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Chairman
 Thomas Neubert was elected new Chairman of the Board of GABA in December 2007. Thomas is a Co-Founder of GABA and is currently working as VP Sales at Vidyo, a well funded start-up company developing an HD/Telepresence video conferencing solutions for the desktop and room systems.
Born and raised in Germany, Thomas came to Silicon Valley in 1991 and has been passionate about multi-cultural environments and every technology that brings people together ever since.
For the last 16 years as a sales & marketing executive, Thomas started and managed numerous companies with disruptive technologies, from start-up, M&A to IPO, in a global environment. Growing domestic and international companies between Germany and the US has been his motivation to be deeply involved in an organization like GABA. Thomas holds an advanced degree in Computer Engineering and Communications and is a graduate of the Stanford Executive Program at Stanford University Graduate School of Business. In his spare time, he is also an advisor/mentor for the MBA students at the Monterey Institute for International Studies.
CFO
 Dagmar Dolatschko has been working in international business for over fifteen years. She began building her translation agency, Peritus Precision Translation, Inc. in 1996 near Boston, where she co-founded the German American Council for Business.
She had gained experience in the non-profit field as board member of various other organizations (WIT, GBANE), and former president of GABA California and the German American Chamber of Commerce, Arizona Chapter.
Dagmar is a German native, holds an American MBA, and is certified as a translator and interpreter by the Bavarian Ministry of Education and Culture.
Contact: Dagmar@peritustranslations.com
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Director
Dr. Oliver K. Breme is an attorney in the Palo Alto offices of Cooley Godward Kronish LLP, a leading U.S. law firm. Mr. Breme specializes in IP and technology transactions, representing both start-up and established technology companies. The scope of his practice includes licensing and distribution agreements, e-commerce and Web 2.0 policies and terms, and M&A transactions.
Mr. Breme grew up in Germany where he studied law at the University of Bonn. He holds a Ph.D. in law for his thesis on legal questions of IT security technologies. M. Breme was the founding member and general counsel of a certification authority for smartcard-based digital signatures and encryption technologies and the general counsel of the leading electronic software distribution provider in Europe, before coming to the U.S. to study at Stanford Law School where he received his L.L.M. in Law, Science, and Technology. Mr. Breme is a member of the German and California Bar.
Director Finance Committee
 Gunther joined The Brenner Group in 2008 in the Financial Advisory Services Group. His background includes extensive work in valuations, M&A, venture capital, and corporate finance. He has significant international experience in small firms as well as global corporations. Specific industry expertise includes automotive, software, semiconductors, and renewable energy.
Prior to the Brenner Group, Gunther was vice president of The Perrault Birmingham Group LLC, a boutique investment bank focusing on strategic advisory, private placements, and M&A for small high tech companies. Before that, he was the founder of Xiledge Technology Corporation, a French-American semiconductor IP firm. Before Xiledge, he held various senior management positions at DaimlerChrysler AG and DaimlerChrysler (DC) Venture. At DC Venture, he headed up the U.S. office and oversaw all aspects of management, deal sourcing, due diligence, valuation and portfolio company support. Gunther has also held a number of management positions at several German-based firms.
Gunther earned a Masters Degree in Electrical Engineering and Business Administration from Darmstadt University of Technology in Germany, and was a Visiting Scholar at UC Berkeley. He is a holder of the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation, and a member of the National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts. Gunther is Chairman of the Software/IT Industry Group of the German American Business Association (GABA).
Director & Women in Business Chair
 Linda Kotzot Cleary is a marketing and business development professional managing marketing programs at internet marketing solutions expert Lyris, Inc. (http://www.lyris.com) She served as GABA's first president from 2003-2005, and continues as GABA Director and Chair of the Women in Business Industry Group. Linda is German-born, California-raised, and writes short stories about travels in San Francisco and the Sierras. She can be reached at likary at yahoo dot com.
Director and Berlin Chapter Chair
 Ulrich Kohl is Chief Technology Officer of Questico AG in Berlin, Germany, a VC-backed company providing a cross-media marketplace (internet, telephony, print, TV) for life advice. Before becoming a Questico founder in San Francisco and returning to Germany as an entrepreneur, he was working in Silicon Valley as a scientist, software engineer and security architect at IBM Almaden Research Center, SAP Labs Palo Alto and the Sun Microsystems, Inc. headquarter.
Ulrich Kohl holds a MS in business information systems from University of Mannheim and a PhD in economics from University of Freiburg.
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Development Director
Dr. Krehan achieved her Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry at the University of Erlangen Nuremberg in Germany on “Structural examination of oxidised layers and multilayer systems using XRD". During this period of time she published several papers on Thin Metal Films and Thin Metal Multilayers made by CVD. Dr. Krehan started working as Product Manager for Parr Instruments, a US manufacturer of calorimeters, reactors and pressure vessels.
She then moved into Electron Microscopy where she specialised herself in Business Development, identifying customer needs and providing customer solutions accordingly. Over the last 12 years she worked in Asia, USA and Europe for companies like Element Six, formerly Drukker International in the Netherlands and Singapore, Fischione Instruments in the US and for the last 4 years as Director of Business Development and share holder for BAL-TEC AG in the Principality of Liechtenstein.
Development Director
 Dirk Michels is a partner with the international law firm Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis. As a resident in K&L Gates‘ Palo Alto and San Francisco offices, he advises publicly traded and privately held U.S. and international Cleantech and IT companies in venture funding, private equity, M&A, corporate and financing matters. Mr. Michels is admitted to practice law in Germany and California.
Mr. Michels is a frequent speaker on topics relating to VC financing, M&A, and international business transactions, and a frequent guest lecturer at the International School of Management, San Diego/ Berkeley, California, The Wharton Business School, San Francisco, California and the University of San Francisco, California.
He is on the Board of Directors of various privately held companies, and member of the Board of Advisors of Ecosystem Ventures, Silicon Valley, California, and Provider Venture Partners, Stockholm, Sweden. Mr. Michels is listed in Marquis’ Who is Who in American Law, Millennium Edition 2000-2001, Marquis’ Who is Who in American Law, 2005-2006 Edition, and Marquis’ Who is Who in the West 2007 Edition.
Director
 Katharina Rock, SVP Strategic Projects in the Office of the CTO is responsible for a number of strategic initiatives in SAP. Katharina, born and raised in Germany with MBA’s from both the University of Saarbruecken, Germany, and the Ecole Superieure de Commerce in Lyon, France, has been with SAP for 10 years and has held a wide variety of responsibilities: she started off her career in software implementation consulting in Germany, the US and Canada, moved then into product management in Palo Alto, California. With SAP launching the composite applications development in 2002, she started of a global technical consulting group for this area which grew in a broader development service group including quality, infrastructure and knowledge management. Later on Katharina took on the responsibilities for SAP’s mobile applications development with teams in Canada, Germany and India. Katharina lives in the bay area since 2001.
Director and Munich Chapter Chair
 Jörg or “George” has been active in the clean technology investment area for almost two years as a Venture Partner with Munich based VC firm Target Partners. Prior to that he was one of four partners at the US-based power and energy fund Ridgewood Capital. George has also been active in operational roles for various semiconductor companies in Europe and the US, his most recent role being Global VP Sales for Dresden-based ZMD. ZMD provides silicon components for sensor systems in automotive, industrial and medical markets. George’s VC track record includes 18 investments with 11 board positions while at Ridgewood Capital and earlier as the US investment manager for Infineon Ventures and successful exits via both IPOs and trade sales. He is an electrical engineer with a Masters in Electrical Engineering from RWTH Aachen, Germany. George has also conducted research on epitaxial growth (wafers to be used for laser and solar applications for example) at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology and at AT&T Bell Labs in Murray Hill, New Jersey. He has been an advisor to the Fraunhofer Institute on Spin-Offs and is an active judge and coach for Munich, Swiss and Saxony Business Plan Competitions.
Please contact Joerg Sperling at joerg@whebventures.com for more info.
Director and Southern California Chapter Vice-Chair
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Financial Planner
Financial Services Representative
Investment Advisor Representative
CA Insurance License: 0F17938 |
As a financial planner with the Financial Planning Division, an Office of MetLife, Bernd works with small business owners, families, and individuals in all aspects of comprehensive financial planning. His focus on integrity, honesty, and customer service ensures that his clients are always provided with the objective recommendations based on their goals and best interests.
The premise of Bernd’s business practice is to get to know, educate and jointly work with his clients to develop a comprehensive plan that will help them achieve their financial goals, protect what is most important to them, and reach financial independence. Bernd will address all 6 areas in the clients’ financial life. Bernd spent 18 years in the corporate world of the technology industry. He chose to switch careers to pursue a more meaningful profession where he can help other people and be active in the community. Before joining MetLife, Bernd started out his new career at Morgan Stanley, focusing on investment management for 3 years. Bernd grew up in Germany and is married with 3 children. He is an active Rotarian, Member of the Board of the King of Glory Foundation, and a Member of the Board of the German American Business Association (GABA). He likes spending time with his family, going skiing and playing Squash.
Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (MLIC), New York, NY 10166. Securities and investment advisory services offered by MetLife Securities Inc., (MSI) (member FINRA/SIPC) New York, NY 10166, a registered investment advisor. MLIC and MSI are MetLife companies. L0309025813[exp0310][CA]
MetLife®
5 Park Plaza – Suite 1800, Irvine, CA 92614
Tel: 949.471.5827 | Fax: 949.851.6323
Email: bsteinebrunn@metlife.com
Director
 Daniel Zimmermann is a partner in Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal's Corporate Practice and Venture Technology Group. He focuses his practice on international business and in- and outbound venture capital transactions. With extensive experience in global expansions and off-shore acquisitions by U.S. companies, Mr. Zimmermann regularly advises non-U.S. investors and acquirers with their investments and acquisitions in the U.S. Mr. Zimmermann was recently seconded to a prominent London-based pan-European law firm where he spent time in London and Munich over a period of eight months working on private equity, capital markets and venture capital transactions. He is fluent in German and French. Mr. Zimmermann is the Chair of the International Law Section of the California State bar and is a member of the International Law Sections of the American and New York Bar Associations. He served as Vice President and Board Member of the German-American International School in Menlo Park from 2000 to 2002.
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