Our People

Board of Directors

Mary Peters: Board Member

Mary joined the Arizona Department of Transportation in 1985 and served as its director from 1998 to 2001. In 2001, Mary was appointed by President George H. Bush to work as the Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration. In 2006, Mary became the second woman and first Arizonan to hold the position of United States Secretary of Transportation. She served as the United States Secretary of Transportation under President George W. Bush from 2006-2009. She received her bachelor’s degree in management from the University of Phoenix and attended an executive education program at the University of Bridgeport.

Glenn Kline: Board Member

Glenn Kline has 20 years of experience in technology commercialization, private-equity investment and venture-fund management. He began his career as an associate and later Vice President of Ventana Growth Funds where he developed and managed the North America Environmental Fund. Currently Glenn is a General Partner at Battelle Ventures/Innovation Valley Partners. Prior to joining Battelle, he was managing partner at Academy Funds. He currently serves as  President and Chief Executive Officer of 360ip.

Kef Kasdin: Board Member

Kef Kasdin is a General Partner at Battelle Ventures and Innovation Valley Partners, with a focus on investments in communications and emerging energy technologies. She currently serves on the Boards of Directors of Aldis, Inc., Ampulse Corp., Planar Energy Devices, Inc., and Rajant Corp.
Kef has been involved in developing and executing strategy for high-technology companies for more than 20 years. She received a B.S.E degree in Operations Research from Princeton University in 1985, and an MBA from the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University, in 1989.

Bill Malkes: Board Member

Bill began his career as a CPA for KPMG Peat Marwick in Detroit, Michigan, where he gained experience working with venture-backed enterprises. As EVP and CFO of Health Care Solutions, Bill oversaw more than 13 acquisitions and subsequent integrations of other companies while raising more than $100 million in financing. Bill was COO/CFO of ASIC International prior to its acquisition by Flextronics and a principal in Healthspex. Most recently, Bill was responsible for Emerging Market Development for Sirit Corp (TSX:SI). Bill holds a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Detroit-Mercy.

James “Vig” Sherrill: Board Member

Vig is a serial entrepreneur who has led a number of successful technology companies. Most recently, Vig served as President of Flextronics Semiconductor, a subsidiary of the $16 billion, publicly traded Flextronics (NASDAQ:FLEX). Prior to Flextronics, Vig co-founded and served as CEO of ASIC International, an ASIC design company based in Oak Ridge, TN which was acquired by Flextronics. Vig has also been a principal in Trade Winds, a near field communications company which was acquired by Sirit (TSX: SI). Vig earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University and an M.S. in Electrical Engineering from Rutgers University, with a focus on digital signal processing.

Grady Vanderhoofven: Board Member

Grady is the Executive Vice President of Eclipse Management, LLC, which is the General Partner of Meritus Ventures and holds a similar position with Southern Appalachian Management Company, LLC. Grady is currently a board member for Protein Discovery, Smart Furniture, and Tricycle, and he was recently appointed to the Tennessee Capital Formation Board (TCFB). He is a board observer for SemiSouth Laboratories and Zipit Wireless, Inc. Grady received his B.S. and M.S. in mechanical engineering from Yale University and has completed an executive education program at Harvard Business School.

Steve Dauphin: Board Member

Steve began his career with Citibank and the Anglican Church of Newfoundland. He then served as a special agent for the DEA in Arizona helping to hunt down cocaine traffickers and dismantle methamphetamine labs. Steven then returned to the business world and helped launch the Harbinger Group’s first two private equity funds. In 1998, he co-founded Bonaventure Capital and joined Murphree Venture Partners in 2003 as a General Partner when the two firms merged their operations. Steve serves on the boards of MVP portfolio companies Intrinergy and Smart Furniture. Steve earned his B.A. in Economics and Religion from Harvard and a MBA from the University of North Carolina.

Founders

James “Vig” Sherrill: Co-Founder

Vig is a serial entrepreneur who has led a number of successful technology companies. Most recently, Vig served as President of Flextronics Semiconductor, a subsidiary of the $16 billion, publicly traded Flextronics (NASDAQ:FLEX). Prior to Flextronics, Vig co-founded and served as CEO of ASIC International, an ASIC design company based in Oak Ridge, TN which was acquired by Flextronics. Vig has also been a principal in Trade Winds, a near field communications company which was acquired by Sirit (TSX: SI). Vig earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University and an M.S. in Electrical Engineering from Rutgers University, with a focus on digital signal processing.

Bill Malkes: Co-Founder

Bill began his career as a CPA for KPMG Peat Marwick in Detroit, Michigan, where he gained experience working with venture-backed enterprises. As EVP and CFO of Health Care Solutions, Bill oversaw more than 13 acquisitions and subsequent integrations of other companies while raising more than $100 million in financing. Bill was COO/CFO of ASIC International prior to its acquisition by Flextronics and a principal in Healthspex. Most recently, Bill was responsible for Emerging Market Development for Sirit Corp (TSX:SI). Bill holds a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Detroit-Mercy.

Senior Management

Bill Malkes: President and Chief Operating Officer

Bill began his career as a CPA for KPMG Peat Marwick in Detroit, Michigan, where he gained experience working with venture-backed enterprises. As EVP and CFO of Health Care Solutions, Bill oversaw more than 13 acquisitions and subsequent integrations of other companies while raising more than $100 million in financing. Bill was COO/CFO of ASIC International prior to its acquisition by Flextronics and a principal in Healthspex. Most recently, Bill was responsible for Emerging Market Development for Sirit Corp (TSX:SI). Bill holds a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Detroit-Mercy.

Billy Bryant: Vice President of Operations

Billy has over 25 years of experience in business management and operations leadership. Prior to joining Aldis, Billy worked extensively with Toyota, BMW and Mercedes to establish qualified supply chains, validate quality programs, and establish repeatable and transferable manufacturing systems to meet ISO, TS16949 and TPS systems. Studies during his tenure in the U. S. Air Force, including multiple management classes, earned him a degree in Business Administration.

Brian Shockley: Vice President of Marketing and Brand Management

Brian has 15 years of experience working with new ventures within both start-ups and well-established Fortune 250 companies. Most recently, Brian led the marketing and product management for PIPS Technology. Prior to PIPS, Brian’s work experience included marketing, business development, and product management roles with John Deere, Bullard, and Valvoline. Brian’s education includes a B.S. in Business Management from Carson Newman College, an MBA in Marketing and Finance from the University of Tennessee, and a Strategic Marketing Management course from Harvard Business School.

Dr. William Sowell: Executive Vice President

With more than 23 years of industry leadership on six continents, Dr. Bill Sowell has held senior management positions with such major industry firms as Swarco AG, Econolite, Peek Traffic, and Image Sensing Systems, and is considered to be a video detection market pioneer. Dr. Sowell serves on the Board of Directors of the International Road Federation, and is Chairman of the IRF ITS Committee. He is a member of ITE, IMSA, IEEE, and is a professional speaker and author.

Mike Tourville: Vice President of Engineering

Mike has over 25 years of experience in the development and deployment of electronic products for a range of markets. Mike started his career as a product development engineer for Chrysler Corporation creating products for the electric utility industry. After leaving Chrysler, Mike joined IPIX where he advanced to the position of the Vice President of Engineering. As the VP of Engineering, Mike was responsible for the development of IPIX’s immersive photographic and video products including budget and staffing responsibilities.

Advisors

Peter Coromilas Jones: Special Advisor To The Board Of Directors

Peter is currently Managing Director of International Markets for Aquilex Corporation, a global leader in energy sector services. Prior to joining Aquilex, Peter had a similar role with Quixote Corporation (weather information and transportation technologies) and PIPS Technology (advanced license plate recognition systems). Peter specializes in assisting technology-based companies grow their international markets. Peter is currently on the U.S. Department of Commerce Advisory Board. He has served as a U.S. Congressional Advisor and a Special Advisor to the governments in Pakistan, Turkey, Sudan, Greece and Mexico.

Robert Johnson: Advisor

Robert Johnson is Vice President of Public Affairs at High Ground, a leading public relations and strategic planning firm in Arizona. Prior to this position, he served as DOT’s Chief of Staff, Assistant to the Secretary and Director of Public Affairs for the U.S. Department of Transportation. Robert served as the Director of Communications and Public Information for the Transportation Security Administration, where he was on the media front lines in the nation’s war against terrorism, responsible for communicating the lastest developments in transportation security to a global media audience.

Andrew Nichols: Advisor

Dr. Nichols is currently an assistant professor at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia, where he teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in civil engineering. Dr. Nichols has conducted traffic signal design, traffic data collection, traffic safety studies and traffic-related research for projects in South Carolina, Indiana and West Virginia. After graduating from Purdue University in 2004, he served as a faculty member in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of South Carolina. In addition, Dr. Nichols has established a West Virginia Division for Dennis Corporation, providing consulting services in all areas of traffic engineering.