Pete Speranza

New Yorker and former professional ice hockey player, Pete Speranza received his MBA in International Business Strategy from the University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Business. He became part of the General Mills family in 1997 and has 18 years of supply chain leadership across all temp states and platforms with experience managing large capital installations.

As New Business Development leader for 301 INC Pete taps into his passions of creating a national scouting network and working closely with the entrepreneurs of the startup community. He is also a co-founder of the new food division for the MNcup – the largest state wide innovation competition in the country.

Tom Nack

Tom Nack, R&D Manager of Innovation and Business Development, grew up in the food industry with a family involved in multiple food-related businesses. He has a B.S. in Food Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a PhD in Food Science from Rutgers University. While at General Mills, he has lead new product development and margin management teams across a variety of food categories and channels. Tom has the unique role of connecting the brilliant technical minds of General Mills with emerging entrepreneurs to drive growth.

Ryan Newcom

With a B.S. in Business Administration from Bucknell University, Ryan Newcom is our Investment Fund Manager leading our direct investment mandate. His background at General Mills includes finance rotations in the supply chain function, the cereal operating unit, and the western sales region.

Prior to General Mills, he spent multiple years working with clients in the lower middle market to execute mergers and acquisitions, debt recapitalizations, and private capital fundraisings. Ryan has a passion for food and tremendous respect for entrepreneurs.

Maija Aittola

With 8 years of marketing experience at General Mills, and an additional 5 years in the CPG world prior to joining GMI, Maija plays the role of Brand Accelerator for the 301 Inc team. Maija has seen the full spectrum of General Mills in roles ranging from Cheerios, to Nature Valley innovation, to convenience & foodservice, and a highlight role living and working in Southeast Asia, bringing new brands to that market. Maija holds a Bachelor of Science from Stanford University and an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth.

Maija’s early career experiences working for the San Jose Entrepreneur Center and Quorn Foods Inc during its very early days in the U.S. market built a foundational passion for start-ups and small business environments. Maija is energized by the passion and commaraderie that small teams of bright people bring to their start-ups every day. She is also personally passionate about enabling others to thrive.  Having the opportunity to bring the incredible resources of General Mills to the passionate founders of emerging brands is a dream opportunity.

Brian Tockman

Committed to building great products, enduring brands and passionate teams, Brian Tockman is a Principal at 301 INC. Brian draws on his past experiences in retail leadership, corporate finance and product line management to identify new partners, execute transactions and advance our partner companies’ impact in the market. Before joining 301 INC in 2013, Brian led the business teams at VC-backed startups in both the eCommerce and biobased products arenas.  Earlier in his career, Brian was a Merchant at Target and an Equity Capital Markets Analyst at Goldman Sachs.

Brian holds a BA in Economics from Brandeis University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

A city dweller with country roots, Brian grew up in Maine, lived in New York City and Boston, and now resides in Minneapolis with his wife and two children. An avid wine collector, Brian enjoys cooking and big boisterous dinner parties. In between meals, he likes to hike mountains and walk city streets.

John Haugen

John Haugen has a passion for endurance sports so it’s no surprise that he’s in it for the long haul working with budding businesses. John has an undergrad degree from St. Olaf College, his MBA from UCLA Anderson School of Management and is a 25-year veteran at General Mills. He has held a variety of leadership positions, focusing on marketing, general management and health & wellness strategy. He was also instrumental in the creation of 301 INC in 2012.

As a leader of 301 INC, John is always interested in seeing the possibilities. He has built a team focused on looking for great, new business opportunities – ones that when the passion, skill and agility of the entrepreneur are combined with the capabilities of General Mills are sure to create breakthrough innovation and positive change.