I have been a finance professional for 30 years and a venture capitalist and consultant since 1996.  I am an outspoken advocate of best practices in board governance and have written three freely available white papers and numerous articles on this topic because I believe that good governance is good business.  My career path as a financial entrepreneur is not typical of most venture capitalists. I view this as a core strength, and my success as an investor and professional director of both public and private companies enhances my effectiveness as a consultant.  My undergraduate degree is in Government from Harvard (my thesis adviser was the late Samuel P. Huntington).  After college I spent nine years in New York, all in finance, and seven of those years on Wall Street as a risk arbitrageur in the 1980’s (five and a half of those years at the First Boston Corporation).  I have very strong public policy interests, which I have continued to develop through my life membership in the Council on Foreign Relations, through fourteen years of active involvement with the Aspen Institute (principally the Socrates Society), and as a director of the National Venture Capital Association (2007-2011).  As a first generation American and the first person in my family to go to college, I’ve worked hard to achieve success.  I care deeply about our country and am very concerned about America’s slipping global competitiveness over the past decade.  I believe in religious pluralism and that diversity is essential to breakthrough innovation across many disciplines and pursuits.  In short, I have strong views on many topics and take the time to develop them responsibly.  This blog is meant to share my views with others, and I invite your comments.