User:Sanfran1276/Joanna Rees

Joanna Rees is a managing director at VSP Capital, a San-Francisco based venture capital firm.

Rees founded VSP after working in investment banking at BA Securities and Vrolyk & Co. In 1996, Rees launched Venture Strategy Group, which has since been renamed VSP Capital. Rees raised a fund in 2000 with $185 million under management comprised of institutional investors including Horsley Bridge Partners, Pantheon, FLAG Ventures and The Commonfund. VSP investments have included Affinity Labs, Truveo, QuinStreet, and FON.

In addition, Joanna has filed campaign papers announcing her intention to run for Mayor of San Francisco in the 2011 election, to succeed Gavin Newsom who resigned when he became California's Lieutenant Governor.

Early life
Rees was born in Montclair, New Jersey, the daughter of Joan (Pernetti) Rees and John Rees. Rees graduated from Montclair High School and attended Duke University where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology. She then earned her MBA in Finance at the Columbia Business School.

Career
In 1985, Rees joined Groupe Danone until leaving in 1989 to attend business school at Columbia University. She graduated from Columbia and then took over a family-owned hotel business bringing her back to her hometown of Montclair, NJ. After growing and selling that business, she moved to San Francisco, California in 1993 and opened Eric Restaurant in San Francisco with her now former husband, Eric Gallanter. She then worked in investment banking at BA Securities and Vrolyk & Co.

In addition to managing VSP Capital, Rees serves as Chairman of the USA Advisory Board for Madrid-based FON. Rees is also an Adjunct Professor in the Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University where she teaches a course on values based leadership. She also serves on the boards of NewSchools Venture Fund, the Bay Area Board of the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship, the Annual Fund board at Duke University, and the Global Board of Endeavor. Rees recently completed a 4-year term on the board of the National Venture Capital Association where she continues as a media spokesperson. Rees previously worked with other non-profits including the Junior League of San Francisco and the March of Dimes.

Rees, along with Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg and fellow Silicon Valley venture capitalists John Doerr and Bill Gurley recently hosted screenings of the new educational documentary "Waiting for Superman".