IDEA Fund Partner Bios
The IDEA Fund Partners management team has a wide array of experience that includes venture capital and private equity investing as well as technology startup spinout, foundation and management. Specific company experience includes IBM, AT&T, Lucent, Wachovia, Osprey Systems, MCNC and Franklin Street Partners. Our team has worked together several years via management of two venture funds at NC IDEA and MCNC Ventures.
David P. Rizzo, Managing Partner
In his vision and leadership for IDEA Fund Partners, David Rizzo brings more than 20 years of leadership experience in general management, strategic planning, acquisitions and divestitures, and corporate finance and investment in technology-based business environments. In addition, David has established a proven track record of entrepreneurial success.
David’s entrepreneurial drive lured him away from a thriving 13-year career at IBM to found Osprey Systems in 1992. The Charlotte-based company designed, developed, deployed and managed application technology solutions. As chairman and chief executive officer, David positioned the company as one of the nation’s leading e-services companies and a North Carolina technology success. He grew the company to 225 employees with $30 million in annual sales, supported by his investor relations strategy that garnered $24 million in outside capital investments from Morgan Stanley and Bank of America. David orchestrated the sale of the company in 2002.
At IBM, David held several senior leadership positions. As Trading Area General Manager, he was responsible for providing executive leadership to all of IBM’s $800 million business operations in North and South Carolina and was the highest-level IBM representative in the two states, serving on civic boards and as a company spokesman. As manager of IBM Services Center, David designed, developed and managed one of IBM’s first large-scale professional services organization, pioneering the successful professional services business model that was duplicated in other areas of the country and ultimately became IBM Global Services – the largest professional services company in the world.
David has keen insight and knowledge of interplay among technology, economics and public policy. He is recognized nationally as a visionary for technology-led economic development. This passion led him to a position as president and chief executive officer of MCNC, a private, non-profit created to be a catalyst for technology-based economic development throughout North Carolina. David strategically realigned the company into three separate organizations to better focus its resources – including the creation and leadership of MCNC Ventures, which was established as an independent organization and renamed NC IDEA in 2005.
David has a bachelor’s of arts degree in economics from the College of William & Mary. He also studied at the Wharton School’s Financial Services Institute and The Brookings Institute’s Public Policy Issues in the Financial Services Industry.
David is actively involved in North Carolina’s technology community and has held numerous leadership positions with civic and professional associations, including serving as chairman of NCTA (North Carolina Technology Association); Director of Unitive Technologies, Inc.; Director of the Council for Entrepreneurial Development (CED); Director of the Kenan Institute’s Center for Entrepreneurship; Director of Chorus Systems; Director of STI TechInventures; Director of Radarfind; Director of Affinergy and member of the Governor’s Board of Science and Technology.
John Cambier, Partner
Over the past 12 years, John Cambier has developed a deep understanding of technology commercialization and company formation, with broad experience managing intellectual property, licensing and contracts. In addition, John is a seasoned financial manager with operational and investment expertise.
As chief financial officer and a senior vice president of NC IDEA, John manages the company’s financial strategy and serves as treasurer in addition to his roles with the venture capital investment team and board participation with portfolio companies.
John began his career at the Microelectronics Center of North Carolina (MCNC) in 1994 as the program coordinator for advanced packaging and interconnection research and development, including monitoring and reporting for federal research contracts. MCNC developed new technologies and served as a research partner for the U.S. government, conducting advanced and applied research across a broad technology spectrum, including MEMS, flexible electronics, sensor development, signal electronics, wireless systems, microfabrication, high-speed networks, network security and grid computing.
John held roles with increasing responsibility in technology transfer, contracts administration, business development, venture capital and finance, eventually becoming the chief financial officer for both MCNC and MCNC Research and Development Institute. John led IP management for an extensive patent portfolio at MCNC for five years, including drafting and negotiating licenses. Other experience at MCNC included extensive work with both government and commercial contract research, and hands-on experience with licensing, contracts, services, and joint development partnerships that led to the creation of four spin-off companies and the strategic sale of assets to three other companies. In addition, his broad-based operational experience includes knowledge of clean-room operations, general manufacturing cost accounting, budgeting, business development, and M&A initiatives.
As chief financial officer, John gained experience structuring and managing finance and accounting operations. He played key role in restructuring MCNC to establish three separate organizations, including a venture fund organization that led to the creation of NC IDEA, and implementing the sale of the contract research business to RTI International in March 2005.
John has a bachelor’s of arts degree in international relations from Michigan State University and an MBA from the Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
John serves as an observer on the boards of Ziptronix and Hexatech.
W. Merrette Moore, Partner
Merrette Moore, relies on a wide range of experience in commercial banking, investment banking, portfolio management and private equity in North Carolina-based organizations to source investment opportunities, review business plans, lead investment due diligence and provide strategic advice to prospective and existing portfolio companies. Merrette’s background includes working closely with a variety of start-up and small companies, as he has developed many of the tools used by NC IDEA in its due diligence process, including financial analysis models and investment memorandum formats.
Merrette started working with MCNC in February 2002 to assist in the organization’s restructuring into two companies, MCNC-RDI and MCNC-GCNS, as well as to help launch MCNC Ventures, the venture capital predecessor of NC IDEA. He currently serves as a Vice President of NC IDEA.
Merrette has previous venture capital investment experience via Franklin Street Capital, a private equity investment firm in Chapel Hill, where he conducted due diligence and financial analysis on information technology and life sciences companies. He also gained exposure to later stage private equity through an internship in business school with Fairview Capital, where he assisted with the firm’s investment process as well.
In addition to having several years of venture capital and private equity experience, Merrette also has had significant exposure to small businesses through his time at Wachovia as a Branch Manager and business banker. Merrette earned top honors as a loan producer every month that he was eligible and his branch finished second of over 200 branches in a statewide sales campaign.
Merrette has also held positions in public company research and portfolio management with Franklin Street Partners, an asset and money management firm, managing investments for individuals, trusts, corporations, foundations, endowments and public funds. In addition, Merrette has investment banking experience, having evaluated and structured client transactions at Lloyd & Company, a boutique investment bank, as an Associate.
Merrette received a bachelor’s of arts degree and MBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Merrette currently serves as an NC IDEA board representative to Broadwick and StrikeIron. He has also served as an observer on several boards for of NC IDEA portfolio companies, including a past position with Affinergy and current such positions with Intervolve and StrikeIron.
Lister Delgado, Partner
Lister Delgado possesses a unique blend of technology and early-stage venture capital experience. To help companies and entrepreneurs advance ideas, Lister leverages his industry experience with ASIC semiconductor design, data warehousing, systems engineering, intelligent network services and communications software, and his educational background including electrical engineering and computer engineering degrees.
As a Vice President at NC IDEA, Lister is responsible for sourcing investment opportunities, reviewing business plans, leading investment due diligence and providing strategic advice to prospective and existing portfolio companies. Lister is also responsible for the NC IDEA Grants program, as well as the NC IDEA Young Entrepreneur in Residence program.
Lister joined NC IDEA in February 2003 after working as a consultant with several young technology startups in business development and technical roles.
Lister has previous venture capital investment experience, having worked as a venture associate at the First Flight Fund of the North Carolina Technological Development Authority in a position earned through the Council for Entrepreneurial Development (CED) Entrepreneurial Scholar and Kauffman Entrepreneur program. His work included screening and analysis of seed and early-stage technology companies for investment potential.
In addition, Lister has five years of experience in the telecommunications industry, working as a hardware and software design engineer at Lucent Technologies and AT&T Bell Laboratories. At Lucent, he was part of an award-winning team designing high-speed microchip devices for optical networking. He also designed and developed intelligent network software systems for large telecommunications companies. At Bell Labs, he led a feasibility study for the world’s largest commercial data storage system, obtained $40 million in funding from management, and subsequently developed technical specifications and led the vendor selection process.
Lister received a bachelor’s of science degree in electrical engineering from Brown University, a master’s of science degree in computer engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, and an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Lister serves as an observer on the boards of 2 NC IDEA portfolio companies, RadarFind, and Chorus Systems.