Press Release
Press Release
Press Contacts: Erik Cummins, Matt Hyams, Taina Rosa, Olivia Meyer
04.20.26
Pillsbury’s premier Emerging Companies & Venture Capital (ECVC) practice—ranked by LSEG among the Top 4 most active for VC financings and investor representation globally—has welcomed partners Mike Flynn and Saarah Woodby to its New York-based team. Flynn, who has previously served as a Pillsbury partner, and Woodby both join from McDermott Will & Schulte.
Together, they bring a sophisticated, investor-side venture and growth financing practice to enhance Pillsbury’s established offering to the ECVC community, particularly in with the technology and life sciences sectors.
“New and emerging technologies are among the most significant forces shaping business today, and our clients are laser focused on understanding, advancing and investing in these innovations,” said firm Chair David Dekker. “Mike and Saarah are deeply embedded in the ECVC community, understand its many nuances, and can provide those we represent with a distinct competitive edge.”
“We are thrilled to welcome Mike back to the firm and to have Saarah join our ranks,” said Jeff Delaney, co-leader of Pillsbury’s Corporate and Securities Business Unit. “Their investor-focused work is highly complementary to Pillsbury’s robust company-side ECVC capabilities and will prove to be of great value to our clients.”
“Mike and Saarah have a deep understanding of the lifecycle of innovation from seed to exit,” said Ron Fleming, the leader of Pillsbury’s Emerging Companies team in New York. “Their arrival further strengthens our firm’s ECVC credentials in New York, the second largest hub of VC funding in the world.”
Flynn is widely recognized as one of New York’s premier advisors for venture funds, private equity firms and institutional investors across the entire spectrum of private capital. Consistently ranked by Chambers USA, his practice focuses on private company investments and financings at all stages of development. He also represents startups and growth-stage companies in a broad range of strategic transactions, including acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures and complex commercial arrangements.
Woodby, ranked “Up and Coming: Startups & Emerging Companies” by Chambers USA, brings a proven blend of high-caliber capital markets experience and hands-on venture execution. She represents venture funds, crossover funds, asset managers and other institutional investors in debt and equity financings, mergers and acquisitions, and other strategic and alternative investment transactions. She also supports technology-focused emerging companies on a variety of investments, from seed stage to growth equity.
Their arrivals follow a period of sustained growth for Pillsbury, which has welcomed a total of 56 partners, including Flynn and Woodby, since the start of 2024. Over the past 12 months, that growth has included notable ECVC practitioners including Palo Alto-based ECVC partner additions Steven Green, Glenn Luinenburg and Todd Rumberger; partner Sarah Melaney in London; and partner Scott Perlov in San Francisco. The firm also made some notable hires in the VC-focused funds space in San Francisco and Silicon Valley partner Eunice Choi and David Holland in Washington, D.C.
“Returning to Pillsbury and its top-tier ECVC practice was a natural choice,” said Flynn. “Saarah and I are eager to fully integrate our practices into the exceptional team here and to be a part of a firm that is so uniquely committed to fulfilling the needs of clients.”
Pillsbury’s Emerging Companies & Venture Capital team counsels high-growth enterprises and venture capital investors around the globe. The firm takes shoestring startups to market-leading positions, advising clients through venture financings, technology transactions and strategic partnerships, and helping clients navigate through exit strategies, including initial public offerings and strategic acquisitions.