Leadership that
understands the mission.

Mina Faltas is the Founder and CEO of Washington Harbour Partners LP, a Washington, D.C., private investment firm managing over $6 billion in assets. Under his leadership, the firm invests in modern commercial technologies, platforms, and capabilities that are shaping America’s future competitiveness across Space, Cyber, Sensing, Resilient Communications, AI/ML and Data, Autonomous Systems, Battle Management Command & Control, Industrial Capacity, and Resilient Energy. In 2026, Washington Harbour Partners was the highest ranked non-government affiliated firm to also fund private equity investments and ranked sixth among all defense technology investors, in the Silicon Valley Defense Group’s NatSec100 report.

With more than 25 years of Technology investing experience, Mr. Faltas has built and scaled technology companies across national security and commercial sectors, spanning services, software, and hardware. Prior to founding Washington Harbour Partners in 2019, he co-founded Nokota Management LP, a $2.7 billion investment firm. Earlier in his career, he was an investor at Viking Global Investors and a Vice President in JPMorgan’s Proprietary Positioning Business.

Mr. Faltas is a recognized voice on the role of private capital in strengthening the national security innovation base and accelerating the adoption of critical technologies across government and industry. He was recognized by Washingtonian Magazine as one of DC’s Leading Defense-Tech Innovators. He serves on multiple advisory boards, including the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce and National Security Data and Policy Institute, the Silverado Policy Accelerator, and the Ronald Reagan Institute’s National Security Innovation Base initiative.

He holds a B.S. in Commerce (Finance) from the University of Virginia and lives in Virginia with his wife and children.

Before joining Washington Harbour, Mr. Smith was Senior Partner at In-Q-Tel (IQT), a strategic investment firm that invests and delivers cutting-edge technology to the US National Security Community. During his nearly two decades at IQT, Mr. Smith executed over sixty investments in support of the national security community and helped expand IQT’s global footprint as Managing Director of its first international office in London.

Before joining IQT, Mr. Smith held several senior roles at Merrill Lynch, including Vice President positions within Corporate Strategy and Finance, as well as serving as an investor in the firm’s strategic venture capital group.

Mr. Smith earned a B.A. in Economics from Bucknell University and an M.B.A. from the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University. He is an active member of Business Executives for National Security (BENS).

Before joining Washington Harbour, Mr. An was an investment professional at JMI Equity, a growth equity firm focused on investments in high-growth software companies. Prior to JMI, he worked in the Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) group at Goldman Sachs, advising global technology companies on M&A and IPO transactions across the semiconductor, software, internet and fintech sectors. Earlier in his career, Mr. An worked in the M&A group at RBC Capital Markets. Mr. An graduated from the University of Richmond with a B.S.B.A. and a concentration in Finance.

Before joining Washington Harbour, Mr. Ender previously worked at Veritas Capital, where he focused primarily on investments across technology and regulated end markets. At Veritas Capital, he worked on several notable transactions, including the acquisitions of NCR Voyix’s Digital Banking business (Candescent) and MetroStar Systems. Mr. Ender started his career at Goldman Sachs, where he worked on a variety of transactions across financial technology and asset management. He holds an MS and BS in Economics from the Texas A&M University.

Before joining Washington Harbour, Mr. Li previously worked at Silver Lake Partners. He was a generalist within technology and technology-enabled sectors. He evaluated strategic raonale and financial viability of potential portfolio companies. He worked on convertible debt investment in AMC Entertainment, Motorola Solutions, and on equity investments in WordPress and Intelsat among other projects. He was a summer intern at Silverlake as well as P Schoenfeld Asset Management and QED Benchmark Fund. Mr. Li graduated from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania with a B.S. in Economics, and Concentration in Finance, Accounting and Statics.

Before joining Washington Harbour, Mr. Shukla was an investment professional at Vista Equity Partners, where he focused on growth equity and buyout investments in enterprise software companies. Prior to Vista, he worked in the Technology group at J.P. Morgan in San Francisco, advising global technology companies on M&A and financing transactions. Mr. Shukla graduated from the College of William & Mary with a B.B.A. in Finance and Data Science.

Before joining Washington Harbour, Ms. Zhang was an investment professional at Thoma Bravo, where she focused on cybersecurity investments out of the firm’s Flagship fund. At Thoma Bravo, she played a key role on several notable transactions, from IPOs to take-privates to mergers. Beyond deal execution, she partnered closely with her portfolio companies on strategic M&A and value creation initiatives. Ms. Zhang started her career at Morgan Stanley, where she worked on a variety of transactions in the media and telecommunications space. She holds a B.A. in Economics from the University of Chicago.

Before joining Washington Harbour, Mr. Schulze was a Principal at Manhattan Venture Partners, a growth stage investment firm focused on TMT, fintech, defense tech, and tech enabled consumer companies. While based in the Bay Area, his role was focused on sourcing and vetting investment opportunities, as well as raising capital and maintaining relationships with strategic partners. Prior to joining Manhattan Venture Partners, Mr. Schulze worked on the Institutional Sales and Trading desk at B Riley, and then in the Liquidity Solutions group at Carta. Mr. Schulze remains based in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Before joining Washington Harbour, Mr. Malik previously worked at The Carlyle Group in Washington, D.C. He was a member of the Technology investing team focused on buyout and growth equity investments in enterprise software and tech-enabled services. He evaluated strategic rationale and financial viability of potential portfolio companies. Prior to Carlyle, he was a member of the Software and Services (S&S) investing team at Golden Gate Capital and as an investment banking analyst at Morgan Stanley. Mr. Malik graduated from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania with a B.S. in Economics, and concentrations in Finance, Accounting and Business Analytics.

Before joining Washington Harbour, Ms. Page was an investment professional at Lee Equity Partners, where she led the full investment lifecycle across sourcing, execution, and value creation for middle-market private equity investments. At Lee Equity, she developed investment theses across sectors including security integration and senior care, and played a key role in executing platform acquisitions, add-on transactions, and complex restructurings. Earlier in her career, Ms. Page was an investor at HarbourVest Partners, where she focused on growth equity and buyout co-investments, and a consultant with Oliver Wyman. Ms. Page graduated from Dartmouth College with B.A.s in Biology and Hispanic Studies.

Before joining Washington Harbour, Ms. Wang was an investment professional at The Blackstone Group in New York. Ms. Wang graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in Economics.

Before joining Washington Harbour, Mr. Dedas worked at Barclays in New York City. While at Barclays, he was a member of the Global Energy Transition Group, where he focused on mergers and acquisitions in the renewable energy and utility sectors. Additionally, he was a member of the Debt Capital Markets Group. Mr. Dedas graduated from the University of Virginia with a B.S. in Systems Engineering and a B.A. in Economics.

George Batsakis, as Chief Executive Officer and Operating Partner of Groundswell/Washington Harbour Federal IT, leads strategic focus and direction, including day-to-day operations. With over 25 years of experience in large-scale government systems development, George possesses extensive expertise in supporting lifecycle management across multiple agencies and technology platforms. As an experienced business executive and a U.S. Army veteran, George is committed to fulfilling Groundswell’s mission to bring seismic change to the federal sector.

Before joining Groundswell, formerly CollabraLink Technologies, Inc., George worked in Operations at Electronic Data Systems and Northrop Grumman. He also headed the National Security Group at SRA International, Inc. Later, George served as the Chief Growth Officer at CSRA and as the Defense and Intelligence Portfolio Lead at Accenture. George worked at the 1901 Group as a Partner and Executive before transitioning to CollabraLink, now a Groundswell company, as CEO.

After graduating from Hillsdale College, Hillsdale, Mich., where he studied political science and history, Batsakis attended the U.S. Army Officer Candidate School and served as an Infantry Officer in the U.S. Army and in various command and staff positions at the Company and Field grades in the U.S. Army National Guard. He holds a master’s degree in business from Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md., with specialization in operations research and systems analysis, as well as program management certification in acquisition management from the Defense Systems Management College, Fort Belvoir, Va. He also has attended executive education programs at the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business.

Michael Ellis is an Operating Partner with Washington Harbour Partners, bringing nearly two decades of experience building and scaling mission-critical aerospace and national security organizations across government and commercial markets. His background spans engineering, operations, strategy, and corporate development, with a particular focus on space systems, national security missions, and emerging defense technologies. He is known for his ability to operate comfortably at both the strategic and executional levels—shaping direction while engaging directly to ensure results.

Michael began his career at Raytheon, working on advanced missile and space sensor programs before moving into senior leadership roles at SpaceX and Anduril Industries, where he was responsible for executing and scaling complex national security programs. At SpaceX, he spent nearly a decade leading national security space launch operations, overseeing some of the most complex and high-consequence missions for the U.S. Government. At Anduril, he played a key role in the growth of the company’s Space business, advising leadership on strategy, partnerships, M&A, organizational design, business development and execution across space domain awareness, earth sensing, command and control, and space control initiatives.

As an Operating Partner at Washington Harbour, Michael advises the firm and its portfolio companies on strategy, operations, and growth. He works closely with founders, executives, and investment teams—often embedding directly with leadership—to navigate critical decisions, strengthen execution, and turn advanced technology into operational capability. Michael is known for earning trust quickly, operating without pretense, and supporting capable founders by stepping in where needed to help scale organizations serving defense and intelligence customers.

Michael began his career as an aerospace engineer and holds a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Michigan and a Master of Business Administration from UCLA.

Ralph Kahn is an Operating Partner at Washington Harbour Partners LP, and has more than 25 years’ experience in the technology industry. He has held positions in systems engineering, product management, professional services, sales and business management. Mr. Kahn has spent the last ten years working in the cybersecurity industry.

As the Vice President for Intel and Emerging technologies at McAfee, Mr. Kahn was responsible for leading an advanced technology group chartered with forward-looking cyber research. Under his direction, this group discovered several new threat vectors and developed an information sharing and cyber system interaction model that is being used at the core of the McAfee products and is being extended to include other cybersecurity products. Mr. Kahn has held positions as the Vice President of Federal for Tanium. In this role, he delivered on the U.S. Government’s need for real-time situational awareness at scale. In his most recent role, Mr. Kahn is CEO of Blue Horizon Advisors, a lead advisory firm to help high tech profit startups optimize go to market functions to accelerate and maximize revenue growth. Ralph holds a BS in Computer Science and an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis.

Egon Rinderer is an Operating Partner at Washington Harbour, bringing more than 35 years of experience solving complex technology challenges across the Department of Defense, Intelligence Community, and private sector.

He currently serves as Senior Vice President of Federal and Enterprise Growth at NinjaOne, where he leads enterprise and federal strategy, partnering closely with product and engineering teams to deliver mission-critical technology solutions.

Prior to NinjaOne, Mr. Rinderer was Chief Technology Officer at Shift5, a defense technology company focused on cybersecurity and data analytics for operational systems. He previously served as Global Vice President of Technology and President of Federal Business at Tanium, where he helped scale the company’s presence across federal and enterprise markets.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Rinderer held senior technical and leadership roles across government and industry, including positions supporting the U.S. Navy, intelligence agencies, and leading technology firms.

In addition to his operating roles, Mr. Rinderer advises the U.S. government on national security matters, supports emerging defense technology companies, and mentors students and entrepreneurs through STEM-focused initiatives.

Janelle Romano is an Operating Partner at Washington Harbour Partners, where she focuses on accelerating national security innovation and moving advanced technologies from concept to operational capability. She works alongside founders and leadership teams to scale differentiated technologies, expand their mission impact, and build the leadership, strategy, and operating infrastructure required for sustained growth across the defense and intelligence markets.

Janelle brings executive and operational leadership experience across the Intelligence Community, Department of War, and federal technology sector. Her background spans advanced cyber and Signals Intelligence operations, national security strategy, mission capability development, large-scale technology modernization, and enterprise transformation.

Prior to joining Washington Harbour Partners, Janelle served as Vice President of Cyber at CACI, where she led the company’s cyber strategy and line-of-business operations. She aligned technology investment, workforce strategy, and customer engagement to strengthen competitive positioning, advance customer missions, and drive sustained growth across the cyber market.

Janelle previously spent 27 years at the National Security Agency, where she served as a member of the Senior Executive Service and led organizations across the Cybersecurity, Operations, Research, and Capabilities directorates. She led teams responsible for protecting national security systems, advancing operational capabilities, and delivering technology in support of defense and intelligence missions. This experience provides the operational perspective she now brings to identifying, scaling, and deploying technologies with the potential to create meaningful national security impact.

Janelle currently serves on a corporate board and has served on several additional boards spanning the technology, financial services, and nonprofit sectors. Her board experience includes advising executive teams on growth strategy, governance, enterprise risk, and talent development, with an emphasis on aligning innovation and organizational investment to mission outcomes and long-term enterprise value.

Janelle holds a Master of Science in Engineering from Johns Hopkins University and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Valparaiso University.

Stu Shea is an Operating Partner with Washington Harbour Partners and is a seasoned Executive with four decades of experience in high-stakes National Security programs, including space, intelligence, cyber, special operations, and defense transformation. He has served as Chairman, Board member, CEO, and COO across Fortune 500 technology firms, startups, employee-owned businesses, and private equity-backed platforms. Renowned for his passionate and innovative leadership, Stu is noted for his resilience in tackling tough business challenges. His leadership philosophy emphasizes personal courage and a fearless approach to tackling the impossible.

Shea brings operational expertise in P&L and balance sheet accountability, strategic planning, corporate restructuring, and merger & acquisition integration. His solid grasp of accounting and finance, HR and compensation, contracts and legal matters, supply chain and procurement, marketing and communications, business development, pricing, investor relations, and corporate governance uniquely positions him as a valuable contributor to any boardroom.

Stu recently served as the Chairman, President & CEO of Peraton, a $7B next generation national security company. Previously, he held the role of President & Chief Operating Officer of Leidos [NYSE: LDOS], another $7B solutions-focused company. Stu led the creation of Leidos during his tenure as COO of SAIC [NYSE: SAI], an $11B science & technology solutions company. Prior to his role as COO, Stu led SAIC’s support to the national security community as President, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Group and earlier as Director of Space & Intelligence at Northrop Grumman TASC.

In his capacity as Operating Partner at Washington Harbour, Stu brings deep technical knowledge across a broad spectrum of complex technologies and systems. His areas of expertise include cyber operations, space control, software development, artificial intelligence/machine learning, electronic warfare, 5G and mobile communications, sensors and spectrum operations, geospatial intelligence, autonomous systems, and satellite operations.

Stu holds an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from George Mason University, a Master of Arts from the University of Kansas, and a Bachelor of Science from the State University of New York at Albany. He has also completed executive education programs at the University of Virginia Darden School of Business, Harvard Business School, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and The George Washington University School of Business and Public Management.

Jonathan Sholtis is an Operating Partner at Washington Harbour Partners, where he leads the firm’s Outpost platform and supports the development and execution of investment theses across national security, cyber, and government technology. He works across multiple WHP portfolio companies, helping build and scale mission-focused platforms addressing critical defense and intelligence challenges.

Jonathan previously served as Chief Operating Officer of SIXGEN and Chief Growth Officer at Groundswell, where he led enterprise growth strategy after serving as Managing Director of the firm’s DoD and Intelligence business. Prior to that, he led CSRA’s cyber portfolio for the Defense market and later served as Senior Vice President of Security and Resilience at ICF, leading cyber strategy and growth across the public sector.

Jonathan began his career as a U.S. Navy Information Warfare Officer, operating at the intersection of the electromagnetic spectrum, cybersecurity, and mission operations.

He holds a B.S. in Optical Engineering from the University of Rochester, an M.S. from Johns Hopkins University, and executive education credentials from Yale School of Management and Columbia Business School.

Jerad Speigel, as an Operating Partner, and the Chief Strategy and Corporate Development Officer of Groundswell/Washington Harbour Federal IT, is responsible for evaluating market trends and identifying critical areas for investment. Jerad’s purview includes organic and inorganic growth, designed to fast-track Groundswell’s capabilities and functional expertise. Federal customers have highly complex needs, and we designed our investments to meet those needs with world- class expertise. Jerad brings both entrepreneurship experience, as well as 20+ years of Federal technology experience, working across 30+ federal agencies.

Before joining Groundswell, formerly CollabraLink Technologies, Inc., Jerad was the founder and CEO of Phase One, a leading digital transformation firm specializing in low-code application development. Phase One was purchased in 2017 by Accenture. Jerad has an MBA and BBA in Finance from Texas Christian University.

Irby Thompson is an Operating Partner with Washington Harbour Partners, bringing over two decades of experience as a national security executive and serial entrepreneur. He has a proven track record of launching and scaling cybersecurity companies from inception through successful acquisition, with multiple exits to strategic acquirers including Raytheon, Wind River Systems, and Leidos.

At Washington Harbour, Mr. Thompson advises the firm and its portfolio companies on strategy, organizational growth, and execution — helping translate advanced research into operational capability and integration-ready platforms. He also oversees strategy for SIXGEN, a portfolio company focused on delivering mission-aligned cyber capabilities, including applied research and development, cyber operations services, and security engineering.

Mr. Thompson is the founder of Containment AI, a secure control plane for enterprise and autonomous AI agents that applies NSA-certified security architectures to mitigate systemic risk from non-aligned or adversarial AI behavior. Previously, he co-founded and served as CEO of OP[4] (the “Opposing Force”), an offensive cybersecurity company built around DARPA automation technology, which was acquired by Kudu Dynamics in 2024. He subsequently served as SVP of Business Development & Strategy at Kudu through its acquisition by Leidos in 2025. He also founded and led Star Lab Corp. through its acquisition by Wind River Systems in 2020, where he continued as VP of Product Security. Earlier, he served as COO and VP of Operations at Pikewerks Corporation through its acquisition by Raytheon.

Mr. Thompson earned his Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Mathematics, with a minor in Management of Technology, from Vanderbilt University, and a Master of Science in Information Security from the Georgia Institute of Technology. A recognized thought leader in the field, he has presented at numerous security conferences including Black Hat and DEFCON.

Before joining Washington Harbour, Mr. Guffey was the Director of Finance at Pennington Partners & Co. where he was responsible for the finance and accounting functions for multiple funds with different public and private market investment strategies. Prior to Pennington Partners, he was a Senior Manager at VMS Fund Administration where he managed a team that provided outsourced accounting support for private equity, venture capital and real estate investment firms. Prior to VMS, he served as the Chief Financial Officer of Global Environment Fund, a $1 billion global alternative asset manager investing in energy and environmental industries throughout the world. From 1998 – 2006, he was an Assistant Controller for The Carlyle Group where he was responsible for corporate financial reporting and accounting systems. Mr. Guffey graduated from James Madison University with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and is a Certified Public Accountant (Inactive).

Ms. Souhan is the Director of Operations at Washington Harbour Partners, LP, where she oversees regulatory compliance, trading operations, investor relations, and fund launches across public and private markets. She has successfully managed SEC filings, audits, and the execution of multiple private equity deals and co-investment opportunities. Before joining Washington Harbour, Ms. Souhan worked at Capital One in Commercial Loan Operations, where she earned recognition for excellence in risk management and client service. She also brings legislative and communications experience from the Maryland State Senate as Chief of Staff and Missouri House of Representatives as a Publications Specialist. Ms. Souhan holds a B.A. in English with a Business Minor from the University of Missouri and is a Certified Notary Public in Virginia.

Before joining Washington Harbour, Mr. Carter served as Controller at Design and Integration, a venture-backed specialty contractor, where he led the company’s accounting, treasury, and finance functions. Previously, he was an Audit Manager at Ellin & Tucker, managing teams that provided assurance and advisory services to private equity, venture capital, and real estate investment firms. Mr. Carter holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and a Bachelor of Arts in Finance from Elon University.

Mr. Wells currently serves as the Investor Relations Manager at Washington Harbour Partners LP, where he is responsible for leading investor communications, fundraising coordination, and relationship management across the firm’s platform.

Prior to joining Washington Harbour, Mr. Wells was an Investor Relations Associate at ROC USA Capital, where he led capital raising efforts and maintained relationships with institutional investors across multiple real estate funds. In this role, he was involved in investor reporting, due diligence processes, and strategic communications. Mr. Wells also served as a Post Closing Analyst at CapCenter, where he focused on financial documentation, transaction execution, and operational support within the residential mortgage sector. Mr. Wells received a bachelor’s degree in communications and economics and earned his Master of Business Administration from Longwood University.