ABOUT US
We invest values-driven capital that maximizes financial return (IRR) and achieves an eternal impact (ERR).
OUR TEAM
OUR TEAM
LEADERSHIP
David L. Steward
Founder and Chairman, World Wide Technology and Kingdom Capital
David L. Steward, Founder and Chairman of World Wide Technology was born in Chicago, Illinois, and moved with his family shortly thereafter to the small rural town of Clinton, Missouri.
After graduating from Central Missouri State University in 1973, Mr. Steward relocated to St. Louis, Missouri. He was the first person of color ever hired by Missouri Pacific Railroad Company to sell rail services. Upon leaving Missouri Pacific Railroad Company, he joined Federal Express as a senior account executive. During his tenure at FedEx, Mr. Steward was recognized as salesman of the year and was inducted into the company’s sales hall of fame in 1981.
After founding two successful startup companies, Mr. Steward founded World Wide Technology in 1990. Steward and his executive team have built what started as a small logistics/ transportation audit company into a leading systems integrator and supply chain solutions provider with over 5,000 employees globally and $13 billion in revenue.
Mr. Steward has been married to his wife, Thelma, for 43 years. Their son, David L. Steward II, CEO of Polarity Ltd, is married to Mary and they have two sons, Trey and Julian. Their daughter, Kimberly Steward, is CEO of K Period Media.
Mr. Steward is a member of the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans and serves on their Board of directors. He also serves on the boards National Academy Foundation (NAF), United Way of Greater St. Louis, Washington University, Variety the Children’s Charity of St. Louis, Boy Scouts of America Great St. Louis Area Council and many other organizations.
Under Mr. Steward’s leadership, WWT has grown to be the most successful business in the history of the Government’s 8A disadvantaged business and small business program. The company has successfully partnered with the DOD, various security agencies, NIH and many other civilian agencies. The company has also been issued clearances at the highest level.
In addition to graduating from Central Missouri State University, Mr. Steward holds an Honorary Doctor of Laws from Washington University, as well as Honorary Doctorates in Humane Letters from numerous colleges and universities. Mr. Steward was the first non-engineer to be awarded the Black Engineer of the Year Award. In 2018, Mr. Steward was presented with Boy Scouts of America’s national-level Silver Buffalo Award for distinguished service.
Mr. Steward and his wife are involved in many philanthropic and community efforts. “I don’t have a business philosophy and a personal philosophy. They are one and the same that I live by 24/7. My wife, Thelma and I come from humble backgrounds, and we have been blessed with more prosperity than we could have imagined when we were young. It is a blessing for us to give to others.”
Brandon K. Mann
Co-Founder, Managing Partner & CEO
Brandon has been blessed with more than 25 years of diverse executive and board leadership experience. He is the Co-Founder, Managing Partner and CEO of Kingdom Capital, a values-driven private investment and philanthropic firm that seeks to transform the world through a virtuous cycle of capital.
Brandon serves as an advisor to the Board of Directors of World Wide Technology, a global technology solutions firm. Brandon is the Founder and Executive Chairman of Biblical Business Training, a global non-profit ministry that helps people apply Biblical principles at work. He is the co-author of Leadership By The Good Book: Timeless Principles for Making an Eternal Difference, to be published May 2020.
Prior to founding Biblical Business Training, Brandon served in a variety of key executive and board roles helping develop the country’s largest privately held commercial real estate services firm. Brandon also has served on a wide variety of non-profit and ministry leadership and board roles, including University of Missouri, United Way, Bonhomme Church, Kirk Day School, and Westminster Christian Academy.
Brandon graduated top of his BSBA and MBA programs at the University of Missouri in 1994 and 1996 respectively. Originally from Hannibal, Missouri, Brandon is married to his high school sweetheart, Lisa, and they are blessed with three children: Logan, Kaitlyn, and Gavin.
Angela Mahan
Executive Assistant to the CEO
As Executive Assistant to the CEO, Angela performs a wide range of administrative support for the Managing Partner & CEO to facilitate the efficient operation of the firm. She is blessed to bring to the table more than 25 years of administrative experience within higher education and church ministry. Prior to her job at Kingdom Capital, Angela served as Chief of Staff at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Ladue. Originally from Kansas, she holds both a master’s degree in communication and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Wichita State University. She and her husband, Fr. Earl Mahan, have two adult children, Trevor and Mikayla.
H. Dean VandeKamp
Strategic Advisor
Dean is a former EY Partner where he led national practices (including cybersecurity) and served as a coordinating partner for public and large private companies. At EY he worked in the audit, consulting, and transaction areas for global companies in several industries including industrial manufacturing, healthcare, insurance, and agriculture. After EY Dean served as a GP with Cultivation Capital, a venture capital firm in the life sciences and technology space, and also with private equity (franchise retail) companies and boards. His experience with startup companies has given him insights into fostering innovation and understanding disruptive risks associated with advanced and emerging technologies.
Dean received his MBA at the University of Colorado – Denver and his undergraduate double major in Accounting / Information Systems at Dordt College and has the following certifications: Certified Public Accountant, Certified Fraud Examiner, Certified Information Systems Auditor, and a National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) Fellow. He has remained active with charitable organization work and industry association affiliations throughout his career and currently serves as a Trustee of Biola University and on the Boys Hope Girls Hope of St. Louis Board, a nonprofit nurturing and guiding academically capable and motivated children in need to become well educated, career-ready men and women.
LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE
Brian Bennett
Director
As Director of Kingdom Capital’s Leadership Institute, Brian focuses on partnering with commercial and philanthropic leaders to cultivate values enhanced organizations. The Institute is focused on both the role of management in shaping culture and the role of culture in contributing to organizational health and performance. Brian is blessed with nearly 16 years of organizational development and leadership experience. This includes executive-level responsibilities within human resource management and organizational strategy. He is a certified coach by the International Coaching Federation and has coached leaders across the private, social, and public sectors. Brian is passionate about helping leaders harness the strengths of their unique leadership profile while adapting to the needs of their team, organization, and environment. He is also certified as a Behavioral Analyst by Target Training International and by Korn Ferry in their Leadership Architect competency model. He has masters degrees in both business administration and organizational leadership.
TECHNOLOGY & DATA SCIENCE
Chet Guess
President of the Technology Investment Group & CTO
As Chief Technology Officer and President of the Technology Investment Group, Chet focuses on identifying and cultivating strategic investments within Kingdom Capital's technology sector. He oversees the technology portfolio and provides leadership and guidance for other Kingdom Capital sectors around needed technologies. Prior to Kingdom Capital, Chet spent 25 years at General Electric in various information technology senior leadership roles and most recently was the SVP and Chief Technology Officer for infrastructure products for the GE Corporation globally. Chet is a Navy veteran and spent 8 years as a nuclear engineer on-board fast attack submarines. Chet is active in the communities in which he has served and has sat on an array of boards. Currently he is on the board of Biblical Business Training (BBT), a global non-profit ministry that helps people apply Biblical principles at work. He is also on the board of the Young Catholic Professionals (YCP), a nonprofit on a mission to challenge, train, and inspire young adults working in various professions to Work in Witness for Christ.
Regis Rogers
Vice President of the Technology Investment Group
As Vice President of the Technology Investments Group at Kingdom Capital, Regis focuses on identifying and cultivating new venture technology investment opportunities that create value at the intersection of financial outcomes (IRR) and values aligned impact (ERR). Particular areas of interest and expertise include cyber security, enterprise software & software engineering, as well as data science and AI. Previously, Regis spent 16 years in the Enterprise IT and Cyber Security fields, including leading cyber security engineering at a Fortune 500 Bank and holding multiple executive positions at General Electric including business-unit CTO, CISO and executive leadership roles in Product Engineering. During his time with GE, he had the opportunity lead the commercial development of a unique cyber security software product, advised and facilitated the development of multiple enterprise startup technologies as an early global customer, and was a member of the leadership team that built a $10Bn “startup” business (now $19Bn) in France, as part of the largest corporate acquisition in company history.
Regis obtained his B.S. in Computer Engineering from the University of Notre Dame in 2004. He later obtained his M.B.A from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, with a focus on entrepreneurship and strategy.
Daniel Headrick
Vice President of the Technology Investment Group
As Vice President of the Technology Investment Group at Kingdom Capital, Daniel focuses on identifying and advising strategic investments. Daniel is an experienced technology and cyber security leader with over 20 years of experience in technology strategy, investment advisement, and team leadership. Previously, Daniel was a Senior Vice President at 5/3 Bank and Vice President at the General Electric Company working within the industrial, manufacturing, financial services, and digital technology industries. He has an extensive background in digital transformation, disruptive technology, and cyber security. He is a strong team builder, servant / leader, and mentor of high performing talent in diverse technical disciplines.
Daniel holds a B.S. in Information technology and has served on multiple technology advisory boards. He is active with his Catholic parish and his local community serving the unhoused and supporting children’s health.
Matthew Schwartz
Chief Technologist
Matthew Schwartz is a highly experienced leader with over 20 years in securing cloud, enterprise, and critical infrastructure. He is passionate about solving security challenges and implementing efficient governance and risk management programs. Matthew has a strong technical background in security product development, secure development lifecycle, and agile methodologies. Matthew has a track record of delivering secure solutions that exceed customer expectations and has led cross-functional teams to deliver complex software projects on time. Matthew’s expertise in the field has resulted in several patents and publications. Before Kingdom Capital, Matthew served as a Principal Security Engineer at Amazon Web Services, the lead technical advisor and strategist for the red team, penetration testing, and bug bounty team. Before Amazon Matthew served in various roles such a Principal Engineer at Sandia National Labs and Director of Threat Management for General Electric Oil & Gas. Matthew is currently a Lieutenant Colonel in the Delaware National Guard as a Cyberspace Warfare Operations Officer.
Matthew holds a Master of Science in Computing from Marquette University and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.
Noriko Wade
Senior Director of the Technology Investment Group
As Senior Director of the Technology Investments Group at Kingdom Capital, Noriko focuses on transformation, organizational culture, and delivering customer focused value. Noriko has spent 13 years in Enterprise IT and Cyber Security with a focus on Program and Product Management supporting Fortune 500 companies. Most recently she led Product Transformation for a Fortune 20 financial institution.
Noriko partners with Executive Leadership teams to support development and execution of strategic vision and customer focused value. Having an entrepreneur spirit, Noriko strives to embody the SHIELD values as she combines her experience and business acumen to deliver impactful business results.
She graduated with a B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication and Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2004. Later, she obtained her M.B.A and M.I.S. from North Carolina Central University. She also holds PMP, ITIL, and Six Sigma certifications.
Ryan Miller
Senior Director of the Technology Investment Group
As Senior Director of the Technology Investments Group at Kingdom Capital, Ryan focuses on identifying and advising early stage venture opportunities in cybersecurity and data science domains. He leads Kingdom Capital’s engineering team of software engineers and data scientists with a focus on assisting early-stage companies deliver solutions from concept to commercial launch.
Prior to joining Kingdom Capital, Ryan spent the past 10 years building, developing, and managing software engineering and product organizations in the finance/consumer/industrial verticals for various Fortune 500 businesses and startups. Most recently Ryan led the creation of a new software engineering organization within cybersecurity at a Fortune 500 Bank. An engineer at heart, Ryan’s passions focus on building and assisting engineering teams towards bringing innovative technology solutions to market. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a Bachelors of Science in Computer Engineering.
Sharlene Calloway
Director of Product Management
As Director of Product Management, Sharlene partners with portfolio leadership to accelerate a market back product development strategy. Prior to Kingdom Capital, Sharlene managed multiple infrastructure products and large-scale programs for General Electric’s corporate and technology entities. Sharlene brings almost 15 years of technical and product experience to Kingdom Capital, in addition to global team leadership, strategic planning, value-added process creation, technical footprint expansion, and tactical execution. Her experience spans startup, government, and enterprise companies. Sharlene obtained her certification of Product Management from Cornell University; additionally, she is a Kennesaw State University alum, obtaining both her B.S. and M.S. in Information Systems from the university. While at Kennesaw State, she also chartered the local collegiate chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc.; she continues to be an active member, having held many local executive board positions, working in the community, and serving as a mentor to collegiate members and high-school affiliates.
Ernest L. Smiley
Chief Data Scientist
As Chief Data Scientist (CDS) and Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) of Kingdom Capital. Ernest focuses on data science, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and predictive analysis within the cyber/information security, human capital management, and healthcare ecosystem. Ernest oversees data scientists who perform statistical data analysis, ensure data quality, and develop tracking and reporting systems to determine the effectiveness of models, rules, and other risk initiatives and programs.
Ernest has a career that spans over 25 years of experience integrating computer systems for the US Army, Department of Defense, DoD Health Systems, Intelligence Community, and commercial organizations. His other positions include Chief Technology Officer, Director, Senior Engineering Manager, Chief Architect, Senior Information Technology Security Manager and Senior Program Manager for the US Army, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Department of Energy (DOE), General Dynamics, Sprint and Lockheed Martin. He is the former Chief Data Scientist for National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) within the Federal Government.
He is also the Founder and CEO of Georgetown Analytics which focuses on data science, artificial intelligence, and predictive analytics platform, supporting investments, cyber, talent management, and healthcare ecosystem opportunities throughout the United States.
Ernest holds a Master's Degree in Technology Management from Georgetown University, a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Finance and Accounting, and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Maryland. He has a Master's in Information Technology and Project Management from Carnegie Mellon University. He also holds a Graduate Certificate in Data Science from Georgetown University. He has completed several executive leadership programs from Harvard University, Carnegie Mellon University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Ernest was the 2017 Scientist of the Year.
Ernest holds the following certifications: Certified Data Privacy Solutions Engineer (CDPSE), Certified in the Governance of Enterprise IT (CGEIT), Certified Software Analyst (CSA), Certified Information Security Manager (CISM), Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC), Certified Project Manager (CPM), Certified Forensic Consultant (CFC), Certified Leadership Consultant (CLC), and Certified Internal Controls Auditor (CICA).
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Michelle Hackmann
Chief of Staff Technology Investment Group
Michelle joined Kingdom Capital in 2018 and resides within the firm’s executive leadership as Chief of Staff Technology Investments. Prior to joining Kingdom Capital, she has been within the executive administration realm for more than 30 years experienced with varied industry CEO’s, Presidents, and Boards of Directors. Michelle works alongside the President of Technology Investments/Chief Technology Officer in strategic initiatives and priorities of the technology investment group while spanning the many elements of the venture capital process and supporting incredible founders.
HEALTH & MEDICAL
T. Scott Glover
President of the Health and Medical Investment Group
As president of Kingdom Capital’s Health & Medical Group, Scott seeks God’s guidance in identifying and cultivating strategic investment opportunities in the Health & Medical sector. Scott is blessed with more than 25 years of leadership and expertise in the diagnostic, medical, life science, and pharmaceutical business segments. This includes executive level responsibilities within general management, commercial, and business operations. His career started within the multinational corporate footprint (Abbott Laboratories, Cardinal Health, and Sigma-Aldrich), and then moved into the private sector and most recently has been involved in the start-up community, operating in a president’s role for both segments. Throughout these sectors, Scott established a track record in leading commercial organizations, P&L performance, launching products/services, employee development, change management, and portfolio management. Scott has served on a wide array of boards, and he serves on the board of Biblical Business Training (BBT).
Dan Thompson
Vice President of the Health and Medical Investment Group
As Vice President of Kingdom Capital’s Health & Medical Group, Dan is focused on identifying and advancing key strategic investment initiatives related to technology opportunities in the life sciences, medical device and diagnostic areas. Currently Dan is leading the development initiative and commercialization planning for Integro Theranostics, LLC, a Kingdom Capital portfolio company focused on medical device and diagnostic development in the area of cancer. Dan has enjoyed a blessed professional career spanning more than 25 years and includes executive leadership as President & CEO in the start-up pharmaceutical arena as well as a Partner in venture development. Dan’s executive leadership in public and private organizations has included roles as Chief Operating Officer, Chief Compliance Officer, as well as Head of Business Development, Quality Affairs and Medical Affairs. He has been a professional mentor to entrepreneurs in the life sciences and medical device-diagnostic sector and an Adjunct Professor to students in the PharmD. curriculum. Dan holds a Juris Doctorate of Law with a Certificate in Health Law and a Master of Science in Molecular Biology. Dan has several medical publications in peer-reviewed drug delivery journals and is the author of Little Ways to Little Sanctity.
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
Nicole Peterson
Administrative Assistant
As the Administrative Assistant, Nicole focuses on the daily operations of business administration and office management. She is blessed to have over 29 years of experience in Educational Leadership and Administration. Her other positions included serving as a Program Director for the YMCA of Greater St. Louis, Accreditation Specialist for Missouri Accreditation for Early Education, Registrar for the Ferguson Florissant School District, and owner of Visions Training and Consulting Services.