Charles Francois Kemper




Charlie Kemper is an operating executive & international investor with diverse experience in all aspects of business development, corporate finance, strategic planning, product marketing, sales strategy, and business development. He has direct experience in venture capital, private equity, digital media, web design, ip communications infrastructure, enterprise software, cloud computing, and internet services.

PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY
Charles is currently actively involved in the growth and financing of numerous companies in digital media, marketing services, information technology, and business services. In this capacity, he helps fund and/or acquire privately held companies that are led by top management teams and demonstrate significant potential for growth. He is also a Founding Officer & Chair of the New York City Venture Connection, a 150 member networking organization comprised of the leading venture capital firms in the Greater New York area.

Until recently, Charles was a Principal with Steelpoint Capital Partners, a growth-oriented private equity firm with offices in San Diego CA and New York NY. From 2004 to 2009, Steelpoint made various investments ranging from $5 and $30 million in leading venture-stage and middle market growth companies with a focus on the media & marketing services, software & communications, consumer products & retail, and healthcare & life sciences markets. Charles was actively involved in the firm's investments in AdSpace Networks, Atempo, Boingo Wireless, The Chart Group, Imaginova, Internet Marketing Center, Jitterbug, PacStar Communications, PrivaSys, Promptu, SeaMobile, Snow Phipps Group, Tasti D-Lite, Topica, WMI Media Solutions, and WorkShare. He was a Member of the Board of Directors of Atempo, Internet Marketing Center, PacStar Communications, Promptu, and WMI Media Solutions, and a Board Observer at AdSpace Networks, Boingo Wireless, Genesis Today, Imaginova, Jitterbug, PrivaSys, SeaMobile, Sunshine Concrete, and Topica.

Prior to joining Steelpoint, Charles was engaged as an advisor by several technology and financial groups. He was involved in the development & execution of a new business delivering next-generation carrier-grade software solutions for IP-based rich media communications. He played a critical role in assisting an Australian video compression business to refine its strategy and raise fresh equity, an IP traffic engineering startup to restructure, a new US Hispanic-focused private equity fund to organize the business, and a group of entrepreneurs negotiating a management buyout of a successful skills assessment technology. He is currently also an advisor to a rapidly growing branded gourmet prepared frozen foods retail operation and a founding senior advisor to a non-profit 501(c)(3) focused on financial education & alternative banking services in the US Hispanic market.

Previously, Charles worked with Darby Overseas Investments, a global private equity firm with over $1 billion in capital under management led by Nicholas F. Brady, former US Secretary of the Treasury and Chairman of Dillon, Read & Co., in 2000 to develop a plan to launch a new technology-focused investment vehicle. He also assisted in sourcing, evaluating, and executing new investment opportunities in the areas of digital media, communications services, enterprise software, and information technology.

As a founding member and investment officer of the Darby Technology Ventures Group, the technology venture capital arm of Darby, he played a lead role in the development of the investment thesis and strategy of the newly formed group. Charles was responsible for deal origination, investment due diligence, financial analysis, deal structuring, and valuation. During his two-year tenure with Darby, Charles was part of the team that executed investments in four businesses; a messaging applications provider (Inova), an inventory management software developer for mobile applications (Spring Wireless), a software security business with a leading PKI technology (Certisign), and a facilities-based business center operation (BCI). He also provided ongoing counsel to management of portfolio companies on issues of value building, strategic planning, corporate governance, accounting, fundraising, and new partnerships or acquisitions.

Prior to Darby, Charles served as a lead financial executive in the area of Product Development for the Explorer Vehicle Line within Ford Motor Company. He was closely involved in the conceptualization, design, and development of new vehicles with a particular focus on business analysis, supplier negotiation, product pricing, development procedures, and new markets. From 1996 to 1999, Charles co-founded and managed a new media consulting firm focusing on architecting web-based solutions for enterprise clients. Charles was responsible for all financial and managerial aspects of the operating firm in addition to playing a lead role in sales & new business development. Previously, he has worked with Avalanche Systems (now Razorfish) to develop web-based software, communications, and commerce solutions for a variety of clients in the media, entertainment, and financial services industries. Charles has also held positions at Ameritech, Credit Agricole Indosuez, and Robert Bosch Corporation.

EDUCATION
Charles holds a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University. He is also fluent in English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese, in addition having had assembled skills in a number of software development languages.

INTERESTS
Charles is an addicted kiteboarder, sailor, and snowboarder. He is also an avid squash and tennis player when there's no wind or snow. Currently, Charles is the Chair of the New York City Venture Connection, sits on the Board of the Northwestern Alumni Association, and is actively involved with the Northwestern Alumni Admission Council, the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship, the Phi Delta Theta Advisory Board, and the Hispanic Alliance for Progress.

CONTACT
Feel free to drop Charles a note or phone call, he always welcome a good conversation, a challenging squash game, a kiteboarding session or trip, a new deal, or a glass of great wine. You can reach him at the office at +1-646-657-9054 or via electronic mail at ckemper-AT-kmf.net.