Team - HG Ventures

More than just a team of investors, we’re believers in the potential of your company. This commitment is based on a deep expertise of our industries and rich history of innovation and entrepreneurship.

We understand the unique needs of hardtech entrepreneurs. We get you.

Mitch Black

Venture Director

Natalie Cira

Principal

Erin Crowther

Associate

Kip Frey

Managing Director

John Glushik

Managing Director

Sarah Minnick

Senior Administrator

Ginger Rothrock, Ph.D

Senior Director

Jonathan Schalliol

Finance & Operations Lead

Sarah Schlifke

Platform Manager

Mitch Black

Venture Director

Mitch's LinkedIn Profile

Mitch serves as Venture Director for the New Ventures team and brings deep practical experience and perspective to its active venture capital arm (HG Ventures) and emerging internal incubation efforts. Mitch’s passion lies in enabling leaders and investors to move their business from one stage to another, working with startups to help them move from product-market-fit to go-to-market acceleration to scaling for exit.

Previously, Mitch led the managed mobility business unit of Motus, a private equity-owned workplace software company. Mitch brings more than 30 years of executive experience and prior to Motus led three SaaS companies from startup to scale-up–MOBI, Viral Launch and Shiftlab. During this period Mitch led capital raises and built long-term strategic plans, go-to-market models and annual operating plans that ultimately took two of these businesses to successful exits.

Natalie Cira

Principal

Natalie's LinkedIn Profile

Natalie serves as a Principal on the HG Ventures investment team where she’s responsible for sourcing, due diligence, deal execution and ongoing support of portfolio companies.

Prior to HG Ventures, Natalie was an investor at BHP Ventures, the venture arm of the world’s largest mining company. With an investment mandate to support the decarbonization of BHP’s operations and improve the sustainability of natural resource extraction, Natalie led several investments related to the critical minerals value chain, including biomining and bioremediation, selective mineral extraction, novel chemical leaching, carbon removal, and advanced water treatment. Before BHP, Natalie was an investment banker at Whipstitch Capital.

Erin Crowther

Associate

Erin's LinkedIn Profile

Erin serves as an Associate on HG Ventures’ investment team, primarily focused on supporting in deal sourcing and due diligence. Prior to HG Ventures, Erin spent time learning about the operating areas of The Heritage Group through strategy focused roles at the corporate level and within the company’s business units.

Erin graduated summa cum laude from the University of Dayton with a BSBA in Entrepreneurship, Finance, and Marketing. Working with Hardtech startups allows Erin to combine her passions of innovation and improving human health, both in the ways that we interact with the natural world and products around us.

Kip Frey

Managing Director

Kip's LinkedIn Profile

Kip brings tremendous insight and expertise to our portfolio companies, drawing upon his experiences leading multiple start-ups and as a venture investor, board member, and entrepreneurial ecosystem builder. He instinctively seeks out entrepreneurs that have a bold vision for the future. Before creating HG Ventures, Kip Frey was Vice Provost for Innovation & Entrepreneurship and Professor of Law at Duke University. His venture career spans CEO roles in seven startups and ten years as a partner at Intersouth Partners. Early in his career, he practiced intellectual property law and ran several business units for Turner Broadcasting, contributing to the acquisition of Castle Rock Entertainment, the formation of the Cartoon Network, and the construction of the MGM Grand Hotel.

John Glushik

Managing Director

John’s LinkedIn Profile

John’s commitment to trust, transparency, and partnership with entrepreneurs has led to long-term relationships and economic success during his 20+ years as a venture investor. He values diverse and data-driven teams, and he helps these teams grow with their companies. Prior to starting and building HG Ventures, John served as a General Partner at Intersouth Partners and Managing Director of the Duke Angel Network, covering all aspects of venture investment and portfolio management. He started his career as a mechanical and aerospace engineer at Duke, MIT and General Electric, and continues to apply engineering principles to business problems as Managing Director of HG Ventures.

Sarah Minnick

Senior Administrator

Sarah's LinkedIn Profile

Sarah serves a Senior Administrator to the HG Ventures Team, bringing a diverse background from executive support and project management roles in human resources to automotive manufacturing. She has an aptitude for communication, logistics, and collaboration for high-impact teams. Sarah believes in the power of investing in people, which led her to join The Heritage Group and pursue a degree in criminal justice.

Ginger Rothrock, Ph.D

Senior Director

Ginger's LinkedIn Profile

Ginger has worked at the intersection of science, business, and innovation her entire career and deeply appreciates the opportunity to merge her operating experience with her desire to invest in people. She’s particularly passionate about science and engineering anchoring the next generation of transformative startups. Before joining HG Ventures, Ginger served as Vice President of Technology and Commercialization at RTI International where she oversaw the commercialization of a $1 billion portfolio of R&D and served as a mentor and coach to numerous scientific innovators. She is also an accomplished scientist and serial entrepreneur who empathizes with our entrepreneurs’ unique challenges.

Jonathan Schalliol

Finance & Operations Lead

Jon’s LinkedIn Profile

Jon focuses on finance and operations, incubation opportunity sourcing, and strategic development for the HG Ventures team, leveraging relevant experiences in corporate development, strategy, and entrepreneurship. He has spent the past ten years in roles across The Heritage Group, which enables him to make value-added connections between our portfolio companies and operating businesses. Jon is an active member of the local entrepreneurial community who takes pride in sourcing groundbreaking and sustainable technology. Prior to THG, he was a founder of a tech startup and held positions at Plug & Play, Merrill Lynch Investment Banking, Ernst & Young, and Apple.

Sarah Schlifke

Platform Manager

Sarah's LinkedIn profile

As Platform Manager, Sarah serves as a strategic connector and builder across HG Ventures’ portfolio, The Heritage Group operating companies, and the startup ecosystem by driving collaboration, supporting pilots, and enabling growth for early-stage companies.

Sarah has more than 15 years of experience leading cross-functional teams, product innovation, and strategic operations across both high-growth and established organizations. Known for her ability to align teams, simplify complexity, and build systems that scale, Sarah is deeply
passionate about helping companies turn bold visions into actionable roadmaps.

We are believers in the potential of your company.

Mitch Black

Natalie Cira

Erin Crowther

Kip Frey

John Glushik

Sarah Minnick

Ginger Rothrock, Ph.D

Jonathan Schalliol

Sarah Schlifke