Bill Godfrey wins Investor of the Year Mira Award

Today, long-time tech leader Bill Godfrey is managing director of 4G Ventures and focused on seed-stage angel investing in software-as-a-service companies in Central Indiana. He received the Investor of the Year award during TechPoint’s 17th annual Mira Awards honoring the best of tech in Indiana.

Bill Godfrey was recognized with the Trailblazer in Technology Mira Award in 2012 for his immeasurable impact on Indiana’s tech community dating back to his seven years working at Software Artistry beginning in 1991 and as co-founder of Aprimo in 1998. Godfrey and Aprimo co-founder Rob McLaughlin revolutionized marketing automation in ways no one had ever achieved before. Serving as president and CEO of Aprimo for 12 years prior to the company being acquired for $525 million by Teradata Corporation in 2010, Godfrey helped to attract and train a generation of software developers and other technology workers.

Today, Godfrey is managing director of 4G Ventures (named after his four children — the four Godfreys) and focused on seed-stage (second money in after the founders) angel investing in software-as-a-service companies in Central Indiana. His portfolio includes fellow Mira Award winners Bluebridge, PERQ and Emerging Threats (now Proofpoint) to name a few.

Before, during and after investing in Indiana tech companies, Godfrey’s dedication to advising and supporting the people with whom he’s invested amazed the Mira Awards judges. He’s even known to advise people and companies without investing just because he really wants to see them succeed. Godfrey has a knack for bringing in capital from outside of the state to co-invest with local funds and angel investors. He’s an entrepreneur’s dream investor because he’s available and eager to be involved in critical early-stage decisions and sales wins; and while he most certainly demands accountability, his portfolio leaders view him as a powerful, reliable source of knowledge and encouragement.

TechPoint, the growth initiative for Indiana’s tech ecosystem, honored Indiana’s best companies, entrepreneurs, educators, and other leaders for their technology excellence and innovation at The Westin in downtown Indianapolis during the 17th annual Mira Awards gala presented by Angie’s List, Interactive Intelligence, and Salesforce.

A total of 17 award winners and seven runners-up were chosen from the 98 outstanding companies, organizations, and individuals who were selected as nominees this year out of the 168 applications received highlighting achievements during the 2015 calendar year.

Forty independent, volunteer judges spent more than 700 total hours reviewing and ranking applications, interviewing nominees, and selecting this year’s winners. Judges included company founders, CEOs and presidents; CTOs, CIOs and software developers; professors and chancellors from Indiana universities; design, human resources and sales professionals, and a variety of other subject matter experts.

Browse photos from the event in TechPoint’s Facebook albums and watch videos on TechPoint’s YouTube channel.

The Mira Awards — named after a variable star thousands of times brighter than the Earth’s sun — represent the best of tech in Indiana each year.