Teresa Engelhard’s enthusiasm and optimism for the potential of Australia’s technology sector is informed by 20 years of experience with growth-stage technology companies in the U.S. and Australia. She has served on more than 10 boards across the ICT sector ranging from optical hardware for the industrial sector to online retail. Her current commercial boards are in the consumer internet sector (Redbubble) and the Internet-of-Things (Daintree Networks). She also serves on the Entrepreneurs’ Programme Committee for the Australian Government which provides seed-stage grants to high-potential, innovative companies.

Before moving to Australia in 2006, Teresa spent over a decade in Silicon Valley. As a venture capitalist at MDV, she led the first funding, developed the business plan and joined the executive team at ONI Systems, an optical networking company valued at more than $5 Billion at its IPO. She was also the CEO at Timeshift, an internet telephony technology leader acquired by J2 Communications.

During her ten years in Australia, Teresa has maintained her Silicon Valley roots by helping high-potential technology companies “jump the pond” to access U.S. markets and capital raisings. She has travelled to California at least quarterly representing nine antipodean companies. In addition to her two current boards, the list includes Next Window for which Jolimont Capital won the AVCAL Chairman’s Award in 2010.

Teresa has a BS in Engineering and Applied Science with Honours from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), an MBA from Stanford University, and spent the early years of her career at McKinsey & Company.

Areas of Expertise