The Team

Teton Industries represents the personal capital and talent of over a dozen business executives who lead and advise numerous successful private and public companies. We acquire companies that we can grow through an investment of our capital, time, and expertise.

Select Investors

Craig Burr

Mr. Burr's career has been devoted almost exclusively to venture capital and private equity activities, having founded Burr, Egan, Deleage & Co. in 1979. Previously, Mr. Burr was a Partner at TA Associates. He has been a member of the Board of Directors of the New England Venture Capital Association. He is presently a private investor and serves on the Boards of Directors of several private companies. Mr. Burr received his AB, cum laude, from Harvard College and his MBA from Harvard Business School.

Bill Egan

Bill is a founder and General Partner of Alta Communications. He founded Alta's predecessor firm, Burr, Egan, Deleage & Co. in 1979, and has identified and backed several of America's leading growth companies in the information technology, life sciences, and communications industries. Prior to founding Burr, Egan, Deleage & Co., Bill was a Partner at TA Associates. Bill began his career as a Manager of Venture Capital for New England Enterprise Capital Corporation. He is past President and Chairman of the National Venture Capital Association, a Trustee of the University of Pennsylvania, a Member of the Board of Overseers at The Wharton School, and a former Trustee of Fairfield University. Bill is also a member of the Board of Directors of Village Voice Media, Cephalon, Inc., and CRH plc. Bill received a degree in Economics from Fairfield University and an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Finance.

Hiroshi Mikitani

Hiroshi Mikitani is the founder of Rakuten, Inc, Japan’s largest internet commerce company. Mr. Mikitani has served as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the board since the inception in 1997. Prior to founding Rakuten, Mr. Mikitani established a consulting business, Crimson Group in 1996. Prior to founding Crimson Group, Mr. Mikitani worked in mergers and acquisitions at the Industrial Bank of Japan from 1988 to 1996. Mr. Mikitani received his MBA from Harvard Business School and Bachelor of Commerce degree from Hitotsubashi University

Michael O‘Connell

Michael F. O’Connell is the head Managing Director at M2O, Inc. He oversees the assessment of investment opportunities and reviews the ongoing performance of portfolio companies. Michael also sits on the board of American Biosurgical, Inc. For the bulk of his career, Michael was the Managing Director and President of Anhalt, O’Connell & Steffanci Inc., a Los Angeles-based investment management firm with almost $1 billion under management. In 1992, Michael purchased the National Lines Bureau, a ship mooring company operating in the Los Angeles and Long Beach harbors, the largest commercial port in America. That initial investment spawned several others and Michael soon shifted his focus from investment management to venture capital. Today, he leads M2O with a portfolio of more than 30 companies. Michael holds a B.A., with high honors, from Harvard College and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Peterson Partners

Peterson Partners, based in Salt Lake City, Utah is one of the Intermountain West’s most successful private equity firms. Specializing in small to mid-sized companies, Peterson Partners has a track record of successful investments including JetBlue, Making Memories, EnergySolutions, 3form, Cranium, Asurion, Instashred, Winder Farms, Diamond Rental, and CheckSum. Founded in 1995, Peterson Partners has managed over $400 million in committed capital through five funds. For more information, visit www.petersonpartnerslp.com.

Howard Stevenson

Howard H. Stevenson is Sarofim-Rock Baker Foundation Professor, Senior Associate Dean, Director of Publishing, and Chair of the Harvard Business Publishing Company board. The Sarofim-Rock Chair was established in 1982 to provide a continuing base for research and teaching in the field of entrepreneurship. Professor Stevenson is its first incumbent. The program for entrepreneurial studies uses a multi-disciplinary approach to the creation and maintenance of entrepreneurial focus of business organizations.

Steve Wheelwright

Steve Wheelwright is the President of BYU Hawaii. Previously, he was a Harvard Business School professor and Senior Associate Dean responsible for HBS publications. He also served as the Senior Associate Dean responsible for the MBA program at HBS. He has authored numerous books and publications with particular emphasis on strategy and operations.

President
John VanNewkirk

John VanNewkirk, Teton Industries’ founder and President has a proven track record in managing businesses. In 2003, VanNewkirk led Teton Industries’ acquisition of CheckSum, a leading manufacturer of electrical test equipment for the worldwide electronics industry. VanNewkirk has served as President and CEO of CheckSum since the acquisition, directing an expansion in worldwide markets and new product development, such as on-board programming.

Earlier, VanNewkirk led a successful turnaround of a steel service center in southern China for Van Shung Chong Holdings (VSC), a publicly listed company in Hong Kong with annual revenue of approximately US$ 250 million. In addition, VanNewkirk established a Building Products Division that sells and installs kitchens and bathrooms to large developers in Hong Kong.

Prior to joining VSC, VanNewkirk served as a management consultant with Bain & Company in Hong Kong and San Francisco. During his years at Bain, VanNewkirk developed and implemented growth strategies for Fortune 500 companies. His experience across a spectrum of industries included cost reduction, process re-engineering, new market development, distribution strategy and implementation, and corporate strategy.

VanNewkirk has a Bachelor of Sciences (Honors) from Brown University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. He serves on the Board of Directors of Fast Water Heater and is a member of Young Presidents’ Organization. He is married with three children.

“It has been my pleasure to work with this great group of partners since Teton Industries was formed nearly a decade ago. Their collective wisdom and experience is tremendously helpful as we look at investment opportunities and afterward, when we focus on capturing growth opportunities.”

John VanNewkirk
Teton Industries
Founder and President