THE TEAM BEHIND THE ADVISORS
We support, advise, and otherwise evangelize our Clients and Advisors.
Roger Toennis
Managing Partner
34 yrs bringing technology products from concept to market success
Mr. Toennis is a co-founder of Founder Advisors LLC. He has a Bachelor's and Masters's degrees in Electrical Engineering. He was inspired as a child to become an Electrical Engineer from reading Marvel Ironman comic books; because Tony Stark is an EE.
He has 34 yrs experience in technical and management development leadership roles in aerospace, defense, software, telecom, and data networking businesses at companies like US Navy Research, NASA, Lockheed-Martin, Lucent, Avaya, Liquid Media, WorkWeb.io, and Gartner Inc.
He is also an experienced Startup Founder/CEO of 4 B2B SaaS startups. He has extensive venture pitching and fundraising experience and a very large global network in the world of technology startups.
His most recent role was at Gartner, the world’s largest technology research and advisory firm. In his role as an Analyst/Advisor, he guided leaders at some of the world’s largest technology companies, as well as hundreds of technology startup company CEOs, navigate and overcome every challenge they face in leading their teams in launching successful technology products.
Prior Roles: Startup Founder/CEO, VP of Product Management, Chief Evangelist, Chief Technology Officer, Technical Manager, VoIP/UC Architect, SW Engineer, Rocket Scientist, Electrical Engineer
Technical Specialties: IoT, AI/ML, Complex Adaptive Systems, B2B IT Services, SaaS/Cloud SW solutions, UC/VoIP/Telecom, Network Security, SDN/NFV, Agile SW, Enterprise Software APIs.
Management Specialties: Team Formation and Culture Custodian - Technology Markets & Trends Analysis - Product Management - Strategic Planning – Business Development – Global Sales & Marketing – P&L Management – Channel Partner Relationships - Negotiations - Ecosystem Development – New Account Acquisition – Public Speaking.
Personal: Roger lives in the “People’s Republic of Boulder Colorado”. He is married with 2 adult children and 2 step-children and enjoys hiking, skiing, fishing, biking, camping, golf; and is now rebooting his long-dormant home-brewing skills.
Steven B. Williams
Managing Partner
24 years building customer-focused technology products and 6 years as an Engineer in the Navy Nuclear Power Program
Steven is the Founder of "Integrated Software Services" and has led product management teams for enterprise and startups. He has a Bachelors Degree in Computer Science/Mathematics and an MBA.
Before joining Founder Advisors, Steven was Chief Product Officer of "Customers First Now" a leading Customer Experience company. Prior to CFN, he was Vice President of Teridion, Inc. located in San Francisco directing and managing a worldwide product that leveraged the cloud to deliver greater Internet performance. He led the company from the initial rounds of financing through the first customer wins, closing over a million in MRR revenue and providing significant leadership in product strategy, market direction, and deal closure. He was responsible for driving product direction and strategy, engaging with customers to ensure world-class customer experience, and managing the team for smooth and successful worldwide product releases.
Before joining Teridion, Steven had held many product leadership positions in Enterprise, Startup, and Midsize business. He has held Senior Global Product Management positions for both Avaya and Polycom with P&L experience and responsibility of over $180 M. He was Director of Retail and Operations at Verint Video Solutions where he delivered over 250 M in product solutions to companies such as Home Depot, Walmart, and Target. He has held senior leadership positions in several startup companies including Teridion, CleverPear, and Sorceron. In addition to the many business leadership roles, Steven has proudly served 6 years in the US Navy.
Prior Roles: Startup Founder, Consulting Company Founder, VP of Product Management, Chief Product Officer, Chief Innovation Officer, Product Evangelist, Director of Product Management, Product Manager, Software Development Manager, Software Development Engineer, Military - Navy Nuclear Power Engineer
Business Specialties: Customer Experience, Customer Experience KPI’s, Product Management, Product Development, Competitive Analysis, Competitive Differentiation, Technology and Product Innovation, Negotiation, Pitching for Investment, Customer Sales, Customer Success, Customer Support, Enterprise, and Entrepreneurial Experience
Mitchell Posada
Managing Partner
27 years of creating a non-linear path where I learned grace & grit the hard way
Mr. Posada is a co-founder of Founder Advisors LLC. He earned a Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management from Michigan State University when it was the first university to offer this major. He then earned an MBA from UC Berkeley Haas School of Business and had a front-row seat during the first Dot Com Bubble working at a high flying Stanford startup and poster child of that winner take all era.
With 27 yrs experience in management leadership roles in operations, business development, product management, management consulting, working across many industries including SaaS, Mobile/Telecom, Management Consulting, Computer Hardware, CPG, Marketing & Advertising, Sports, Energy, Logistics, and FinTech. Recent roles advising a venture fund and founders on how to create more alignment with investors and with Product and Go-To-Market challenges.
Prior Roles: Startup Founder, Head of Product, VP of Digital, VP of Marketing, Management Consultant, Business Process Engineer.
Management Specialties: Team Performance – Culture Evangelist – Markets & Trends Analysis – MVP Discovery – Customer Development – Sales & Marketing – Channel Partner Relationships – Ecosystem Development – Product Management – Investor Relations – Public Speaking
Personal: Mitch is new to Colorado living in Boulder but with any excuse for adventure travel. Mitch’s motto is to leave a wake of smiles, laughs, and people feeling loved. I think we are blessed to live in a time where we can fundamentally change for the better the human experience and legacy.
Nicole Goehring
Head of Operations
Director of Operations Design & Automation, aka The Integrator
Nicole brings a human-centered focus to the Founder Advisors team. With years of experience specializing in Organization Development and Operations, Nicole has worked toward her passion for forging leaders who inspire growth and change in the world. She earned her MS in Organization Development from American University, and a BA from Chapman University in Psychology and Integrated Educational Studies, with a Leadership focus. This strong background as an Integrator is a powerful component of the Founder Advisors team.
Prior roles:
Organization Development Consultant, Director of Business Operations
Management Specialties:
Leadership and Career Development, Executive Coaching, Operation Direction, Vision Integration, Team Coordination, Team Building, and Leadership Facilitation
Personal:
Born and raised in Southern California, Nicole has found a home in Northern Colorado. She enjoys helping others make a difference in the world, from volunteering to simply living out her passion for bettering others' lives.