Welcoming Mark Goad to the OMERS Ventures team!
We are very excited to announce that Mark Goad has joined the OMERS Ventures investment team.
Mark is responsible for researching and executing on investment opportunities in growth-oriented, disruptive technology companies. Prior to joining OMERS Ventures, Mark was the Head of Strategy and Head of Sales at SAP.iO, the venture and incubation group of SAP — the world’s largest enterprise software company.
Tell us a bit about yourself!
I’m originally from Scarborough, born and raised in the Toronto area. I play hockey and soccer once a week and am training for my first full marathon at the end of this year.
You recently moved back to Toronto from the Valley. What made you come home?
It is an incredible time to live in the Bay area. San Francisco is not only one of the leading global economic and technology hubs, but is emerging as a cultural force as well. While it is easy to lament some of the area’s (pricier) growing pains, I had a great experience living in SF. I came home to be closer to family (this becomes important) and make my impact on the Canadian startup scene. The opportunity to join the incredible team at OMERS seemed like the perfect place to make this happen.
What are your main investment areas of interest right now? Any particular sectors that excite you?!
Coming from SAP, my entire world was enterprise software applications. I have spent my career witnessing the efficiencies unlocked by replacing outdated legacy applications with modern SaaS solutions that are supercharged with ML & DL.
On a personal basis, I get excited about the tremendous opportunities for digitally native, direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands and application cryptocurrencies that build vibrant virtual communities by requiring customers to become shareholders.
What was the last book you read?
Crossing the Chasm by Geoffrey Moore, a must read for pre- and seed founders hunting for product market fit or secondary market expansion. The methodology focuses on finding (sometimes small) groups of users with an acute pain that your product can solve better than anyone else; then expanding to larger, adjacent markets with similar needs.
Finish this sentence! The future will be…
Bigger, better, more Canadian!
