Rick Bolander

Rick Bolander serves as Managing Director of Gabriel Venture Partners, based in Redwood Shores, California. Founded in 1999 by Bolander and then-partner Phil Samper, Gabriel Venture Partners integrates a hands-on investment approach with a capital-efficient venture model. Rick Bolander brings extensive entrepreneurial and venture capital experience to the firm, including four years as General Partner with Apex Investment Partners in Chicago. At Gabriel, Rick Bolander oversees an investment portfolio focused on disruptive innovations in the areas of information technology, communications, digital media, and web applications.

Rick Bolander's passion for democratizing education by providing low-cost, high-quality access led him to invest in Kajeet, Inc., a cell phone service provider, and Chegg, an online college textbook retailer. Kajeet is an innovative mobile phone service provider that offers a variety of plans created just for kids. Kajeet service plans allow parents to control when children can use their cell phones, whom they can talk to, and which features they can access. Additionally, Bolander serves on the boards of wireless radio network developer Persistent Systems and digital media firm Jacked.

Prior to establishing Gabriel, Bolander launched Blue Sky Ventures, a Chicago-based real estate investment firm. Early in his career, he worked for AT&T, where he served in several management positions in marketing, operations, and sales, and for the University of Michigan, where he taught courses in computer architecture. Bolander currently consults for the African Communications Group in Tanzania. He maintains membership in the National Venture Capital Association and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.