Mentors
Mentor
As the longest-serving CEO in Silicon Valley, Ray Zinn’s mission is to guide the next
generation of entrepreneurs. He co-founded Micrel Semiconductor in 1978 and served
as CEO and Chairman for decades, leading one of the industry's most profitable enterprises
and securing nine patents in analog and power management.
Mentor
As Head of Finance, HR and Purchasing, Rob has strong leadership skills and years
of management experience. His expertise includes corporate and operational finance,
investor relations and treasury. He is currently a mentor with SCORE, a national organization
of volunteers providing free guidance and support to small businesses.
Mentor
As a patent attorney and SJSU alumnus, Jim has been advising our student entrepreneur
winners of the SVBPC over the past decade.
Mentor
As a communication strategist and founder of Mic&Pose, Buddy Burke helps entrepreneurs
turn presentation skills into performance gains. He has mentored startups globally
and taught speaking programs for Apple and institutions across five continents. He
runs an annual pitch/public speaking workshop for SJSU student entrepreneurs in preparation
for the SVIC.
Mentor
As VP of Manufacturing Operations at Matterport, Flora has over 25+ years of experience
in global business, supply chain, manufacturing, and operations in high-tech electronics
hardware manufacturing environments.
Mentor
As an AI Product Strategist and product leader, Parth Dhebar builds mobile and AI-driven
products from 0 to 1. With experience at Apple, Warner Bros. Discovery, and venture-backed
startups, he has led cross-functional teams and launched customer-facing platforms
used by millions.
Mentor
As Managing Director of RedStone LLC, Ishie Eswar brings experience across finance
and technology, with prior roles at Barclays Global Investors (BlackRock), UBS Investment
Bank, Merrill Lynch, and Sun Microsystems.
Mentor
Reena is the Founder & CEO of Wisdocity, a platform designed to boost productivity
and drive organizational growth by preserving the tacit wisdom of a company’s top
minds. Previously, she created Mom Relaunch, a non-profit dedicated to supporting
women re-entering the workforce. She serves on the boards of several non profit organizations
and chairs the Youth Program for TiE Silicon Valley, focusing on fostering entrepreneurship
in students.
Mentor
As the former owner of Arlo Spacemaker, Dave Hadden led a specialty manufacturing
company serving the high-end framed art industry. In 2018, he successfully sold Arlo
to ARC Industries, guiding the company through a strategic acquisition and leadership
transition. He brings firsthand experience in business operations, growth, and exit
strategy, and has mentored dozens of SJSU’s student entrepreneurs.
Mentor
As VP of Marketing and Acting CMO of a F3 Credit Union, Manie Kohn leads brand transformation
and AI-driven growth in regulated financial services. With 15+ years of experience,
he specializes in rebuilding momentum, reversing stagnation, and driving measurable
performance.
Mentor
As Senior Technical Manager at Pure Storage, Ming brings 15+ years leadership experience
in software development and quality assurance with start-up to Fortune 500 companies.
Demonstrated success in working with cross-functional teams and building relationships
with all levels of organization to drive business results, continuous process improvements,
and superior customer satisfaction. Self-starter with an infectious “Can do” attitude.
Strong Business Focus, Execution Ability, Leadership, and Interpersonal skills.
Mentor
As Founder and CEO of Vinder, Sam Lillie is building a hyper-local farmers market
delivery platform that connects food producers directly to consumers. An experienced
entrepreneur and MassChallenge mentor, he specializes in product development, business
strategy, and fundraising.
Mentor
As Founder of Social Venture Café and Co-founder of the Social Innovation Institute,
Brad Maihack brings over 40 years of leadership experience in high-technology and
innovation-centered ventures. He specializes in building high-performance teams and
advancing social entrepreneurship through collaboration and strategic growth.
Mentor
As General Partner at Calidris Partners, John Murray, Ph.D., advises early-stage startups
on technology strategy, due diligence, and innovation design. A business advisor,
educator, and science policy consultant, he brings deep expertise in complex networked
systems, R&D leadership, and entrepreneurship.
Mentor
As a founder and former corporate executive, Vinay has years of experience in Business
Development, Sales, GTM, and Partnerships at Startups and large corporations like
AWS. He is currently a mentor with SCORE, a national organization of volunteers providing
free guidance and support to small businesses.
Mentor
After 37 years of experience in corporate marketing, brand development, lead generation
programs and strategic planning at startups, Kevin is currently a mentor with SCORE,
a national organization of volunteers providing free guidance and support to small
businesses.
Mentor
As a technology strategy and marketing leader, Gary Richman brings deep experience
across AI, SaaS, robotics, and hardware innovation. A former Intel executive, he now
serves as a Faculty Lecturer at Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business
while advising startups and coaching executive leaders.
Mentor
As a Marketing Specialist at F3 Credit Union, RJ Rimando is a full-stack marketer
focused on financial empowerment and education. He specializes in data-driven growth
strategy, campaign execution, and driving measurable engagement.
Mentor
As Sr. Director of UX Research & Strategy at Square Panda, Sharon Rylander connects
the user voice to product and business decisions from 0 to 1 and beyond. With experience
across major brands and multiple funded startups, she specializes in product-market
fit research, launch strategy, and building research functions that scale.
Mentor
As Founder and CEO of ParkStash, Sameer Saran has built and scaled a tech company
delivering digital parking permits, automated enforcement, and access control solutions.
He leads partnerships across the security ecosystem and focuses on turning complex
operational problems into simple, scalable products.
Mentor
As CEO and Founder of Edvisor.ai, Shariq Shah builds AI-powered products designed
to improve how students learn and how instructors assess understanding. A three-time
founder, he previously built and scaled Tutorly.ai and has launched multiple products
from idea to adoption.
Mentor
As an international speaker, executive coach, and management consultant, Thomas Shirley,
Ph.D. advises organizations on strategy, business development, and ecosystem building.
He has held M&A and strategy roles with McKinsey, EY, KPMG, and GE, and currently
lectures at UC Santa Cruz and San José State University.
Mentor
