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Gordon Ritter

Gordon Ritter

Founder + General Partner·Emergence Capital

San Francisco

Bio

Professional summary

Gordon Ritter is Founder and General Partner at Emergence Capital. His official profile positions him as a major enterprise software investor and highlights his early backing of Salesforce and Veeva Systems, where he remains chairman. Before Emergence, he spent more than 15 years founding and building technology companies, including Software As Service, co-founded with Marc Benioff, and Whistle Communications, which was acquired by IBM. His profile also notes Princeton ties, philanthropic work, Forbes Midas List recognition, and a San Francisco residence.

Investment focus

Stage, sector, and overall fit

Stage

Early-stage enterprise softwareCloud and SaaS company formation and scaling

Sector

Enterprise softwareCloud computingVertical SaaSAI-native services

Thesis

Enterprise softwareCloud computing and SaaSAmbitious industry-altering ideas

Notable companies

Selected portfolio companies the partner has backed

SalesforceVeeva SystemsSoftware As ServiceWhistle Communications

How to approach

Framing and angles for outreach

Pitch framing

Position the company as an enterprise software opportunity with potential to reshape a large market and become a durable category leader.

Personalization hooks

  1. 1Reference Emergence’s history in enterprise software and his early Salesforce and Veeva conviction.
  2. 2If relevant, connect to AI’s impact on education or enterprise workflows, but treat this as a light personalization angle rather than confirmed investment focus.

Recent signals

What the partner has said or done recently

  • Official profile states he recently joined Princeton University's Board of Trustees and is helping shape curricula on AI and the future of education.

Background

Career, education, and skills

Career history

  • Emergence CapitalFounder & General Partner
  • Veeva Systems (NYSE: VEEV)Chairman
  • Software As Service (now Salesforce Platform)Co-founder
  • Whistle Communications (acquired by IBM)Founder
  • IBMLeader, Global Small Business Division ($3B)Post-acquisition

Education

  • Princeton UniversityBA (Rowing)
  • Princeton UniversityMember, Board of Trustees

Other partners at Emergence Capital

12 more profiles

CS

Carlotta 'Lotti' Siniscalco

General Partner

Emergence Capital

Emergence general partner focused on fintech and B2B software investments.

B2B softwareEnterprise softwareFinancial servicesFintechSourcingTechnology
David Dworsky

David Dworsky

Principal

Emergence Capital

Emergence Principal and former early Retool operator focused on customer-obsessed B2B software founders.

B2B softwarecustomer-obsessed foundersenterprise AIproduct-led growth
George Kunthara

George Kunthara

Investor

Emergence Capital

Emergence Investor and former early Retool GTM operator focused on category-defining B2B products.

B2B softwarecategory creationcustomer experiencego-to-market
Jake Saper

Jake Saper

General Partner

Emergence Capital

Jake Saper is a General Partner at Emergence Capital investing at the frontier of enterprise AI. His stated themes include AI-native services, agentic software, and physical-world AI.

Data automationEnterprise AIInfrastructure-enabled applications
Jason Green

Jason Green

Founder + General Partner (Emeritus)

Emergence Capital

Emergence co-founder and early investor in Gusto, Box, Yammer, Salesloft, and G2.

Board leadershipEnterprise softwareHuman potentialImpact investingSaaS
Joe Floyd

Joe Floyd

General Partner

Emergence Capital

Joe Floyd is a General Partner at Emergence Capital who backs enterprise founders and has led investments in companies including SalesLoft, project44, Genspark, and Together.ai. His profile highlights long-running work in AI infrastructure and founder support.

Analytics & BIB2B applications
Kabir Sial

Kabir Sial

Investor

Emergence Capital

Emergence Investor and former Palantir engineer focused on complex B2B software problems.

AI-native servicesB2B softwarecommercial softwareenterprise AI
Kevin Spain

Kevin Spain

General Partner

Emergence Capital

Kevin Spain is a General Partner at Emergence Capital with a track record that includes Doximity, Blend, and Augmedix. His background combines venture investing, entrepreneurship, and corporate development experience at Microsoft.

Go-to-market strategyIndustry cloudVertical SaaS
Kyle Murphy

Kyle Murphy

Principal

Emergence Capital

Emergence Principal and former Plaid GTM strategist focused on new products and B2B software.

B2B softwareenterprise AIfintechgo-to-marketnew products
Lotti Siniscalco

Lotti Siniscalco

General Partner

Emergence Capital

Lotti Siniscalco is a General Partner at Emergence Capital with deep fintech expertise. Her official profile names investments including Oyster, Federato, Method, Strala, Casap, and Harper.

AI applicationsEnterprise software
Rishub Nahar

Rishub Nahar

Investor

Emergence Capital

Emergence Investor and former Hightouch PM focused on customer-obsessed B2B software teams.

AI-native servicesB2B softwaredata infrastructureenterprise AImartech
Santi Subotovsky

Santi Subotovsky

General Partner

Emergence Capital

Santi Subotovsky is a General Partner at Emergence Capital whose investments include Zoom, Chorus, and Openpath. His profile emphasizes founder relationships, communications software, and helping companies scale globally.

AI-native applicationsCommunications & collaborationPLG to enterprise scaling