Greg Gottesman is a Managing Director and Co-Founder of PSL. Prior to PSL, Greg served as one of the three initial Managing Directors of Madrona Venture Group, where he worked for almost 20 years. He also co-founded and led Madrona Venture Labs.
Greg represents PSL on the boards of Boundless, Ever.green, Joon, and Kevala. He is also the founder, current board member, and former CEO of Rover.com.
“Venture is about finding truly great entrepreneurs and supporting their efforts in every way possible. The rest is noise.”
Why the Northwest?
“The Pacific Northwest is home to incredible engineering talent, which is at the core of most great technology companies. I think that really separates us from everywhere else in the world but the Valley. At the same time, I think people are more loyal here. You can build a meaningful company in the Northwest without worrying about losing talent to whatever the next shiny penny is at the moment.”
Extracurricular
Greg serves as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Washington Computer Science & Engineering department and the Foster School of Business, where he teaches a course on entrepreneurship. Greg formerly was President of the Evergreen Venture Capital Association and board member of Startup Weekend. He is the author of three books.
When not working, Greg spends time with his wife and three kids, attends local sporting events, watches too much reality TV, and regularly injures himself playing non-contact sports. He reportedly owns a mean ping-pong backhand.
“I think the most important characteristic of a founder is self-awareness. If you know where you’re strong and where you’re weak, you can put together a team that fills holes for you. That’s incredibly important.”
Education
Greg graduated Phi Beta Kappa with honors and distinction from Stanford University, with honors and distinction from the Harvard Business School, and with honors from Harvard Law School, where he was an editor of the Harvard Law Review.