Farewell to John Burns, Longtime MVF Managing Director
News
]*> src="https://www.maineventurefund.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/JohnBurns.jpg" alt="About MVF, about maine venture fund, funding maine companies, investing in maine's economy, economic development, venture capital, investment, startups, job growth" width="162" height="162" />On September 30, 2022, John Burns officially stepped away from his role as Strategic Advisor to Maine Venture Fund after more than a year serving in that capacity following his long service as MVF’s Managing Director. John lives in Blue Hill with his family and is far from retired (he’s currently evaluating his next career steps) and remains passionate about the potential for Maine and its people.
John penned the below letter upon his departure which we’re sharing with his permission.
Needless to say, John’s contributions to MVF can’t be overstated and he leaves a legacy that we’re lucky to be able to build upon going forward.
October 5, 2022
Dear colleagues:
After more than two decades leading Maine Venture Fund (“MVF”), I am headed off for more new adventures (having recently returned from one such!). The team at MVF has graciously offered me this chance to pen this valedictory letter to all of you – the innovators, entrepreneurs, investors, mentors and support service providers – that have taught me so much and that significantly contribute to the prosperity of Maine and provide such promise for Maine’s future.
Having accepted the position as the inaugural Managing Director those years ago, I was sure that it would be a limited time-frame position. My goal was to bring some structure and professionalism to the management of the nascent Fund, get it solidly established, and learn from the entrepreneurial community and my colleagues. MVF began its life as the Small Enterprise Growth Fund (“SEGF”), created by an act of the Legislature in the King administration (roughly concurrent with the creation of the Maine Technology Institute (“MTI”) and Maine Economic Improvement Fund (“MEIF” - university R&D/economic development funding)). For SEGF’s first three years after creation and first eight investments, prior to my hiring, there was no dedicated manager for the Fund. The predominantly private sector Board itself, using limited assistance from a series of FAME commercial loan officers, made investment decisions with a well-crafted standardized investment agreement, but an inflexible one not well suited for the needs of Maine’s scalable companies. One of those early investment recipients irreverently and infamously listed the loan on his balance sheet as “government cheese”.
The MVF of today is a highly professional, successful, and respected venture capital investor. I am so very proud to have been a part of establishing MVF as one of the cornerstones of the State’s innovation and entrepreneurial support ecosystem. The quality, dedication, experience and knowledge of all of the individuals who have volunteered untold hours to serve on the Small Enterprise Growth Board has been the special sauce of MVF, and I am grateful to all of those many fine individuals now serving and those that have served prior.
My teammates and contributors over the years have been outstanding managers, mentors, partners and investors. I was fortunate to have had Terri Wark request to join me from FAME in those early days; the perfect professional and organized manager to complement my own inimitable style. Adding Jayme Okma-Lee to the team gave MVF a lift of outreach, energy, creativity, and intelligence to assist additional entrepreneurs. Des Fitzgerald’s tenure as Entrepreneur in Residence uniquely brought consequential substance, gravitas, knowledge, and a team building perspective. In addition to making us better as individuals, Des adroitly applied his highly relevant experience as an entrepreneur and CEO, including the unusual experience of taking his start-up undertaking all the way to successful exit after building an enterprise of significant value, to assist portfolio company management in building frameworks for decisions and helping be as successful as they possibly could.
Having the very talented Joe Powers now at the helm, with his excellent teammate Nina Scheepers, gives me great confidence that, along with all of the board’s efforts and oversight, MVF will continue to excel in its critically important role in the ecosystem, foster many more impactful companies, and experience many more successful exits.
My gratitude extends certainly to the team and Board at MVF, but also to so many individuals and organizations all across our State and region. If you are reading this, then I am sure that you are one of the hundreds to whom I owe a debt of gratitude for sharing your experience, knowledge, enthusiasm and support. I look forward to continuing to support economic development efforts in Maine in any way that I can, wish you all the very best, and am grateful for the work that you do to make Maine as wonderful as it can be for all.
Sincerely,
John Burns
About Maine Venture Fund
Maine Venture Fund invests in dynamic businesses that have the potential for significant growth and impact in Maine. For more information, visit maineventurefund.com.
Inquiries:
Terri Wark
Maine Venture Fund
(207) 924.3800
terri@maineventurefund.com
