Meet the Team Behind Backpack

David Kaiserman is Executive Chairman and Founder of Backpack Networks. An entrepreneur and innovator at the intersection of real estate and technology, David founded Backpack to create UBIN—the Universal Building Identification Number—and bring a digital identity to the U.S. built environment.

Before founding Backpack, David spent nearly two decades in senior executive roles at Lennar Corporation, one of the nation’s largest homebuilders. As President of Lennar Ventures, he led strategic investments and industry-shaping innovations, including the launch of SunStreet (later acquired by Sunnova), the world’s first Wi-Fi Certified Homes, Amazon Home Services and Retail Experience Centers, and multiple home-automation partnerships. He also oversaw key corporate functions such as Government Affairs, Supply Chain, R&D, and Special Situations, and played a founding role in the Leading Builders of America during the 2007 financial crisis.

David has served on the Board of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and as Chairman of the RESNET Housing Industry Advisory Council, and his work has been featured in CNBC, Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times. He holds a BS from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Gary Michel is Chief Executive Officer of Backpack Networks and a member of its Board of Directors. With more than three decades of leadership experience in the building systems, smart infrastructure, and technology-enabled services industries, Gary has a proven track record of scaling global organizations and driving customer-focused innovation. He previously served in senior leadership roles at Honeywell, Ingersoll Rand, Trane, and JELD-WEN, where he led large-scale transformations, expanded market presence, and delivered sustainable growth. As CEO of Backpack Networks, Gary brings deep expertise in building intelligence and operational excellence to accelerate the company’s mission of giving buildings identity and unlocking the value of their data.

Jason Rutherford is Chief Commercial Officer of Backpack Networks. He leads the company’s commercial strategy as it accelerates growth, overseeing revenue generation, product strategy, market positioning, and the continued expansion and adoption of UBIN across global markets.

Jason brings more than 30 years of leadership experience in the technology and communications sectors. Most recently, he served as Senior Vice President and General Manager of Oracle Communications, where he led the global telecommunications industry business unit and oversaw worldwide sales, strategic planning, product development, and customer support across Oracle’s communications portfolio.

Prior to Oracle, he served as Executive Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer at KORE Wireless, where he drove customer acquisition and revenue growth across the company’s IoT connectivity platforms and technology solutions. Earlier in his career, Jason held senior leadership roles as Group Vice President of Global Sales for Oracle Communications. He held key sales, alliances, and consulting positions at Convergys and Accenture. He holds an MBA from Wake Forest University and a bachelor’s degree in business from Virginia Tech.

Christian Falk is an experienced investor and corporate strategist with over 25 years in venture capital, corporate development, and investment banking. Before joining Backpack, he served as Vice President of Investments at LEN X, the strategy, innovation, and investment division of Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN). Earlier in his career, he was Managing Director at New Century Capital Partners and Director in the Technology Investment Banking Group at RBC Capital Markets, where he led the Semiconductor Technologies practice. Christian earned his BBA in Finance from Southern Methodist University.

Waynewright Malcolm is a finance and operations leader with a diverse background spanning corporate finance, regulatory affairs, and education. He joined Backpack Networks in 2022 after a distinguished tenure as a Certified Math Teacher with the Broward County School Board, where he had served since 2006. Before his work in education, Waynewright held executive roles, including Vice President and Treasurer at Lennar Corporation, Manager of Regulatory Affairs at Frontier Communications, and Senior Auditor at PricewaterhouseCoopers.

He earned his BS in Accounting and Information Systems from the University of the West Indies and his MBA from NYU Stern School of Business.

David McCain is a seasoned attorney and business leader. David brings deep experience across real estate, finance, and strategic advisory services. Before joining Backpack, he held senior executive roles at Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN), including President and Chief Executive Officer of Lennar Financial Services, where he oversaw revenues exceeding $600 million, and Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary of Lennar Corporation. Earlier in his career, he served as Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary of John Alden Asset Management Company (NYSE: JA).

David is also the founding partner of The McCain Law Firm, PPLC, providing general counsel and transactional advisory services, and co-founding partner of MPKA, LLC, a consultancy serving the homebuilding and investment sectors. He currently serves as Chairman of the Board for YourHome1Source.com (Your Home Digital) and sits on the Board of Directors for Rodblu Investment Fund 1, LLC.

He holds a BS from Brown University and a JD from the University of Miami School of Law.

Amanda Reierson is an experienced marketing and communications executive with over 20 years of experience leading brand, growth, and digital transformation initiatives across financial services, insurance, and home services.

Before joining Backpack, she served as Chief Marketing Officer at Avant, where she led brand, performance marketing, CRM, and product marketing. Earlier in her career, she was Head of Marketing at Thumbtack and Chief Growth Officer at Farmers Insurance, overseeing digital marketing and product transformation initiatives. She has also held senior marketing roles at Yahoo, DIRECTV, and the Los Angeles Times. Amanda earned her B.A. in Political Science from the University of California, Los Angeles.

David Kaiserman is Executive Chairman and Founder of Backpack Networks. An entrepreneur and innovator at the intersection of real estate and technology, David founded Backpack to create UBIN—the Universal Building Identification Number—and bring a digital identity to the U.S. built environment.

Before founding Backpack, David spent nearly two decades in senior executive roles at Lennar Corporation, one of the nation’s largest homebuilders. As President of Lennar Ventures, he led strategic investments and industry-shaping innovations, including the launch of SunStreet (later acquired by Sunnova), the world’s first Wi-Fi Certified Homes, Amazon Home Services and Retail Experience Centers, and multiple home-automation partnerships. He also oversaw key corporate functions such as Government Affairs, Supply Chain, R&D, and Special Situations, and played a founding role in the Leading Builders of America during the 2007 financial crisis.

David has served on the Board of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and as Chairman of the RESNET Housing Industry Advisory Council, and his work has been featured in CNBC, Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times. He holds a BS from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Gary Michel is Chief Executive Officer of Backpack Networks and a member of its Board of Directors. With more than three decades of leadership experience in the building systems, smart infrastructure, and technology-enabled services industries, Gary has a proven track record of scaling global organizations and driving customer-focused innovation. He previously served in senior leadership roles at Honeywell, Ingersoll Rand, Trane, and JELD-WEN, where he led large-scale transformations, expanded market presence, and delivered sustainable growth. As CEO of Backpack Networks, Gary brings deep expertise in building intelligence and operational excellence to accelerate the company’s mission of giving buildings identity and unlocking the value of their data.

Rob Deutschman is Vice Chairman of Backpack Networks and a member of its Board of Directors. Rob brings decades of experience as a business leader, investor, and advisor, with a track record of guiding companies through growth, governance, and capital strategy. He has served in senior leadership and board roles across multiple industries, including financial services, technology, and real estate, where he has helped organizations scale while strengthening their long-term strategic foundations. Rob provides oversight and counsel on governance, capital formation, and strategic partnerships. His expertise and perspective are instrumental in supporting the company’s mission to give buildings identity, unlock the value of building data, and drive transformational change across the built environment.

Richard Leeds serves on Backpack Networks’ Board of Directors and is Chairman of the Board for Global Industrial, a leading international multichannel merchant offering over one million products across 21 industrial and commercial categories. Richard has been with Global Industrial for more than 35 years, serving as Chairman and CEO from 1995 to 2016 and as President of the Company’s Industrial Products group until 2011. He guided the company from its IPO to becoming a Fortune 1000 industry leader, overseeing significant growth and expansion across North America and Europe.

Richard is actively involved in philanthropy, supporting organizations such as the American Cancer Society and the Special Olympics, and serves on the board of North Shore/LIJ Hospital.

Richard earned his BS in Finance from NYU’s Stern School of Business.

Stuart R. Levine is the Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Stuart Levine & Associates LLC and former Global CEO of Dale Carnegie Training. He advises boards and C-suite executives on corporate governance, strategy, leadership development, strategic communication, and large-scale change management, while creating customer-centric cultures. His clients include Verizon, Barclays, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The Howard Hughes Corporation, Juniper Networks, Mastercard, Protiviti, and many others.

Levine has served on the boards of more than twelve publicly traded corporations and nonprofit organizations, including Broadridge Financial Solutions, Gentiva Health Services (Lead Director), European American Bank (Director, acquired by Citigroup in 2001), D’Addario & Company (Lead Director), North Shore-LIJ (Vice-Chair), Northwell Health System, WLIW Channel 21 (Chair) and Dowling College (Chair). In recognition of his contributions to corporate governance, Stuart R. Levine has been named a two-time recipient of the Top 100 Director award and recognized as a Governance Fellow by the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD).

Levine’s books include The Six Fundamentals of Success, a Wall Street Business Journal best-seller, Cut to the Chase and The Leader in You. His books have been published in over 40 languages and have collectively sold over 1.2 million hard copies. Levine also shares his expertise in monthly thought leadership articles featured in Forbes, The Credit Union Times, NACD Directorship Magazine, and Agenda. He has appeared as a media expert on The Today Show and international business programs and has delivered hundreds of keynote speeches for multinational corporations and professional associations.

At the young age of 23, he served under Nelson Rockefeller as the youngest elected New York State Assemblyman, signing over 15 laws in the areas of environmental conservation, disability legislation, and pharmaceutical legislation.