Igor Agamirzyan, Ph.D.
Director General
Russian Venture Company (RVC)

 Igor Agamirzyan is one of the leading experts in Russia in the field of computer and informational technologies – he has been working in this area more than 25 years successfully combining scientific and research activity, business and management of high-tech companies. He is the author of the first overview of the history and current state of the Soviet Computer Science in the widely known computer magazine “Computing in the U.S.S.R.” (Byte, April 1991).

In his previous position he was a National Technology Officer and a member of the Cabinet of the Chairman of Microsoft in Russia and CIS countries. He was running Government Relations and Education programs for Microsoft in 2002-2004, prior to that he was responsible for managing relations for Microsoft Research with Computer Science research institutions in the Eastern Europe, including Russia and other CIS countries during 1999-2002. Before joining European Microsoft Research Lab in Cambridge, UK, Igor Agamirzian was running enterprise sales of the Microsoft Moscow subsidiary. He joined Microsoft in 1995 as a consultant of the Microsoft Consulting Services, and in 1996 started MCS practice in Moscow, Russia. Igor Agamirzian is an active Russian IT promoter within the international research and business community. He is strongly involved in the international activities around Information and Communication Technologies, representing Russian private sector in the G8 DOT Force, an international taskforce on the Digital Divide and Information Society, and is often speaking on the business and research conferences. In year 2002 Igor Agamirzian was appointed as a Member of Advisory Board of the United Nations ICT Task Force.

Since January 2007 Igor Agamirzyan has been the General Director of the Software Development Center of EMC2 Corporation in St. Petersburg, Russia (EMC2). In April 2009 he accepted the post of General Director of Russian Venture Company (RVC). 

Ivan Oskolkov
Head of Corporate Governance Department, Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation

 Ivan Oskolkov graduated with honors from St. Petersburg State University (1996) at the “Applied physics” specialty. In 1998 graduated with honors from The European University at St. Petersburg at the “Economics” specialty. Attained PhD in Economics (2000). Associate professor (2007).

1997–2007 – lecturer at the faculty of economy at St. Petersburg State University Graduate School of Management.

1997–2001 – analyst, senior analyst, head of research department of Energocapital Investment Company.

2004 – director on investment consulting, managing director, senior partner at Labrium Consulting company.

2004–2005 – deputy chairman of The National Association of Stock Market Participants board of directors.

2005–2007 – executive director of the Guild of Investment and Financial Analysts.

Since 2007 – Head of Corporate Governance Department, Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation.

Olga Dergunova
Board Member
JSC Bank VTB

Olga Dergunova is well-known as a computer industry professional. Being the head of Microsoft Russian representative offices since 1995 and the President of Microsoft Russia since 2004, Olga Dergunova was engaged in working out and realization of long-term strategic plans of the Corporation in Russia and CIS countries as well as development of contacts with State institutions.

Olga’s transition to new for her financial branch – since 2007, Olga has been working as member of the Board of Directors of VTB Bank − has become unexpected for many people, thought her specialty by education "Economical cybernetics" provides universality of a specialist and his/her ability to adapt to any field. Today, she is responsible for banking activity, corporate and financial business, including investment projects.

She occupies an active life position being a member of boards of directors and supervisory boards of many organizations: VTB Insurance Ltd., VTB 24 (closed JSC), Open JSC Systematica Group, a member of the Committee on investment policy at the Rosnanotech Supervisory Board, member of the Board of Trustees at St. Petersburg State University Graduate School of Management, Chairman of the Commission on Academic Development.

Contribution of Olga Dergunova to business development in Russia and CIS was noted both at Russian and international levels: in 2004 – nomination of World Economic Forum "Young Global Leader", in 2006 – award of the US Chamber of Commerce "Businessman 2005". A popular business publication − The Wall Street Journal Europe twice included Olga in the lists of mostly successful and influential women-business managers in Europe. In 2007, within the frames of annual Internet action of Rambler Olga Dergunova was nominated "A person of the decade" at technologies category. Many times she was included in the hundred of most influential women in the world.

Gennady Gruzdkov
Senior Investment Officer
Quadriga Capital Russia GmbH & Co

 Gennady Gruzdkov holds a post of Senior Investment Officer in Quadriga Capital Russia GmbH & Co – one of the first Regional Venture Funds created by EBRD in the mid 90ths.

Being engaged in the field of private equity during the last 15 years, and in various commercial and government structures before this, Gennady Gruzdkov possesses deep experience in investors’ media as well as has deserved authority within professional community of Russia.

As a pioneer in building venture business in Russia, he actively participated in establishing and development of Russian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (RVCA), created in 1997, and was one of the first chairmen of the Administrative Council – major official organ of the RVCA.

Alexandra Johnson
Managing Director
DFJ VTB Aurora 

 Alexandra Johnson – is a symbolic figure in the global private equity and venture capital market. Having graduated from the Far Eastern State University (Vladivostok) with honors and Masters’ degree in the humanities, then she got Doctor’s degree in the Saint Petersburg State University and MBA degree in the University of California, Berkeley.

She was one of the founders and Managing Director of Landbridge Сapital LLC (investment company engaged in financing the American companies working on the basis of the Russian technologies’ commercialization). The last 10 years she was engaged in consulting international companies in the fields of administration management, investments, and corporate strategies. Before organization Landbridge Capital, Alexandra was Director General of Libritas Inc. company (Next Web, leading Californian company ISP, a part of Covad now, acquired Libritas company in 2001) with venture capital, IT products’ provider, and managed assignment of telecommunication services for SMEs as well as for corporations included in Fortune 500 list.

Alexandra is Director of annually conducted Global Technology Symposium at Stanford University, the premiere investor conference on entrepreneurship, technology, and venture investing in emerging markets. This symposium is a key event at the west coast of the USA in the area of investments in global emerging technologies. She also participates in the Executive Committee of the Stanford U.S.-Russia Forum, and active member of San Francisco Chamber Music Group.

Today she is one of the founders and Managing Director of DFJ VTB Aurora – venture capital group specializing on investments in Russia and CIS. The group was formed within the frames of strategic partnership between two world-known financial institutions: Draper Fisher Jurvetson in Silicon Valley (www.dfj.com) and VTB Bank in Russia (www.vtb.com). She works with start-up companies from communication, media, and nanotechnology sectors.

Nowadays, Alexandra is a member of Boards of Directors of such companies as Kvestora Close JSC, Bow Laboratories Close JSC, Combarco Close JSC, Light Engines Corporation Close JSC, and Moby Money.

Ivan Rodionov
Member of Boards of Directors
of North-West Telecom, IBS, “Svyazinvest”, JSC “Fosagro”
Professor of State University “Higher School of Economics”

 Ivan Rodionov is one of leading experts if the area of investment policy and venture capital in Russia including marketing and information services. Possesses exceptional experience of investment projects’ evaluation thanks to background of work in 1990ths at managerial positions in leading Russian banks: Russian Bank of Reconstruction and Development, ONEXIM Bank, and CB “Alpha-Bank”.

In 1999–2006, he was Managing Director of AIG Management Company – Brunswick Millennium Fund.

The author of more than 250 articles and 30 publications devoted to the issues of innovation and investment policy, venture capital, project financing management. Very special works are his fundamental investigations of Russian informational services market and practical study aids for Internet technologies use by entrepreneurs.

Ivan Rodionov successfully combines his business activity with scientific and teaching work. Being a member of Boards of Directors of North-West Telecom, IBS, “Svyazinvest”, JSC “Fosagro”, “Agroguard-Finance” he is working at the same time as the Professor of State University “Higher School of Economics”.

Venture capital industry always remains within the sphere of his business interests: Ivan Rodionov – a member of RVCA Administrative Council, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Venture Innovation Fund (VIF), member of Investment committee ORADEL (IBS Group), Chairman of “NICOR – MC regional venture funds” Board of Directors.

Conducting active social activity: he is a member of the IT and Communications Committee at The Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, and Deputy Chairman of Investment Policy Committee at Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Doctor of Science (Economics).

Kirill Dmitriev
Managing Partner and President
Icon Private Equity

Prior to establishing Icon (Icon Private Equity − a leading direct investments fund with over $1 billion under management), Mr. Dmitriev was Co-Managing Partner and Chief Executive Officer of Delta Private Equity Partners, the leading private equity fund in Russia with over $500 under management.

Kirill Dmitriev completed a number of symbolic deals in Russia: the sale of DeltaBank to General Electric, DeltaCredit Bank to Société Générale, CTC Media shares to Fidelity Investments, National Cable Networks to Basic Element, CompuLink to three investment funds, TV3 to Prof-Media, and NTC to Bank Rossiya.

From 2005-2006, he served as the Chairman of the Russian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association. Kirill Dmitriev has been selected as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in Davos, and serves on the Advisory Board of Harvard Business Review, Russia.

Prior to joining Delta Private Equity in 2002, he was Deputy General Director at Information Business Systems (IBS), the leading Russian IT services provider. He also worked as an investment banker with Goldman Sachs in New York and as a consultant with McKinsey & Company in Los Angeles, Moscow and Prague.

Kirill Dmitriev holds a BA in Economics with Honors and Distinction from Stanford University and an MBA with High Distinction (Baker Scholar) from the Harvard Business School.

Konstantin Fokin 
President
Russian Tech Tour 

Konstantin Fokin has a great experience in the private equity and venture capital field. Since 1990, he has had mostly an entrepreneurial career − has founded and run a number of businesses across different industries. In 2003, Konstantin graduated from Cranfield University School of Management, the U.K. Having become a business angel and aware of the early stage companies’ problems, Konstantin launched the first in Russia classical business angel network. 

In 2005, he joined the Ministry for Economic Development of the Russian Federation where he was working at elaboration of Russia-wide SME support and development program. Konstantin worked on the initiative resulted in creation of more than 20 regional private-public VC funds and more than 100 state sponsored business incubators.

In 2007-2008, Konstantin Fokin was engaged in creation and development of the technology park “STROGINO” in Moscow. At the same time he joined a Geneva based investment advisory firm working on high growth potential PE projects in Russia. 

Nowadays, at the position of the Second Russian Tech Tour President, he is responsible for organizing the visit of delegation of 60 representatives of leading European venture capital funds and technology corporations in Russia in September 2009 (Moscow, Kazan, Tomsk) with the goal of selection of promising companies that represent attractive investment opportunities.

He is a member of the Board of Directors of the CJSC Elecard Devices (Elecard Group).

Sergey Polyakov
Director General
Foundation for Assistance to Small Innovative Enterprises (FASIE)

 Sergey Polyakov graduated from the Moscow Institute of Electronic Technology in 1080, at the same Institute he got the Candidate of technical science degree in 1988. In 1988-1998 he worked at leading positions at the Center of Youth Technical Creativity (Moscow), Russian-German enterprise “Albatros”, “Elton” Zelenograd branch, Zelenograd Science and Technology Park.

Since 1998, he has been working at the Foundation for Assistance to Small Innovative Enterprises (FASIE): from the beginning – at the Deputy Director General position, and as Director General - since 2008.

He is the author of 45 publications: 7 teaching-methodical and 38 scientific works on innovation management and innovation governance, state policy on science, technologies and innovations. All of them are actively used in pedagogic practice.

In 2005, Sergey Polyakov received the Ph.D. degree in economics.

Anna is the President of AmBAR, a non-profit business association of Russian-speaking professionals in the Silicon Valley with over 2,000 members. She is also a founder and the Chair of the SVOD Technology Investment Conference, a premier industry gathering which facilitates networking between Russian-speaking technology entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, angel investors and other technology experts.

Anna is a Founder and CEO of Entana Corp., an entrepreneurship and venture advisory firm that focuses on providing business strategy, planning, fundraising, and positioning services to the early-stage technology start-ups, as well as angel financing. Anna serves on the Advisory Boards and the Board of Directors of several technology startup companies. She is the author of many articles on entrepreneurship, angel and venture financing.

Previously, Anna was a Co-Founder and the VP of Business Development at BKP Security, a government IT security company. Prior to that, she was a Foreign Advisor at the international law firm of Coudert Brothers. Anna has her J.D. from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) and her Master of Laws degree from Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California, Berkeley.