Will founded Next Frontier Capital to partner with mission-driven, talented entrepreneurs to build Montana technology companies of impact, utility, value. Will’s career spans venture capital investing as well as operational, transactional, and advisory roles at both public and private companies. With a Montana family history dating to the 1850s, Will is passionate about investing in the state’s promising future.

Will’s ancestor, Telesphore Jacques deMers, was one of early Montana’s most dynamic entrepreneurs with investments in cattle, freight, retail, ferrying, hotels, and founded DeMersville, precursor to modern day Kalispell.

Prior to Next Frontier Capital, Will served as CEO of Flite, an advertising and analytics platform. In 2016, Flite was acquired by Snap, the parent company of SnapChat. During his six year tenure, Will built a market leading organization capable of serving and analyzing billions of ad interactions, sold enterprise customers such as Procter & Gamble, The New York Times, and LinkedIn, raised capital from leading venture capitalists, including Sequoia Capital, General Catalyst, and strategic customers Conde Nast, Jive Software, and Publicis.

Previously, Will served as a Managing Director at Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, where he focused on SaaS and open source. Will helped lead investments in Mulesoft, Sonatype, SlideRocket, Flite, among others.  Will joined Hummer Winblad from Pequot Capital, where he focused on software investing. Earlier in his career Will worked for Morgan Stanley in NYC, Hong Kong, and the ASEAN markets focused on the privatization of state-owned assets.

Will represents Next Frontier Capital on the board of numerous companies, including Submittable, Bridger Photonics, Quiq, Claravine, Tagboard, and others. Will formerly served on the board of the National Venture Capital Association and is active in supporting the venture capital and startup ecosystems.

Will graduated from Harvard College, studied Mandarin at Nanjing University, and earned his M.B.A from Northwestern University, where he graduated at the top of his class.  Will writes about venture, leadership, and entrepreneurship on LinkedIn.

Will is married and the father of two active boys. In addition to Next Frontier Capital and family, Will’s passions include the outdoors, aviation, and fundraising for conservation groups.  He is an active member of the Bozeman community and is a past board member of the Gallatin Valley Land Trust, American Prairie, Greater Yellowstone Coalition, and is a current member of the MSU Jake Jabs School of Business Advisory board.