Not-for-profit Canadian tech member association The C100 has appointed Ray Newal as its latest CEO as the organization looks to ramp up its international expansion efforts.
Newal’s appointment was announced by the C100 this week, following a five-month search that started in February.
The C100 has launched new chapters in New York and Los Angeles, and is set to establish four more locations across the United States and beyond.
Most recently, Newal was the head of capital and ecosystem at MaRS Discovery District, supporting ventures in the health sciences, cleantech, and enterprise software sectors. He also led the expansion of Techstars into India, where he worked as the managing director from 2018 to 2020.
Newal has also led business development teams at DoubleClick, Microsoft, Lemontonic, and Yahoo.
As an entrepreneur, Newal co-founded mobile video startup Jigsee, which was backed by Sequoia Capital and the Indian Angel Network. In 2015, he also co-founded communication SaaS platform DOSE Work.
“Ultimately what I’ve gained from these experiences is a well-rounded appreciation for the journey founders must travel in order to build a successful technology business at scale,” he told BetaKit.
According to Newal, he has closely followed the C100 “from the other side of the world” for a few years. However, he said that it wasn’t until a conversation with RBC’s senior vice president John Stackhouse in 2020 that he was able to “fully grasp how intertwined my passion to make Canada a global tech leader is with the founding purpose and mission of the C100.”
The C100 provides support for Canadians in tech through mentorship, investment, partnership, and talent. Headquartered in San Francisco, the organization’s membership now totals 516 members across 34 cities around the world, as reported by The Logic.
A spokesperson for the C100 told BetaKit that 45 percent of its membership is based in Canada, which represents around 230 members.
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Newal is replacing Laura Buhler, who led the C100 since the end of 2016. Under Buhler, the C100 relaunched and revamped its Charter Membership, an invite-only cohort of members. The organization also launched its core membership product, allowing Canadians in tech to apply to become a member.
The C100’s flagship program, 48Hrs in the Valley, was rebranded to become C100 Fellows last April, which is aimed to expand the founder experience from that of a two-day event to an eight-month virtual program involving mentorship with growth-stage founders, expert operators from the C100 community, and peer networking across ecosystems.
When Buhler announced that she was stepping down as CEO in February, she noted that the organization’s new leader will be “charged with C100’s global expansion,” adding that the next chapter for the C100 will be able to scale its community and impact globally.
Most recently, the C100 launched new chapters in New York and Los Angeles, and is set to establish four more locations across the United States and beyond.
Additionally, Buhler said in her statement that her successor will aim to establish C100 chapters in 10 to 15 cities, across North America, Europe, and Asia.
Newal represents the C100’s fifth leader, following Buhler, Atlee Clark, Joanne Fedeyko, and Terry Doyle.
Featured image from the C100.