Our Team

LinkedIn Profile

John Hurley is the Senior Executive of the Venture Pipeline group, a DLA Piper business unit specifically focused on enhancing the funding prospects of early stage ventures. Led by business professionals with experience in technology, startups and capital markets, the Venture Pipeline actively advises on strategic business issues that are critical to funding. Mr. Hurley works directly with the Corporate and Securities practice group and with the global investment community, leveraging DLA Piper's experience in the emerging growth and venture capital sectors while screening and scrubbing deal flow to match investors' specific needs with appropriately targeted funding sources.

Mr. Hurley has advised hundreds of emerging growth technology companies on various aspects of their business plans, including management and recruiting issues, market development, strategic partnerships and financing strategies. He has helped more than 50 firms raise capital through DLA Piper's collective global network of angel, venture, institutional and strategic investors.

Before joining DLA Piper, Mr. Hurley was the founder and president of The LMR Company, a management consulting firm focused on creating and implementing business development, fundraising and branding solutions for venture capital, technology and service sector clients. His more than 15 years of operating, business development and marketing experience also includes founding and publishing TECHcapital magazine and serving as senior vice president for Post-Newsweek Business Information, Inc., a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company. He also served as PNBI's vice president of entrepreneurial ventures (1994-1997) and CFO/director of operations (1991-1994). 

Mr. Hurley regularly speaks and advises on issues related to entrepreneurship and raising venture capital and has appeared before seminar audiences in the greater Washington region, at the Atlanta Technology Development Corporation, New York Economic Development Corporation, Austin Software Association, Georgetown University, Johns Hopkins University, the University of Maryland and VA CIT Breakfast with Experts. He has been featured in the Washington Post, Washington Business Journal, Regardie's Power magazine, Potomac Tech Journal, Business Journal, Baltimore Business Journal, The Daily Deal and Mass High Tech, the journal of New England technology. He is also an adjunct professor at American University and the University of Maryland where he has taught courses on entrepreneurship and holds a BS from the University of Maryland University College at College Park.

Major Accomplishments

• Member of the acquisition team for the sale of TechNews, Inc. to The Washington Post Company
• Launching TECHcapital magazine
• Member of the launch team for Technology Transfer Business Magazine
• Co-creating the National Technology Fast 500 program (sold to Deloitte & Touche LLP, 1997)

LinkedIn Profile

Ian Westberg is a Co-Founder and Regional Manager of the Venture Pipeline. This DLA business unit is specifically focused on enhancing the funding prospects of early stage ventures. Led by business professionals with experience in technology, start-ups and capital markets, the Venture Pipeline actively advises on strategic business issues that are critical to funding. The group also works directly with the investment community, screening and scrubbing deal flow to match investors’ specific needs with appropriately targeted companies. Ultimately, the Venture Pipeline group works to connect start-ups with targeted funding sources – by leveraging the firm’s collective global network of angel, venture, institutional and strategic investors.

Mr. Westberg has worked in several capacities over the last eighteen years assisting emerging growth companies. As a Senior Corporate Securities Paralegal, Mr. Westberg assisted companies with corporate formation, private financing transactions, merger and acquisitions, and initial public offerings. Prior to co-founding the Venture Pipeline, Mr. Westberg served as a Business Analyst for the Sacramento office of Gray Cary, focusing on client financing issues and venture capital analysis.

Currently, Mr. Westberg advises companies on various aspects of their business plans, including capital structure, management and recruiting issues, market development, strategic partnerships and financing strategies. Mr. Westberg works with emerging growth companies across a number of industry sectors including software, business and consumer services/products, internet, new media, communications, semiconductor, life science, clean tech and retail and has helped more than 50 companies raise capital.

In 2009, Legal 500 recognized Mr. Westberg, noting that clients praise his "standout knowledge of early stage funding and excellent support of early stage companies."