Board of Directors

Xunkai Gong

Executive Chairman

As Executive Chairman of AvePoint, Kai Gong facilitates the operations and deliberations of the Board and offers guidance and strategic direction to our senior leadership team. Previously the Chief Executive Officer and co-CEO, Kai co-founded AvePoint with Tianyi Jiang in 2001. Since AvePoint’s founding, Kai’s technical experience and stewardship have helped the company grow and deliver a multitude of SaaS and data management solutions to enable safer and more efficient collaboration.

Prior to AvePoint, Kai was a software engineer at Bell Labs at Lucent Technologies and Johnson & Johnson. He earned graduate degrees in computer science and computer engineering from Southern University and Agricultural and Mechanical College at Baton Rogue and University of Chinese Academy of Sciences respectively, and an undergraduate degree in electoral and electronics engineering from Dalian University of technology.

Tianyi Jiang

Chief Executive Officer

Dr. Tianyi Jiang (TJ) co-founded AvePoint in 2001 and has served as the organization's Chief Executive Officer since 2005. TJ is responsible for overall strategy and direction of AvePoint, which includes product innovation, investor relations, and business development. He is focused on delivering value to customers, partners, shareholders, and the AvePoint team, every day.

A recipient of Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year award in New Jersey in 2010, TJ received both B.S. and master’s in electrical and computer engineering from Cornell University, and a Master of Philosophy and PhD in Data Mining from Department of Information Systems, Operations Management, and Statistics, Stern School of Business, New York University.

Brian Brown

Chief Legal and Compliance Officer

Currently Chief Legal and Compliance Officer and Director and Secretary on the Board, Brian has held a variety of leadership positions at AvePoint, including Chief Operating Office and General Counsel. As Chief Legal and Compliance Officer, Brian spearheads legal posture and interests and ensures that practices, policies, and dealings of AvePoint meet regulatory requirements.

With AvePoint since 2004, Brian brings extensive legal knowledge and understanding of SaaS company operations to the company. A graduate of University of Michigan (B.A.) and Michigan State University (J.D.), Brian currently lives in McLean, VA.

Jeff Epstein

Director

Jeff Epstein is an Operating Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners, a Lecturer at Stanford University, and Co-Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer and Secretary of Apex Technology Acquisition Corp.

He is the former Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Oracle, one of the world’s largest and most profitable technology companies. Prior to joining Oracle, Jeff served as Chief Financial Officer of several public and private companies, including DoubleClick (sold to Google), King World Productions (sold to CBS) and Nielsen’s Media Measurement and Information Group. Earlier in his career, he was an investment banker at The First Boston Corporation.

Today, Mr. Epstein leads the CFO Advisory Board at Bessemer, where more than 100 portfolio company CFOs meet in person and online to help each other improve their effectiveness. Mr. Epstein specializes in marketplaces and B2B software companies and co-teaches the Lean Launchpad class at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Engineering.

Within the last five years, he has served on the boards of directors of Kaiser Permanente, a non-profit healthcare company, Booking Holdings, an online provider of travel services, Twilio, a cloud communications platform, Shutterstock, a stock photography and stock footage provider, and several private companies.

Mr. Epstein holds an MBA from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business, where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar, and a BA from Yale College, where he graduated summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa.

We believe Mr. Epstein is qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors because of his extensive industry and finance experience.

John Ho

Director

John Ho is the founder and chief industrialist investor of Janchor Partners (2009). Before founding Janchor Partners, John was the Head of The Children’s Investment Fund (Asia) Limited in Hong Kong. Prior to that, John was a senior analyst with the Citadel Investment Group in the U.S. and also a consultant with the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) in Australia. Prior to BCG, John was an Associate Lecturer in finance and option pricing at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia.

From January 2018 to July 2021, Mr. Ho served as a non-executive director for Vocus Group Limited, a telecommunications company, during the time it was listed on the ASX. From April 2017 to December 2019, he served as chairman of the board of directors of Bellamy’s Organic, an organic infant milk formula and baby food company listed on the ASX. From July 2014 to July 2019, he served on the listing committee for the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited, including as deputy chairman.

Mr. Ho received a bachelor of science degree in mathematics and a bachelor of commerce degree in finance from The University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, graduating with a University Medal. His dissertation on options pricing on real assets was published in The Journal of Alternative Investments.

John Ho has served as a member of AvePoint’s board of directors since the consummation of the Business Combination. We believe Mr. Ho is qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors because of his experience in finance and as a director of public companies.

Jeff Teper

Director

Mr. Teper has worked at Microsoft Corporation since March 1992 and currently holds the title Corporate Vice President. Known as the “Father of SharePoint,” he helped spearhead the development of Microsoft Office SharePoint from start to finish.

Today, he leads product, design, and engineering for Microsoft 365, including Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Viva, and stays true to his passion for finding ways emerging technology can help customers.

Mr. Teper holds an MBA from Harvard Business School. He also holds a bachelor’s degree from New York University, where he graduated as valedictorian.

Jeff Teper has served as a member of AvePoint’s board of directors since December 2014. We believe Mr. Teper is qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors because of his executive leadership experience and extensive experience in the Microsoft ecosystem and his familiarity with the industry.

Janet Schijns

Director

Janet Schijns is CEO and Co-Founder of JS Group, a go to market consultancy dedicated to achieving results in the technology channel. She is also the founder of the #digitalnormal movement driving profitable change in the partner community and co-founder of Tech Worlds Half, an organization dedicated to empowering women within the technology industry.

She was formerly EVP and CMSO at Office Depot. Prior to that, she was the Chief Channel Executive, Chief Marketing Technologist and ran business products for Verizon Business. Additionally, Ms. Schijns ran the channel organization for Motorola Enterprise and Government. Ms. Schijns also currently serves on the Board of Directors for Ninjio, a security culture enablement provider who is helping to shut down business security breaches through employee empowerment.

Ms. Schijns graduated from Montclair State University where she received a bachelor of science degree in Business and Finance. In recent years her influence in the industry has led to numerous awards, some of which include: Top 10 CEO Disruptors, Top 10 Women in Technology and Channel Influencer of the Year.

Janet Schijns has served as a member of AvePoint’s board of directors since May 2022. We believe Ms. Schijns is qualified to serve as a member of the Board because of her extensive expertise with SaaS channel organizations.