Sorenson Capital Promotes Eric Hilton to Partner

We're thrilled to announce Eric's promotion to Partner at Sorenson Capital, marking a significant milestone in his remarkable eight-year journey with our firm. Eric's unwavering commitment to founder success and dedication to early-stage investing have made him an invaluable member of our team and a trusted partner to entrepreneurs.

Passion for Early-Stage Innovation and the People Pushing the Envelope

Eric's enthusiasm for early-stage investing runs deep. "I love the ambition and vision of 'what's possible' that drives the founders we work with," he shares. "Starting a company is incredibly challenging and takes real dedication. Founders are fighting against the odds from day one, which is why I'm so inspired by teams who push through and build enduring businesses with significant impact."

This passion drives Eric to seek out exceptional founders who demonstrate deep conviction, strong work ethic, and self-awareness about their strengths and weaknesses. His advice to these entrepreneurs is clear: "Being deliberate about hiring excellent people and defining company culture is critical, especially at the earliest stages. Everything starts with people and culture - they set the tone for future success."

Philosophy and Focus

Eric's investment philosophy centers on three core pillars: product, market, and team. Of the three pillars, Eric has found through his career that the team stands out as most important. At the earliest stages of a company's journey, it's the people who bring ideas into reality -they're the ones who define the vision, build the product, and win customers. Without the right team, nothing else holds.

To complement this philosophy, Eric focuses on product-oriented sectors including cybersecurity, infrastructure, B2B software, and AI. While technical moats are often prioritized, Eric considers additional factors: when evaluating investments, "It's equally important to think through other ways companies can differentiate, including the people they hire, their go-to-market and distribution strategies, speed of execution, and product focus."

Eric's active, hands-on approach to investing is reflected in his deep involvement across the portfolio. He has either sourced, led, or is involved at the board level with companies including Andromeda, Cloudsmith, GUIDEcx, Jump, Planera, Qualio, MX, SmartSuite, Socure, and Traceloop.

His track record includes notable successes such as watching companies like Fastly and Couchbase go public, seeing Talon Security acquired by Palo Alto Networks, and supporting companies like Socure as they grow into large, established businesses.

The Sorenson Capital Difference

What initially drew Eric to Sorenson Capital was the firm's sector focus, approach to mentorship, and ethos around founder support. "In a market where capital allocation is often viewed as a commodity, Sorenson Capital treats it like a craft," he notes. This perspective has shaped his eight years with the firm and continues to guide his approach to investing.

Eric's commitment to our focused fund strategy enables meaningful engagement with each company he works with. "We're deliberately concentrated in our portfolio so that we have the bandwidth to support our founders," he explains. "Our goal is to be the most valuable investor on the cap table."

This approach allows Eric to provide both strategic advice at the board level and tactical support with go-to-market strategies, hiring, fundraising, and exit planning. His partnership-first philosophy is simple but powerful: "Treat others the way you want to be treated. An early-stage investment is much more than just capital - it's a true partnership."

Looking Ahead

When he's not partnering with founders or exploring new investments, Eric is likely outdoors pursuing one of his many hobbies. A self-proclaimed "hobby collector", he enjoys a wide range of activities, including running, biking, boating, skiing, and golfing. A proud father of five and dedicated BYU fan, Eric brings the same passion and drive to his personal life as he does to his work.

Congratulations on this well-deserved promotion, Eric!

The portfolio companies listed above represent a subset of all investments made by Sorenson Capital. It should not be assumed that future portfolio investments will be profitable or equal to the success of the companies in this list. A complete list of Sorenson Capital investments is available upon request.