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The Integrous Companies Team
Leadership

Richard Matthews
Co-Founder / Managing Partner
Derek Gradwell founded Integrous Communications after helping build the North American consulting practice for MZ Group, the world’s largest independent investor relations and corporate communications firm. He has been actively involved in the industry for over 30 years, primarily focused on investment opportunities in North America with extensive experience in investor relations and corporate communications. He has worked with numerous growth stage and mature companies gaining exposure across most sectors. His focus has been to aid smaller companies, growing through acquisitions and development, advising on best communication practices, and assisting with building a public brand, relaying all aspects of development to an investor base. Additionally, Derek has played an active role in investment, acquisition, management, and business development of many companies he has served. Derek resides in Austin, TX with his wife and three children. He is active in his local community where he has coached youth sports, served on the staff of his church and actively supports charities with focuses on orphan advocacy and sourcing clean drinking water around the globe.

Richard Matthews
Co-Founder / Managing Partner
Benjamin Jacobson, III is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Integrous Communications and Integrous Capital Partners, LLC, an alternative investment company focused on identifying opportunities with high upside potential through a bottom-up hands-on approach to risk assessment that yield significant returns. Prior to forming Integrous, Ben spent time working as a consultant and capital advisor to a high growth oil and gas service company focusing on financial structuring and creating an exit strategy. Previously, Ben's career included alternative investment management and 10 plus years as a Specialist and Member of the New York Stock Exchange as a partner of Benjamin Jacobson & Sons. Ben spent 6 years as Vice President of Goldman Sachs after Goldman’s purchase of Benjamin Jacobson & Sons in 2001. He directed the trading operations and risk management activities while serving a clientele of major global corporations. Ben holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications from the University of Denver. He resides in Austin, Texas with his wife and three children where he serves on the Board of Directors of his church.
Communications Team

Richard Matthews
Managing Partner
Rich is a Managing Partner and a highly experienced marketing and communications professional who has managed multiple growth stage investor relations and communications platforms for small cap public companies. From 1995 to 2011 Rich built an independent consultancy providing business development services and participated in private equity investment opportunities. In 2011 Rich joined Fission Energy and led the marketing and investor relations team for Fission Energy, an award-winning public exploration and development company in Canada. He was integral in Fission’s growth of over $750 mm in enterprise valuation and divestiture realization. Rich had been a public company executive as well as board member most recently acting as Vice President of IR and Marketing for Nevada Copper Corp., a publicly listed company. His experience includes running marketing programs in multiple countries, advising CEO and Board of Director members, while liaising directly with investors. Rich holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from The University of British Columbia and resides in Vancouver, Canada with his wife and two children.

David Rentschler
Research Director / Partner
Dave was a pioneering member of The Huff Companies where he held a key executive role in the development and implementation of new investment approaches to expand opportunities, supporting company growth from $500MM to $20B in AUM and contributing to the firm's unique reputation for rigorous research and aggressive strategies. He started as a research analyst covering the TMT, energy, chemicals, healthcare, cable, paper & forest products and minerals & mining industries. Dave also served as a Partner and Research Director for the Huff Alternative Fund where he focused on distressed debt and private equity. He worked closely with portfolio companies additionally serving them in roles ranging from acting CEO to a member of several boards. During his 16-year tenure with Huff, he trained, mentored, and led dozens of successful analysts playing a key role in growing The Huff Companies staff from 10 to 65. Prior to Huff, Dave was in the valuation group with Deloitte & Touche LLP. He received his Master of Business Administration with a finance concentration from Lehigh University and holds a Bachelor of Arts in economics from The Pennsylvania State University.

Mark Komonoski
Partner
Mark Komonoski is a veteran communications professional with over 30 years of experience managing capital markets and investor relations efforts for numerous companies. His primary focus has been with disruptive technologies, pioneering ESG initiatives for companies in the alternative materials, solar, food, medical, industrials, and emerging technology sectors. Mark joined Integrous from Metamaterial Inc. where he assisted management and the board of directors through their IPO and early capitalization efforts. He has received recognition for his work with multiple client companies including “Best IR for a TSX Venture Company” in 2004. Mark received his Bachelor of Commerce in Finance from the University of Calgary and resides in Alberta, Canada with his wife and three children where he is active in coaching youth hockey and lacrosse.

Matthew Selinger
Partner
Matthew has over 25 years of experience in Investor Relations along with banking, and brokerage. Prior to Integrous, Matthew was the Principal and Founder of Firm IR Group, a boutique investor relations consulting firm. Before founding Firm IR Group, Matthew was Senior Managing Director at Three Part Advisors, a full-service Investor Relations firm based in Dallas, TX. Matthew was with two investor relations consulting firms in San Francisco, CA and one in Boulder, CO; EVC Group, Peter Imlay Associates, and Genesis Select, where he worked on full scale IR programs for small and micro-cap companies as well as Fortune 500 companies including Kellogg's and International Paper. Before Three Part, Matthew was with MZ Group North America, a division of the world’s largest independent investor relations and corporate communications firm. Matthew has a BA in International Affairs from Lewis and Clark College. He currently holds his series 7 and 63 securities licenses. Matthew enjoys the outdoors, is an avid Trail Runner and Telemark Skier, and in his free time you can find him competing in Obstacle Course Races or outside with his Shepherd Husky mix, Red.

Rick D'Angelo
Senior Analyst / Partner
Rick was the lead partner and managed the Huff Energy Fund, a $500 MM private equity fund invested solely in the Oil and Gas Sector, which made initial investments in the Karnes Trough ‘sweet-spot’ of the Eagle Ford Shale trend of South Texas in 2009 and 2010, very early in the plays development. He was a partner and lead energy analyst (buy-side) for over 17 years at Huff Asset Management, where he followed over 35 small-cap and mid-cap public companies in the energy space. Rick started his career with Amoco Production Company, where he worked for 14 years initially as a geophysicist in domestic and overseas locations, and also as an economic analyst in the Portfolio Analysis and Planning team of the Worldwide Exploration Business Group, where he earned a Chairman’s Award in 1998. Rick graduated from Princeton University with an AB in Geology, from Virginia Tech with an MS in geophysics, and from the University of Houston with an MBA.

Frank Pogubila
Partner
Frank is a communications professional with over 15 years’ experience in retail equity and investor relations. His primary focus has been communicating developmental milestones to a private equity investor marketplace with sector concentration in disruptive technology and real estate. As a veteran sales professional with a proven track record, Frank has experience in acquisitions, corporate development, client relationship management and has consistently achieved impact to organizational growth and brand value. Frank received his Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Calgary and resides in Alberta, Canada with his wife and 3 children where he is also active in coaching youth hockey.
Growth Advisory Team

Greg Baranszky
Senior Advisor
Greg is Senior Marketing Advisor for Integrous Growth Advisors. In that capacity, Greg leads strategic marketing and branding projects for the firm’s clients and advises Integrous’ founding partner group on the firm’s growth strategy, organization, and client engagement approach. In addition to Greg’s role at Integrous, he is Managing Director of Stratescope Consultants, a strategy and marketing consulting firm which specializes in serving clients in the technology and management consulting sectors. Previously, Greg co-founded and served as Managing Director of Kennedy Information Advisors (then the world’s leading provider of strategy, operations, and marketing consulting to the management consulting industry) and served in senior capacities in two New York City-based boutique strategy and marketing consulting firms. Over the course of his career, Greg has led consulting projects for more than 100 businesses, including IBM, Intel, Microsoft, SAP, Nomura Research Institute of America, American Express, Merrill Lynch, McKinsey & Company, Deloitte, KPMG, Hewitt Associates, and Kraft. Greg is a graduate of New York University, where he was a Tisch Scholar. He resides in Garrison, New York with his wife and son.

Dan Coole
Senior Advisor
Dan has decades of experience in go-to-market introduction of innovative solutions to multiple industries and markets. He has led strategy, development, product, marketing and sales efforts for both global and startup companies. Dan was on the management team for two successful software startups including OZ Communications, which pioneered mobile internet messaging. He led incubator efforts for Fidelity Investments (fintech), created partner SaaS ecosystems for Toshiba Global Commerce (retail), and developed markets for new products with Ericsson (consumer) and Mitsubishi Electronics (telecom). Dan has created value from advanced technologies to include AI/ML, Web3, AR/VR, IoT, 5G, and Edge computing. He also has broad experience in corporate development to include buy and sell-side M&A, strategic partnering, and IP investment and licensing. Dan received his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Penn State University and a Master of Science in Systems Engineering from Virginia Tech. He resides in the Research Triangle Park area outside of Raleigh, NC with his wife while staying connected with their three adult children.

Bill Tabino
Senior Advisor
Bill has deep operating and acquisition experience across lower middle market companies. Prior to joining Integrous, Bill served as Chief Operating Officer of SOFLETE, a SaaS company he helped scale from inception to a successful exit, achieving a 55% CAGR, 110% net revenue retention, and 33% EBITDA margins over seven years without outside capital. His operating background spans multiple founder-led ventures, including Compass Rose Apparel, a U.S.-made apparel manufacturer where he served as President, and Silwar Athletics, a full-service fitness facility he founded and grew to a successful acquisition. He subsequently founded Waypoint Legacy Partners, an independent sponsor focused on physical infrastructure services, data center services, energy and utility infrastructure, precision manufacturing, and maritime infrastructure, where he evaluated more than 500 acquisition targets and conducted diligence on over 40 opportunities. Bill's advisory work spans business operations and strategy, go-to-market strategy, revenue operations, and value creation for founder-led and growth stage companies. He holds a BA from Penn State, an MBA from UCLA Anderson and is a Marine Corps veteran. He resides in San Diego, California with his wife and two children where he coaches youth rugby.
Support

Alexa Makenzie
Operations Manager / Corporate Access
Alexa joined Integrous in 2023 to manage corporate operations and technology. She is a highly analytical and tech-savvy executive with proficiency in analysis, data management, and systems integration. She brings a dynamic, collaborative and client service-oriented approach to her role. Prior to Integrous, Alexa worked her way from Intern to Senior Client Success Manager with SRAX, Inc. for their SaaS platform Sequire™, where she became accomplished in building loyal client relationships and managing the entire client journey from onboarding to ongoing-training and support. Alexa is adept in investor targeting and acquisition and additionally applies her skills to the corporate access platform at Integrous. Alexa resides in Florida where she enjoys surfing, reading, and creating art through various mediums.

Sierra Gradwell
Events Manager
Sierra joined Integrous in 2024 to lead the firm’s investor events, including the Best Ideas Dinner series, which brings together public company presenters, investors, and guests for focused, high-quality engagement. She manages the full event lifecycle, from guest registration and attendee communications to presentation materials, scheduling, and coordination with event partners, so that every participant arrives prepared and every event runs smoothly. Sierra pairs careful organization with a warm, service-oriented approach that makes presenters and investors alike feel welcomed. She also teaches at Sylvan Learning, where she has sharpened her ability to communicate clearly and connect with people of all backgrounds. Outside of work, Sierra is active in her church’s moms group and loves spending time with her son, Asher.

CONTACT US
Contact us and find how our services can benefit your company.
P.O Box 341198
Austin Tx 78734
(512) 270-6990
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