Our best performing assets are our people.
Mike Dawson
Vice President
"You can't be fond of living in the past, 'cause if you are, then there's no way that you're gonna last." – Gord Downie, The Tragically Hip
Mike is a lifelong entrepreneur. He understands life as a founder and has an obsession for building and scaling businesses. He spent the first part of his career on the tools as an engineer before pivoting to tech and consulting. He brings all of that experience to team McRock and the world of VC
Engineering work took Mike all over Canada and Texas in several industrial settings (e.g., renewable energy, oil & gas, utilities, etc.). He commissioned and redesigned the world’s first electric oil fracking fleet–innovative and rewarding work–but the repetitive nature of P&C engineering left him needing an outlet for his innovation. He scratched the entrepreneurial itch by launching his first business, independently growing a product to retail shelf space in more than 200 stores across five countries.
Mike pivoted into the tech world where he grew a SaaS start-up five-fold while overseeing revenue. He closed the necessary funding and founded a subsidiary business leveraging existing data and hardware. These catalysts made the business appealing for acquisition–which it quickly was–creating the largest fitness technology company in the world. From here Mike moved into digital consulting to establish relationships, negotiate large multi-year contracts and grow business with some of the largest corporations across North America.
Mike earned his Bachelors degree from McMaster University in both Electrical Engineering and Finance, all while captaining the lacrosse team to a National Championship–because why not make your post-secondary school years even more challenging. He also received his Professional Engineers designation from APEGA.
Scott MacDonald
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
"Mediocrity is a sin"
Scott is an entrepreneur at heart and a venture capitalist by training. An early pundit on the digital transformation and venture investments in the industrial sector, he wanted to create the world’s first investment firm focused exclusively on the Industrial IoT. In 2012, he co-founded McRock Capital and his dream was alive.
Scott embraced diversity & inclusion as a competitive advantage from the very inception of McRock and has long been a champion for underrepresented groups in private capital. In particular, he has strongly advocated for an increase in female representation on public and private company boards.
He currently serves on the boards of Triax Technologies (Chair), Landing AI, ThoughtTrace, SkySpecs, Worldsensing, Invixium, Serious Integrated and the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA). Scott currently serves as a board observer on Poka and e2ip. He previously served as Chair of RuggedCom (acquired by Siemens), Chair of RtTech (acquired by AspenTech and Vinci Energies), director of Pure Technologies (acquired by Xylem), and director of PPIC (acquired by Pure).
Prior to co-founding McRock, Scott was a Partner with a Zurich-based venture capital firm and Managing Director in the venture capital subsidiary of Ontario Power Generation, a large North American utility. Scott represented Canada at the 1989 and 1991 World Gymnastics Championships and was a voting member of the Canadian Olympic Committee for the quadrennial leading up to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.
Mickey Mi
Associate
"Someone's sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago." – Warren Buffett
Mickey believes technology should solve real-world challenges with minimal negative impact. He invests in boundary-pushing solutions that also create sustainable impacts for both society and industry. Mickey’s long-term belief is anchored in his philosophy of resiliency, compounded growth, and delayed gratification.
Mickey’s work benefits from experience as an investor and an entrepreneur. Before joining McRock, he executed social impact investments at a British impact investor, worked on early-stage ICT deals at a leading Asian venture capital firm, and contributed to renewable energy investments at a publicly listed company. Before that, he founded an EdTech startup, gaining firsthand insight into the entrepreneurial journey.
Before moving to Canada, Mickey lived and worked in the US, UK, and China. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Washington in Seattle and a Masters of Science degree in Enterprise Risk Management from Columbia University. He is actively pursuing the CFA designation. Outside of work, Mickey is a big fan of spaceship sci-fi movies and hopes to be on a spaceship one day.
Pritish Sehgal
Associate
"You miss 100 percent of the shots you don't take." - Wayne Gretzky
Pritish is inspired by how innovation and invention have shaped the world, and firmly believes collaboration between investors and entrepreneurs will continue to shape the future. He is particularly drawn to founders dedicated to addressing intricate challenges within the Digital Industrial theme.
Pritish's passion for innovation and investing was ignited when he started Interwood from his college dorm room. He has since gained valuable private investment experience at Grant Thornton, Faber Capital PE and most recently, at IAN Group, where he led early-stage SaaS investments. His experience includes multi-strategy transactions across geographies, including North America, Europe, Africa, and southeast Asia and sectors such as clean energy, logistics, enterprise tech, robotics, and biotech.
Pritish holds a business degree with a specialization in finance & investments from MIT School of Management, India and an honorary charter from the CGIA Institute, USA.
Whitney Rockley
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
"Keep on keeping on" - Joe Dirt
Whitney co-founded McRock Capital in 2012 with the belief that better compute power, data collection and analytics would transform industrial businesses. Today, her vision is true with the world’s largest industries amidst a digital revolution.
Whitney has had a trail blazing twenty-year career in private capital. She was the first female Chair of the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA) since it was founded in 1974 and created the first taskforce on diversity and inclusion, which evolved into a D&I committee that she chaired for many years. She deeply believes that diverse teams dramatically outperform and is a strong voice for these initiatives within the technology and private capital ecosystems. Whitney is an advisor to BKR Capital, a venture capital fund built with the objective of investing in promising black founders of technology companies answering unmet needs of minority communities.
She currently serves on the boards of Samdesk (Chair), Praemo (Chair), Invixium, Miovision, Clearpath and Plus One Robotics in addition to being on the management advisory committee at the Haskayne School of Business. She was the Chair of Decisive Farming (acquired by Telus) and served on the boards of mnubo (acquired by AspenTech), RtTech (acquired by AspenTech), PPIC (acquired by Pure Technologies, which in turn was acquired by Xylem), SpectraSensors (acquired by Endress + Hauser), the Venture Capital Association of Alberta (VCAA) and Ryerson’s Centre for Engineering, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. She was one of the key investors behind RuggedCom (acquired by Siemens) and an early investor in Silicon Energy (acquired by Itron) and Capstone (NASDAQ: CPST).
Prior to co-founding McRock, Whitney was a Partner with a Zurich-based venture capital firm and Nomura New Energy Ventures in London, England. She has a deep global network through her work across London, Zurich, San Francisco, Calgary, Edmonton and Toronto.
Ha Nguyen
Partner
"The best way to predict the future is to invent it" - Alan Kay
Ha believes that it is a privilege to work with founders of all kinds. She is excited to have a front-row seat to the change unfolding in the industrial world and enjoys working with companies that have a resilient sense of mission and the creativity to navigate through unprecedented business challenges.
She developed a passion for technology and early stage investing through her work with IDG Ventures and MAJ Invest in Vietnam, where she immersed herself in helping companies grow, and engaged with entrepreneurs from the consumer to enterprise technology sectors. Through her international VC experience, Ha brings unique perspectives and deep global connections.
Ha currently serves as Observer on the boards of Samdesk, Landing AI, Plus One Robotics and Praemo, in addition to being a Director on the board of the Venture Capital Association of Alberta (VCAA). She was also a Board Observer at ThoughtTrace prior to the company’s successful acquisition by Thomson Reuters in 2022.
Ha received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Foreign Trade University in Vietnam and holds a Master of Science degree in Finance and Investment from Aston Business School in the UK.
Udit Bhatnagar
Vice President
"In order to attain the impossible, one must attempt the absurd" - Miguel de Cervantes
Udit firmly believes that venture capital and entrepreneurship are players on the same sports team - the team wins when players truly compliment each other and live by the same playbook. He is inspired by founders who upend the status quo and started his career in the technology sector, building products and advising blue chip companies on some of their most innovative technology initiatives.
After developing a passion for helping entrepreneurs and funding innovation while working as a fellow at IE Business School’s Center for Entrepreneurship, he went on to take up a role in early stage investments in India. As a technologist, he enjoys exchanging product ideas with founders, and is always on the lookout for the next innovation. Udit currently serves as an Observer on the boards of Triax Technologies, Landing AI, Worldsensing and Invixium.
While his roots are in India, Udit has lived in several countries including Spain, Japan, Denmark and now Canada. It was during his MBA at IE Business School in Spain that Udit spent an exchange semester at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School, fell in love with Canada and decided to make it his permanent home.
In addition to his MBA, Udit holds an undergraduate degree in industrial engineering from VTU in India.
Susan Malik
Head of Finance & Operations
"Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn." - Benjamin Franklin
Susan is driven by her lifelong desire to learn. She puts her knowledge to work every day, ensuring the latest financial and operational best practices are incorporated into McRock’s fabric. She’s equally passionate about working with others, sharing her wisdom and modelling those principles–teaching, leading and governing in an impactful and thoughtful way. Susan could be the poster child for giving back to one’s community.
These attributes have guided her through numerous professional achievements–growing many successful businesses and supporting entrepreneurs in their own journeys. Others could learn from her approach to financial management. She is an effective CFO because she believes in demystifying the world of finance and helping founders understand and implement strategies that build business value, revenue growth and brand recognition. And she’s a stellar team player. Susan thrives in dynamic environments where everyone wears multiple hats; she will roll up her sleeves and learn whatever is required to get the job done.
Her experience is vast and varied, crossing myriad industries, including information systems, private equity, SAAS, banking/finance, environmental/clean-tech, medical, retail, consulting, training and education. Just imagine the things she’s seen, experienced and accomplished over the years. And she brings that wealth of knowledge to her role at McRock every single day. Susan is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA) and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto. Her continuing education pursuits have also earned her numerous certifications in the areas of finance, technology and management.
Fasih Kareem
Associate
"You are never too old to set a new goal or dream a new dream." - C. S. Lewis
Fasih has a passion for helping businesses grow through data-driven decision making. He believes that with the right guidance and support most start-ups can become great companies that will scale and create more opportunity for others. It’s a winning formula but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Each start-up journey is challenging, with many bumps along the way, but he also knows that stepping up to bat every single day is ultimately the key to success. He is inspired by working in a community of like-minded builders and creators on a shared mission to find technology solutions that can unlock new opportunities for growth.
Curiosity and constant learning drive Fasih. He’s built a knowledge base that helps him deliver insights on business strategies, financial management and data analytics all at once. It all began with a career in auditing where he developed a deep understanding of big business operations; this led to his career in investments, first in the healthcare technology sector and then venture capital investments focusing on early-stage technology start-ups. He has more than nine years of experience and specializes in advanced financial modelling, valuation transactions, mergers and acquisitions and business analysis.
Fasih has previously worked in real estate, venture capital, healthcare IT solutions, and education services sectors in Canada, USA, Singapore, UAE and Pakistan, where he focused on financial planning and executing growth strategies. Fasih is a member of CPA Canada and ACCA and holds a BSc Honors in Applied Accounting from Oxford Brookes University. He has provided in-depth analysis and solutions to technology start-ups in South and Central Asia.
Fasih is an avid traveller, enjoys photography and swimming, and likes to learn new languages. He’s presently trying to master French. Très bien!
Here’s What Our Founders
Have To Say About Us.
The McRock Touch
Expertise, energy, support and commitment. Real people passionate about helping entrepreneurs fulfill their dreams.