AV Promotes Pair

Austin Ventures has promoted Thomas Ball and David Lack to the position of partner. Ball joined AV in 2005, and focuses on early-stage IT opportunities. Lack joined in 2002, and focuses on growth equity deals. 

PRESS RELEASE

Austin Ventures, “AV”, a leading $3 billion venture capital and growth equity firm, today announced the promotions of two members of the company's investment professional team. Thomas Ball and David Lack were both promoted to the role of partner.

“We are very excited to announce these promotions to the partner role. Both individuals have demonstrated outstanding performance and are well deserving of this promotion,” said Chris Pacitti, general partner at Austin Ventures. “Thomas and David will play an integral role representing the next generation of Austin Ventures leadership.”

Thomas Ball

Mr. Ball joined Austin Ventures in June 2005. Thomas' investment and transaction experience and focus is on early-stage information technology companies, with a primary focus on internet, software and technology-enabled business and consumer services.

Thomas currently serves as a director on the boards or is involved with AV portfolio companies Bazaarvoice, Boundless Network, Click Forensics, Convio, Divorce360, Jigsaw Data Corporation, Pluck, and Spiceworks. “In a heavily competitive Series A, Tom made the difference. His blend of entrepreneurial skills, intelligence, and relationship focus impressed our entire executive team. He is extraordinarily quick to respond when I need his advice, and he is always on target. Tom is a rare venture capitalist, and I couldn't be happier to see him be named as Partner at one of the world's best VC firms,” said Brett Hurt, Founder and CEO of Bazaarvoice.

Prior to joining Austin Ventures, Thomas was CEO and co-founder of Openfield Technologies which merged with Razorgator Interactive Group. While there, he played a key role in securing partnership deals including Yahoo, MSN, and eBay and in defining the next generation of technology for the secondary ticket industry. Prior to Openfield, Thomas was the Chairman, CEO and Founder of eCoupons (acquired by Lifeminders, NASDAQ: LFMN). Thomas also has experience in private equity investing and strategy consulting from his time as a Principal at Discovery Capital and as an Engagement Manager at Mitchell Madison Group. He received an MBA from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business and a BS in Finance with honors from the University of Florida. Mr. Ball also completed the two-year Kauffman Fellows Program at the Center for Venture Education.

David Lack

Mr. Lack joined Austin Ventures in September 2002 and helps drive our growth equity investment efforts. David's primary focus is on business services markets with a particular emphasis on supply chain and logistics, information services, subscription-based media, and general business process outsourcing companies. David has also played an instrumental role in the development of our CEO-in-Residence program, and has successfully teamed with several executives to identify unique market opportunities and build partnerships with like-minded founders.

David currently serves as a director on the boards or is involved with AV portfolio companies HomeAway, Vovici, ReTrans, ATCOR Holdings and Stull Logistics. “David has been an integral part of the HomeAway investment team since the day we formed the company. His intuitive grasp of information-centric business models helped us quickly launch and grow HomeAway into an industry leader. He's been a terrific resource and partner to our executive team, and we're thrilled that he's receiving this well-deserved recognition at Austin Ventures,” said Brian Sharples, co-founder and CEO of HomeAway.

Prior to joining Austin Ventures, David was a Manager at The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), a leading, global management consultancy. During his seven years at BCG, David worked extensively with Fortune 200 CEO's and executive management teams serving as an advisor on growth, market positioning and M&A strategies. David received his MBA from the Harvard Business School and his BA with honors from Dartmouth College.

About Austin Ventures

Austin Ventures, with $3 billion dollars under management across nine funds, has been providing startup and growth capital to emerging companies for over twenty years. We partner with exceptionally talented entrepreneurs and operating executives to build valuable businesses in a variety of technology and service industries. We invest nationally but maintain a particular focus on Texas, where we are the region's most active investor. Our team of investment professionals works with companies at every stage of the funding lifecycle, from initial seed investments, through startup and growth capital, to management-led buyouts and recapitalizations. Austin Ventures brings a long-term investment perspective, broad experience in building high-growth companies, and access to an unparalleled network of entrepreneurs and executives. Visit austinventures.com for more information.