You are here: Home > About CopperLeaf > Board Of Directors

CopperLeaf Technologies Board of Directors

Pascal Spothelfer | Chair

Pascal Spothelfer is president and CEO of the British Columbia Technology Industries Association (BCTIA). Born and raised in Switzerland, he moved to Canada in 1994 and has held a number of senior management roles across several industries both in Europe and Canada. Most recently, he was president and CEO at Spectrum Signal Processing, a Vancouver-based provider of advanced wireless communication systems which was recently purchased by Vecima Networks.

Prior to Spectrum, Pascal was the senior vice-president, strategic development at Teekay Shipping (Canada) Ltd. and from 1994 to 1998, served as COO and later president and CEO of NovAtel Inc., a high-tech company specialized in global positioning systems. Before moving to Canada, Pascal was involved first as a management consultant with The Boston Consulting Group and then as a member of the executive team in the turnaround of Jenoptik AG in Germany.

Mr. Spothelfer holds a Master of Law and a PhD in law from the University of Basel, Switzerland and a Master of Business Administration from INSEAD in Fontainebleau, France.


Judi Hess | Director 

Judi took on the role of CEO at CopperLeaf in August 2009. In 1995 she joined Burnaby-based Creo Inc. from MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates, beginning as a program manager and rising to become president in 2002, a position she held until Creo was acquired by Eastman Kodak for just under $1 Billion USD in 2005. As part of Eastman Kodak, Judi took on the role of general manager, workflow and prepress equipment; and vice-president of the graphic communications group. Two years later, her role was expanded to include management of a portfolio of software and start-up businesses and she was appointed a corporate officer and vice-president of Eastman Kodak and the head of Kodak Canada. She is currently a member of the Premier’s Technology Council of British Columbia and a member of the board of Bycast Inc. Originally from Toronto, Judi and her family live in Vancouver. She holds an honours bachelor’s degree in mathematics from the University of Waterloo, and is an avid downhill skier.


Amos Michelson | Director

Amos Michelson is Chairman of four high-tech start-ups and Director in an additional four high-tech companies in the areas of life sciences, energy, and Web 2.0. Mr. Michelson was CEO of Creo, Inc. from June 1995 until Kodak purchased Creo for C$1.2 Billion in May 2005. Prior to joining Creo, he was CEO of Opal Inc., a semi-conductor equipment company, and prior to this Mr. Michelson was Chief Operating Officer of Optrotech Ltd., a developer and manufacturer of optical and imaging systems for the electronics industry.

Amos Michelson holds a Master of Business Administration from Stanford Graduate School of Business and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the Technion, Israel Institute of Technology.

Amos Michelson is a past member of the Premier’s Technology Council and in 1999 was named Entrepreneur of the Year, along with Dan Gelbart, by Ernst & Young. In 2005, Mr. Michelson was named the "BCTIA Person of the Year", an award presented to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the technology industry during the year.


Mark Dance | Director

Mark Dance has spent the past 20 years in the Vancouver high-tech community. For 11 of those years, he was at Creo Inc., where he played central roles in growing the company from 10M$US in revenue to over 700M$US in revenue, and from 100 people to more than 4000 people world-wide. His roles included president, COO, and CFO. Since Creo’s sale to Eastman Kodak Company in 2005, Mr. Dance has been working with several west coast technology companies to improve their strategies and execution. He has also lectured undergraduate engineering classes on business, economics, and product management to help groom the technology entrepreneurs of tomorrow.

Mr. Dance has a Bachelor of Applied Science (Honours) degree in Mechanical Engineering from UBC and holds numerous patents on medical robotic devices.


Maria Pacella | Director

Maria Pacella is an Investment Manager with GrowthWorks Capital Ltd., one of Canada's largest venture capital firms with more than $600 million under management. Maria has been working with early stage high tech start-ups since 2001. Maria sits on the boards of Genologics Life Sciences Software, Redlen Technologies, BuildDirect.com, Colligo Networks and Adnavance Technologies. Prior to joining GrowthWorks Capital, Maria worked at a digital media firm assisting the company in operational activities and strategic initiatives. Maria also worked for Deutsche Bank Securities in mergers and acquisitions across a variety of industries including financial services and technology.

Maria has an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Simon Fraser University and is a Chartered Financial Analyst. Maria is a member of the CFA Institute and is on the Board of Directors for CFA Vancouver.


Eugene Siklos | Director

Eugene Siklos is the Lead Investment Manager of EDC Equity's Venture Capital Direct Investing team. EDC's Equity program focuses on developing small- and mid-sized companies that want to grow their business, and "next generation" exporters and exporters that are seeking to go global. From 2004-2008, Eugene was a Managing Director of Canterbury Park Capital (and a predecessor, Quantico Partners), a private equity firm with committed equity capital of $170 million. Prior to that, he was an investment banker for 14 years, 12 with Morgan Stanley, split equally between New York and Toronto.

Eugene is a member of the Board of Directors of Redlen Technologies, a Victoria BC-based producer of advanced semiconductor imaging materials, an Observer on the Board of BTI Systems of Ottawa, a provider of packet optical networking solutions, and was previously on the Board of Directors of Paragon Pharmacies (TSX-V), where he was Chairman of the Compensation Committee. Eugene is a graduate of the University of Toronto (B Comm), and received his MBA from Harvard University. He lives in Toronto with his wife and three daughters.


Manuel Alba | Director

Manuel Alba's career includes the design of consumer electronics products, marketing of technology products, executive management and angel investment in technology companies. Early in his career, he held technical marketing positions at National Semiconductor and Integrated Device Technology, both in Silicon Valley. In 1993, Manuel and Avigdor Willenz wrote the business plan for a new startup, Galileo Technology, which grew into a successful and progressive fab-less semiconductor company, using what is now a well-known formula of engineering talent in Israel and business talent in Silicon Valley. Manuel served as Galileo's President and as a Director, was responsible for business worldwide and significantly contributed to the operational and financial accomplishments of the company, including an IPO in 1997. Galileo merged with Marvell Technology in 2001 and Manuel served as a Director of the merged company until 2004, as well as Vice President of Strategy and Business Development for 2 years. In 2005, he became an investor and active Director of Pixer Technology, helping the company write a new business plan, and secure its first and only round of venture capital before its acquisition by Carl Zeiss in 2008. Manuel is an investor in multiple international private technology companies and a board member and volunteer at several non-profit organizations in California.

Manuel holds a BSEE from the National Polytechnic Institute in Mexico City, MS degrees in Computer Engineering and Engineering Management from the University of Southern California, and an MBA from Santa Clara University.