Managing Partner

Jay Brennan '81

Jay has been actively involved in investing in and operating small businesses his entire business career. Following his graduation, summa cum laude, from Colgate in 1981 with a double major in Economics and English, Jay worked with Morgan Stanley for two years before returning to graduate school. After earning a joint JD/MBA from the University of Virginia, Jay began working with University Technology Corporation as a business development officer evaluating technologies, writing business plans and raising venture capital. He wrote the business plan and played a key role in raising venture funding for Biotage, Inc., a successor of which is a successful company today.

Jay then began working on and investing in a number of turnarounds. He purchased an importer of upholstery leather in a bank liquidation sale, revitalized the business and sold it. He turned around a troubled manufacturer of truck axles, Hayes Axle, and successfully negotiated a profitable sale to a foreign competitor. He then purchased Medical Packaging, a manufacturer of personal care products for the medical market, out of Chapter 11 and significantly grew sales and profits before exiting several years later. He also served as President of the Distance Learning Division of White Hat Management, one of the largest charter school operators in the nation, where he developed a management team that expanded the company into new geographical regions.

Since 2007 Jay has been an active member of the Piedmont Angel Network, currently serving as Board Director and Monitor of two startups funded by PAN: Protochips and Pique Therapeutics. Jay is currently serving as Screening Chair for PAN 3 and is a member of the Executive Committee.

Jay is owner and President of the Alternative Board of Greensboro & High Point. In that capacity Jay establishes and facilitates peer advisory boards for business owners and serves as an executive coach for dozens of business leaders. Jay resides in Greensboro, NC with his wife and two daughters.

General Partners

Robert Johnson '94

Robert has been an entrepreneur and investor his entire adult life. Shortly after graduating Colgate University in 1994 with a double major in Computer Science and Psychology, he joined software startup Sundance Digital as employee number two. Sundance created software for television and cable networks, and Robert’s experience running CUTV, Colgate’s student run television station, gave him a jumpstart on understanding this complex industry. Due in part to this background, he quickly found himself as the CEO and majority shareholder of Sundance. Under his leadership the company grew to become one of the world’s largest providers of software to automate television stations, and their customer list included many household names in the US, South America, and Asia. In 2006 the company was sold to Avid Technology (NASDAQ: AVID) and Robert transitioned into a corporate VP of Sales role.

After leaving Avid, Robert became involved in the oil & gas industry where he worked to consolidate production assets in East Texas. The resulting company was sold to Gale Force Petroleum (TSX:GFP) in 2011 and Robert currently sits on the board of this public company.

In 2008 Robert founded TeamSupport.com which provides enterprise class customer service software delivered via the web. Robert is also a mentor and investor in several early stage companies and is active with TechWildcatters, one of the top ranked technology accelerator funds in the US, as well as several local angel investing groups.

Robert is an engaged Colgate alum and currently is a member of the Alumni Council where he serves as the Chair of the Career Services Committee. He lives in Dallas with his family including his Colgate sweetheart Kelly.


John Nozell ‘81

John has been involved in structuring, restructuring, and raising capital for businesses his entire career. Following graduation from Colgate, cum laude, with a concentration and honors in Economics, he earned an MBA in Finance and Accounting from Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management.

He then began an 18 year career with The Chase Manhattan Corporation (now JP Morgan Chase & Co.), where he held various positions, including Managing Director, Global Investment Banking, and Head of the Airlines & Aerospace Group in London, where he oversaw client relationships throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa. During his tenure at Chase, John raised billions of dollars of capital, public and private, for clients, from a broad array of investor sources, and at all levels of the capital structure. While at Chase, he also served as Head of Middle Market Investment Banking, and Head of the Debt/Equity Conversion group.

In 2001, John was appointed Executive Vice President of Finance and Operations of Advion BioSciences in Ithaca, New York. During his 6 year tenure, he raised the firm’s first and second rounds of institutional capital, restructured its corporate and capital structure, and oversaw a tripling of the company’s business. From 2002-2008, John also served as Senior Lecturer of Finance and Entrepreneurship at the Johnson Graduate School of Management. He taught courses in M & A, the IPO Process, Corporate Finance, and Venture Capital and he served as Faculty Advisor to BR Ventures, The Johnson School’s venture capital fund.

From 2007-2009, John held the position of Chief Investment Officer of AWAS Aviation Services, Ltd., in Dublin Ireland, overseeing a portfolio of 225 Commercial Aircraft, and an order for over $6 billion of additional aircraft. He was also a member of the AWAS Board of Directors. From 2009-2011, John served as Managing Director of The Seabury Group, heading the firm’s investment banking practice in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. He is presently Chief Operating Officer of John G. Ullman & Assoc., a $750 million wealth management firm, where he has also served on the Board of Directors since 2006, and chaired the Audit Committee from 2009-2011. From 2003-2007, John was also on the Board of Global Principle Finance Corp (a unit of Merrill Lynch), for which he chaired the Risk Management Committee, overseeing $1.5 billion of asset acquisitions and trading activity.

John and his wife, Patricia (Colgate ’81) divide their time between Corning, NY and New York City. They have two daughters (Colgate ’10, ’11) and a son.

Senior Advisor

Walter Steinmann ‘79

Walter graduated from Colgate University in 1979 with a major in geology. He is a life-long entrepreneur involved in manufacturing, real estate and hospitality. While still a student he became president of Brutier Products Co., Inc., a plastic extrusion and coating company he still owns. In that position he manages all phases of the operation, including product development, manufacturing and marketing.

Walter then became involved in property management of commercial and residential real estate through WSS Corporation. He and a partner founded Typhoon Brewery, a Thai cuisine/ microbrewery located in mid town Manhattan, in the mid-1990’s. Walter was responsible for raising capital, overseeing the manufacturing of beer and the overall operation of the restaurant. This restaurant won numerous awards for its food and beer, including a gold and silver medal at the Great American Beer Festival in Colorado. In addition, Walter has consulted for a number of manufacturing companies in the plastic industry and is involved with the Tri-State Private Investors Network, an angel investor group, as business screener and investor.

Walter Steinmann lives in Verona, NJ with his wife Kerri and son Trey. He has been an active member of the Colgate community since his graduation, receiving the Maroon Citation in 1989.

Scientific Advisor

Thomas McGahren '81, MD, JD

Tom McGahren brings a diverse skill set and much expertise in analyzing scientific and biopharma companies from his experience as a physician, intellectual property litigator, biotechnology analyst, and strategic consultant. He is currently a senior advisor with Griffin Securities, a boutique investment bank in New York specializing in private and public small and medium sized biopharma companies. Prior to joining Griffin in 2010, Tom was a Senior Director and senior biotechnology analyst at Merrill Lynch, which he joined in 2002. Forbes ranked Tom the #1 Drugs Analyst in 2008. Tom started his Wall Street career as a biotech analyst at Banc of America Securities in 2001. He worked was an attorney and litigator at the international law firm of Kaye Scholer in New York 1993-2001 representing pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies in patent, FDA and corporate matters. Following graduation from Colgate magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa with a concentration in Political Science in 1981, Tom earned an MD from the University of Virginia School of Medicine in 1985. After post graduate training and serving as a general practice physician in Boston, Tom earned a JD from the University of Texas School of Law in 1992.