SALT LAKE CITY—February 8th, 2022— Venture Capital.org (VCO), a Utah-based non-profit organization that assists, coaches, and provides mentoring to entrepreneurs raising investment capital, announced today that Marcia Nelson has been unanimously elected Chairman-Elect of the Board of Trustees at VCO. Marcia began her new Vice Chairman position on January 1, 2022 and will become VCO’s Chairman of the Board of Trustees on Jan. 1, 2023. Marcia is Managing Director and Registered Representative at Sharenett LLC, Founding Partner of Triple C Advisory, and Board Advisor for Intuitive Funding (SFO).
“Marcia brings tremendous leadership and national attention to Venture Capital.org, especially with the growth VCO’s Women’s Entrepreneurship Program and nationally recognized WeROC conference. Both programs have risen to new heights under her direction,” said Trent Christensen, CEO and President at VCO.
Marcia has 20 years of experience working with family offices and their advisors, building and maintaining a network of family offices and private investors. In addition to her current positions, Marcia serves as Chairman of the Board at ACG-NY (Association for Corporate Growth), which focuses on driving middle-market investments; Advisory Board member at Assure, an SPV Fund Administrator; Advisory Board Member of Sheryl Grant Enterprises, a mentoring and education organization focusing on minority women; and she is a member of the Investment Committee for University Impact, a donor advised fund.
Always a champion for women, Marcia is a former member of the Board at Women in the Boardroom and was the founder and CEO of Deals & Divas, which brought together women entrepreneurs, advisors and investors. Marcia earned her undergraduate degree at Southern Utah State College and her MBA at Fordham University in NYC.
Also today, VCO welcomed the following professionals to its Board of Trustees:
Maile Keone
President, CEO, Listen Technologies
Maile Keone, president and CEO, is responsible for executing Listen Technologies’ strategic business plan, guiding the company’s vision and creating value for shareholders, partners, and customers. A technology industry veteran of 30 years, Maile brings a wealth of experience to her role. At Listen Technologies, she has built world-class teams. Maile serves on the board of the Women Tech Council and loves helping entrepreneurs as a VCO.org board member and mentor.
Jim Divver
Sr. Vice President of Government Relations, Zions Bank
Jim oversees all aspects of government relations. His efforts have yielded over $2.7 billion in revenue for Zions. He is a member of the company’s Zions Insurance Committee and Trust Committee. Divver’s expertise includes insurance, wealth management, public finance, demand and time accounts, Foreign
Exchange, and Health Savings. Jim also serves on several boards, including the Downtown Alliance Board, Community Nursing Services Board, Deseret Fountain Board, Guadalupe School Board, American Lung Association, University of Utah Business School Alumni Board, Hale Center Theatre Advisory Board, Utah League of City and Towns Advisory Board, and the American Bankers Health Savings Account Council Board. In 2010, he received The Zions Bank prestigious “Roy Simmons” Community Award.
Bill Kirth
Partner, Rectify Partners
Bill has 35 years of experience in banking, auditing, bank compliance, asset-based lending, factoring, purchase order financing, entrepreneurship, and private equity. Currently, Bill works with LSQ on A/R financing, supply chain, and SaaS financing. Bill is a partner with Rectify Partners, a corporate consulting company and equity fund. He serves on the board at Venture Capital.org, the Association for Corporate Growth, and the boards of companies he has invested in. He also served on the Turnaround Management Association board and the National Risk Management Association membership board. Bill owns and manages a private equity fund and has extensive experience in financing early-stage, high growth companies as well as turnaround companies.
Chris Badger
Partner, CFO NOW
Chris brings a broad and diverse accounting experience to CFO NOW. His professional expertise includes strategic corporate management, implementing and managing financial and operational reporting functions support for Boards and investor relationships. In addition, Chris has extensive experience in Human Resources, health insurance benefits, retirement plans including 401(k)s, Top Hat plans, ESOPs and Qualified and Non-Qualified Profit-Sharing Plans. Chris has also managed and directed IT functions and back-office support, including customer service and administration departments.
About Venture Capital.org
Venture Capital.org is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization that is celebrating its 37th year of assisting entrepreneurs. The Venture Capital.org mission is to improve the human condition through technological entrepreneurship by helping new entrepreneurs create the next generation of industry leading companies. Our vision is to empower emerging and diverse entrepreneurs to create technologically and commercially sustainable companies that increase high-quality jobs and new economic opportunities in under-served regions of the US. Venture Capital.org offers educational programming for new and experienced entrepreneurs to better understand the nuances of raising investment capital. Venture Capital.org also offers in-depth mentoring to assist entrepreneurs to develop and refine their investor presentations. Program outcomes include improved education, new investment capital, and new jobs.
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