Neal launched his venture capital career in 1989 at Bay. Through cycles of change, Neal�s investment thesis has been to find entrepreneurs with domain expertise and the fine art of listening. At the end of the day, customers decide whether startups will succeed or not and without listening to customers, entrepreneurs are seldom successful. This thesis has served him well through investments in category creating companies like Brocade, Informatica and Shiva.
Neal balances the stresses of his workload by giving back to the community. In addition to serving as Managing General Partner at Bay, he serves on the Board of EMQ Children and Family Services (a.k.a. Eastfield Ming Quong). Neal's leadership helped establish the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program at the University of Washington Business School. Neal made the largest gift ever from an alumnus to the University of Washington.
Last but not least, Neal is a passionate college sports fan. He is very actively involved with The University of Washington basketball and football programs. To support these athletic programs at his alma matter, Neal sponsored the Dempsey Indoor Training Stadium at the University of Washington.
Education
B.A., University of Washington |