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Jim Derbyshire

Mentor-in-Residence

LinkedIn: Jim Derbyshire
Email: jhderbyshire@sfu.ca

Jim Derbyshire's international serial entrepreneurial experience includes 18 years of CEO experience and a track record of growing innovative, leading edge, start-ups using bootstrap, Angel and Angel/VC backed business models. In the last 12 years, he has raised over $100M of funding and been involved in several acquisitions, three of which were managed by Jim. He also has non-executive and chairman experience on boards of high tech start ups as well as in business appraisal for venture capitalists, large companies and government development agencies. This combines with a broad understanding of IT, web, wireless and video technology, markets and industries together with a strong knowledge of the organization of start-ups. He has built a large number of successful business partnerships in Asia, Europe, and North America with major companies.

Jim is primarily involved with wireless, digital video, internet, IoT, EDA and semiconductor businesses using experience from four successful exited start ups and involvement in many more. He has also been named as one of the top ten 'Rockstar" mentors by Start Up Canada and mentored multiple successful teams at the New Ventures BC competition. Jim is an occasional Angel investor since 1992 and currently sits on several private company boards.

Jim has a B.Sc. (Hons.) in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Kingston University in the UK, is a Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of the I.E.T., participated in I.E.E.E. and E.T.S.I. standards groups and has several granted patents.

Areas of specialization: 

  • Matching markets with new technology
  • Emerging market business strategy and models
  • Funding strategy
  • Start up exits, mergers and acquisitions
  • Company and market assessment
  • Advisory or company boards