John Dexheimer is President of LightWave Advisors, Inc. where he assists IP rich start-ups and established firms in new ventures, expanding partnerships and M&A for firms in software, communications, electronics, photonics and materials. He has assisted in capital formation, operational and partnering execution resulting in monetization of over 100 firms, with several valued at over $1 billion.

John has had several part-time operating roles in startups and mature technology firms with revenue of up to $400 million, in addition to serving on several Boards of public and private firms. John has a deep history with venture capital investing as a co-investor and advisor on portfolio firms of many of the well know, active investors in technology sectors.  He has helped found start-ups and has a record of initiating and structuring successful private investments for affiliated equity funds – including investments resulting in over a dozen IPOs. He has been a GP since 2003 of First Analysis Private Equity Fund IV, and previously was a partner in several angel and VC funds. He led the IPO of several firms and subsequently managed the equity research of an investment bank, covering technology and healthcare sectors.

John is an Advisory Member to the NSF Institute of Mathematics and its Applications, and is on the corporate and start-up advisory boards of several trade groups focused on photonics and imaging technologies. He holds a B.S. from the University of Minnesota, College of Science and Engineering where he is on the Dean’s Advisory Board, and received an MBA from Harvard University.