Dave Sanders

Dave Sanders is the founding member and Managing Partner of WorldBridge Partners, an international retained executive-search firm operating across offices in the US, Europe, and Central America. He began his executive-search career in 1993 and has built a reputation as a specialist in helping early- and mid-stage high-growth technology companies build executive teams, access growth capital, and mentor their leadership. He is well established in the West Coast venture-capital community and is described as a national expert in early-stage technology company growth.

Before his search career, Sanders spent sixteen years in sales and marketing management roles at IBM and held a corporate-finance role at Intel, giving him large-company operating and finance experience that informs his investing perspective. He earned an M.B.A. in Finance from the University of California, Berkeley (Haas School of Business) and a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from the University of Michigan.

Sanders is deeply embedded in the Sacramento-area technology ecosystem. He founded the Sacramento CIO group roughly two decades ago and has served as a founding board member of the Golden State Capital Network, a board member of the Sacramento Area Regional Technology Alliance (SARTA), and on the executive committee for the Northern California Council of the AeA. He chaired the TechEdge Conference in Sacramento.

On the investing side, Sanders is an active angel and a general partner in multiple seed-stage funds. He is a General Partner of the Northern California Investment Fund I & II (since 2013), a board member of the Sacramento Angels, and previously a General Partner at 530 Angels (a Chico, CA angel group). More recently he has been associated with BVA / Brown Venture Associates as an Operating Talent Partner and has advised startups including Clapself.

• Invests primarily at pre-seed and seed stages in early-stage technology companies.
• Typical checks of ~$100K–$450K, with a sweet spot around $150K, deployed personally and through the Northern California Investment Fund and Sacramento Angels.
• Sector interests span enterprise applications/SaaS, AI & generative tech, HR tech and the "future of work," AgTech, cybersecurity, Health IT, and FinTech — reflecting his executive-search background in talent and tech.
• Focuses on Northern California and the SF Bay Area, supporting the regional startup ecosystem he has helped build.
• Brings a "talent operator / angel advisor" angle: alongside capital he offers help building executive teams, business strategy, board membership, networking, and fundraising support.
• Explicitly notes seeking out diverse founders and female-founded companies.