Join us on Wednesday, April 25th for Pitch Night

We invite you to join the finalists of the Women 2.0 Napkin Business Challenge as they pitch to the judging panel live. As an audience member, your vote will help determine who walk away with the two top prizes of $1000 each, a pitch coaching session from Guidewire Group, and 30 minute meetings with Tim Draper of Draper Fisher Jurvetson or Michael Moritz of Sequoia Capital.

The 5 companies pitching on April 25th are the finalists of the Women 2.0 Napkin Business Challenge:

• FindYourScene: A community website where people can find “their crowd” and post, discover, and rate social events.
• Laser-Seal: Exploits ground-breaking interaction between light physics and cell molecular biology to reduce cost and improve quality of surgical wound closure.
• QTstar: Video monetization and intermediary ad service company in China and the United States.
• O’Light: Cutting-edge OLED technology to lighting designs.
• (YOU)STYLEME: Online fashion community where men and women who have particular style needs can connect with other consumers who are style-savvy in a fun and engaging way.

Live Judging Panel

TeXTra, the online new show hosted by Natali Del Conte, will be on the scene to cover this event, as well as bub.blicio.us and Justin.tv. DJ Diane will be spinning. We look forwarding to seeing you there!

So get your ticket to the Pitch Event, join us on Upcoming, and we’ll see you on April 25th!

Questions?

Email us [email protected] with any questions or if you would like to become a sponsor.

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The Judging Panel for the Women 2.0 Napkin Business Challenge

Alka Gupta
Advisor and Board Member for consumer media companiesAlka is veteran of and has strong interest in the digital consumer media and internet services space. While serving as an advisor to and board member for startups in this space, she is also the former Vice President of Corporate Development at Lycos and founding member of the company s Community and Communications products team. Alka holds a B.S. (cum laude) from Case Western Reserve University and MBA from Wharton.

Carol Sands
The Angels’ Forum, Managing Member and Founder

Carol has thirty years of financial services, sales management, and marketing experience, and launched the Halo Fund in 2000. Carol holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from The University of Iowa. She is on the board of SVASE and a frequent lecturer at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business (which has authored a case study of The Angels’ Forum) and also at its School of Engineering.

David Stern
Clearstone Venture Partners, Partner

David focuses on developing investment opportunities at the intersection of consumer technology and media. Prior to Clearstone, David was President of M Networks, an educational media company focused on providing practical business technology education to small businesses and entrepreneurs. David is a graduate of Cornell University and the University of San Diego School of Law.

Lara Druyan
Allegis Capital, General Partner

Lara joined Allegis Capital in 2000, bringing extensive experience in the software industry. She was responsible for Silicon Graphics Inc. s desktop software business. She identified market opportunities, developed and evangelized business strategy, and oversaw the successful execution and deployment of the SGI NetMeeting collaborative software suite into Fortune 500 companies. Lara holds a bachelor s degree in Economics from the University of Chicago and an MBA from Harvard.

Marianne Wu
Mohr Davidow Ventures, Partner

Marianne focuses on Cleantech investments. Prior to joining MDV, Marianne was VP of marketing at ONI Systems. Earlier in her career, Marianne was a consultant at McKinsey and Company where she advised major technology clients on strategic and operational issues. Marianne holds doctoral and master s degrees from the School of Engineering at Stanford and her bachelor s in Applied Science at the University of British Columbia.

Marleen McDaniel
Marleen has been on the founding teams of six successful companies, and specializes in bringing business process improvements to companies that need to manage rapid growth. She has spent the last few years as a consultant, advising companies adapting into bigger enterprises. As CEO and Chairman of Women.com, she grew the company to more than $50 million in revenue and raised $175 million in capital in 5 private equity rounds and a public offering, successfully selling the company in 2001. Marleen holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of California at Berkeley.

Patricia Nakache
Trinity Ventures, General PartnerSince joining Trinity in 1999, Patricia is particularly interested in Internet-based marketing and information services, alternative advertising solutions, and software delivered as a service. Prior to Trinity, Patricia worked at McKinsey & Company and contributed to FORTUNE magazine and other publications on management best practices in technology companies. Patricia holds an A.B. in Physics and Chemistry from Harvard and and an MBA from Stanford.

Shannon McClenaghan
Jimmyjane, President

Prior to joining Jimmyjane, Shannon accrued over 15 years of finance, fundraising, legal, and strategic development experience with technology, consumer and retail oriented ventures. With her own consultancy, she provided fundraising and strategic planning to consumer businesses. Shannon holds a double B.A. from the University of Washington, and a Juris Doctor from Golden Gate University, where she is also an Adjunct Professor of Law.

Sharon Vosmek
Astia (formerly Women’s Technology Cluster), COO

Sharon is active in the Bay Area nonprofit community, working closely with organizations that promote social, economic, racial, and gender equity and enfranchisement. She serves on the Board of Advisors of Astia (formerly Women’s Technology Cluster) and the Board of Directors of the Level Playing Field Institute. Sharon holds a B.S. in Political Science from Arizona State University and a M.A. in Public Policy and Administration from University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Susan Mason
Onset Ventures, General PartnerAt ONSET Ventures, Susan specializes in hardware and software investments in the communications, networking and security arenas. Susan has held positions in high technology engineering, marketing, and business development. She led a successful consulting practice, helping Fortune 100 corporations capitalize on emerging markets and technologies. Susan holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Colorado and her MBA from UCLA.

Tami Zhu
AOL, Executive Director of New Ventures Partnership Strategy

Tami spearheads corporate development within the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Besides collaborating with VCs and Angels on deal flows, Tami works closely with the CEOs, board members of startups and AOL senior executives to identify potential M&A candidates as well as operating opportunities. Tami holds dual B.S. degrees in Information Science and Psychology from Beijing University in China, a M.S. in Computer Science from UC San Diego, and an MBA from MIT Sloan.

Tim Chang
Norwest Venture Partners, PrincipalTim is a Principal at Norwest Venture Partners, focusing on Wireless and Digital Media investments, and also leads Norwest’s China initiatives. Prior to Norwest, Tim was a Principal at Gabriel Venture Partners, where he established and led the Wireless investment practice. He is also an accomplished musician and actor, and continues to perform around the Bay Area. Tim holds both a B.S. and a M.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan, and an MBA from Stanford.

Venky Ganesan
Globespan Venture Partners, Managing Director

As a Managing Director of Globespan, Venky focuses on investments in Software and Internet/Infrastructure start-ups. Venky, a successful entrepreneur himself, shares his intense focus on results, strategic market view, and technical expertise to help the firm’s portfolio companies achieve market leadership. Venky holds degrees in Math, Economics and Computer Science from Reed College and the California Institute of Technology. He was a Rhodes Scholar Finalist from India.