Our Team
The people behind Verdant Ventures.
Tim Redman
Chief Executive Officer
Tim has 30+ years of experience in Africa and the Middle East. As CEO of Omran, the Real Estate Management & Development Company of the Sultanate of Oman, he successfully managed the setup and delivery of company and project structures with values of over $5B.
Scott Friesen
Co-founder and Board Member
Scott is a successful entrepreneur who helped build and sell three companies in the US. In 2013, he founded Verdant Frontiers to build large-scale businesses that generate life-changing jobs and compelling investor returns. One decade in, Verdant has made a $200M portfolio and created 2,500+ jobs. He co-founded Verdant Ventures in 2016.
Russ Murphy
Co-founder and Board Member
Russ has 15+ years of experience in real estate development. He has built more than 4,000 units valued at over $2B. He is the co-founder of Aspen Heights, a multifaceted real estate development company with annual revenues above $500M.
Axel Decavele
Head of Developments
Axel has 13+ years of experience in planning and delivering complex projects in 15+ countries. He previously worked as Director of Development at BuildX Studio and as Director of Strategic Consulting for JLL Africa, providing advisory services for real estate projects across all asset classes. Prior to his work in Kenya, Axel was Project Director at Nexity, France’s leading real estate company.
Antti-Jussi Ahveninen
Advisor - African Investment
Antti has 20+ years of emerging market real estate fund management experience, with the last ten years solely focusing on Africa. He has led two African real estate development funds, headed the real estate funds operation of the investment banking arm of the most prominent Saudi bank, Al Rajhi, in Riyadh and worked as a fund manager in London for Pramerica (now PGIM RE) that is one of world’s largest real estate fund managers by AuM.
Baptiste Pouchot
Investment Manager
Baptiste has 8+ years of working experience in hospitality and real estate development in Africa. Prior to joining Verdant Ventures, Baptiste worked for one of the largest hospitality consulting companies in Africa, completing more than 30 projects spread over 19 African countries.
Benson Thuku
Development Manager
Ben has 13+ years of experience in real estate development. Prior to joining Verdant Ventures, Ben worked at HF Group and Pinnacle Projects Limited as a development and project manager, leading various residential and commercial developments valued at more than $1Billion.
Bertrand Philogene
Head of Operations
Bertrand has 25+ years of experience in the US and Mauritius, holding operational leadership positions for the past 18 years. He worked 15 years in the construction industry, successfully delivering large projects and high-end villas. He also co-founded and led the largest 3D imaging and real estate marketing company in the Indian Ocean for over 10 years.
Brenda Mokaya
Development Manager
Brenda has 8+ years of experience in Real Estate Development. Prior to joining Verdant Ventures, Brenda worked at Cytonn Investments Management and Trident Estates as a Project Development Manager across East and South Africa, leading and completing various residential and hospitality projects valued at more than $700 Million.
Connie Muhanji
Project Coordinator
Connie has 7+ years of working experience in the construction and parastatal fields. She worked in Kenya Power as an HR Clerk in Planning, Directing and Organizing the company’s confidential documents. At Quaint Holdings Ltd, Connie led small teams in 2 KeNHA (Kenya National Highways Authority) road construction projects from initiation to successful execution.
Dheera Mungur
Project Accountant
Dheera has 16+ years of experience in the Finance and Accounting field. Her experience spans from Project Accounting to Auditing and Fund Accounting. She has worked for CIG Group, one of Africa’s largest Power Infrastructure service providers, and was previously a Senior Fund Accountant at Apex Group, one of the largest management companies worldwide.
Faizal Soobhany
Financial Controller
Faizal has 20+ years of experience in finance. He has worked with International Proximity and in the shared services department of Standard Bank and Deutsche Bank in Mauritius and at RBC OFM in Guernsey. Prior to joining Verdant Ventures, he worked for five years with Ocorian Mauritius and, more specifically, in the Real Estate shared services team being the first recruit and overseeing the department's growth to 40 staff.
Jean Michel Lan
Project Accountant
Jean Michel has 10+ years of experience in finance-related fields. Prior to joining Verdant Ventures, he worked at KPMG, Medine Limited, Aspen Global Incorporated and Mont Choisy Group.
Lawrence Kiarie
Development Manager
Lawrence has 9 years of experience in Real Estate Development and Investment Management. Previously, he worked in Centum Investment Company, sourcing, developing and closing transactions in real estate, renewable energy and infrastructure across East Africa.
Marie Lynn Young
Office Manager
Marie Lynn has over 10 years of experience in HR Operations and over 5 years as a Personal Assistant to the CEO. Prior to joining Verdant Ventures, she worked for a Real Estate Company in Mauritius for 9 years as PA and HR & Admin Executive, where she set up the HR department and led a team of 3 staff members.
Robert Karuiyi
Investment Analyst
Robert has extensive experience in Real Estate analysis and modeling, market research, public markets analysis, and portfolio management. Prior to joining Verdant Ventures, he worked in both the Public Markets and Private markets at Cytonn Investments and InVhestia Africa.
Ricardo Cardiga
Business Development Manager
Ricardo has 40+ years of experience in Africa. As a TCN/GSO for US State Department AF Bureau, he served at the US Embassies in Mozambique, Cape Verde, and Angola. From 2002 to 2005, he was seconded to OBO on the New Embassy Chancery project in Luanda. He also worked as Local Content Manager for the Angola LNG Project and on the Mozambique LNG FEED for Bechtel Corporation.
Sarah Jackson
Head of Finance
Sarah has been working with Verdant Frontiers and its portfolio of companies, including Verdant Ventures, since 2014. She served both as Head of Finance & Legal and as CEO of Verdant Consulting, where she supported Elevation Residences, Verdant Ventures’ first residential project, throughout its lifecycle whilst supporting a diverse range of companies across Ethiopia in improving their management systems and processes.
Sherri Holland
Group Financial Controller
Sherri has 25+ years of experience in the Controller role. Her background includes founding, scaling profitably and selling businesses in the technology and media industries. She is a talented financial and operations leader who can successfully manage all aspects of a highly profitable business.
Thomas McCallum
Chief Investment Officer
Thomas has 30+ years of real estate experience. He is the founder of Richard Ellis Inc and Deloitte Real Estate Advisory Services in Canada. He has spearheaded many of Sub-Saharan Africa’s most significant real estate debt and equity transactions on behalf of IFC.