Matt is an international business executive with over two decades of private and public sector experience. Matt provides discreet tactical and practical guidance to successful individuals, their families, and the offices that support them. Matt’s extensive international experience, often in unstable areas of the world, provides a steady hand to navigate commercial and geo-political risk, triage crisis, and find solutions to complex situations. Matt developed his specialized skills in risk management and foreign affairs while serving in leadership positions as a U.S. National Security Executive, a U.S. Foreign Service Officer with the Department of State, and a U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer. His overseas experience includes postings in the former Soviet Union, Europe, Africa, and South Asia. Prior to Redpoint, Matt was a Partner and the Chief of Operations for TD International – a leading corporate intelligence and due diligence firm. Matt received an MBA from Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business, an Honors Certificate in International Business Diplomacy from Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, and a Bachelor of Arts from Roanoke College.
Mike is a prominent strategic advisor, attorney, and entrepreneur. As the former Executive Vice President and Chief Operational Risk Officer for U.S. Bancorp, Mike led a team of approximately one thousand risk management professionals throughout the United States, Europe and Canada. He sat on U.S. Bancorp’s executive Managing Committee and served on the Board of Directors for U.S. Bank. Mike was on the executive team that consistently produced industry-leading results during one of the most difficult times in banking. Mike also co-founded KnectIQ, Inc. – a cutting-edge cybersecurity company focused on zero trust infrastructure. Mike serves on multiple boards, including Minnwest Corporation’s Board of Directors, one of the nation’s largest agricultural lenders, and is an Emeritus Trustee for Hamline University’s Board of Trustees. Mike received his law degree, magna cum laude, from Hamline University School of Law, attended the University of Saint Thomas School of Business, and received his undergraduate degree from the University of Minnesota.
Patryk is an experienced advisor, attorney, and business executive. Patryk was Senior Vice President and Director of Regulatory Services at U.S. Bancorp, where he was responsible for overall management of key federal regulatory examinations, enforcement actions, and critical matters effecting corporate regulatory risk. Patryk also served as a trial attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice where he represented the United States in complex business and international trade matters involving hundreds of millions of dollars. Before joining the Justice Department, Patryk was an attorney at the international law firm Ropes & Gray LLP. He also worked at the U.S. Department of State and on projects funded by USAID relating to international development. Patryk received his law degree, cum laude, from the University of Minnesota, where he also received both his master’s in public policy and his undergraduate degrees. Patryk is an Adjunct Professor for the UNC School of Law at Chapel Hill, where he teaches litigation risk management.
Jonathan is a due diligence expert and specialist in building and scaling international risk management platforms. He leads Redpoint’s intelligence unit and collaborates with investment groups, executive teams, and counsel to interpret risk findings that impact critical business decisions. Jonathan developed and led specialized teams that produced thousands of due diligence investigations used to advise multinational executives in the energy, aerospace, medical, private equity, and management consulting industries. Prior to joining Redpoint, Jonathan spent eight years at the DC-based corporate intelligence and due diligence firm TD International. Jonathan holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from American University and a Private Equity Certificate from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Dennis Paul has over 25 years’ experience in the venture capital, private equity, nonprofit, and luxury brand space. He serves as a Senior Advisor to the Blackstone Group and is the Founder and Managing Member of Thyra Global Management – a venture capital and private equity firm. Previously, Dennis held senior roles in asset management at UBS and Citigroup — where he co-managed funds in excess of $800M. He is the Co-Founder of both the civics nonprofit REACT to FILM and the for-profit production company React Films, which produced award-winning films and series such as 100 Foot Wave (HBO), The Workers Cup (Passion River), Slay the Dragon (Magnolia Pictures), and The Story of Plastic (Discovery Networks). Dennis is a Trustee of the Museum of the Moving Image where he serves on the Executive Committee, a Board Member of SharkNinja (NYSE), a Board Member of Rubicon Technologies (Nasdaq), and an Advisory Board Member of THE WELL. Dennis holds a BA from Columbia University, is based in New York and Geneva, and is fluent in French.
Shannon advises clients on leadership, strategy, team building, and security. Shannon built her expertise in leadership and operations while working for the Central Intelligence Agency and Naval Special Warfare Development Group in sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East. Shannon combined that experience with leadership roles at Fortune 30 companies and technology start-ups. She was the Executive Director of Strategic Development at Comcast NBCUniversal, Chief Operating Officer of an acquired cybersecurity firm, and a Principal at the McChrystal Group where she advised clients on leadership and team performance. Shannon received both her undergraduate in International Politics and master’s in Psychology of Leadership from Penn State University. Shannon is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations and an Advisory Board Member of the UDT/SEAL Museum.
Bert advises technology investors, C-suite executives, and visionary start-up founders on strategic positioning, transitions, communications, policy development, and profitable partnerships. Bert has extensive experience building and operating successful initiatives and campaigns. He led autonomous vehicle (AV) industry leader Zoox in its Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards certification strategy. As a result, Zoox became the first AV developer authorized to drive its novel vehicle on public roads in California; Zoox was ultimately acquired by Amazon. Previously, Bert served as Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Commerce, where he co-created and managed the Presidential Ambassadors for Global Entrepreneurship initiative and supported the Secretary’s commercial diplomacy efforts across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. He co-founded and was Executive Director of Business Forward, a national trade association to foster partnership between policymakers and business leaders. Bert began his career as a law clerk to a federal district court judge, worked for CNN in Washington and London, and holds a B.A., M.S., and J.D. from Syracuse University.
Blaise specializes in national security issues, with deep expertise in risk analysis, strategy development, and problem-solving in complex environments. He is Vice President for Policy at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America in Washington, DC. Prior to joining JINSA, he worked in national security at the Bipartisan Policy Center. Blaise created an executive-level cyberattack simulation to train Cabinet-level government officials in handling emergencies, developed models for public-private cyber threat intelligence sharing, and studied cyber vulnerabilities in the electric grid. He has testified before Congress and published op-eds in The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and other national media. Blaise received his M.Phil. from Yale University and received his undergraduate degree, with honors, from the University of Chicago.
Laura was Director for Western Europe at the White House national Security Council in 2023 to late 2024 where she advised the president of the United States and led the US government policy development process for the region. Laura's government career spanned the State Department, the intelligence community, and defense across multiple administrations, at home and overseas. Laura has extensive experience advising senior officials, including serving recently as senior advisor to the US ambassador to the United Nations in the ambassador's capacity as a member of the cabinet. She was also an advisor to the Counselor in the Bureau of the Secretary of State. Prior to this, Laura was a conflict advisor at the State Department, where she specialized in conflict prevention, response, and resolution and oversaw the Ukraine portfolio in 2020 to 2021 for the Conflict and Stabilization Operations bureau. Laura began her government career at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence as a strategist focused on counterterrorism. Prior to government service, Laura held research positions at the Brookings Institution, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and at leading think tanks in Berlin and Paris. She speaks French, German, and Spanish and holds a master's from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs and a bachelor's from New York University.
Matt has over 25 years of experience working in national security, media relations, public and private advocacy, and reputational risk. A former member of the United States Department of State’s Senior Foreign Service, Matt has served as the Embassy Spokesperson at the United States Embassies in London, Beirut, and Kinshasa. He also served as the Deputy Director in the Office of Western European Affairs and Office of Public Diplomacy, as the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and as the Deputy Director for Planning and Performance in the Department's Bureau of Budget and Planning. Matt is an expert in strategic and crisis communications with a proven track record of building effective media advocacy campaigns that resonate with policy makers, multilateral organizations, and across civil society. Matt's extensive practice in crisis preparedness, response, and management was honed during his high-threat postings in Iraq, Somalia, Haiti, and Lebanon. Matt holds a BA from The University of Maryland, is based in Mexico City and Washington, and speaks Spanish and French.
Jim leads Redpoint’s Fractional C-Suite Advisory. He is an accomplished CFO and CPA, with 20+ years of experience helping to grow middle-market businesses. Among his other CFO roles, Jim was instrumental in taking a healthcare company private, recapitalizing the business with the assistance of private equity, and growing it from 20 locations to over 150 locations nationwide. He has extensive experience working with private equity and investment banks to fund M&A activity and organic growth initiatives. Jim has led numerous company sales and/or recapitalizations for closely held businesses with varying goals of shareholder liquidity, growth capital and company expansion. Jim is based in the Twin Cities, where he helps clients build and refine internal financial and operating processes to facilitate growth, prepare for M&A activities and procure third-party financial support. Jim serves on several boards as an independent director and holds his bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire.
Gus advises clients on real estate operations, policy, and risk. As the former co-founder and President of USI Brokerage, which was acquired by Johnson Controls, Gus led a nationwide team to optimize real estate portfolios and operations for many of the Fortune 500 companies. Together with his business partners, Gus helped grow USI from a start-up to a market leader in the real estate industry. Gus has also served as a senior executive with Deloitte Consulting, leading a variety of business improvement initiatives for Deloitte’s vast network of clients. Inducted into the “Leadership 100” – a prominent business and cultural organization – Gus is a recognized leader in the business community. Gus serves on the President’s Council at Fordham University, where he received his undergraduate degree, and received an advanced degree in real estate from New York University.
Ken is a highly skilled CEO, advisor, and entrepreneur with deep expertise in cybersecurity, healthcare, and information technology. Following years as an executive with Boston Scientific and Guidant Corporation, Ken founded and led a number of successful companies—from an award winning strategic advisory firm, The Apercu Group, which provided strategic insight to Fortune 250 companies, to CorCardia, which provides cloud-based health outcomes technology for hospitals and medical device manufacturers, to KnectIQ, Inc., which brings groundbreaking cybersecurity solutions to healthcare, financial services and the Internet of Things. Ken serves on multiple boards and frequently presents to international groups on data privacy, cybersecurity and M2M authentication. Ken earned his law degree with honors from Hamline University School of Law and his undergraduate degree from Willamette University.