An
entrepreneur with significant experience in the technology sector, Rick
Bolander has served as a member of the board of Kajeet, Inc., for six
years. In this position, Mr. Bolander contributes to the venture’s
strategic decisions and closely follows the company’s press.
Shortly
before the 2012 holiday season, Education.com released its annual Gift
Guide. The website’s experts tested hundreds, if not thousands, of
products for children of all ages. After combining the “fun” factor with
parent and teacher approval, Education.com posted its final list.
Alongside several books and games, the website ranked the LG Optimus
Elite Android Prepaid Phone by Kajeet, Inc., as one of its top
recommendations for fifth graders.
A cell phone company dedicated
solely to creating telecommunications products for children and
teenagers, Kajeet has developed a unique suite of services for this
educational, child-friendly phone. With Kajeet’s LG phone, parents can
closely monitor each child’s call, text, and Internet activity. The
phone also features technology that allows parents to schedule black-out
times, filter certain websites, and even enable a GPS tracker. Overall,
as Education.com determined, Kajeet’s technology is sure to satisfy
both child and parent.
While some observers worry about technology’s increasing presence
in our lives, others praise its power to keep families connected in real
time. A 2010 survey commissioned by the publisher of Parenting magazine
and the producers of BlogHer, Inc., found that most of today’s mothers
believe that technology plays a vital role in their own and their
families’ lives.
For example, almost three-fourths of the more
than 1,000 mothers questioned said that technology-based activities can
provide positive family experiences, and 83 percent appreciate
technology for its ability to improve their overall quality of life. And
while almost all parents who participated in the survey said they set
limits on the amount and kind of online content their children access,
only 5 percent reported that their child had shown signs of addictive
behaviors related to technology.
In 2011, the California-based
Barna Group published The Family & Technology Report, which drew on
interviews with parents of 11- to 17-year-olds across the country. Among
its findings, the report concluded that the majority of parents believe
the effects of technology on their families have been neutral or
positive rather than negative. Additionally, only about 25 percent of
respondents said they experienced family conflicts over media limits.
Rick
Bolander, an experienced business executive in the venture capital
field, has devoted particular attention to assisting technology
start-ups such as Kajeet, Inc., a mobile communications company serving
young people and their families. In addition to his position as Managing
Partner of San Francisco-based Gabriel Venture Partners, he is a member
of Kajeet's Board of Directors.
Through his guidance of Kajeet, Inc., Rick Bolander has helped thousands of parents find peace of mind by way of their children’s cell phones. For the last seven years, Kajeet has developed and sold cell phones designed specifically for children. The company’s unique cellular technology offers parents the opportunity to limit phone usage, schedule black-out times, and restrict access to certain websites. Moreover, Kajeet allows parents to subscribe to a GPS locator service for just $7.99 per month. Using the company’s interactive mapping service, parents can view a child’s phone location in real time.This tool can be especially important in emergency situations when locating a child is critical. It is also useful to help cultivate trust between parents and children. While experts caution parents against using a GPS locator as a preventive measure for teenagers, they do recommend this service as a way to rebuild trust after a negative incident. No matter how parents choose to use this convenient service, they will enjoy lessened anxiety about their children’s whereabouts, knowing that they can activate the locator device at any time.In addition to his role on Kajeet’s board of directors, Rick Bolander also manages Gabriel Venture Partners and Michigan eLab.
