entrepreneur-fest `98: president vest

THE REGIONAL ALUMNI NEWSLETTER OF THE MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
K W W S Z Z Z P L W F Q F R U J
of NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
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ENTREPRENEUR-FEST ’98: PRESIDENT VEST
MIT Companies, MIT Technologies, & MIT President Vest
The MITCNC is striving to promote entrepreneurship within
the Bay Area and enhance the interaction of entrepreneurs in the
local MIT community. Last fall, the MITCNC held Spotlight
MIT '97: Entrepreneurship to highlight MIT's role as a leader in
entrepreneurship. The event featured Dr. Alex D'Arbeloff,
Chairman of the MIT Corporation and founder of Teradyne as
the keynote speaker. The event also featured the winners of the
1997 $50K business plan competition that was held at MIT.
Over 300 MIT alumni/ae attended the event and rallied around
MIT's spirit in the Bay Area.
During this past year, the MITCNC has been running its Venture
Incubator program which is directed toward facilitating new
MIT entrepreneurs in starting companies. EntrepreneurFest '98
is a celebratory culmination to the successful year-long Venture
Incubator program. EntrepreneurFest '98 will have a lot for
everyone.
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MIT Founders of Local Companies including: Efraim Arazi
(Electronics For Imaging, Inc.), Jerry Burnett (Visionary Corporate Technology), Paul Cook (RayChem and SRI), Steve Kirsch (Infoseek), Brian Hinman (Polycom), David Lam (Lam
Research), Suhas Patil (Cirrus Logic), and Vivek Ranadive
(TIBCO), Howard Shao (Documentum). Come and rub elbows
with some of the people who have shaped, and are currently
shaping, entrepreneurship in Silicon Valley.
Technology and Product Demos by over 20 up and coming
local MIT companies. Come and find out about the hot new
companies that your classmates are building.
3$*(
06/04 Thu 6:30pm Selling Value of Technology at SGI in Mountain View
06/05 Fri 9:00am MIT Commencement, President Clinton and Dr. David Ho
06/06 Sat 9:00am YABA Napa Wine-Tasting Tour
06/11 Thu 6:30pm MITCNC Annual Event Planning Meeting
06/11 Thu 6:00pm YABA Happy Hour at Tosca Cafe in San Francisco
06/15 Mon 7:30pm Tango Dancing Night at Alberto’s in Mountain View
06/18 Thu 7:00pm "Managing your Career for the New Millenium" by Lewke
06/21 Sun 10:00am MITCNC Hike at Stevens Creek Park, Cupertino
06/23 Tue 6:00pm MIT/Stanford Venture Lab: “Are IPO’s overrated?”
06/24 Wed 7:00pm "Women in High Tech" Panel at Stanford
06/25 Thu 7:00pm MITCNC Happy Hour at Savoy Tivoli in San Francisco
06/27 Sat Noon
Entrepreneurfest '98, featuring Dr. Vest, MIT President
07/09 Thu 7:00pm Happy Hour at Rock Bottom Brewery in Campbell
07/14 Tue 11:30am Fremont Nummi Auto Plant Tour
07/16 Thu 6:00pm Ceramic artistry at Color Me Mine in Menlo Park
07/19 Sun 10:00am MITCNC hike along Steep Ravine Trail, Mt Tamalpais
07/20 Mon 7:30pm Tango Dancing Night at Alberto's in Mountain View
07/26 Sun 7:00am Whitewater Rafting in Colma
07/29 Wed 7:00pm Boston Red Sox vs. Oakland Athletics baseball game
08/08 Sat
MITCNC Cycling Trip
08/13 Thu 7:00pm MITCNC Happy Hour at Q's Cafe in Palo Alto
08/16 Sun 10:00am MITCNC hike along Berry Creek Trail at Big Basin
08/31 Mon 7:30pm Tango Dancing Night at Alberto's in Mountain View
NEWSLETTER CONTENTS
MAIN EVENT
CLUB LEADERSHIP
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
ARTS, FUN, AND SOCIAL
CORPORATE SPONSORSHIP
Dr. Charles Vest, MIT’s President, our keynote speaker and honored guest will speak on
his vision of MIT’s role in developing the people
and technology to fuel entrepreneurship in the
new millenium.
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VC Dunk Tank. Come and pitch something different to prominent local venture capitalists. Maybe you can get some of the
Valley's most notable VC’s to come clean in the process!
Come find out what some of your 7000 fellow MIT alums in
Northern California are doing to create the next wave of great
companies. You will be sure to see some really interesting technology, and may even come away from the Fest with your next
job/investment/client. EntrepreneurFest '98 will be a Saturday
afternoon picnic luncheon with good food and casual fun.
Come join us for a very special event to celebrate MIT entrepreneurship in Northern California.
Date/Time
Saturday, June 27, 1998
11:30am - Registration
Noon - Keynote by Dr. Vest
Organizer (RSVP/More Info)
Sang Park ’93 (RSVP)
(510) 206-9373
sparkie@alum.mit.edu
Fred Lam G’89 (More Info)
(510) 251-8770
fredlam@alum.mit.edu
Location
Xerox PARC
3333 Coyote Hill Road
Palo Alto, CA 94304
Cost Make check to MITCNC
$20
Prepaid Members
$30
Other/At-Door
Auditorium seating is limited to
250 for Vest’s keynote. Priority
given to members who RSVP.
A Word from the Club President, David Weitz ’87
It is hard to believe that this is the fourth and final newsletter for
the 1997-98 club year. Although the year has gone by very
quickly, it has been quite an eventful year for the MITCNC.
This year, the MITCNC has had the pleasure of having several
prominent MIT officials visit from Cambridge including:
• Charles Vest, President of MIT
• Alex d’Arbeloff, Chairman of the MIT Corporation
• Robert Metcalfe, President of MIT Alumni/e Association
• Nicholas Negroponte, Director of MIT’s Media Lab
Throughout the year, a primary goal for officers and event organizers has been providing local MIT alumni/e with a diverse
range of interesting, effective and valuable programs and services. It is my hope that we have succeeded in this mission.
Several new and innovative programs were initiated this year
which I hope will become annual events.
Spotlight MIT is an annual dinner banquet event designed to
celebrate MIT’s contribution in a particular area. I am pleased
announce that Spotlight MIT ‘98 - Biotechnology In The New
Millennium is planned for October 8, 1998 and features Prof.
Phillip Sharp, Nobel Laureate, as the evening’s keynote
speaker. As you will recall, Spotlight MIT ‘97 focused on MIT’s
contribution to entrepreneurship and featured Alex d’Arbeloff,
the Chairman of the MIT Corporation and founder of Teradyne
as well as the winners of the 1997 $50K MIT business plan
competition.
Venture Incubator is a year long program series designed to
assist MIT alumni/e get new business ventures off the ground.
I am pleased to report that at least two new MIT related businesses were assisted through its founders participation in this
year’s Venture Incubator. Next year’s Venture Incubator is currently being planned. Please contact Tom Darbonne, V.P. of the
Venture Incubator if you would like to become involved.
EntrepreneurFest ‘98 is a culmination of this year’s Venture
Incubator Program. EntrepreneurFest ‘98 will be held at Xerox
Parc on June 27, 1998 and features President Charles Vest as the
keynote speaker, several prominent local MIT entrepreneurs,
and technology demonstrations by hot new MIT related companies.
As always, the officers of the MITCNC welcome your feedback, as well as any time and energy you can contribute to the
MITCNC. I encourage you to attend the annual Event Organizer’s Meeting on June 11, 1998
and help plan the 1998-99 year.
Best wishes for the summer,
David Weitz '87
MITCNC President
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President
VP - Events
VP - Young Alumni Events
VP - Entrepreneurship
VP - Sponsorship
VP - Communications / Newsletter
VP - Electronic Communications
VP - Finance
VP - Membership
VP - Venture Incubator
VP - Career Development
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David Weitz ’87
John Keen G’94
Jonathan Claman ’93
Fred Lam G’89
Eric Jorgensen ’60
Edward Tau ’95
Ping Huang ’94
Sang Park ’93
Ning Peng ’90
Tom Darbonne G’91
Nancy Chan '96
3+21(
(650) 354-4215
(650) 933-3401
(650) 969-0880
(510) 482-1419
(408) 929-4058
(650) 742-6301
(650) 933-6256
(510) 206-9373
(650) 968-5135
(408) 544-7169
(408) 957-1596
The MIT Club of Northern California is the premier
regional alumni/ae club of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The club offers numerous
resources in entrepreneurship, career development,
and professional networking in the Bay Area. In
addition, the Club provides many opportunities for
social interaction between MIT alumni/ae as well as
alumni/ae from similar university clubs.
2 SUMMER 1998
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dweitz@wsgr.com
john.keen@alum.mit.edu
jclaman@alum.mit.edu
fredlam@alum.mit.edu
ericjorg@aimnet.com
edward_tau@alum.mit.edu
pshuang@alum.mit.edu
sparkie@alum.mit.edu
ning@alum.mit.edu
thomas_darbonne@altera.com
nhchan@alum.mit.edu
If you have suggestions for the
Club, or interest in volunteering
or organizing events, please contact any of the officers listed above. The Club is an
all volunteer organization and is always seeking
energetic and motivated alumni/ae who are eager to
be involved.
PLAN MITCNC’S ACTIVITIES!
Date/Time
Thursday, June 11, 1998
6:30pm Dinner
7:30pm Planning Meeting
interested in becoming a part of the
Club’s diverse and exciting officer
board, come to this event..
Location
Raychem Corporation
300 Constitution Drive
Menlo Park, CA
You are cordially invited to join us to help plan next year’s
events. We will provide a buffet dinner to everybody and then
settle down for brainstorming for our calendar. Arrive early or
late and bring your best ideas!
Like last year, laughter and applause will be key parts of the
evening. Is there an event you wish we had done this year? Do
you know of a speaker Club members would enjoy? A bar the
young alums haven’t seen? Tell us about it! Or simply volunteer your efforts for other event ideas - the more planners, the
merrier!
If you’ve never hosted an event before, don’t worry. You’ll
receive personal support and written guidelines. Our vice presidents of events will hold your hand through the whole process.
We’ll be electing our new club officers at this meeting. If you’re
Directions
Take highway 101 to the Marsh
Road exit. Take Marsh Road East.
Turn right at the first stop light
onto Bayfront. Turn right again
at the second light on to Chilco.
Turn left at the first stop sign
into Raychem. Ask the guard
for directions to our meeting
room.
If you cannot attend the dinner, but would like to volunteer or
suggest an event idea, please call our current events coordinators, John Keen G’94 at (415) 933-3401 or jkeen@sgi.com.
Please respond so we can reserve your place for dinner. But
you’re still welcome to come without a RSVP!
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MIT CLUB OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
3
Venture Incubator:Selling Value of Technology
Please pre-register to help us with
planning, by emailing your registration
Date/Time
Thursday
June 4, 1998
Location
Cafe Iris
Building 5
6:30pm Registration Silicon Graphics
7:30pm Presentation Mountain View
Map: www.sgi.com/Overview/images/campus_map.jpg
Cost
$15
$20
Check/Cash/Credit card
Pre-paid Active Member
Other/At-Door
RSVP and Pre-Payment
Pre-pay by sending checks (payable to
MITCNC) or by credit card number to:
Anne-Can
c/o MITCNC Venture Incubator
6155 Almaden Expressway, Suite 230
San Jose, CA 95120
mitcnc98@aol.com
(408) 323-2255
Ten times faster; half the price. Why
isn’t the product flying off the shelf?
Counting on that cash to avoid another
round and additional dilution? Product
superiority is not a sufficient condition
for market success. Selling high technology products is a challenge, and especially difficult for a start-up trying to
establish a name for itself in a crowded
market. This event will introduce you to
the basics of successful business-to-business selling strategies. It will explain
selling and buying cycles, and describe
how these cycles limit your revenue creation opportunities. It will also take you
through the stages of the selling cycle
that apply to high technology products.
Vance Nahman and Bob Parsons have
coached numerous leading high tech
companies on this topic. Their three and
four day workshops are highly recommended.
Gordon Campbell, founder of SEEQ, CHIPS and
Technologies, and Techfarm, told his Lessons
From the Trenches in an ongoing Venture Incubator series. His latest successful cultivation is 3Dfx
(NASDAQ:TDFX), a 3D chip design house.
Are IPOs Overrated? IPOs versus Buyouts
MIT/Stanford Venture Laboratory, a chapter of the M.I.T. Enterprise Forum
Date/Time
Tuesday
June 23, 1998
6:00pm Reception
7:00pm Presentation
Cost
$25
$30
Location
Bishop Auditorium
Stanford Graduate
School of Business
Make check to MIT Venture Lab
Pre-paid Active Member
Other/At-Door
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
MIT/Stanford Venture
Laboratory, P.O. Box 2506,
Monterey, CA 93942-2506
Phone: (408) 646-3377
kjm@event-mgmt.com
Last year the number of privately owned
technology companies choosing the
M&Q route leapt by 83% over 1996,
according to Broadview Associates. For
every one company that went public in
1997, eight chose to be acquired. In
1996, the ratio was one IPO to four buyouts. Among the 389 hardware deals last
4 SUMMER 1998
year was the sale of Rapid City Networks to Bay Networks. Joe Kennedy,
former CEO of Rapid City, will discuss
his experience in that buyout. In addition, Daniel Warmenhoven, President,
CEO and Director CEO of Network
Appliance will discuss his experiences
with IPOs and his explorations of M&A
for his former company, Network
Equipment.
With initial offerings like Broadcom and
Rambus going through the roof on a regular basis, why are so many companies
choosing the buyout path instead of
going for the IPO gold? What are the
risks of each approach? Are there too
many public companies to get adequate
attention from Wall Street? Are technology markets getting so well established
that it only makes sense to ally with a
Cisco or a Microsoft? Or is technology
change accelerating so much that it
forces large companies to buy, rather
than build, new solutions?
On June 23, 1998 at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business, the
MIT/Stanford Venture Laboratory, a
panel of industry-savvy individuals will
react to the experiences of Joe
Kennedy’s and Daniel Warmenhoven.
Moderating the evening is Steven Bengston, Director, Emerging Company Services, Coopers & Lybrand. The panelist
includes Kathryn Gould, Partner, Foundation Capital, venture capitalist, Scott
Dettmer, Gunderson, Dettmer, attorney
for many networking companies, and
Mike Dolbec, VP Acquisitions at 3Com.
Audience members will be invited to
participate in a Q&A session with the
panel and presenters
The MIT Stanford Venture Laboratory
(http://www.vlab.org) is a public forum
through which entrepreneurs, managers, executives, and anyone can come to
learn about the issues involved with
starting and growing companies.
Volunteering At San Jose’s Tech Museum
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Join the enthusiastic team of volunteers
and staff who make The Tech an exciting
place for learning. You’ll meet new people, learn new skills and have lots of fun
as you contribute your valuable time and
skills to your community.
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The Tech’s mission is to engage people
of all ages and backgrounds in exploring
and experiencing the technologies that
affect our lives and to inspire young people to become tomorrow’s innovators.
WHO CAN HELP? Everyone! No science background is required: engineers
and scientists, business people,senior citizens, students 15 and older, teachers,
college students, professionals, parents.
WHAT CAN YOU DO? Exhibit
Explainers Interact with museum visitors
of all ages, do simple science and tech-
nology demonstrations, give museum
tours.
Information and Membership Assistants
Greet visitors and answer questions
about The Tech’s programs, services and
membership benefits.
Exhibit Engineering Assist in the development, fabrication and maintenance of
exhibits. Work with Tech staff and engineering students.
Special Events The Tech hosts many
events and also participates in community festivals by bringing hands-on
learning activities.
Bilingual Guides Help The Tech serve
our visitors from around the world and
from our diverse local community.
BENEFITS FOR VOLUNTEERS - free
admission, store and IMAX theater discounts, free parking, exhibits and programs training, meet celebrities and
Silicon Valley legends, field trips and
special events, awards and recognition,
new friends and skills, internships and
scholarships, professional experience
with references, giving back to your
community, FUN!
If you have any questions, please call
(408) 279-7175, e-mail to volunteer@thetech.org or visit The Tech online at www.thetech.org.
Create Your Own Ceramic Art Works at “Color Me Mine”
Date/Time
Thursday
July 16, 1998
6:00pm Dinner
Cost
Variable
Location
610 Santa Cruz Avenue
Menlo Park
Near El Camino Rea
(650) 328-4486.
Cash
Average around $25
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Toni Hayden
toni@CustomerSat.com
(650) 234-8000
On the evening of Thursday, July 16, the
MITCNC will go to “Color Me Mine” in
Menlo Park and exercise our artistic creative abilities. You’ll be able to choose
one or more ceramic pieces from the 400
different pieces available at “Color Me
Mine”, and then you’ll be able to paint
and decorate your chosen piece(s) however you like. After a busy day at work,
this will be a wonderful change of gears.
You can relax, socialize and let your
imagination roam. Even if you don’t
want to color a ceramic piece yourself,
you’re welcome to come and watch other
people (and maybe even offer helpful
suggestions).
“Color Me Mine” is right next door to
Koo Koo Roo’s restaurant, so we can
have dinner together there and then go to
“Color Me Mine” immediately afterward.
Club members are invited to bring their
children to this event. We expect that this
artistic experience will be worthwhile
and enjoyable for young and old alike.
Dress casually and comfortably.
people, and places will be allocated in
the order in which RSVPs are received.
Parking: There is parking on the street
and there are also numerous parking lots
on side streets off of Santa Cruz Avenue.
Cost: Studio usage fees are $6/hour per
person (prorated after the first hour).
The price of each ceramic piece ranges
from $1 to $3, and there is an additional
glazing fee between $1 and $3 for each
piece. If enough people register for this
event, we may be able to arrange lower
studio usage fees.
Advance RSVPs will be appreciated, so
that we will have some idea of how many
people to expect and can try to reserve
enough space in advance. However,
you’re still welcome to show up without
RSVPing. This event is limited to 30
MIT CLUB OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
5
Nicholas Negroponte: Becoming Digital
The MIT Sloan Club of Northern California proudly presented
Professor Nicholas Negroponte, founder and director of the MIT
Media Lab, on the evening of Thursday, April 2, 1998 at the Westin Hotel in Santa Clara. Negroponte is also a senior columnist for
WIRED magazine and the author of the book Being Digital, published by Alfred A. Knopf. Over 350 alumni and friends attended
this event.
Prof. Negroponte shared with us his vision for our digital future
and address the technologies and industries most likely to shape
this digital vision. He cited leading efforts in research and development about the digital future to discuss the important enablers,
such as the breakthrough technologies, infrastructure developments, and industry transformations that will be most influential
in realizing this future. A panel discussion included veterans from
the venture capital community, Mark Gorenberg ’76, Senior Partner of Hummer Winblad Ventures, Gary Rieschel, Executive
Managing Partner of SoftBank, and Paul Noglows, Digital Media
Analyst of Hambrecht & Quist.
This event was put together by key organizers Anna Luo G’91 and
George Tan G’95 with the sponsorship from TIBCO, “Enabling
the Event-Driven Enterprise.”
Prof. Nicholas Negroponte, venture capitalist, Founder of MIT Media Lab,
and senior columnist of Wired Magazine, speaks of the DIGITAL FUTURE.
(L-R) Panelists, Anna Luo G’91, Mark Gorenberg ‘76 (Hummer and Winblad), Paul Noglows (Hambrecht & Quist), Gary
Rieschel (SoftBank), and Nicholas Negroponte, speculate on the trends of digital commercialization.
6 SUMMER 1998
Mark Gorenberg ’76, Senior Partner of Hummer
Winblad Ventures, discuess DIGITAL investments.
Overall 350 alumni and friends gather at The Westin Hotel in Santa Clara for an evening with industry insiders.
Profiles of Women Entrepreneurs in High Technology
Date/Time
Wednesday
June 24,1998
7:00 pm Dinner
Cost
Free!
Location
Mitchell Earth Sciences
Building
Room 372
Stanford University
Please RSVP by June 22nd
Everyone
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Fred Lam G’89
fredlam@alum.mit.edu
(510) 482-1419
Lisa Wang G ’93
lisawang@well.com
(650) 342-2718
MITCNC and the AWIS Palo Alto Mentoring Program jointly present a panel of
three women entrepreneurs representing
different areas of high technology:
Cherie Kushner ’72 is a cofounder and
President of Aether Wire & Location,
Inc. Aether Wire is a high tech startup
which is developing small, low-cost
ultra-wideband transceivers for position
location and communication.
Sue Levin is President and Co-Founder,
WWWomen, Inc., a leading developer of
World Wide Web properties that attract a
female audience. Its search directory
and flagship website, WWWomen.Com,
has been featured in publications such as
U.S. News and World Report, Glamour
Magazine, USA Weekend, The San
Francisco Chronicle and the Los Angeles Times, and identified as one of the
best resources for women online.
variety of engineering and management
roles. Jeanne received her BS in Chemical Engineering from Northwestern University.
Jeanne Beacham was appointed President and CEO of GEL-PAK LLC, in
December 1997, after leading a management buyout of the GEL-PAK division of
Vichem Corporation. Prior to that she
was the Vice President of Marketing and
Sales at the GEL-PAK division for 3
years, responsible for worldwide sales,
marketing and strategic alliances along
with managing customer service and
human resources. Before joining GELPAK, Jeanne was the Metrology Marketing Manager at Tencor Instruments
for the Film Thickness and Profiler product lines. She spent 10 years at IBM in a
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MIT CLUB OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
7
Encore: Tour the New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. Plant
Date/Time
Tuesday
July 14, 1998
11:30 am
Cost
$5
$10
Location
Fremont NUMMI plant
Make check payable to MITCNC
Active Member w/ registration
Others/At-Door
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Stephen Cohen ’69
sacohen@alum.mit.edu
(916) 483-4433
Back by popular demand! The NUMMI
auto plant tour on April 17 was so popular and successful that we arranged for
another tour on July 14. People who
were stuck on the waiting list for the
April 17 tour will receive highest priority
for spaces on the July 14 tour.
Here’s an opportunity for a special lunch
break. Join the MITCNC for a visit to a
full scale auto manufacturing plant, right
near Silicon Valley. At 11:30 AM on
Tuesday, July 14, we will take a tour of
the Fremont NUMMI plant, and see Toyota and Geo cars and pickups go from
sheet metal to showrooms.
In our 1.5 hour tour we will see many
exciting areas of auto production as we
ride through the plant on electric trams.
We will see the delicate task of robotic
welding, and the heavy job of lowering
an auto cab onto the sub-frame. The tour
will visit most of the major manufacturing divisions, including stamping, body
weld, engine build-up, final assembly
and quality check operations.
Since this event will occur during the
work day, we have arranged to join
NUMMI’s workers for an optional meal
at the plant cafeteria. (Which we have
been assured is quite good).
Directions are as follows: Please arrive
at about 11:20. New United Motor is
located off I-880 (the plant is visible
from the freeway). If traveling north on
I-880, take the Fremont Blvd exit just
past Mission Blvd. From I-880 going
south, take the second Fremont Blvd
exit, just past Automall Pkwy. From
I680, exit west on Automall Parkway
(also indicated as Durham) and take a
left on Fremont Blvd. You will find a
visitors’ parking lot just off the Main
Gate (gate #5). Proceed to the Public
Tour Entrance, past the Main Lobby, and
around the side of the Administrative
Building.
Our tour group is limited to 48 persons.
The minimum age allowed is 10.
Taking Charge of your Career for the New Millenium: Reynold Lewke ’76
Date/Time
Thursday
June 18, 1998
7:00pm
Location
Silicon Graphics Granite Presentation Room,
Building 20
Cost
Make check payable to MITCNC
$10
Active Member w/ registration
$15
Others/At-Door
Light refreshments will be provided.
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Nancy Chan ’96
nhchan@alum.mit.edu
(408) 957-1596
Adaptec, Inc.
691 S. Milpitas Blvd., MS 45
Milpitas, CA 95035
Be prepared for the 21st century. Reynold Lewke, XVI ’76, will outline his
suggestions, based on his experience as
an executive search consultant with
Egon Zehnder International, on how to
define what you want to do as a career(s),
how to manage your career, how to use
executive search firms to help you in the
process, and what to think about going
8 SUMMER 1998
forward in the coming years. Career
development is an on-going process,
especially in the fast-paced hi-tech
industry. This talk will be of greatest
interest to alums who are, or want to be
in management positions, at a senior
level in an organization.
Please feel free to bring your resume and
any questions/topics for discussion.
Also, please feel free to email any suggestions for topics related to executive
search/career management that you
would like him to address to
nhchan@alum.mit.edu.
Reynold, after graduation from MIT in
Aero/Astro, where he co-oped with
Draper Labs as a programmer, obtained a
law degree from McGill University in
Montreal. He practised with a downtown NY law firm in litigation and commercial financial transactions, before
joining United Technologies Sikorsky
Aircraft as a Senior Attorney. He later
became a Program Manager on the
Blackhawk Program, obtained his MBA
from NYU at night, and joined Egon
Zehnder over 10 years ago. Initially in
the NY office, he later moved to Frankfurt, and then, last year, to San Francisco.
In Germany, he served as 1st Vice President of the MIT Club of Germany for
four years. His executive search practice
based in Palo Alto focuses on high technology and international general management. Egon Zehnder is a sponsor of
the MIT Stanford Venture Lab.
Directions: This event will take place in
SGI Building #20. This building is the
large, curved white building beside the
intersection of Shoreline Blvd and Hwy
101. Take the Shoreline Blvd exit from
Hwy 101 and turn on Shoreline to drive
towards the bay. After a short distance,
make a right turn into the parking lot
when you see the big “Silicon Graphics” sign. Come to the main entrance and
then follow the signs. For a map, please
see
http://www.sgi.com/Overview/
maps.html.
Boston Red Sox vs. Oakland Athletics
Date/Time
Wednesday
July 29, l998
7:00pm
Cost
$12
$15
Location
Oakland Coliseum
Make check payable to MITCNC
Active Member
Other
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
John Chandy ’89
jchandy@sierravista.com
(408) 249-5195 (Home)
(408) 357-3105 (Work)
Maybe you were at MIT during the late
sixties and got caught up in the impossible dream year of 1967 when Carl Yasztremski led the Boston Red Sox to the
brink of the championship. Or maybe it
was 1975 when Carlton Fisk hit one of
the most dramatic home runs in World
Series history. Or maybe it was 1986
when the Sox were one strike away from
a World Series ring. Bostonians have a
lot of emotion invested in their Red Sox,
and it’s hard to be in Cambridge for four
years and not get caught up (or maybe
turned off) in Red Sox mania.
Well, the Red Sox are coming to the Bay
Area at the end of July for their twice
annual series with the Oakland Athletics.
The MIT club has secured a large block
of seats at the Oakland Colliseum for the
game on Wednesday, July 29th. So, if
you became a Red Sox fan during your
years at MIT or if you’re just a baseball
fan in general, come and see the Olde
Towne team in action with some other
baseball bad MIT alums. The seats are
field level on the third base side. Please
respond by July 8th in order to guarantee
availability of tickets.
Weekend Bicycle Ride in the South Bay
Date/Time
Saturday
August 8, 1998
Location
Please check the website for details
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Eric Jorgensen ’60
ericjorg@aimnet.com
Jonathan Claman ’93
jclaman@alum.mit.edu
the redwoods towards the ocean. Alternate routes will be provided for both
energetic and relaxed cycling abilities.
ticipant is entirely responsible for being
aware of these risks and taking necessary
precautions.
The MIT Club of Northern California
does not assume any liability for any personal injuries or property damage suffered during this event. Cycling is a
sport which has inherent risks. Each par-
The following items will be useful during the bike ride: water bottles, sun
block, snack food, money to spend along
the way (e.g., at restaurants).
This bike ride will knock your socks off
with its incredible scenery and its dramatic change of pace from the valley
below. We'll start above Los Gatos and
head down Mount Charlie Road, through
You can call the MIT Alumni/ae
Association automated information
system toll free 24 hours a day:
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You can also submit changes of
address electronically by sending
your name, class year, current
address, and phone number, business address and phone number,
title, and e-mail address to:
PLWDOXP#PLWHGX
MITCNCMITCNC’s Tiburon Bicyle Trip drew a group of more than twenty alumni and friends ages 11 to
65. There were several scenic stops to Tiburon including the one above after crossing Golden Gate Bridge.
MIT CLUB OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
9
Whitewater Rafting
Date/Time
Sunday
July 26, 1998
7:00 am
Cost
$140
$150
Location
Town of Coloma, near Highway 50 and 49
Driving time from South
Bay: 3 hours / 160 miles
Make check payable to MITCNC
Pre-paid Active Member
All others
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Scott Firestone ’91
scottf@alum.mit.edu
(650) 845-5228
802 Fremont Street
Menlo Park, CA 94025
http://www.adventuresports.com/asap/
wwraft/excite/welcome.htm
Experience the thrill of whitewater rafting on the Middle Fork of the American
River in the beautiful wilderness of the
Gold Country! The river offers 18 miles
of intermediate class III and IV rapids,
including a 90 foot raftable tunnel and an
8 foot raftable waterfall.
The river also flows through a quiet side
of the canyon where you’ll have a chance
to enjoy the scenic side of the Middle
Fork. Rich in History of the Gold Rush
of the 1840’s and 50’s, the river and canyon still possess some of the mines and
equipment from that era.
Because the trip begins early in the
morning, driving over the night before
and camping or staying at a motel is
advised. Camping at the rafting company’s camp site is free, and an information sheet will be sent to participants
covering optional motels and B&Bs, as
well as directions and what to bring.
Sneakers that can get wet are mandatory.
Breakfast and lunch will be provided.
Sign up early to reserve your space.
Send name, address, phone, email
address, names of guests, event fee, and
SASE to the address above.
La Milonguita at Alberto’s: Lessons & Party
Date/Time
Mondays
Jun 15, 1998
Jul 20, 1998
Aug 31, 1998
7:30pm Lesson
9:00pm Dance
Cost
$12
$7
Location
Alberto’s Night Club
736 Dana Street
Mountain View
http://www.albertos.com
Location
Zinfandel Trail Hike and
Wine Tasting, Redux
Stevens Creek Park
Cupertino
Length: ~6 miles, depending on how much
weaving coming back ;-)
Route wanders along creeks and ponds,
orchards and oak woodlands in Picchetti
Ranch and Stevens Creek Park and winds
up at the Sunrise Winery, where we’ll stop
to sample their wares.
Date/Time
Location
Sunday
Steep Ravine Trail
July 19, 1998 Mt. Tamalpais
10:00 am
Marin County
Length: TBD, but *lots* of altitude change
Very thick canopy over this (you guessed it)
steep ravine should keep it cool and shady.
One of the most beautiful hikes in the area.
Trail winds up at Stinson Beach, so we can
enjoy the beach for a while before heading
back up.
Date/Time
Location
Sunday
Berry Creek Falls
Aug 16, 1998 Big Basin Redwoods Pre10:00 am
servein Boulder Creek
Length: 11 miles
Waterfalls and deep redwoods should be
perfect on a hot August day. At least one
guidebook claims that this is the best hike in
the Bay Area; we shall see.
http://home.earthlink.net/~jreich/mithikes.htm
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Sramana Mitra G’95
sramana@daistech.com
10 SUMMER 1998
Date/Time
Sunday
June 21, 1998
10:00 am
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Jim Reich ’89
jreich@earthlink.net
(650) 969-4558
Pay cash at site
Lesson, party, and drink
Free Drink for MIT Alumni
Party and drink only
Socialize, have fun and network with
other professionals all at the same time.
Learn to dance one of the world's classiest and most passionate dances: the sen-
Sunday Hikes
sual Argentine Tango! No need to RSVP,
and no partner necessary. All levels of
experience are welcome. Bring your
friends!
MITCNC Happy Hours
“Drink Rum, Drink Rum, Drink Rum All
Day and Come Along With Us...”
Young Alumni of the Bay Area (YABA) is an association of young alumni representing Bay Area alumni clubs from twenty universities across the country.
The purpose of YABA is to hold social and community service events on a regular basis that give participating alumni a chance to meet other young people in
the area who share similar collegiate experiences. Check out YABA’s web site
for a updated calendar of events:
http://www.yaba.san-francisco.ca.us
Happy Hour in San Francisco
Date/Time
Thursday
June 25, 1998
7:00 pm
Location
Savoy Tivoli
1434 Grant Ave (Grant St.)
(415) 362-7023
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Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Wasi Wahid ’96
wwahid@10fold.com
Happy Hour in Campbell
Date/Time
Thursday
Jul 16, 1998
7:00 pm
Location
Rock Bottom Brewery
870 South Bascom #700
(408) 377-0707
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Julia Rosolovsky ’96
julia.rosolovsky@intel.com
Happy Hour in Palo Alto
Date/Time
Thursday
Aug 13, 1998
7:00 pm
Location
Q Cafe
529 Alma Street
(650) 322-3311
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Gaven Khan ’96
gaven@us.ibm.com
YABA Happy Hour
YABA: Napa Wineries Bus Tour
Date/Time
Saturday
June 6, 1998
9:00am 4:30pm
Cost
$15
Location
Napa Wineries
Bus leaves from Rockridge
BART Station in Berkeley
Advance RSVP Required
All
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Bob Basso (U Penn ’96)
rbasso@pacbell.net
YABA will be having a bus trip to Napa
on Saturday, June 6, stopping at several
different wineries for tours and tasting.
Because we only have one bus, space
will be limited and reservations are
going fast, but if the space fills up you
will be placed on a waiting list to be notified if some people don’t pay by the May
14 deadline.
Berkeley, lunch will be at V. Sattui (not
included in the $15 charge), we will
probably stop at four other wineries, and
will return to the Rockridge BART by
4:30 p.m. Note that the BART parking
lot is not available since you’re not taking BART, but there is plenty of street
parking right near the station.
If there is a lot more interest in this trip
than we can accommodate, we’ll have
another one later in the year. So if you’re
interested, you should RSVP immediately!
Intercollegiate Social!
Date/Time
Thursday
June 11, 1998
6:00 pm
Location
Tosca Cafe
242 Columbus Avenue
San Francisco
Now for the details: we will meet at 9
a.m. at the Rockridge BART Station in
Organizer (RSVP and More Info)
Andy Cohen (Hahvahd ’92)
acohen@netwizards.net
(415) 441-8636
www.yaba.san-francisco.ca.us
MIT CLUB OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
11
President Clinton, Dr. Ho to speak at MIT Commencement
established its plans for this year’s commencement addresses by the President.
A spokesman for MIT said the White
House contacted President Vest’s office
Friday to discuss it, and President Clinton’s offer was accepted by Dr. Vest after
he consulted with Dr. David D. Ho, who
had been invited in February to be MIT’s
commencement speaker. Both President
Clinton and Dr. Ho will address the more
than 2,000 graduates who will receive
their degrees in June.
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 21 -- President William J. Clinton will make a
major address before the graduates of the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology at
the MIT commencement exercises on
June 5, the White House announced
today.
MIT President Charles M. Vest said, "We
are honored and delighted that President
Clinton has selected MIT as the place to
deliver a major address to people who
will be leaders of the 21st century. The
future will be shaped in large measure by
advances in science and technology, and
MIT is the home of many of the people
making those advances. We look forward to the President’s address and his
vision."
The opportunity to have President Clinton address the graduates developed over
the past few days, as the White House
Dr. Ho, the scientific director and chief
executive officer of the largest private
HIV/AIDS research center in the world,
the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research
Center in New York, commented, "I am
deeply honored to speak to the graduates
of MIT and even more so, to share the
podium with President Clinton."
Dr. Ho, who in 1996 was named Man of
the Year by Time Magazine, overturned
the conventional assumption that the
HIV virus remains dormant for up to 10
years in a person before its outbreak into
AIDS. His recognition that the virus is
extremely active right from the beginning of infection led him to initiate the
deployment of a combination of drugs to
overpower the virus.
Dr. Vest commented, "Dr. Ho’s work
demonstrates the critical importance of
science to the solution of problems such
as AIDS that plague our society. His
work should remind us all of the great
benefits America reaps from opening
doors, institutions and opportunities to
immigrants. We are proud to claim him
This newsletter is composed with FrameMaker 5 on the
Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 platform powered by the
Intel Pentium II-266 microprocessor. FrameMaker is
the premier cross-platform desktop publishing software
from Adobe Systems. Images are edited using
CorelDRAW 8 Graphic Suite, the preferred software
package for graphic design from Corel Corporation.
12 SUMMER 1998
as a graduate of the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Science and Technology."
MIT commencement speakers in the past
several years have included Kofi A.
Annan, Secretary General of the United
Nations (1997), Al Gore, Vice President
of the United States (1996), Hanna H.
Gray, President Emeritus of the University of Chicago (1995), and His Highness
The Aga Khan (1994).
About 10,000 people -- graduates, family, friends, and MIT faculty and staff -will attend the ceremonies, scheduled to
be held in Killian Court, located between
the Great Dome of MIT and the Charles
River. Because President Clinton’s
address will be an additional element in
the ceremony, Dr. Vest will forgo his
usual charge to the graduates, but all
other aspects of the program will remain
the same.
0,7&1&LVERWKSURXGDQGJUDWHIXOWRKDYHWKHVXSSRUWRIWKHIROORZLQJFRUSRUDWHVSRQVRUV
ONSET Ventures
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
FactSet Research Systems
Silicon Graphics
One-O
Xerox PARC
If your company is interested in
becoming a corporate sponsor, please
contact Eric Jorgensen ’60, VP of
Sponsorship for more information
(page 2).
ONSET Ventures: Bringing Seed-Stage Venture Capital to Entrepreneurs
For entrepreneurs, the venture capital
community sometimes appears an
undifferentiated mass, all of them offering money and “value-added assistance” in building a business. In fact,
venture capital firms can be clearly differentiated from each other based on a
number of factors: *Focus: industry
areas targeted for investment such as
internet commerce, software, hardware,
networking, medical technologies,
retail, etc. *Size: measures of size,
including of funds under management,
dollars in current fund, and number of
investment professionals *Stage: timing of investment relative to company’s
development, stages range from early
stage (seed & first round) to later stage
(generally second or third round) to
mezzanine (investment prior to IPO)
Among stages, the most confusion
occurs among early-stage investors. In
general, there are three types of early
stage investments:
*Traditional first-round investment Traditional first-round investments focus
on companies with a well-developed
management team consisting of experienced professionals, a product that is
close or into the market (e.g. beta or better), a reasonably well-defined business
and operating plan, and clear market
validation from actual or potential customers.
*“Celebrity” seed stage investments
The most publicized of seed deals, a
“celebrity deal” generally involves an
industry veteran starting a new venture
or a “big concept deal” that commands
extensive press attention. Many of the
firms that primarily invest in traditional
first round deals will episodically back a
celebrity deal as well.
*Seed-stage investments The true seedstage investor may be venture capitalists
or “angels”, wealthy individuals. Seedstage venture capitalists operate across a
spectrum of styles, from those that offer
significant “hands-on” attention to
entrepreneurs in addition to their money
to those that simply invest smaller
amounts of money, but little of their
time.
ONSET Ventures is an early stage venture capital firm that specializes in seed
stage investments, most often with first
time entrepreneurs. Typical seed-stage
investments will range from $500K to
$1.5M, with up to $5M invested in total
per company, assuming follow-on sup-
port in later rounds alongside additional
investors.
All the investment professionals at
ONSET Ventures possess significant
management and operating experience
in both large companies and start-up
environments. We bring this experience
to bear when working with entrepreneurs to help ensure their ideas become
successful businesses. Our philosophy
is to invest in areas where our firm can
uniquely add value, and to invest very
selectively in exceptional ideas and
individuals. We limit our investments to
one new seed stage investment per
investor per year in order to ensure our
entrepreneurs receive the assistance
they need in building their new business.
If you have a business concept in the
areas of software, communications and
networking, medical devices or drug
delivery systems, and seek an active and
experienced partner in building your
business, send a brief write up of your
business concept via post, fax or email
to the address at the back page.
MIT CLUB OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
13
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MIT Club of Northern California
Alumni Records
Cambridge, MA 02139
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ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED
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