DAVE RICHARDS

Treasurer & Conflict of Interest Committee Chair

Principal, Bodega Ventures

 
Dave has a passion for discovering scalable and sustainable approaches to breaking the scourge of extreme poverty which he writes about on his blog, DefeatPoverty.com. Dave is particularly interested in the power of commercial approaches to more rapidly breaking down generational cycles of poverty and sees great hope for well-implemented microfinance systems. He is also a partner with Social Venture Partners, an innovative NGO helping high-potential nonprofits create more impact through infusions of capital and business practices.

Dave is an experienced entrepreneur and executive in high-growth software, digital media, and Internet services sectors. He has led businesses at RealNetworks, Sybase, and Symantec from startup to multiple hundred million dollar global enterprises. He recently co-founded Bodega Ventures, a new Internet technology business incubator which has just launched its first operating company, HelpHive, Inc. He also co-founded Busy Investor, a social business that matches investors with credit-challenged home buyers to provide bridge financing for home ownership.

Dave has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of British Columbia with a major in finance and minor in computer science. Dave and his wife Sharon are the proud parents of three children and reside in Seattle.