As Chief Operating Officer, Oriona leads the fund’s operating team, including portfolio development, market development, marketing and communications, strategy & research, and fund operations.

Prior to joining M12, Oriona spent 14 years in various capacities within Microsoft. Most recently, she served as Chief of Staff for the Executive Vice President of Business Development, Strategy, and Ventures overseeing organizational strategy, operations, and communications and helping manage several international partnerships and market expansions.

Oriona joined Microsoft as an antitrust attorney after spending several years at the law firm Skadden Arps, where she specialized in antitrust for M&A.

In Microsoft’s legal department, she partnered closely with several engineering units including Windows, Office, Internet Explorer, and Xbox and represented Microsoft in front of regulatory bodies around the world—most notably the Department of Justice, the Attorney General Offices of New York and California, and the European Commission.

She has a diverse set of experiences including running communications for the former Chief Operating Officer of Microsoft, working for the Chairman of Emerging Markets focused on market expansion and government growth partnerships, leading the Cloud for Global Good campaign in Global Government Affairs, and supporting the strategy for Microsoft’s small, medium and corporate segments.

Her roles have allowed her to spend a great deal of time working closely with Microsoft’s field teams around the world and some of Microsoft’s largest and smallest customers.

Oriona holds a JD and an MA in economics from the University of Iowa, where she graduated with distinction, and a BA in economics and international relations from the University of California, Davis.

She lives in the Seattle area with her husband and two children and enjoys wake-surfing, skiing, and watching her kids play a lot of basketball.