Team

Rachel Sha Rachel Sha is an Operating Partner at The Engine. Rachel is an entrepreneurial life science executive with a record of innovative digital leadership shaping the discovery, development, and commercialization of therapies and solutions. She advises digital health and digital for life sciences companies in strategy and business development. She was recognized as a 2021 HBA Luminary. Rachel holds a BS from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Chemistry and a MBA from Harvard.

Colleen Calhoun Colleen Calhoun is an Operating Partner at The Engine. Colleen is an experienced executive leader with deep knowledge of the complexities of the global energy, power, oil & gas, and energy efficiency industries. Colleen spent twenty-five years at GE across several roles at the company including head of GE Energy Ventures, leader of Marketing & Strategy for GE’s Power & Water business and head of the Global Growth Markets platform for Energy Financial Services. She is an independent board director for Quaise, Evergreen Climate Innovations and Nabors Energy Transition Corp.

Emily Knight Emily is the Chief Operating Officer at The Engine. Before joining The Engine, Emily spent three years overseeing general operations, strategy and product management at Workbar coworking spaces. She has spent the last few years working with startups and connecting them to resources in the innovation ecosystem. Emily holds a BS from the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration.

Monique Guimond Monique is the Chief of Staff at The Engine where she helps lead capital formation efforts. Monique joined The Engine at its founding after receiving her MBA from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she also led the MIT 100K Startup Competition. Before The Engine,Monique worked at Flybridge Capital Partners and was one of the first employees at MASS Design Group, a social enterprise specializing in healthcare design and materials research, where she built out operations and expanded the business model abroad. Monique received her BA in International Health from Georgetown University.

Bettina Metais Bettina is the Vice President of Investor Relations & Operations at The Engine. She brings more than 20 years of venture fund operation experience to The Engine. Before joining The Engine, Bettina was with VC firm RockPort Capital, overseeing investor relations & reporting, fund operations and marketing. Bettina received her BA and MBA in Finance and Marketing from Martin Luther University in Halle/Germany and attended the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota under the year-long German academic exchange program.

Ben Downing Ben Downing is Vice President of Public Affairs at The Engine. Before joining The Engine, Ben was Vice President for New Market Development at Nexamp, a veteran-founded, Boston-based clean energy company. There he led the firm’s strategic development efforts across growing geographies and the firm’s entry into the energy storage market. Prior to this, Ben represented the state's largest Senate district while serving as State Senator for 52 communities in Western Massachusetts. Ben received a BA in Political Science from Providence College and an MA from Tufts University.

Vinny Beranek Vinny is the Director of Research & Analytics at The Engine. He was previously a consultant in the Private Equity Group at the London and Boston offices of Bain & Company. At Bain, he advised private equity and corporate clients on investments across industry sectors with a primary focus on healthcare. Vinny holds a PhD in Molecular Biology from the University of Cambridge, an MSc in Biomedical Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology, and a BS in Biomedical Engineering from the Czech Technical University.

Chloe Holzinger Chloe is Director of Strategic Partnerships at The Engine. Before joining The Engine, Chloe held market research positions at IHS Markit and Lux Research, where she advised clients on the global Li-ion battery supply chain, the battery systems powering the e-mobility and energy transition, and the startups developing these next-generation technologies. Chloe holds a MEng in Mechanical Engineering from Duke University and a BS in Marine Chemistry from Eckerd College.

Ian Johnston Ian is a Senior Associate at The Engine. From his previous position at Putnam Associates, Ian brings experience addressing key business and therapeutic development questions for biopharmaceutical and healthcare clients. Before this, Ian worked at the Penn Center for Innovation, assessing technologies for their patent and market potential. Ian holds a PhD in Pharmacology from University of Pennsylvania. Ian received his BS in Biomedical Engineering from Rutgers University.

Lakshana Huddar Lakshana is an Associate at The Engine. Lakshana brings over a decade of experience in academic research and the commercialization of climate-focused technologies. Before joining The Engine, Lakshana helped build Activate Boston, an entrepreneurial fellowship program supporting science innovators from concept to first product. Lakshana holds a PhD in Nuclear Engineering from the University of California - Berkeley, and both a MEng and BEng in Mechanical Engineering from Imperial College London.

Conrad Hollomon Conrad Hollomon is the Director of Government Programs at The Engine. A former military officer, Conrad previously worked at Unity Technologies on their Artificial Intelligence team as Senior Technical Product Manager, working to help bring advances in computer vision and reinforcement learning to market. Conrad received an MBA from Boston University with a focus on social impact and organizational behavior, and a BM in Film Scoring from Berklee College of Music.

Alex Grant Alex Grant is a Program Manager for The Engine. Alex started his career in software program management roles in the IoT industry. Prior to The Engine, Alex was involved in the Boston entrepreneurial ecosystem where he organized events and programs to support young founders. He holds a BS in Business Administration from Babson College with dual concentrations in Information Technology Management and Strategic Management.

Rumi Chaouli Rumi Chaouli is Brand Coordinator at The Engine. Rumi recently received a B.S. in Business Administration with concentrations in Social Entrepreneurship and Marketing from Northeastern University. While completing their undergraduate degree, Rumi worked part-time as Marketing and Design Intern at The Engine. Prior to The Engine, Rumi was a Marketing & Events Associate at Greentown Labs. While at Northeastern, they served as Co-Director of WISE, the Women’s Interdisciplinary Society of Entrepreneurship.

Sophie Meyer Sophie Meyer is Executive Coordinator at The Engine. She holds a BA from The University of Vermont where she was also the President of the Student Alumni Association. She sat on the UVM Alumni Association Board of Directors from 2020-2021 where she focused on building student-alumni relations and engaging the larger UVM community to build meaningful relationships and foster a sense of pride.

Adna Mohamed Adna Mohamed is an Executive Coordinator at The Engine. Previously, Adna was part of the Mongan Institute’s Covid Corps Biomedical Internship at Massachusetts General Hospital. There, Adna conducted epidemiology research focused on disparities in Covid mortality rates among individuals of different ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. Adna holds a BA in Political Economy from Williams College.

Lizzie Raymer Lizzie Raymer is an Executive Assistant at The Engine. Before joining, Lizzie worked in support and operational roles in a variety of industries, including startups, higher education, and media. Lizzie earned an MA in Intercultural Communication for Business and Professions from University of London and received her BA in Sociology at Northeastern.

Orin Hoffman Orin is a Special Advisor at The Engine. He serves as a Board Member for RISE Robotics and Hedron. Previously, Orin served in both investment and CTO roles at the Defense Innovation Unit Experimental (DIUx). Before DIUx, Orin spun out and served as Chief Technologist at Endeavor Robotics, which was acquired by FLIR systems. Orin began his career in R&D at iRobot, where he led the deployment of robotic systems to various conflict responses. Orin holds a MS in Electrical Computer Engineering from University of Massachusetts Amherst and a BA in Physics & Philosophy from Amherst College.

Dulcie Madden Dulcie is a Special Advisor at The Engine. She serves as a Board Member for Seaspire Skincare. Before joining The Engine, Dulcie was a co-founder and the CEO of Rest Devices, a startup that used sensors, hardware, and data-driven software to help families sleep better. Prior to Rest, she worked on the ground in India for five years, developing and scaling programs supporting maternal health and women's livelihood development. Dulcie has a BS in Biology from Georgetown University, an MPH from Boston University, and half of a MBA from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Jim Matheson Jim Matheson is a Special Partner at The Engine. He also serves as a member of the Harvard Business School faculty. Jim was one of the four General Partners who launched Flagship Pioneering. Previously, Jim was a Navy F-14/18 pilot with significant combat experience and tours as a TOPGUN Instructor and Officer-in-Charge of the Navy’s Nevada-based Adversary Squadron before retiring in 2008 as Commander. He earned his BS at the United States Naval Academy and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Fiona Murray Fiona Murray is a Fellow-in-Residence at The Engine. Fiona is a Professor and Associate Dean at the MIT School of Management. She is an international policy expert on the transformation of investments in science and technology into deep-tech start-up ventures that solve significant global challenges and create national advantage – from defense and security to health, food and water security. Fiona received her BA and MA from the University of Oxford in Chemistry. She subsequently moved to the United States and earned an AM and PhD from Harvard University in Applied Sciences.

Ed Freedman Ed Freedman is a Special Advisor at The Engine. Ed has over 20 years of leadership experience directing finance, legal and operational activities in companies across multiple industries including biotechnology, clean technology and venture capital. He combines an entrepreneurial approach to company-building with the strong analytical and organizational skills needed to address the complex challenges of highly-innovative businesses. Ed earned his JD from Boston College Law School and his BSBA in Accounting from Boston University.

Gareth Ross Gareth Ross is an Executive-in-Residence at The Engine. Gareth joins with a wealth of experience in finance, strategy, tech & operations, having spent the past 14 years in leadership roles at MassMutual. He will focus on translating his expertise to address solutions for climate change at The Engine. At MassMutual, Gareth ultimately joined the executive team and ran technology, cybersecurity and underwriting. Prior to this, Gareth worked at General Motors, Deloitte Consulting and the World Bank. He attended Washington University, UPenn (MA), and Wharton School of Business (MBA).