Growing venture capital firm is 'humbled' to land Connors
seattlepi.nwsource.com
Wednesday, January 12, 2005
By JOHN COOK
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
Ignition Partners did not have to look far to find its latest software superstar.
Cementing its place as one of the region's leading venture capital firms, Ignition yesterday tapped outgoing Microsoft Corp. Chief Financial Officer John Connors as its 10th partner.
The 45-year-old joins eight other former Microsoft executives at the Bellevue investment firm, including former Vice Presidents Brad Silverberg, John Ludwig, Cameron Myhrvold and Richard Tong. Together, the firm's partners worked at Microsoft for more than 90 years and created some of the most recognizable products in the software industry.
"They were a strong team before they attracted John," said Voyager Capital's Tony Audino, who worked with Connors at Microsoft in the late 1980s and calls him one of the sharpest financial guys in the business. "John is probably quite complementary to the team and knows them well."
The addition of Connors, who spent 16 years at Microsoft, including stints as chief information officer, corporate controller and director of business operations for Microsoft's European operations, brings Ignition a fresh dose of prestige, industry contacts and entrepreneurial energy at a time when the 5-year- old firm is flush with capital.
A relative newcomer to the Seattle venture capital scene, Ignition has quickly made its mark. It invested in more than 10 new startup companies last year, easily making it the most active venture capital firm in the state.
In October, Ignition bolstered its position with a new venture fund that topped $300 million. That made Ignition one of the biggest firms in the Pacific Northwest, with total capital under management of about $750 million.
That's a rounding error for Connors, who as Microsoft CFO oversaw a cash horde that stood at $64.5 billion as of last October.
Still, Connors said he is looking forward to the challenges of working with smaller companies where $1 million or $2 million bets can make a big difference. Connors admits there will be a learning curve, especially as he attempts to adapt to an environment where companies operate on budgets in hundreds of thousands of dollars rather than billions.
"It will take some coaching by other partners on how to think about things," admits Connors, who plans to invest his own money in the fund. "I bet I will screw some stuff up along the way, but if I work hard at it, hopefully, I will get it right."
After completing a three- to four-month transition at Microsoft and spending some time skiing, Connors said he will join Ignition's five-member enterprise software team. That group has pumped money into Seattle-area startups such as Entellium, which develops hosted customer relationship management software, and Docusign, which specializes in electronic signatures for documents.
Connors, who will sit on boards and participate in the investment decision process at Ignition, has a wealth of experience and an abundance of industry contacts in the enterprise software segment.
When he served as corporate controller and chief information officer at Microsoft, Connors rolled out complex software systems throughout the company. As chief financial officer, he is currently responsible for customer accounts with Accenture, Siemens, Shell, Citigroup, the Army, General Motors, Nike and Infosys.
"I have a lot of experience about how the largest organizations design, plan, roll out and support their technology," he said.
Jonathan Roberts, who co-founded Ignition after 13 years at Microsoft, said many of the partners have known Connors for more than a decade. Roberts said the firm did not actively recruit him.
"Oh, God no," Roberts said. "We would never recruit directly out of Microsoft. We value a very good relationship with them, highly."
The discussion arose after Connors met with Ignition's Jon Anderson at a Tully's Coffee shop in Bellevue last fall. The two executives, both of whom held the corporate controller position at Microsoft, have remained friends for a number of years.
Connors, who had recently climbed Mount Rainier, said he was looking for a new challenge and that venture capital might be a good fit.
"When I thought about the things that really get me excited, it is working with people that have great ideas and who want to make them successful and have them impact a lot of people," he said.
Connors, who lives in Medina with his wife, Kathy, and their four children, also said he is excited about the prospect of building new companies in the Seattle area. "I do think there are great opportunities for companies in the Northwest," he said.
The University of Montana graduate also said he is looking forward to spending more time with his family and on his boat, which after four years has only 17 hours on the engine.
"The role at Ignition will allow more flexibility in my schedule," Connors said. "Unfortunately, Microsoft has a year-end that is June 30, which means July and August are critical, intense months for SEC close purposes, creation of a proxy and creation of an annual report. Those also are the best months to be here."
Former AT&T Wireless Chief Executive Steve Hooper, who co-founded Ignition, said he does not feel outnumbered now that the partnership is dominated by former Microsoft executives who -- for some reason -- are named John. (Connors will be the fifth partner from Microsoft with that first name.)
Connors fits in well with Ignition's culture, which stresses integrity and continuous learning, Hooper said.
"We are always interested in augmenting our group with wonderful, great people, and when John indicated an interest, we wanted to find a way to make it work with him," he said.
At 10 partners, Hooper said the firm is the right size to make eight to 10 new investments each year. Its current portfolio consists of more than 30 startups.
Though Connors has never worked as a venture capitalist, Hooper said he has "all of the ingredients to be a great investor."
"He understands business very well, understands the software world very well, has great instincts with people and has a number of terrific relationships," Hooper said. "We are humbled and honored that someone of John's potential would want to join us."
Hiring the chief financial officer at the world's largest software company, will provide a significant boost to Ignition's reputation.
Five years ago next month, the firm was founded in Bellevue with little more than a rough business plan. Today, it is considered one of the most respected firms in the state, handling funds for institutional investors such as Princeton, Stanford, Harvard and the University of Washington. |
