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I am a technology investor, operator and entrepreneur focused on data analytics &…
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Michael Avon shared thisOne of the best CFOs I’ve worked with!Michael Avon shared thisCongratulations to Michael Annessa on being named a finalist for the 2026 NVTC Tech CFO Awards! Presented by the Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC), these awards recognize financial leaders who are driving innovation, scaling growth and shaping the future of the region’s technology ecosystem. Michael’s leadership continues to play a key role in GuidePoint Security's momentum. We’re proud to celebrate this well-deserved recognition. Learn more: https://okt.to/KvCq2J
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Michael Avon reposted thisMore big news coming out of ExecOnline. Lots of work to pull this together and we're already getting to work on how we can deliver even more for our customers.Michael Avon reposted thisToday, we’re excited to share an important milestone for ExecOnline. ExecOnline has acquired Teamraderie, a leading provider of expert-led team development experiences designed to help organizations navigate transformation in the age of AI. Why this partnership matters: the outcomes organizations care about — execution, innovation, and adaptability — are created by great leaders and high-performing teams. If development programs don’t change how teams operate, they rarely change business results. Together, ExecOnline and Teamraderie are building a platform designed to move beyond theoretical learning to real operating change, helping leaders and teams develop the capabilities needed to execute transformation successfully. We’re excited about what this makes possible for our partners and the organizations we serve. Read the full announcement: 🔗 https://lnkd.in/eKNpfK2p #LeadershipDevelopment #AITransformation #TeamPerformance #FutureOfWork #OrganizationalGrowth
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Michael Avon shared thisSuper excited about the acquisition of Teamraderie by ABS Capital portfolio company ExecOnline! This acquisition, the first by ExecOnline, will add expert-led team development experiences and highly-regarded AI strategy and leadership training for executives to ExecOnline's market leading online leadership development offerings. Congratulations to Fletcher Jones, Mark Ozer, Hoyun Kim and Stephen Bailey, and the rest of the ExecOnline team on this exciting next chapter in their business. Also, a hearty welcome to Michael McCarroll, Co-Founder and CEO of Teamraderie, and the Teamraderie team. Excited for this formidable combination to drive what's next in leadership development!Michael Avon shared thisToday, we’re excited to share an important milestone for ExecOnline. ExecOnline has acquired Teamraderie, a leading provider of expert-led team development experiences designed to help organizations navigate transformation in the age of AI. Why this partnership matters: the outcomes organizations care about — execution, innovation, and adaptability — are created by great leaders and high-performing teams. If development programs don’t change how teams operate, they rarely change business results. Together, ExecOnline and Teamraderie are building a platform designed to move beyond theoretical learning to real operating change, helping leaders and teams develop the capabilities needed to execute transformation successfully. We’re excited about what this makes possible for our partners and the organizations we serve. Read the full announcement: 🔗 https://lnkd.in/eKNpfK2p #LeadershipDevelopment #AITransformation #TeamPerformance #FutureOfWork #OrganizationalGrowth
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Michael Avon shared thisA lot of great things going on at Apptopia Inc. - excited about this partnership with YipitData!Michael Avon shared thisHonored to announce that Apptopia is now the exclusive mobile data provider for Yipit. I’ve long respected Yipit’s command of transaction data and their ability to synthesize multiple data signals into one market moving KPI Forecast. It's exciting to see our deep investment into our proprietary user panel over the last 3+ years have such a positive impact on our accuracy and signal strength. The best part is, this is just the beginning. There's a lot more to come as we continue investing into making our data more differentiated for fundamental investors globally. While we continue to invest in partnerships that make our data accessible in the tools you already use, the only place to access our disaggregated user-level panel data is from Apptopia directly.
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Michael Avon reposted thisMichael Avon reposted thisWe’ve just launched new proprietary data on AI app engagement! Are you wanting to track consumer usage of the major AI apps? Curious about their adoption rates, engagement levels, and impact on other apps and whole sectors? Starting today, for 10 days, we’re giving everyone free access to our Gen AI Insights Dashboard. You don’t even need to give us your email. https://lnkd.in/eSvvKzAG
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Michael Avon reposted thisMichael Avon reposted thisDeepwatch earned three G2 Spring 2026 badges—driven by direct customer feedback: • High Performer – System Security • Easiest to Do Business With – System Security • Easiest to Do Business With – MDR When customers speak, we listen—and deliver. G2
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Michael Avon reposted thisMichael Avon reposted thisStop settling for "good enough" security. Your MDR vendor should be your strongest asset, not your biggest headache. If you’re still "making it work" with a legacy provider, you’re already behind. This software leader switched to Deepwatch two years ago and hasn't looked back once. Can you say the same about your current partner? If you’re still making excuses for your current vendor, you’re leaving your organization vulnerable. It’s time to move toward a partnership that actually scales. Manager, IT Security and Risk Management in the Software Industry gives Deepwatch Managed Detection and Response Services 5/5 Rating in Gartner Peer Insights™ Managed Detection and Response Market. Read the full review here: https://bit.ly/4bvh5go #MDR #CyberSecurity #Deepwatch #Infosec #GartnerPeerInsights
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Michael Avon shared thisI’m excited to be on the host committee for DCA Live’s third annual Capital Capital event – Washington, DC’s premier venture capital conference. Join me and hundreds of investors, founders and connectors for a day of great speakers and networking with the most-exciting DC-area tech companies. Last year more than 200 venture, growth and PE investors from across the US participated. There is early bird pricing through the end of March and all registered VCs and investors will receive additional invitations to exclusive events. See you there!
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Michael Avon shared thisIncredibly excited that Fletcher Jones has joined ExecOnline as CEO. This is the second time I've worked with Fletch, who is one of the best in the business. So great to be working together again! And I'm also really excited to be able to continue to work with the brilliant Stephen Bailey, Co-Founder of ExecOnline, who has moved to the Board Chairman role and will continued to be actively involved with the company in his new role. Congrats to both Fletch and Stephen!Michael Avon shared thisExecOnline is entering its next phase of growth. Today, we’re excited to announce that Fletcher Jones has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of ExecOnline. Co-founder Stephen Bailey will transition to Board Chair, where he will continue to support the company’s strategic priorities and innovation initiatives. With Fletcher’s experience in enterprise learning and education technology, including leadership roles at EVERFI and CEB (now part of Gartner), we’re excited to build on the foundation Stephen and our team have created. We’re grateful for Stephen’s leadership in building ExecOnline over the past 13 years and are excited for what’s ahead. Read the full announcement: https://rb.gy/u19q57 #LeadershipDevelopment #EdTech #Leadership
Michael Avon commented on a post
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Congrats and welcome aboard, Richard Harris! Really excited to have you leading this amazing company!
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Michael Avon liked thisMichael Avon liked thisIf you ask people why they chose UVA, one common thread is the beauty of the place. It’s just gorgeous, and especially in spring. Our Advancement Communications team set out to capture some of this magic, both to share the amazing scenery but also to show appreciation for the many supporters who help make Grounds an unforgettable place. Take a look! #uva #virginia #gohoos #wahoowa #thelawn #highered https://lnkd.in/eUWHcUSc
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Michael Avon liked thisMichael Avon liked thisI am thrilled to announce that I have joined LabConnect as Chief Executive Officer! LabConnect seamlessly coordinates the complete lab testing journey for the world's most complex clinical trials. I am incredibly excited to work alongside our talented global team, as well as our dedicated biopharma customers, CROs, and laboratory partners to provide this critical service. What makes me most enthusiastic about joining LabConnect is the opportunity to lead a company with such an inspiring mission: advancing life-saving therapies to improve patient outcomes. We stand out in the industry with truly unique capabilities: deep scientific expertise, a curated global network of laboratory partners providing access to over 5,000 tests, integrated logistics, and proprietary sample tracking technology. We are operating in a large and rapidly growing market. As clinical trial testing becomes increasingly complex, especially in fast-growing therapeutic areas like oncology and cell and gene therapies, LabConnect is perfectly positioned to provide the agile, specialized support that our partners rely on. I look forward to leading LabConnect into this next chapter of growth and delivering even greater value to our clients as we help bring new medicines to patients faster. A special thanks to the entire LabConnect team for welcoming me as their new leader. To Julia Tarasenko, Mitch Blumenfeld, Deb Gran, Shachi Sharma (MS, MBA), Stephen Lesser, Bill Finger, Amber (Umble) Davies, April (., Ian James, Joe Marino, Kristine Kuryla, Michael Lalor, Todd Snyder, Tom Littleton, Dan Tyner, Daniel Kevin Harris, Brittany Shields, Tim Johnson, Mark Anderson, John Stobo, Eric Richman, Alain Chetrit and the rest of our 750 person LabConnect team, I’m truly honored to have the opportunity to work with you! #LabConnect #ClinicalTrials #Leadership #Biopharma #LifeSciences #HealthcareInnovation #LabLikeNoOther
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Michael Avon liked thisI am thrilled to announce that I have joined LabConnect as Chief Executive Officer! LabConnect seamlessly coordinates the complete lab testing journey for the world's most complex clinical trials. I am incredibly excited to work alongside our talented global team, as well as our dedicated biopharma customers, CROs, and laboratory partners to provide this critical service. What makes me most enthusiastic about joining LabConnect is the opportunity to lead a company with such an inspiring mission: advancing life-saving therapies to improve patient outcomes. We stand out in the industry with truly unique capabilities: deep scientific expertise, a curated global network of laboratory partners providing access to over 5,000 tests, integrated logistics, and proprietary sample tracking technology. We are operating in a large and rapidly growing market. As clinical trial testing becomes increasingly complex, especially in fast-growing therapeutic areas like oncology and cell and gene therapies, LabConnect is perfectly positioned to provide the agile, specialized support that our partners rely on. I look forward to leading LabConnect into this next chapter of growth and delivering even greater value to our clients as we help bring new medicines to patients faster. A special thanks to the entire LabConnect team for welcoming me as their new leader. To Julia Tarasenko, Mitch Blumenfeld, Deb Gran, Shachi Sharma (MS, MBA), Stephen Lesser, Bill Finger, Amber (Umble) Davies, April (., Ian James, Joe Marino, Kristine Kuryla, Michael Lalor, Todd Snyder, Tom Littleton, Dan Tyner, Daniel Kevin Harris, Brittany Shields, Tim Johnson, Mark Anderson, John Stobo, Eric Richman, Alain Chetrit and the rest of our 750 person LabConnect team, I’m truly honored to have the opportunity to work with you! #LabConnect #ClinicalTrials #Leadership #Biopharma #LifeSciences #HealthcareInnovation #LabLikeNoOtherMichael Avon liked thisWe’re pleased to announce that Richard Harris has been appointed CEO of LabConnect. Rich brings 30+ years of leadership experience, with a proven track record of launching innovative technology products leveraging AI, driving growth, executing strategic acquisitions, and building high-performing teams. This marks his fourth CEO role, and in his previous positions at TrustEngine, SparkPost, and AddThis, he led each company to high growth and profitability; SparkPost and AddThis ultimately achieving successful acquisitions. Rich succeeds Wes Wheeler, who is retiring after leading LabConnect through a period of significant growth and transformation. We are grateful for his leadership and the strong foundation he helped build. As clinical trials become increasingly complex and global, LabConnect’s differentiated approach combining scientific expertise, global laboratory partnerships, integrated logistics, and innovative technology, positions us to continue delivering for our clients and partners. We look forward to building on this strong momentum under Rich’s leadership. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gw6DKFjZ #ClinicalResearch #ClinicalTrials #CentralLabs #SampleManagement #LabLikeNoOther
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Michael Avon liked thisYes, FOUR!Michael Avon liked thisFour faculty members from the University of Virginia College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences have been awarded 2026 Guggenheim Fellowships, among the nation’s most prestigious honors for scholars and artists. History professors Erik Linstrum and Christian McMillen and English professors Emily Ogden and Andrew Stauffer will use the fellowships to pursue ambitious book projects that explore how the past continues to shape and inform contemporary life. https://lnkd.in/eDd4s7P8
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Michael Avon liked thisMichael Avon liked thisExcited to share that ViewLift is joining DAZN, creating a powerful new platform for our clients, partners and team. ViewLift has always been focused on helping rights holders, media companies and entertainment brands create high-quality digital and streaming experiences for their audiences – and joining DAZN allows us to build on that foundation with far greater scale. Proud to have worked closely with my partner Rick Allen over the past 18+ years, and with our incredible team who helped us reach this moment. Looking forward to this next chapter while continuing to help our trusted clients and partners reach, engage and grow their audiences. https://lnkd.in/erPdH9N4GLOBAL SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT LEADER DAZN ANNOUNCES ACQUISITION OF VIEWLIFT TO ACCELERATE US EXPANSION AND CREATE COMPREHENSIVE SOLUTIONS FOR SPORTS TEAMS' LOCAL MEDIA RIGHTSGLOBAL SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT LEADER DAZN ANNOUNCES ACQUISITION OF VIEWLIFT TO ACCELERATE US EXPANSION AND CREATE COMPREHENSIVE SOLUTIONS FOR SPORTS TEAMS' LOCAL MEDIA RIGHTS
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Michael Avon liked thisMichael Avon liked thisManik, our colleagues and I spun up ViewLift out of one of the streaming world’s pioneers, the vision of our Chairman, Ted Leonsis. Our goal for ViewLift was simple: help sports, media and entertainment partners build great direct-to-consumer digital businesses, with the technology, service and flexibility they needed to reach their audiences on their own terms. After growing our business step by step, today we announced the biggest leap yet in our 18+ years as a company: We have agreed to become part of DAZN, the world’s leading sports entertainment platform. This is an important advance for our company, our team and, most importantly, our clients. ViewLift will continue to operate with the same people, the same platform and the same commitment to our partners. The relationships, service and focus that define ViewLift are not changing. What is changing is the scale of what we can deliver. As part of DAZN, we will have access to a global streaming leader with significant resources, deep technology expertise and the ability to delight viewers at enormous scale. That means more capability, more innovation and more opportunity to help our sports, media and entertainment clients navigate a rapidly changing landscape. For teams, leagues and rights holders, the need for flexible, future-proof ways to reach fans has never been greater. For media and entertainment companies, the transition from linear to streaming continues to accelerate. In both cases, ViewLift and DAZN together will be better positioned to help our partners move faster, think bigger and build deeper audience relationships. I’m truly grateful to my ViewLift colleagues, our Board and our shareholders for helping us reach this moment, and to our clients and partners for trusting us along the way. We’re excited for this next chapter - in which all of us continue to have our roles -- and the opportunity to keep building with DAZN! Shay Segev, Pete Oliver, Walker Jacobs, Zander Berlinski, Rebecca McCloy, Sandeep Tiku, Edward Hill-Wood
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Michael Avon liked thisMichael Avon liked thisWith five teams in two sports, across two continents, Monarch Collective is now three years old. While our official mission is to build leading women’s sports institutions that inspire and unite. I often say our unofficial one is: “We waste time with the right people.” Being a great investor requires long-term thesis building and a real reason for every yes and every no, building relationships with patience to develop enduring partnerships. Often, that means doing the quiet work behind the scenes, long before a transaction occurs. We do that work because of our conviction that women's sports today presents a unique, asymmetric risk profile: venture-scale upside potential with the kind of downside protection typically only seen in mature institutional asset classes. We aren’t just observers; we’re long-term collaborative partners committed to the real work of building something that matters. I joined Alex Rodriguez and Jason Kelly on The Deal to discuss the mechanics of our thesis and the values that drive our behavior. From the publicly-reported $335M valuation of Angel City Football Club to our newest WNBA (Women's National Basketball Association) move in Cleveland, we break down the changing economics of the sport and why "butts in seats" leading to media viewership remains our ultimate de-risking strategy.
Experience & Education
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ABS Capital Partners
View Michael’s full experience
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Honors & Awards
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DC Tech Titan
Washingtonian Magazine
Selected as a "Tech Titan" in the DC area by Washingtonian Magazine, 2018, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
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CFO of the Year
NVTC
Organizations
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University of Virginia College of Arts and Sciences Foundation
Board Member - Board of Trustees; Former Chairman and Founding Board Member: Greater Washington Regional Board; Former Board Member: Benefactors Society Board
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DCA Live
Capital Capital Host Committee
-Host Committee for Capital Capital Annual Technology and Venture Conference in Washington DC
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Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator
Mentor
-Mentor to startup companies through the ERA program in New York City.
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FounderCorps
Member
-Member in FounderCorps - Group of leading entrepreneurs and executives in the Greater Washington, DC area technology and startup market.
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#DCTech CEOs
Co-Founder
-Group of 30-35 technology CEOs in the DC area involved in growing, expanding and marketing the DC tech community. Quarterly gatherings of 15-18 people with sub groups focused on talent recruitment, market knowledge, DC tech expansion and press relationships. The group has a focus on enhancing and promoting the overall strength and reputation of the greater Washington DC/Baltimore startup, venture and technology community.
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EY Entrepreneur of the Year Program - Mid Atlantic
Judge
-Acted as judge for EY EOY Program for the Mid-Atlantic 2016-2018
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NextGen Venture Partners
Member & Advisor
-Member, Advisor and LP in NextGen Venture Partners
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NVTC - CFO of the Year Awards
Judge
-Judge for NVTC CFO of the Year Award 2013-2015
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