Michael Lipson, VP Strategy and Alliances

Michael has been starting up companies for the past seventeen years, primarily in the consumer technology and digital media arenas. Prior to this he was an investment banker for General Electric Capital, where for eight years he financed leveraged buyouts ranging from $10 million - $250 million.

Michael left the investment banking world in 1990 to become a technology entrepreneur by first becoming a partner in GISTICS, a boutique market research firm serving interactive technology leaders like Apple Computer and shortly thereafter creating a GISTICS consulting practice aimed at increasing equity value of early entrant CD ROM companies. In 1992 he simultaneously helped start and was the first Board President of the SF Multimedia Development Group trade association, which grew to over 600 member companies under his leadership, and co-founded M/Media Strategic Partners, a venture consulting group specializing in new media start-ups. Within one year M/Media closed its first venture capital raise for Total Entertainment Network (A Round led by Kleiner Perkins, eventually became Pogo and later acquired by EA) and continued it’s streak by helping build a few dozen internet companies over the next four years. Michael left M/Media to interim CEO Internet UndergroundMusic Archive (acquired by EMusic and later Vivendi) and he soon thereafter began taking full time Executive roles at a handful of start-ups, including VP Alliances - PlanetU (online couponing, Softbank funded), President - SpeakESL (Speech technology based English language learning software, Joe Costello funded ), EVP - Razz (mobile phone entertainment and social networking applications, Mayfield funded) and most recently CEO of Five Dynamics (personality profiling HR software, private investor funded). In sum, he has worked closely with over seventy-five companies, clients ranging from high profile enterprises such as Paul Allen’s Interval Research think tank to dozens of fledgling start-ups.

Michael also has a fascination for understanding what makes people tick, facilitates personal growth and development groups, has served on non-profit Boards such as CorStone, which promotes emotional resiliency and provides support for the terminally ill, and has pursued a life-long interest in helping people and organizations tap into their greatest potential and highest purpose.