience and Behavior, and Economics from Columbia University; and is a graduate of Harrow School in the UK.
Job Titles:
- CEO
- Founder
- Vice President for Research, Colorado State University / Chief of Biological Sciences and Technology, US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency ( DARPA )
Dr. Alan Rudolph has had an active career in translating interdisciplinary life sciences into useful applications for biotechnology development and commercialization. His experience spans basic research to advanced development in academia, government laboratories, and in the nonprofit and private sectors. His scientific training translated into positions of leadership in each of these sectors with management of over $4B in investments in life sciences and biotechnology. Working for the Defense Department at the US Navy and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, he led major programs in biological defense and biotechnology.
As founder and CEO, Dr. Rudolph led companies in medical countermeasures including stabilized cell therapeutics at Cellphire and protein diagnostics at Adlyfe. He served as Vice President of Research at Colorado State University for a decade where he led a major expansion of research revenues and impacts launching new institutes in One Health, Healthy Aging, Soil Carbon Solutions and Data Sciences. Dr. Rudolph currently is an advisor for Cedar Street Group and Innosphere Ventures which invest in proof of concept stage companies in order to scale to impact and a board member of early stage companies. He has published more than 100 technical publications, three books, and has a number of issued patents from his work.
Dr. Rudolph has a doctorate degree in Zoology from the University of California at Davis and an MBA from George Washington University.
Dr. Caroll Dollard is an entrepreneur and seasoned veteran of the beverage industry with over 25 years of experience building some of the biggest brands in the business. She provides product development support to portfolio companies with expertise in productization and commercialization of technology.
Prior to TMG, Dr. Dollard was former Chief Operations Officer of Glacéau, provided leadership toward the innovation of glacéau vitaminwater and glacéau smartwater. Dr. Dollard has a decorated 17 year career at PepsiCo, directing worldwide flavor formulation, ingredient and technology activities for all Pepsi Cola products; responsible for identifying and integrating new technologies and business acquisitions in the PepsiCo strategy group.
In addition to industry experience, Dr. Dollard was a Founder of Agua Brands the maker of Agua Active Hydration and Agua Fruit Essence, Co-founder and Strategic Advisor to Cloud Water Brands, a functional beverage brand with lines for CBD and Immunity and she serves on the Advisory Board for IGH Naturals formulating electrolyte solutions for athletes.
Dr. Harold Schmitz is a seasoned venture builder with unique global experience at the interface between research universities and the food, health, and climate technology sectors.
Prior to forming TMG, Dr. Schmitz gained deep domain expertise with Mars, Inc., including serving as the company's first Chief Science Officer and creating the Mars Advanced Research Institute. Beginning in 1995, he created and led a world class "Food as Medicine" research team that discovered new health benefits associated with flavonoids and defined a new growth paradigm for the dark chocolate industry as well as other plant-based food categories. His passion for uncommon collaborations inspired relationships with the National Academy of Sciences, the Lindau Nobel Laureate Foundation and the University of California - including co-founding the Innovation Institute for Food and Health - UC Davis as a first of its kind organization to enable the New Economy for global health and environmental sustainability.
Dr. Schmitz's depth of experiences enable visibility to, and network support for, world-class inventors, innovators, and companies defining the role of food and climate tech in this New Economy. He is a Senior Scholar at UC Davis and a Life Member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and an advisor to the Novo Nordisk Foundation's Center for Biosustainability and BioInnovation Institute, Givaudan's MISTA, and the AI Institute for Next-Generation Food Systems co-funded by the US Department of Agriculture and the National Science Foundation. He is also serving on the Board of Directors of Engage3 and Chairs the Meati Scientific Advisory Board.
Dr. Schmitz holds a Ph.D. in Food Science from North Carolina State University, MS in Food Science from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and a BA in Food Science from the University of Arkansas.
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Chemical Engineering Food Science & Technology, UC Davis
- Retired Professor of Chemical Engineering
- Science Advisor
- Venture Advisor
Dr. Robert Powell is a Retired Professor of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science and a Professor of Food Science and Technology at the University of California Davis where he has been a faculty member since 1984. From 2002 until 2011 he was the Chair of the Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science.
In May 2014 Dr. Powell was appointed to Chair the Science and Technology Committee which reports to the Boards of Governors that oversee Los Alamos National Security LLC and Lawrence Livermore National Security (LLNS) LLC. He also served on the Executive Committee of the two LLCs. In 2018, Triad National Security became the Management and Operating contractor for Los Alamos National Laboratory and Dr. Powell was asked to chair its Science, Technology and Engineering Committee and serve as an observer to the Board of Governors. For both Traid and LLNS he also serves on their Mission Committees.
In academic years 2011-12 and 2012-13, he served full time as the Vice Chair and Chair of the Academic Senate of the University of California System, respectively. In these roles he was the public face of the faculty in all issues facing the University of California, dealing with the Regents, UC administrative leadership, state government and the media. At UC Davis, from 2008-11 he served as the Chair of the Academic Senate.
He has held temporary positions at the Swedish Forest Products Research Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratory and the National Science Foundation. He was the Panel Manager for the USDA Nanoscale Science in Food and Agriculture program from 2005-2008 and 2016-2020. At UC Davis, in 1998-99 he was Special Assistant to the Chancellor with specific responsibilities to oversee the development Office of Outreach and International Programs in anticipation of the hiring of a new Vice Provost. From 1996-1998 he was the Faculty Assistant to the UC Davis Provost. A key responsibility in this position was organizing academic planning for the growth in the student body that occurred in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Dr. Powell's research is focused on a variety of issues related to the flow of slurries and emulsions. These include foods like tomato paste or ketchup, personal care products like shampoos or creams, and fiber suspensions like those used in making paper or cellulosic ethanol. He has published over 110 papers in peer-reviewed journals ranging from the Journal of Applied Physiology to the Journal of Rheology, Journal of Fluid Mechanics, Physics of Fluids and Journal of Food Science. His research interests include the development of ways to equip manufacturing facilities that allow a much greater degree of precision and optimization. With Mike McCarthy in the Department of Food Science & Technology, Powell has been a pioneer in the development of novel experimental techniques, including the use of magnetic resonance imaging for applications in industrial processes. He is a member of the Society of Rheology, American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), American Chemical Society and the American Physical Society. He is also a Fellow of the American Physical Society and AIChE .
Dr. Powell has served as the Science Advisor to the Secretary of the California Department of Natural Resources. Since 2006, he has been involved in reviewing science and technology issues related to the Hanford waste pretreatment facility through the Vanderbilt Consortium for Risk Evaluation with Stakeholder Participation.
Job Titles:
- C - Suite Leader, Founder and Investor
- Operating Partner
Erica Bliss Pattni is a C-suite leader, founder and investor with over two decades of experience developing some of the world's most admired brands and contributing to profitable accelerated growth. As one of the founding executive team leaders and Head of Marketing at KIND, Erica created and built the brand, team and led all strategic execution including innovation, sales and distribution, marketing and International expansion leading to triple digit sales growth. Erica is founder of a digital wellness content company, principal of a venture start up advisory and has advised food, tech, and sustainability-focused brands including Nestle, Oracle and Miyoko's. Erica is a UC Davis Food & Agriculture Advisory Board Member and UC Davis Startup Center mentor. She holds a B.S. in Business Administration from University of Southern California and an MBA from Cornell University.
John G. Melo is an accomplished entrepreneur, CEO, and board director with over 30 years of global synthetic biology and energy industry experience.
Prior to TMG, John was CEO of Amyris, where he played a pivotal role in the industrialization of synthetic biology, a science that involves bioengineering organisms for industrial production. Raising over $2.5B in funding, and achieved a successful IPO with peak equity value of over $5B. Achieved revenue of over $500M annually from zero - and established a business model for monetizing molecules with over $1B in license and collaboration fees by successfully targeting and scaling 14 molecules that are currently consumed by over 400 million consumers daily and represent market share leadership in their respective end markets.
Prior to Amyris, John held various senior executive positions at BP, including most recently serving as President of US Fuels. At BP he had P&L responsibility for fuel marketing, supply chain and petroleum products business. Respected inside BP as an innovative leader with a track record for solving and troubleshooting the biggest & most complex problems inside the company. Established leader with deep knowledge of global fuel markets, global branding and large-scale transformation and M&A integration.
John is fluent in both Portuguese and English and is highly regarded as a writer and speaker. He is frequently quoted in major business publications on topics centering on industrial biotechnology, sustainability, and beauty brand building, health and wellness markets, and digital marketing.
Max is an Investment Professional at TMG. He is a techno-optimist who believes in the power of responsible technology development to solve the grand challenges of our time.
At TMG, Max is responsible for evaluating early-stage food and clean energy markets and investment opportunities. He enjoys working with founders & companies to build sustainable business and technology moats and fundraising. Max serves as a Board Observer for Rivalz.
Max is a California native residing in Hong Kong. He attended Washington University in St. Louis, where he read Classics and received a B.A. in Ancient History. His coursework centered on Greek political and economic history, Attic and Homeric Greek translation, and the political economy of the ancient Near East with a focus on the Achaemenid Empire. He joined TMG investment team out of university.
Outside of work, Max is a seasoned hacker on the golf course and enjoys playing billiards, reading, and barbecuing.
Patrick was a former Director at Horizons Ventures between 2014 and 2022. During that time, he led the investments in climate tech, aerospace and TMT sectors with over US$500m deployment and managed over 20+ portfolios. The combined net worth of his managed portfolios was over US$1B. He also held numerous board positions to support fundraising, M&A and listing of these portfolios such as ZeroAvia, Syzygy Plasmonics, H2Pro, Windward, HzO, Ezetap, Fleet Space, Nanoleaf, Wibbitz, & Magisto etc. Among which, Magisto and Wibbitz were acquired by Vimeo in 2019 and 2021 respectively. Windward was listed in UK Stock Exchange in 2021. Ezetap was acquired by RazorPay in 2022.
Before joining Horizons Ventures, Patrick worked at Hutchison Telecommunications for 14 years where he held a senior position in innovation and product development division. In his 20 years of career, he was granted several IP patents in signal processing when he was working at AT&T Wireless between 1996 and 1998. One of his co-inventions on space-time diversity has been deployed in 4G/5G wireless technology standard.
Patrick graduated with a Master of Applied Science degree in Engineering at the University of British Columbia, and completed his bachelor's degree at McMaster University, Canada.
Ralph is a Venture Partner of The March Group, and is a technical advisor to two plant based protein companies Meati and Aqua Cultured Foods. A distinguished Mars Fellow with 31 years of service to Mars, Inc. ("Mars"), Ralph served as the Global Innovation leader of Mars Inc. During that time, he pioneered and led the Corporate Innovation function at MARS to provide business segments with a competitive edge by defeating barriers to sustainable growth. He established a novel approach to innovation which relied on three pillars of capability: outstanding technical networks, state of the art economic valuation and technology translation teams; this created a positive transformational impact on the Mars business. Ralph set up the Mars venture capital capability and founded an innovation incubator called Mars Edge.
Ralph was previously the Global Vice President for R&D of the Chocolate Segment at Mars; pioneered design thinking techniques to build strong new product pipelines, conducted fundamental research to support product and process innovation, and disrupted the chocolate industry by aggressively pursuing transformational approaches to improve the cocoa supply chain. Since leaving Mars, Ralph has founded an AI based startup ("Rivalz") which is focused on addressing the global diabetes epidemic by developing snack foods which are delicious, nutritious and designed to for better blood sugar control. Ralph also leads innovation for a chocolate startup called Vine to Bar which leverages up-cycled chardonnay grape marc to make "paradoxical chocolate" which integrate delight and health.
Ralph has a master's degree in Food Science from Rutgers University.
Job Titles:
- Chief Financial Officer
- Chief Financial Officer at TMG
Rikon is the Chief Financial Officer at TMG. His key responsibilities span fund administration and reporting, investment execution, portfolio tracking, and investor relations.
Rikon brings broad and extensive experience in the financial sector. Before joining TMG, he spent over a decade in the audit and accounting sector at PwC and held a leading role in audit and listing engagements ranging from the largest listed HK companies to small and medium enterprises.
Rikon holds a Bachelor's degree in Accounting from Peking University, where he was awarded the National Scholarship and ranked top 10 graduates. He is also a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) of Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
Rikon enjoys cooking, calligraphy, hiking and backpacking. Less so now with the new addition of a baby to his family.
Stephen was one of the largest investors and key developmental influencers of Seeds of Change, an organic seed and food company and was President of the company from 1995-2004 when he became the Global Director of Corporate Affairs for Mars, Incorporated. Under his leadership, Mars launched a global sustainability program, a global health and nutrition work stream that is based on information, renovation and innovation, and branded the corporation Mars globally.
In March of 2008, Stephen joined the Mars, Incorporated Board and became Chairman in March of 2011, serving in the role for its term of three years. As Chairman he oversaw the creation of the first ever 25 year Vision for Mars, Inc., significantly evolved the Board to be more strategic and intentional, and successfully led the succession process for a new CEO. In March 2017 he assumed the role again (rotating off again in March of 2020) having overseen the creation of the first Purpose for the company in its history ("The world we want tomorrow starts with the how we do busines today.") as well as having stewarded the creation of the Compass, a four quadrant model that sets targets which include non-financial metrics like positive societal impact with the Purpose at its center.
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder
- Managing Partner
Tony is a seasoned technology investor with more than 10 years of global investment experience managing more than US$1B. He served on the Board of Directors on a number of companies including: co-Chairman of Celsius Holdings (NASDAQ: CELH) - at the age of 27, Tony was the youngest person on NASDAQ to hold that role, and as Vice-Chairman of Red Bull China.
Prior to TMG, Tony was Head of China and global Director at Horizons Ventures, where he led many global investments and specialized in transpacific business strategy - building joint ventures and spearheading portfolio companies' expansion into the China market. Tony began his career in the investment management division of Goldman Sachs, with a focus on technology, media, and telecommunications.
Tony graduated from Peking University with a B.A in Economics and Finance (full scholarship) and is on-track to be the youngest ever graduate of the DBA program at Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business in 2024.