Sharma to Strengthen Firm’s Global Presence and Commitment to Cloud Computing

Canaan Partners, a multibillion-dollar global venture capital firm, today announced it has appointed Sharad Sharma as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence. Sharad previously led Yahoo! India R&D where he was responsible for product engineering for all emerging markets and for several global products including image search, search monetization and HotJobs. He has more than 22 years of global experience in the Internet, enterprise software and infrastructure markets and will help strengthen Canaan’s global presence and focus on the Cloud Computing market.

“This is the first time a global EIR is appointed out of India. Sharad’s ability to bridge US operations with global markets is a great fit for Canaan,” said Alok Mittal, General Partner at Canaan. “Cloud Computing is a global phenomenon and Canaan is vey well positioned to be a partner for pioneering companies worldwide. Sharad will help us expand our investments in this space by identifying key trends and attracting innovative entrepreneurs across the globe.”

Prior to joining Yahoo!, Sharma was the India General Manager and VP of Product Operations with Symantec (formerly VERITAS Software) and was responsible for the turnaround of VERITAS operations in India. He was also a co-founder and CEO of Teltier Technologies, a New Jersey based wireless infrastructure start-up that is now part of Cisco. Sharma has managed product development teams at Lucent Technologies in both the U.S. and India and he established AT&T’s and later Lucent’s R&D organization in India when offshore product development was just beginning.

“Sharad brings a unique mix of investment, leadership and product experience in both infrastructure technology and global markets to Canaan,” said Maha Ibrahim, General Partner at Canaan. “His experience will be a real asset as we continue our growth in India and other global markets. Sharad’s insight will also help us build on the momentum we’ve established in the virtualization and Cloud Computing markets with investments in companies like Virsto.”

Note on the concept on Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR)
The role of an Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) involves an individual who wants to start a company. The entrepreneur has the flexibility of entering the position with an idea at various stages of development. On an average, the tenure of an EIR may vary anywhere between 6 – 9 months. Another role for an EIR is to act as a “partner” and help VCs evaluate potential deals in sectors of the EIR’s expertise. In this scenario, the EIR sometimes enters the company as a full time executive. An EIR can also be an entrepreneur from a past portfolio company of the VC or a well known CEO who has delivered commendable returns for the parent company.

Source: Genesis Burson Marsteller

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