When it comes to growing companies, JumpStart's Venture Partners have, as the saying goes, “been there, done that.” They have raised venture capital money, grown businesses rapidly, sold their products into big companies, and executed well. This portion of the website recognizes our Venture Partner “alumni” and discusses positions of entrepreneurial and/or executive leadership that they now fill.
Samuel P. Gerace
Venture Partner: 2004-2005
Current Position: CEO, Veritix
Sam was a Venture Partner from 2004 to 2005. He is currently Chief Executive Officer of Veritix, a venture-backed company that provides revolutionary products for both the primary and secondary ticketing markets. Sam was previously the Chief Technology Officer and a corporate director of ValueClick, Inc, which provides a comprehensive advertising and marketing platform for leading retail and consumer businesses. ValueClick acquired BeFree, Inc., an Internet marketing company that Sam founded and led for many years and that is now integrated into ValueClick. BeFree builds, manages, and maintains Internet-based affiliate marketing programs for corporate clients such as barnesandnoble.com, eBay, and Staples.com. Sam graduated cum laude from Harvard University with a BA in Biochemistry and received a Masters in Business Administration from the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University.
Marc Insul
Venture Partner: 2006-2008
Current Position: Entrepreneur
Marc was a Venture Partner from September 2006 to April 2008 and is continuing on his own entrepreneurial path, exploring opportunities to grow a small service or distribution business into an organization that can make a significant impact on the Cleveland community, just like he did with Fidelity National Field Services (FNFS). Marc was President and Chief Operating Officer of FNFS, the Cleveland based division of Fidelity National Financial, Inc., the nation’s largest title insurance company and a member of the Fortune 500 and Forbes Platinum 400. He grew his B2B field services company nearly from scratch, sold it to Fidelity National Financial in 1998, and continued operating the division until early 2006. While he was overseeing the organization, order volume increased by 1,500 percent on an annualized basis and net income grew by more than 2,500 percent. Marc holds a BSBA from Washington University in St. Louis and an MBA from Case Western Reserve University.
Mozelle T. Jackson
Venture Partner: 2005-2006
Current Position: CFO, Elyria Foundry
Mozelle was a Venture Partner from 2005 to 2006. She is currently Chief Financial Officer of the private-equity-backed Elyria Foundry. Prior to joining Elyria Foundry, Mozelle served as Regional Chief Financial Officer of Fifth Third Bank. Before joining JumpStart, Mozelle was the President of Weatherchem Corporation, a manufacturer and marketer of plastic dispensing closures supplying the packaging industry. Prior to Weatherchem, Mozelle was Vice President of Finance for Corrpro Companies, Inc., a publicly-traded provider of services and products to the global infrastructure, energy and environmental markets. Mozelle was also the Vice President and Corporate Controller for a publicly-traded manufacturer and distributor of plumbing, electrical and hardware products and began her career at Arthur Andersen LLP. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from Cleveland State University and is a Certified Public Accountant. Mozelle was in Northern Ohio Live’s Rainmaker Class of 2007, as well as Crain’s Cleveland Business Women of Note Class of 2001.
Roy K. Phelan
Venture Partner: 2006-2008
Current Position: Entrepreneur
Roy was a Venture Partner from 2006 to 2008. Until recently he was the Chief Operating Officer of Inspiron Logistics. This JumpStart Portfolio Company develops and sells a proprietary Wireless Emergency Notification System (“WENS”) that provides educational institutions, governments and corporations with the ability to send high priority, high speed and high reliability emergency notifications to customized select groups of people. While Roy worked with the company as an EIR, Inspiron added several customers and gained angel investments. Just before JumpStart, Roy was the CEO of the start-up software company PinPoint1, which offered software and services that provided significant assistance to the hiring and personnel on-boarding process for the restaurant industry. Prior to that, he built and sold a four-store retail franchise operation. Before immersing himself in the startup world, Roy was a Partner at Accenture for a number of years where he developed his business development, eCommerce, supply chain management, and software development/implementation skills. Roy has his BSME from Duke University and an MBA from University of Michigan.