And the judges for the 2020 Miami Herald Startup Pitch Competition are...
ADVISOR
MELISSA KRINZMAN
Melissa Krinzman is managing partner of Krillion Ventures, a $50 million Miami-based venture capital firm that invests in seed and early-stage technology companies in the financial services, real estate and healthcare sectors. Her fund has invested in 27 companies, nine of which have South Florida roots. Krinzman also founded Venture Architects, a business-planning firm that positions early- and growth-stage companies for success in the capital-raising process. She returns to the Herald’s entrepreneurship challenge as community coordinator and adviser. Finalists in the six community track verticals will have the opportunity to practice their pitches with Krinzman prior to their presentation before the judges.
COMMUNITY TRACK
MICHELLE ABBS
Michelle Abbs is the director of Babson College’s WIN (Women Innovating Now) Lab in Miami. During her tenure, she has grown the program visibility to more than triple the applicant pool. Her oversight of the experiential curriculum has led to the creation of more than 65 jobs, more than $9 million in capital raised and an average 244% revenue growth through more than 75 alumni entrepreneurs based in South Florida.
SHAI BAITEL
Shai Baitel is chief strategy officer of Mana Group, where he works with founder Moishe Mana to develop the company’s global growth strategy and forge partnerships. The company seeks to create hubs of art, culture, technology and international business.
JACLYN BAUMGARTEN
A seasoned marine entrepreneur, Jaclyn Baumgarten is CEO of Boatsetter, a peer-to-peer boat-sharing platform where thousands of boats are listed for rent. In 2015, she led a game-changing merger with her top competitor. In 2017, Boatsetter became the largest boat-rental marketplace in the United States after acquiring competitor Boatbound.
DIEGO BERTA
Diego Berta is senior director of business development at Magic Leap. Born into a family of engineers and craftsmen in Argentina’s wine country, Berta has an innate appreciation for raw materials and the artisans that turn rough elements into works of mechanical or fine art — much like the startup world. A father of two, Berta has been married for 15 years and counts his family as his greatest achievement.
JEFFREY CAMP
Jeffrey Camp managing partner of JC Venture Capital LLC, a family office that invests in early stage companies. He is also managing director of the Cane Angel Network, a group of University of Miami alumni that seeks to invest in early-stage companies.
BROOKE CANDELORE
Brooke Candelore is a product manager at ConnectWise, an IT software company and successor to Miami-based BrightGauge, where seh worked for about three years. After graduating with her master’s in computer engineering from the University of Pennsylvania, Candelore worked in web application development and artificial intelligence at BAE Systems.
ALLAN DAISLEY
Allan Daisley is the managing director of Startupbootcamp Digital Health SCALE in Miami, a program that helps high-growth potential startups engage with and bring impactful technologies to healthcare stakeholders. In this role, he recruits, invests in and develops healthcare startups through the commercialization process, steering them toward engagements with healthcare corporations and stakeholders. Daisley formerly co-founded and ran the ZeroTo510 Medical Device Accelerator, a nationally ranked program for the commercialization of medical technologies.
MIKE DANNHEIM
Mike Dannheim has more than 10 years of experience on management teams behind two venture capital-backed businesses (YCombinator and Rocket Internet). As a 15-year meditation, yoga practitioner and technology entrepreneur, he aims to impact human health by combining research in mindfulness and neurophysiology with technology to help provide broad access to mental healthcare.
REBECCA DANTA
Rebecca Danta is managing director of Miami Angels, the largest and most active angel network in South Florida, which funds Seed and Series A technology companies with early traction across various sectors. At Miami Angels, Dante has helped deploy more than $4.5 million into 18 deals while building a sustainable, independent business model for the organization. Before joining Miami Angels, Dante managed global campus operations for General Assembly in New York.
MAYI DE LA VEGA
Cuban-American real estate professional Mayi de la Vega is the founder and CEO of ONE Sotheby’s International Realty (ONE SIR), a Sotheby’s International Realty affiliate and a leading luxury brokerage firm in South and Central Florida. De la Vega founded the firm in 2008 during the country’s worst economic recession. Under her leadership, the company has grown to 18 offices and is backed by a global network that includes 22,000 associates in 72 countries and territories.
ROBERT FINVARB
Robert Finvarb is CEO of the Robert Finvarb Companies, which develops, owns and operates mixed-use hotel projects throughout the U.S. Since its founding in 2003, RFC has developed projects valued at more than $1 billion, encompassing more than 3,000 hotel rooms and over 200,000 square feet of retail space. A graduate of Georgetown University Law Center, Finvarb practiced law at Stearns Weaver Miller Weissler Alhadeff & Sitterson, P.A. in Miami before forming his development firm.
BRIAN GALE
Brian Gale is vice chair of Cushman & Wakefield of Florida. Through his 24-year career, Gale has overseen the signing of leases totaling 7 million square feet, with a value of close to $2 billion. His team currently represents almost 5 million square feet of office space in South Florida.
NABIL MALOULI
Nabil Malouli is vice president of global e-commerce for DHL, where he leads the innovation, strategy and product development of its e-commerce solutions. Previously, he was vice president of DHL’s customer solutions and innovation division. He also advises and invests in startups and a frequent speaker.
ARIEL MEYER
As Lyft’s regional director and general manager for Florida, Ariel Meyer oversees all ongoing initiatives for the company, from its ride-sharing offerings to its public transit integrations and e-scooter fleet. Before joining Lyft, Meyer co-founded a peer-to-peer currency exchange startup and ran international business development and product teams for various tech organizations, including eBay. Originally from Argentina, Meyer moved to Miami with his family 12 years ago.
RAUL MOAS
Raul Moas is the Miami program director at the Knight Foundation, leading Knight’s efforts to foster entrepreneurship in South Florida. Most recently, Moas was managing director of Miami Angels, Florida’s largest angel investor collective, which brings together exceptional entrepreneurs and accredited investors to fuel success.
LIL ROBERTS
A South Florida native, Lillian “Lil” Roberts prides herself on building customer-centric companies built on teamwork and technology. After a successful exit from the manufacturing industry, Roberts founded Xendoo, a cloud-based fintech company and the 2018 eMerge Americas Startup Showcase finalist. She is the company’s CEO.
RYAN SHEAR
Ryan Shear is managing partner of PMG, where he is responsible for general company operations,vision and growth. He currently manages a growing portfolio of over $4 billion in real estate assets across the country. Completed condo projects spearheaded by Shear include Echo Aventura, Echo Brickell and Muse Residences in Sunny Isles.
DANIEL SHEEHAN
Daniel R. Sheehan is a co-founder of Professional Bank. Since 2013 he has assumed the role of chairman of the board; in 2019 he became CEO. He also serves as chairman and CEO of Professional Holding Corp. , Professional Bank’s parent company now listed on the NASDAQ.
DANIE SPIKES
Danie Spikes is a professionally certified coach and graduate of the University of Miami Coaching Program who has logged more than 10,000 hours of professional coaching and speaking. She is founder and CEO of Beloved, Inc., a lifestyle company.
TIGRE WENRICH
Tigre Wenrich is the CEO of LAB Miami Ventures, which operates a venture studio and investment fund and Wynwood’s pioneering co-working space. Wenrich is also an active angel investor, board member of Miami Angels, and advisory board member for the University of Miami’s real estate development and urbanism program. He is a former partner at The Boston Consulting Group and past CFO and co-founder of Open English.
FIU Track
JUAN CARLOS ABELLO
Juan Carlos Abello is founder and CEO of Nuvola, a comprehensive hotel-software company focused on hotel operating efficiency, asset management and guest experiences.
KARLENE COUSINS
Karlene Cousins, Ph.D., is chair and associate professor of information systems and business analytics at FIU Business. She is the founding director of the ATOM Think Tank — a real-world technology experiential program for students. Cousins was director of the master’s program in information systems at FIU. She also founded ITWomen NextGen, an initiative focused on increasing the number of women in technology careers.
ORLANDO ESPINOSA
Orlando Espinosa is SBA Miami’s emerging leaders instructor, a position he has held since 2016. He is also an instructor with Interise, which supports established small businesses located in low-income areas or are minority-owned.
MANUEL PILA
Manuel Pila is an economic development professional for the City of Doral. He is also a journalist with more than 30 years of experience in print and broadcast journalism.
RICARDO WEISZ
Ricardo Weisz is a consultant to the Florida Small Business Development Center at FIU. He also is founder and president of Northvest, a private equity and venture capital group, and is the founder and administrator of Interim HealthCare, a home-healthcare agency.
Teen Track
STEPHANIE SYLVESTRE
Stephanie Sylvestre is chief programs officer and chief information officer at The Children’s Trust, where she manages a $184 million portfolio. She is also a board member at The Aqua Foundation, which promotes lesbian, bisexual and transgender wellness and equality in South Florida through grants, scholarships and initiatives.
BRIAN VAN HOOK
Brian Van Hook is director of the Florida SBDC at FIU. Before joining the university, he was policy director of the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business & Entrepreneurship. A native of Louisiana, Van Hook has more than 15 years of experience with disaster recovery and business continuity.
This story has been updated.
This story was originally published March 2, 2020 at 6:00 AM.
