More About Will

  
 

Interviewing shared phone vendors - Kampala, Uganda

Kicking-off SIFP pitch clinic for social entrepreneurs - Seattle, WA

 

Will is an independent Social-Technologist and angel investor. He serves as co-chairman of NComputing Inc, a fast-growing and award-winning desktop virtualization startup that by 2011 had shipped over 2.5 million units, about 75% of which are deployed in schools around the world.  He co-chairs Pengala Learning and Volt Boats, is a lead partner at Social Venture Partners Seattle focused on social entrepreneurism, and serves on three non-profit boards.

Will was previously corporate vice president of the Unlimited Potential Group at Microsoft Corp., co-leading the company’s efforts to create new business models and technologies to help close the digital divide and help bring social and economic opportunity to the “next billion”. Before UPG, Will ran the Windows® Client business and was responsible for the software used in more than 750 million PCs around the world, delivering about 30 percent of corporate revenues. Before leading Windows Client, Will headed up the Windows New Media Platforms Division, digital rights management initiatives, and other efforts in digital media.

Will joined Microsoft in 1996 with the acquisition of eShop Inc., an internet e-commerce pioneer which he co-founded in 1991 and where he served as president and chief operating officer. Before that, he spent five years in senior marketing and engineering management roles at Sun Microsystems Inc., focusing on advanced desktop environments and PC compatibility. He founded two startups, one while finishing his degree program, at the dawn of the PC era. Will received a degree in Computer Science from Brown University in 1983.

Professional summary

  • Currently an independent angel investor, strategic consultant, and philanthropist.  Manages Poolinger LLC partnership for investing and consulting.
  • 12 years at Microsoft, 8 as an executive officer, leading areas ranging from digital media to the Windows desktop to co-founding the Unlimited Potential initiative. Shipped multiple releases of Windows Media Player/Server; DRM technologies; Media Center and Starter editions of Windows ; and FlexGo and subscription computing (Redmond WA)
  • 5 years as a co-founding pioneer of eShop, a multi-media e-commerce startup. Shipped national online shopping service; licensed internationally; acquired by Microsoft in 1996. (SF Bay Area)
  • 5 years developing and marketing workstations at Sun Microsystems. Shipped Sun386, Virtual PC. (Boston MA)
  • 3 years running early stage startups at the dawn of the PC industry (Providence RI)

Angel and Venture Investments

  • NComputing: leader in ultra-low-cost desktop virtualization
  • Pengala: self-paced student's learning platform, focused on the Indian market
  • Volt Boats: hybrid human/electric boating company
  • Boopsie: disruptively-affordable enterprise-class mobile applications
  • KlearKase: life-proof solutions for mobile computing
    -------
  • Onvia -- IPO in 2001
  • Storability -- acquired by StorageTek in 2002.
  • Mobliss -- acquired by Index Corp. in 2004
  • AllRecipies.com -- acquired by Readers Digest in 2006

Philanthropic focus areas