John Morris
Managing Director

John M. Morris is a Managing Director of GKM Ventures.

 

Mr. Morris is the immediate past Chairman of the Tech Coast Angels, the largest angel investor organization in the country investing in startups and early-stage companies. John is also the past president and a co-founder of TCA’s Los Angeles network. John is also the President of the Western Region’s Association of Small Business Investment Companies.

 

His venture capital career commenced when he joined First Interstate Venture Capital Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of First Interstate Bank, as a principal. FIVC invested in later stage technology companies and in management buyouts. John also has previous investment banking experience with Sutro & Co., Wedbush Morgan Securities and NewCap Partners.

 

Previously, John spent approximately ten years in operating and financial management roles for two public companies. John began his business career in Los Angeles with Arthur Young & Co. (now Ernst & Young) after receiving his MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of California at Los Angeles.

 

During his career in venture capital, John has been a director for a number of private and public companies. He presently is the co-chair of Entretech and a director for the Los Angeles Venture Association. He is a co-founder and past president of the Forum for Corporate Directors in Orange county. Currently John is a director for Syntricity, Accordent Technologies, BrightQube and a board observer for Sodahead. John is a frequent panel speaker on venture capital and angel investing. Finally, John is a faculty advisor in the Global Access Program at UCLA’s Anderson Business School.

 

John and his wife Teddi live in Pacific Palisades. He enjoys golf, scuba diving, adventure travel and digital photography.