Skip to main content

John W. Thompson

Created by BlackEntrepreneurProfile.com
John W. Thompson

Born: April 24, 1949, in Fort Dix, New Jersey

Position: Venture Partner;

Company: Lightspeed Venture Partners;

Industry: Technology, Financial Services, Venture Capital;

Residence: United States;

Nationality: American;

John Wendell Thompson has been a Venture Partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners, since May 2018. Lightspeed Venture Partners is a global venture capital firm focusing on multi-stage investments in the enterprise technology, consumer, and health sectors.

Mr. Thompson serves as Lead Independent Director, Microsoft Corporation. He was independent Chairman of the Board of Directors for Microsoft Corporation from February 4, 2014 to June 2021. He has been a member of the board since February 2012.

He was chief executive officer of privately held Virtual Instruments, from May 2010 to April 2016. He also served as a member of the Virtual Instruments Board of Directors.

Mr. Thompson is also the former chairman and CEO of Symantec Corp. During his 10-year tenure as CEO of Symantec, he was the only African American leading a major technology company.

As CEO of Symantec, Mr. Thompson transformed the company into a leader in security, storage and systems management solutions, delivering world class products to a global customer base, including both individuals and large-scale enterprises. He helped grow revenues from $600M to over $6B. Mr. Thompson retired from his CEO post on April 4, 2009.

Prior to joining Symantec, Mr. Thompson had a distinguished career with the IBM Corporation where he worked for 28 years holding senior executive positions in sales, marketing and software development. In his last assignment, he was general manager of IBM Americas and a member of the companies Worldwide Management Council.

Mr. Thompson served on the National Infrastructure Advisory Committee (NIAC), making recommendations regarding the security of critical U.S. infrastructure, under President George W. Bush. He also served on the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission to investigate the cause of the 2008 financial collapse and make recommendations to Congress on steps to avoid or mitigate the impact of a reoccurrence.

In addition, he has served as the chair of the Silicon Valley Blue Ribbon Task Force on Aviation Security and Technology to identify and evaluate technology-driven solutions to improve the security and efficiency of national and local aviation.

Mr. Thompson is a part owner of the NBA's Golden State Warriors. He is an active investor in early-stage companies and currently serves on the board of directors of Liquid Robotics, the world’s first wave-powered autonomous platform, and DOMO, an emerging platform for business intelligence.

Mr. Thompson also serves on the board of UPS and Microsoft, the world's largest software company.

Mr. Thompson received a Bachelor of Business Administrations degree from Florida A&M (1971) and his Master's degree in Management (MBA) from MIT's Sloan School of Management (1983). In addition, in May 2008, he received an honorary doctorate degree from Notre Dame University.

Please Support Our Partners

Featured Profiles

This week's selection of outstandng Black entrepreneurs & executives

  • David Steward

    Created by BlackEntrepreneurProfile.com

    Born: July 2, 1951, Chicago, Illinois, United States;

    Occupation: Businessperson;

    Position: Chairman & Founder;

    Company: World Wide Technology…

Recently Added Black Entrepreneurs & Executives

  • Isiah Thomas upper body shot

    Isiah Thomas is Chairman and CEO of Isiah International, a holding company with interests in a diversified portfolio of companies, founded in…

  • Macky Tall headshot

    Created by BlackEntrepreneurProfile.com

    Macky Tall is a Partner and Chair of Carlyle’s Global Infrastructure Group, which includes efforts across transportation, renewables, energy, power,…

  • KeJuan Wilkins headshot

    Created by BlackEntrepreneurProfile.com

    KeJuan Wilkins is EVP, Chief Communications Officer at NIKE, Inc., where he guides all corporate, consumer and employee communications including the…

Latest News & Articles

If You Like Our Content, Please Consider Making A Small Donation.

Recently Updated Black Entrepreneurs & Executives Profiles

  • Sim Tshabalala

    Created by BlackEntrepreneurProfile.com

    Simphiwe Tshabalala, is Group CEO and Executive Director of Standard Bank, Africa’s largest bank by assets and the 421th largest publicly traded…

  • Craig Williams

    Created by BlackEntrepreneurProfile.com

    Craig Anthony Williams has served as the President, Geographies & Marketplace, NIKE, Inc. since May 2023, where he leads a cross-functional team…

  • G. Scott Uzzell

    Created by BlackEntrepreneurProfile.com

    G. Scott Uzzell is Vice President/GM, North America, NIKE Inc., since May 2023. He was previously President & CEO of Converse, Inc., where he was…

FTC: Black Entrepreneur & Executive Profiles is reader supported, we may earn income on affiliate links. You support us by using our links to buy products, it will cost you nothing extra.

We also a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Learn more...