About

THOMAS ORVILLE GEPHART   

 

THOMAS O. GEPHART, AS A VENTURE CAPITALIST, HAS INVESTED IN INNOVATIVE, ENTREPRENEURIAL COMPANIES FOR MORE THAN 25 YEARS.

VENTURE CAPITALIST

Mr. Gephart founded the Ventana Venture Capital Group, which syndicated more than $3 billion in seventy-six companies. Overall results have been at or above top tier, with over ten companies achieving more than 12.8 times on invested capital. As founder, he has led the successful $200 million global launch of five U.S. technology funds; investing in advanced technology companies such as semiconductors, biotech, medical devices and lasers, as a focus. Ventana also won global competitions against incredible opposition to become the first VC firm in both Mexico and Chile. $50 million was invested into fourteen companies.

ENTREPRENEUR

Prior to forming Ventana Ventures, Mr. Gephart revitalized Hamby Corp into one of the most successful flexible circuitry companies on the West Coast. Mr. Gephart also acquired Cirtec Inc.: an integrated, electronic packaging technology company, which he built and sold to a strategic private equity group.

GLOBAL EXPERIENCE

Mr. Gephart’s network of global connections touches many technology sectors, with relationships established in twenty countries over twenty-five years. Every year, Ventana invited his Limited Partners to Orange County or San Diego for strategic meetings. A series of strategic meetings with selected CEOs led to the creation of Cymer Laser  (Mitsubishi Corp., Japan), Corvas (Leuven University Technology Center, Belgium), Maxim Pharmaceutical (Karolinska University, Sweden), an IPO dual listing with NASDAQ, and Brooktree (ShinTech, Japan).

BUSINESS BUILDER & CORPORATE VENTURING

Mr. Gephart assisted companies on business strategies and relationships for introduction to the public capital markets, and strategic M/A opportunities. He has also served as an active board Chairman/Director and Interim Chief Executive Officer of over thirty companies. As board member, he focused on innovation, growth and developing strategic alliances. Thirty-three of these companies have gone public.

INNOVATION

As one of the first venture investors in San Diego and Orange County, Mr. Gephart was a member of USC’s School of Engineering Board of Counselors for six years, working with new technologies and technology transfer.  Currently, he advises multinational firms in search of innovative acquisitions.

LARGE MULTINATIONAL COMPANY EXPERIENCE

Before launching his entrepreneurial venture capital career, Mr. Gephart was long associated with the aerospace/defense sector. Upon his graduation from the University of Southern California with a BS degree in Engineering, Hughes Aircraft recruited Mr. Gephart into their spacecraft program. Bunker Ramo Corporation then enlisted Mr. Gephart to manage a new Electronic Packaging Division. This success was followed by AMP Inc. asking Mr. Gephart to create and lead a new innovative business unit responsible for identifying next generation micro-miniature electronic devices.

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

Mr. Gephart was selected by Ernst & Young to be a judge for Orange County’s 2008 Entrepreneur of the Year Award.  He also sits on various regional business committees, including advisory boards at U.C. Irvine and U.C. San Diego.  He continues to be a guest speaker and is active in promoting innovation and entrepreneurship within the southern California region.  In addition to business organizations, Mr. Gephart is a member of Concordia University’s Board, has been involved with Protocol Foundation, Mission Hospital, and has hosted many charity events at his residence.