Marc Morgenstern is a mentor capitalist for innovative startups, thought leader, and deal expert who orchestrated 100s of M&A and venture transactions and co-founded 3 businesses
Blue Mesa’s Founder and Managing Partner’s eclectic career spans technology, venture, retail, real estate, author/educator, and law. He wrote the unconventional book “The Soul of the Deal” which Forbes named as “One of the 25 M&A books every CEO, Founder, and Business Owner should read” and praised for its emotional intelligence.
In addition to Blue Mesa, he’s The Mentor-at-Large for The House Funds at UC Berkeley (early stage AI, robotics, and emerging tech) and created and taught Berkeley’s “Street Smart Startups” course (the human side of M&A and venture capital).
Marc’s deal experience includes 100s of M&A or high growth equity financings as principal, advisor, or counsel; including exits to VISA, Stats Perform, American Express, and Insight Partners as well as the public markets.
He served as initial EVP (and later, Senior Strategic Advisor) for LA’s Divergent3D (founded by Kevin Czinger). Blue Mesa was the first outside investor in its leapfrog technology rebuilding the U.S. industrial base and defense.
He’s currently a Director of venture-backed Unite Genomics (an AI-driven data analytics company), and has been a Director of 20+ private companies and several public companies. From 1980 through 1986 Marc served as a Director and Lead Transaction lawyer for Mr. Gasket Co. (MRGC:NASDAQ), the high performance automotive aftermarket manufacturer, for its capital market re-entry IPO and 21 acquisitions. Read Select Deals
Marc was a Co-Founder and Director of Within3 (digital collaboration for life sciences; sold to Insight Partners), Co-Founder and Chair of CadenceCounsel (sold to Lateral Link), and first outside investor in OfficeMax.
For the first 30 years of his career, he was a nationally prominent corporate and securities transaction attorney, CEO, and Managing Partner of an entrepreneurial Midwest law firm.
During the same timeframe, he was a General Partner in real estate developer and owner Equity Investors, as well as Founder and CEO of placement agent Equity Realty Securities (an NASD-registered placement agent). For three years he served on the NASD Business Conduct Committee, District 9.
Music is deep in Marc’s DNA, negotiating style, and writing
He’s a passionate blues/rock keyboard player, and a lifelong Deadhead who brings musical metaphors and a jam band’s engaged listening and improvisational approach to business and deals. He approaches the deal world by listening through a musician’s ears while looking through a startup lens.
Marc’s a long-time board member of San Francisco’s Rex Foundation (founded by the Grateful Dead), as well as the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (since 1994).
Thought leadership
Marc’s a prolific author, speaker, and creator of novel deal concepts like the “EQ of M&A”, “DealCircle©” and the “Seller’s Mantra”, as well as innovative vocabulary (“Dealjammer” and “negotiating-cradle-language”). He wrote the seminal Definitive Deal Dictionary, published 30+ leading articles (startups, M&A, venture capital, securities. and negotiating) and frequently speaks about the topics. For many years, he taught annually at the SEC and major Securities Law Institutes. Read Publications
His observations about business and finance have appeared in national publications like The New York Times, Bloomberg Deal, and Wall Street Journal. His B.A. from Yale is in American Studies (Social History), and J.D. from Boston University.
For detailed access to social media, newspapers, and magazines, Read Media.