Badgers in Finance – NYC

Location

22 Vanderbilt – The Commons, 7th Floor
335 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10017
(Located between 43rd and 44th Streets)

Schedule

6–7 p.m.: Networking, hors d’oeuvres, and cocktails
7–8 p.m.: Program with Q&A
8–9 p.m.: Networking, dessert, and cocktails

Dan Reich (BS ’08) is a New York-based entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist who has founded and backed high-growth companies across technology, consumer products, and venture capital. Companies he has co-founded have collectively raised more than $100 million in venture capital and achieved over $1 billion in combined acquisition value.

Reich is the co-founder of TULA Skincare, acquired by Procter & Gamble after surpassing $150 million in annual sales; Troops.ai, acquired by Salesforce after raising approximately $25 million and becoming a category leader in sales automation; and Spinback, acquired by Buddy Media, which was later acquired by Salesforce for $745 million. He also co-founded DIBS Beauty, Personal Day, OffSpec.io, Thensome, and SlapSnacks. To learn more about Reich’s accomplishments and the companies he founded, visit his website.

Through Reich Capital, his family office, Reich has invested in more than 100 startups and serves as a venture partner at Red Sea Ventures, a leading seed-stage venture capital firm.

Reich earned a Bachelor of Science in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He has volunteered with the National Ski Patrol for more than 20 years and serves on the boards of Reich Hebrew Academy in New Jersey, UW Hillel, and several other nonprofit organizations.

Vallabh “Samba” Sambamurthy is the Albert O. Nicholas Dean of the Wisconsin School of Business. Prior to his current role, Sambamurthy served as Eli Broad Professor and associate dean of the MBA and professional master’s programs at the Broad College of Business at Michigan State University.

A leading expert on how businesses compete in the digital economy, Sambamurthy’s work has been featured in leading academic journals. Several Fortune 500 firms have also engaged him as a consultant. Working with executive clients and academic colleagues in the U.S., China, Taiwan, Singapore, India, and Hong Kong, he has focused on digital business transformations, strategic alignment, governance, and innovation.

Sambamurthy received his PhD from the University of Minnesota, his MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, and his bachelor of engineering from the National Institute of Technology in Tiruchirappalli, India.

Lewis Sheats is an entrepreneur, educator, and national leader in university entrepreneurship and venture development. As associate vice chancellor for entrepreneurship at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, he leads efforts to advance startup creation, translational research, and founder development among students, faculty, staff, and alumni. 

Previously, Sheats led entrepreneurship initiatives at Saint Louis University and North Carolina State University, where he created incubator, accelerator, mentoring, and experiential learning programs and helped build nationally ranked entrepreneurship ecosystems. He is also an experienced entrepreneur who has founded and led ventures from concept to profitability using venture-funded and bootstrapped growth strategies. 

An award-winning educator, Sheats has been recognized by the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship and the Global Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers. His work on entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurial mindsets has been shared internationally through presentations and collaborations across Europe, North America, Asia, and Australia.