Paul Matteucci

The great thing about being an entrepreneur or a venture capitalist is that one gets to view many of the biggest problems the world is facing as opportunities for creativity and solutions," says Paul Matteucci. With a passion for creating jobs and mentoring startup teams, Paul has helped a generation of entrepreneurs learn object lessons in how to execute during difficult times. In fact, he notes, the best of them learn to use hard times as a source for innovation, and as impetus for creating cultures that are accountable, cash-efficient and focused. When someone from this generation loses a job, you are almost as likely to find them waiting in the lobbies of venture capital firms with a business plan as in the unemployment line with a resume. The people they meet have a sense that they can take charge of their own destiny, rather than become a victim of their circumstance. At USVP, Paul has led or co-led investments in 3Ware (sold to AMCC), Total Beauty, Trovix (sold to Monster), PlaceIQ, Swoop, and others. He has also served on the board of Homestead (sold to Intuit) and was an Angel Investor in Fra' Mani, a sustainable food producer. During his early tenure at USVP, Paul served as interim CEO of several of the firm's portfolio companies. "They saved some and they lost some but, as a firm, they always remain willing to do the heavy lifting to make their companies successful. Prior to USVP, Paul was CEO of HearMe, taking that company public in 1998. His two decades of operating experience include eight years with Adaptec, where he was Vice President and General Manager of the SCSI storage and connectivity division leading the business to over a quarter billion in revenues, before turning it over to a team he hired and mentored. Paul earned an M.B.A. from Stanford University, an M.A. in International Studies from Johns Hopkins and a B.A. from the University of the Pacific.