Our Leadership Team

SynapSense Management

 

Peter Van Deventer, President & CEO
Peter Van Deventer is SynapSense President & CEO since co-founding the company in 2006. As CEO, Pete is responsible for the corporation’s strategy, financial management and operational execution. Pete is an established veteran of global technology market development, with over 23 years of international business experience. Prior to SynapSense, Pete spent a decade at Intel Corporation in a variety of sales, marketing and operational roles, including serving on the global Sales and Marketing, Flash Memories, and Mobile Products Group executive staffs. He was the Director of Worldwide Sales and Marketing for the global ramp of Centrino™ mobile technology and was involved in greater than 100 different technology ramps. Prior to Intel, Pete founded and built three companies. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Colgate University and holds an International MBA from Thunderbird, the American Graduate School of International Management. Pete is the First Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Easter Seals Superior (Northern) California as well as an Advisory Board Member for the Engineering Translational Technology Center in the College of Engineering at University of California Davis.

 

Dr. Raju Pandey, SynapSense Co-Founder & Chief Technology Officer
He is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science, at the University of California, Davis. While at UCD, Dr. Pandey led the SENSES project , which was funded in part under National Science Foundation grants. Dr. Pandey's research interests are in wireless sensor networks, distributed and parallel systems, system software, programming languages, security and software engineering.  Dr. Pandey has authored over 40 papers on sensor networks and distributed computing and is a patent holder in this space.  Dr. Pandey holds a Ph.D. from the University of Texas, Austin, a M.S. from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and a Bachelor in Technology from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur.

 

F. Ray Nuñez, Chief Financial Officer
Ray has over 20 years of experience working with both early-stage venture-backed companies and global high technology businesses. Prior to joining SynapSense, Ray served as CFO of American River Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on energy efficiency investments. Ray was also consulting CFO for RCS Technology, a recognized leader in smart grid innovation. Ray’s early career includes finance and marketing management positions at HP; he earned his CPA while at Deloitte LLP in Silicon Valley. Ray currently serves as Vice President of the Board of Directors for Ronald McDonald House Charities Northern California. He holds a B.S.C. in Accounting from Santa Clara University and an M.B.A. in Corporate Finance from the UCLA Anderson School of Management.

 

Pat Weston, Vice President of Strategic Planning
Pat is a 35 year industry veteran, having held multiple critical engineering positions in leading edge high technology companies. In his role as VP of Engineering at Watchguard Technologies, he oversaw large software development programs and selectively initiated and implemented the outsourcing of hardware and software development. While at Diamond Multimedia, he led the high energy development of the Rio MP3 Player products. During his 13 year tenure at Intel, he had a number of critical engineering roles, including Business Unit Manager responsible for conceiving, developing and delivering the world's first PCMCIA products. He holds issued patents in data communications and PCMCIA technology.  Pat leads the SynapSense engineering and packaging effort. He is a graduate of the Witwatersrand Technical College in Johannesburg, South Africa.

 

Ray Pfeifer, Corporate Executive Vice President
Ray Pfeifer is the Corporate Executive Vice President at SynapSense. Ray has over 20 years of experience in the design, construction and commissioning of research labs, biotech and semiconductor manufacturing plants and data centers.  He is recognized as a technology development and thought leader in the IT industry.  In addition to his technical leadership on data center energy assessments, energy efficiency retrofits and proof of concept projects using SynapSense’s innovative WSN technology his industry work includes: Co-Chair of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group’s data center energy efficiency initiative; USGBC Data Center LEED Adaptation Working Group Chair; facilitator for the CEC Data Center EPC project; participation in the development of the DOE DCPro assessment tools and serving on the steering committee for the DOE’s Certified Energy Practitioner program for data centers; and participation in the Chill Offs (I and II) to test and evaluate high density cooling systems.

 

Jeff Boone, Senior Vice President of Engineering
Jeff leads the SynapSense engineering, quality assurance, and support teams. Jeff’s extensive technical and software management background includes over 25 years of experience in developing successful commercial software solutions and profitable software businesses. Before joining SynapSense, Jeff held senior C-level and VP-level product, technology and information positions with Bickmore Risk Services, Eliant, Island Pacific, Retail Technologies International, and Objective Systems Integrators. He has an extensive background in software engineering, including key technical positions at Walker Interactive Systems, Inc., ICOT Corporation, Systems Center, Inc., and IBM. Jeff holds a Bachelor degree in Computer Science from California State University in Sacramento. He serves on a number of Sacramento technology councils and is board president for a non-profit serving the needs of the Folsom Zoo Sanctuary.

 

Troy Mitchell, Vice President of Sales and Marketing
Troy Mitchell is the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for SynapSense Corporation. Over the past few years at SynapSense, Troy has worked with data center customers to plan and develop wireless solutions tailored to optimize their specific data centers. Troy has also worked with several Fortune 50 companies to optimize air flow management in their data centers, achieve continuous optimization and save energy. One of his projects with AT&T was the finalist in the Green Enterprise IT Award for Outstanding Facilities Product in a User Deployment.

Prior to joining SynapSense, Troy spent thirteen years at Intel Corporation in a variety of sales, marketing and operational roles. As the APAC Marketing Director and Product Marketing Manager for Intel’s Flash Memory Group, he played a key role in managing a $1.8B business. Prior to joining Intel, he was the Microsoft Product Marketing Manager at Pacific, Gas & Electric. He received his Bachelor of Science degree from California State University Sacramento.

 

Ron Bostic, Vice President of Professional Services
Ron Bostic is the Vice President of Professional Services responsible for providing vision and leadership of the professional services strategy that delivers energy savings and resource optimization across the enterprise. Ron brings more than 20 years of executive management experience in the technology-driven mission-critical services industry. His background spans multiple markets with a focus on datacenter infrastructure support in the commercial, government, and telecom sectors. Ron has successfully led the growth and development of enterprise level world-class service organizations, achieving and defining industry benchmarks through innovation, customer focus, and operational excellence. Before joining SynapSense, Ron served as Business Unit Vice President for Thomas & Betts Global Services. Prior to that he held positions as General Manager with Eaton Engineering Systems & Services; Vice President of North American Services with Eaton-Powerware Corporation; and Director of U.S Services with Powerware Corporation. Ron holds a Bachelor degree in Business Management, and is a graduate of the Kenan-Flagler School of Business, University of North Carolina. Ron is an active member and recognized thought-leader among multiple power-quality and mission-critical facility support associations.

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Board of Directors

 

Lou DiNardo joined Crosslink Capital in January 2008 in the firm's Energy Technologies and Computing & Semiconductors practices. Mr. DiNardo brings over 25 years of experience as a successful semiconductor executive and venture investor. Prior to joining Crosslink Mr. DiNardo was a General Partner in the CleanTech practice at VantagePoint Venture Partners. Previously, Mr. DiNardo served as President and Chief Operating Officer at Intersil Corporation (ISIL). Mr. DiNardo served as President and Chief Executive Officer and Co-Chairman of the board of directors of Xicor Corporation from November of 2000 through July of 2004 when the company was acquired for over $500 million by Intersil. Prior to joining Xicor Mr. DiNardo was most recently Vice President and General Manager of the Mixed Signal Business Unit at Linear Technology Corporation (LLTC) and held a variety of executive positions with the company during his 13-year tenure with the company. Mr. DiNardo began his career in the semiconductor industry at Analog Devices Corporation. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Ursinus College.

 

Gina Domanig is the Managing Partner of Emerald Technology Ventures. In 2000, she founded Emerald as the first independent cleantech venture capital fund in Europe. Emerald is one of the largest dedicated cleantech funds and the first with a transatlantic strategy. Gina serves on the boards of Identec Solutions, Inge and Pelamis. Gina has over 20 years of international business experience including banking, M&A, strategic development, and venture capital. Prior to starting Emerald, she was senior vice president at Sulzer, a Swiss multinational, responsible for strategic planning and M&A. During her ten year tenure, she built up a team which completed 45 transactions including acquisitions, divestitures, IPOs and JVs in industrial technology sectors. Gina holds MBA degrees from Thunderbird in Arizona and ESADE in Barcelona and is fluent in English, German and Spanish.

 

Mike Fister brings over 30 years of executive management experience in leading technology companies and is currently involved in several new ventures. In August 2011, he was appointed as Chief Executive Officer and board member of Enecsys, an innovative solar micro-inverter company operating in both the UK and Silicon Valley. Previously, Mike spent five years as the CEO of Cadence Design Systems Inc, where he and his team drove a revolutionary approach to EDA. Prior to that, Mike spent over 20 years at Intel Corporation, managing many of the company’s microprocessor developments, associated chipsets, software developments and several vertical categories, most notably Intel's penetration into the server market. Mike also sits on the board of SynapSense Corporation and is the chairman of the board at Iceotope Ltd.

 

Harry Laswell co-founded American River Ventures after working for 21 years inside one of the world's leading technology companies - Intel Corporation. Prior to American River Ventures, Harry was a Managing Director at Intel Capital, where he managed a team that invested over $200 million in 41 companies - nine of these companies had successful IPOs. Before joining Intel Capital, Harry held marketing management and general management positions in a number of Intel business units. He was responsible for conceiving and launching new products that generated over $1 billion in annual revenues. While at Intel, he received the Intel Achievement Award, Intel's highest honor. He is also the recipient of a US patent.

 

Dr. Raju Pandey, SynapSense Chief Technology Officer, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of California, Davis. While at UCD, Dr. Pandey led the SENSES project, which was funded in part under National Science Foundation grants. Dr. Pandey has authored over 40 papers on sensor networks and distributed computing and is a patent holder in this space. Dr. Pandey holds a Ph.D. from the University of Texas, Austin, MS from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and a Bachelor in Technology from the Indian Insitute of Technology, Kharagpur.

 

Rodrigo Prudencio is a Partner with Nth Power Venture Capital. Rodrigo works with the portfolio companies and Limited Partners to lead strategic relationships that advance early adoption of energy technologies and services. The strategic relations program he leads is responsible for over $100 million of contracts and investments between Nth Power’s Limited Partners and portfolio companies.

 

Peter Van Deventer is SynapSense President & CEO since co-founding the company in 2006. As CEO, Pete is responsible for the corporation’s strategy, financial management and operational execution. Pete is an established veteran of global technology market development, with over 23 years of international business experience. Prior to SynapSense, Pete spent a decade at Intel Corporation in a variety of sales, marketing and operational roles, including serving on the global Sales and Marketing, Flash Memories, and Mobile Products Group executive staffs. He was the Director of Worldwide Sales and Marketing for the global ramp of Centrino™ mobile technology and was involved in greater than 100 different technology ramps. Prior to Intel, Pete founded and built three companies. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Colgate University and holds an International MBA from Thunderbird, the American Graduate School of International Management. Pete is the First Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Easter Seals Superior (Northern) California as well as an Advisory Board Member for the Engineering Translational Technology Center in the College of Engineering at University of California Davis.

 

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Board Observers

 

Ricardo Angel is Senior Vice President for GE Energy Financial Services' venture capital team, focusing on investment opportunities in the western United States. Based in San Francisco, Mr. Angel joined GE Energy Financial Services from ChevronTexaco Technology Ventures, where he originated and executed Energy and Cleantech venture capital investments. He previously worked in investment banking at Goldman Sachs and as a technology consultant with CNA Corporation. Mr. Angel holds an MBA from Northwestern University's Kellogg School and Bachelors, Masters and Doctorate degrees in Engineering from the University of Illinois.

 

Michael Goguen is a partner with Sequoia Capital, focusing on cleantech, semiconductor and systems investments. Prior to joining Sequoia Capital in 1996, Michael spent 10 years in various engineering, research, and product management roles at DEC, SynOptics and Centillion, and was a director of Engineering at Bay Networks (NT). Michael was also a Technical Chairman of the ATM Forum. Michael has a BS in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University and an MS in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University.

 

Dr. Claus Schmidt is Managing Director at Robert Bosch Venture Capital GmbH (RBVC), and is responsible for the technical strategies and decisions at RBVC. After 24 years in different operational jobs with IBM, DEC and about 16 years with Bosch he joined RBVC as one of the founding managing partners in 2007. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Stuttgart after staying at the Max-Planck Institute for Metal Physics in Stuttgart.

 

Jim Schraith is a Venture Partner of DFJ Frontier. He is an active angel investor in the Sacramento area and sits on the boards of several area early stage companies. Mr. Schraith's career in high technology spans 25 years and includes significant public and private company experience with operating roles of CEO, COO and EVP at Quantum, ShareWave, Compaq and AST Research. As the leader of Compaq's North American operations, he was responsible for over $10 billion in annual revenues and a team of over 6,000 people. At AST, Mr. Schraith was President & COO and a member of the team that took AST to the Fortune 500 list in 1992. He sits on the boards of Achievo, Semtech, and VisualCalc. Mr. Schraith co-founded QTV Capital, a Bay area venture capital fund, in early 2000. A cancer survivor, Mr. Schraith is an active fundraiser for the Lance Armstrong Foundation.