Meet Our Team
We are a highly experienced management team, and we’ve crafted the playbook for entrepreneurial success. Our team brings extensive experience across start-ups to billion-dollar enterprises. We’ve worked in over 40 countries, oversaw over $3B in revenue, managed thousands of employees, raised thousands, millions, and billions in funding, and concluded over 100 mergers and acquisitions and several IPOs.
Our journey hasn't been without its lessons – we've had huge successes and we’ve made our share of mistakes, learned from them, and now we are focused on helping entrepreneurs access our decades of experience to bring their hopes and dreams to reality. We’re here to help you navigate the entrepreneurial landscape, provide you with the proven tools and resources to execute, help you make informed decisions, seize opportunities, and steer clear of pitfalls. Trust GEA to be your compass in the journey towards success.
Matt Rosen
Executive Chairman
Matt has spent three decades building businesses. He is a problem solving visionary that clearly understands how to transform a vision into reality. He is a founder, advisor, board member, and investor in a number of companies and private equity funds across many industry verticals. He has raised billions of dollars, conducted business in over 40 countries, concluded over 20 acquisitions, managed thousands of people, led an IPO and a restructuring and built a large global network of successful entrepreneurs and investors. Most recently, he served as Chairman and CEO of Fusion, a SaaS business he grew to $570MM in annual revenue and $125MM in EBITDA while raising over $1B in capital. He also co-founded Emerald Point Capital, which raised $10B for investment funds and was an executive in a large healthcare and technology company. He began his career as an Investment Banker at Merrill Lynch.
Maria Kurilo
CEO
Maria is a distinguished marketing and branding expert, particularly in the deep tech and emerging market sectors. Her unique approach is enriched by her background in neuroscience and cognitive psychology. Maria demonstrated her entrepreneurial spirit by successfully co-founding two US-based marketing agencies. With a foundation as a seasoned researcher at the CDC, she has cultivated a remarkable track record in branding and marketing, delivering exceptional results for deep-tech and quantum innovators such as QphoX and QuantWare to name a few. Her expertise in media agency operations and creative direction, coupled with her extensive network of technology leaders, positions her as a pivotal strategist and a visionary leader in her domain.
Lee Woodward
Operations
Lee is an experienced coach and consultant with a 25-year background across various industries and global locations. Known for her problem-solving skills and emphasis on curiosity, she specializes in creating systems to enhance individual strengths. Lee led global HR for Honeywell, a $40 billion company, and managed customer/product support in a $14 billion aerospace division. She is passionate about entrepreneurship and dedicated to supporting women entrepreneurs.
Marta Pawlowska
Community
Marta has a diverse background in fashion, technology, and wellness, with a strong track record in managing large-scale projects and developing communication strategies. She has collaborated with the Executive Chairman and CEO of Trendyol Group and handled logistics and operations for projects across Europe, Asia, and the US. Her career is focused on understanding and supporting the professional journeys of women, emphasizing the need for practical education, reliable guidance, effective tools, and a supportive community.
Isa Hulshof
Business Development
Isa is a recent business graduate who combines her creative background with a strategic business mindset. With a foundation in the art, Isa’s background includes work on several films and a lifelong dedication to the piano, showcasing her versatility and diverse skill set. Isa also has years of experience working in events for various companies. Drawing from her past as a professional tennis player Isa brings a competitive edge to all her work.
Lisa Butters
Member Growth and Engagement
Lisa is an established business leader with 20+ years of experience across tech, product management, customer support, and operations. A tekkie at heart, she started her journey at Honeywell (a $40 billion company) in Aerospace and, among other significant accomplishments, was credited for creating and running the first marketplace for aftermarket aerospace parts. After Honeywell Lisa moved to Amazon where she ran Amazon Handmade (a major competitor of Etsy). Today she leads member growth and engagement for US Amazon Prime, one of the largest subscription services in the world. Lisa takes pride in simplified problem solving by working backwards from the customer and is a holder of multiple patents in e-commerce and Blockchain technology.
Yariv Trabelsi
Head of Technology & AI
Yariv is an expert in VoIP, SaaS, large scale mission-critical distributed systems, computer vision, volumetric video, and artificial intelligence, with the technical and commercial acumen to deliver complex solutions and invent multiple registered patents in the field of VoIP. He is experienced in leading multicultural, cross-site agile teams in both startups and large enterprises. He is the former direct of engineering at Intel. He drove technological innovation at Microsoft. He is currently head of R&D for a $40 billion dollar autonomous vehicle company.
Keith Soldan
Finance
Keith is an experienced executive financial leader with over 20 years of expertise in enhancing performance, profitability, and shareholder value in various companies. He has proven a track record in financial and operational performance, talent development, and sustainable solutions. He is an expert in establishing top-tier finance and accounting departments, designing systems to enhance operations, and implementing programs to ensure accurate reporting, efficient financial systems, and effective risk management and compliance.
Jim Prenetta
Legal and Regulatory
Jim is an experienced legal executive with over 35 years in the field, including 25 years as general counsel in cloud services, telecom, and software industries. He has managed major M&A transactions and raised over $5.0 billion in funding. Previously, he was a partner at Kelley Drye & Warren LLP, specializing in capital raising and M&A. He holds a BA in Political Science and a law degree from the Columbus School of Law at Catholic University of America.
Rachel Lanham
Back Office Administration
Rachel established Execorp in 2011, focusing on affordable business services for entrepreneurs and executives. Her expertise include business planning, bookkeeping, project management, and operational support across different business stages. Additionally, she offers strategic guidance for startups, encompassing vendor selection, financing, and cost-saving solutions.
Kelly Beckner
Strategic Advisor
Kelly is a Senior Human Resources Leader experienced in the IT and services industry. Her skills include talent management, coaching, employee benefits, personnel management, payroll, change management, and M&A evaluation. She holds a BA in Psychology from George Mason University, emphasizing the connection between people strategy and business strategy.
Don Hutchins
Strategic Advisor
Don founded Napa Innovations, offering strategic, management, leadership, and financial consulting for entrepreneurial ventures. He brings over 40 years of experience as CEO, COO, and CFO in fast-growing businesses, including startups and public companies with revenues exceeding $1 billion. His expertise includes negotiating and closing over 50 M&As, founding new ventures, and consulting for over 100 global corporations across five continents.
Emily Berg
Strategic Advisor
Emily has been the vice president of Green Point Partners, investing at the intersection of real assets, technology, and sustainability, backing the companies and founders creating the places of tomorrow. she has experience in real estate and strategic investment.
Jan Sarro
Strategic Advisor
Jan brings four decades of experience in developing Marketing and Sales organizations. She has held EVP and President roles in high-growth communications companies, guiding teams from startup to maturity with revenues nearing $400 million. Her expertise includes branding, product, and communications, and she's known for creating and launching award-winning strategies and promotions for growing innovative information and communications companies.
Jonscott Turco
Strategic Advisor
Jonscott is a seasoned leadership and behavioral change expert with nearly 25 years of experience in organizational design and client engagement. As a C-Suite executive coach, he specializes in structuring teams, fostering client partnerships, employee motivation, and enhancing profitability. His global experience covers over 50 countries across five continents, with notable clients like Mercedes-Benz, Sanofi, L’Oreal, and Burberry.
Keon Zhang
Strategic Advisor
Keon has over 15 years experience and holding several executive roles in brand development, driving growth and market acceptance. Managed hundred-million-dollar launches in different consumer products and goods industries, spanning health & beauty (L'Oreal) and apparel & footwear (Nike). He led #1 category brand launches in multiple categories and years, developing international best practices and first-to-market award-winning marketing campaigns.
Brian George
Strategic Advisor
Brian is a technical and operations executive with 20 years of experience leading engineering, IT, software development, and product teams to build scalable infrastructure and deliver innovative communications, networking, and security solutions. He has built and managed voice and data networks, datacenters, and cloud-based software solutions needed to drive growth in the MSP and telecom industries, and has been responsible for the successful integration of key technology, teams, and infrastructure in over 20 M&A transactions.
Diane Lang
Strategic Advisor
Diane has had three decades of talent management experience. She is the founder of Lang Management Group, and former executive with Ford Models.