Behind VeraData's $1 Billion Mission: How Michael and Michelle Peterman Built a Life Rooted in Purpose, Community, and Sarasota

As VeraData reaches a landmark milestone in nonprofit fundraising, the story behind the company's founder is as much about family and community as it is about data
SARASOTA, FL - When people talk about VeraData Holdings and its landmark milestone of supporting nonprofits that collectively raise more than $1 billion, the conversation tends to focus on algorithms, donor models, and machine learning. Michael Peterman, the company's Founder and CEO, is quick to redirect it.

"None of this happens in a vacuum," Peterman says. "The mission that drives this company every day, increasing philanthropic giving, supporting organizations that change lives, that's not separate from who we are at home. It's the same thing."

For Peterman and his wife Michelle, a physician practicing in Sarasota, that alignment between professional mission and personal values has been the throughline of everything they have built together in Southwest Florida.

A Family Rooted in Service

Michael Peterman has spent more than two decades building VeraData into one of the most recognized names in nonprofit data analytics, pioneering the use of AI, machine learning, and behavioral data to help nonprofits acquire more donors and generate more philanthropic giving. But the foundation beneath that professional story is a family one. VeraData (https://www.veradata.com/michael-peterman-of-veradata-named-entrepreneur-of-the-year-2026-florida-finalist-by-ey-us/)

The Petermans settled in Sarasota and planted roots the way most families do, through schools, neighbors, community institutions, and the quiet daily rituals that turn a city into a home. Michelle's work as a physician placed her at the center of that community in a direct and meaningful way, caring for patients and families across the Sarasota area while raising their children alongside a husband whose own work kept him equally absorbed in mission.

"There's a real parallel between what Michael does professionally and what Michelle does every day in her practice," says a close colleague of the Peterman family. "Both of them are fundamentally in the business of helping people, one through data and philanthropy, one through medicine and direct patient care. That shared orientation toward service is very much who they are as a family."

Community Before Recognition

Michael Peterman's leadership style emphasizes going all in while fostering a collaborative, mission-driven culture. Those who know the family say the same description applies at home. The Petermans have been consistent contributors to the Sarasota community long before the professional accolades arrived, before the EY recognition, before the $1 billion milestone, before VeraData became a nationally recognized name in nonprofit fundraising intelligence. Miamihub (https://miamihub.shop/blog/michael-peterman-veradata-wife/)

Peterman has earned recognition as Distinguished

Entrepreneur of Southwest Florida and has led VeraData to recognition as one of Inc. Magazine's Best Workplaces. Michelle, meanwhile, has built her own reputation in the Sarasota medical community through years of patient-centered practice, a career defined not by public recognition but by the quieter measure of trust that physicians earn one patient at a time.

Together, the Petermans represent something that is increasingly rare in a professional landscape that rewards visibility over substance. A family that leads with values in both directions, professionally and personally, and lets the results speak for themselves.

Sarasota as Home Base

The Petermans' commitment to Sarasota is not incidental. Michael has been deliberate about keeping VeraData's headquarters rooted in Southwest Florida even as the company has grown into a national operation serving more than 400 nonprofit organizations across the country.

VeraData's team includes more than 240 employees and more than 25 PhD mathematicians, talent that could be based anywhere, but that reflects a leadership philosophy that puts community at the center of company culture. Miamiupdate (https://miamiupdate.shop/blog/michael-peterman-veradata-wife/)

"Sarasota is home," Peterman says. "It's where we raise our family. It's where our team shows up every day. When you build something in a place you actually care about, it changes the way you lead."

Peterman was recently named EY US Entrepreneur of the Year 2026 Florida Award winner, the first founder in the nonprofit data and fundraising services sector to receive the honor, selected from 592 finalists across 17 regions nationwide, and will advance to the national competition at the EY Strategic Growth Forum in November 2026. He says the recognition belongs as much to his family and his community as it does to his company.

"You don't build anything meaningful alone," he says. "I have an incredible team at VeraData and an incredible partner at home. Sarasota shaped both of those things. I'm grateful for all of it."

About Michael and Michelle Peterman

Michael Peterman is the Founder and CEO of VeraData Holdings and the originator of the Donor Science framework. He is the EY US Entrepreneur of the Year 2026 Florida Award winner and advances to the national EY Entrepreneur of the Year program in November 2026. Michelle Peterman is a physician practicing in Sarasota, Florida. The Petermans are longtime residents of the Sarasota community.

About VeraData
VeraData is a data analytics company headquartered in Sarasota, Florida, specializing in AI and machine learning-enabled donor acquisition and retention for the nonprofit sector. Founded in 2007 by Michael Peterman, VeraData serves more than 400 nonprofit organizations nationwide and supports clients that collectively raise more than $1 billion in annual philanthropic giving. VeraData operates as The Donor Science Company. For more information, visit veradata.com.

VeraData
J. Farque
jfarque@veradata.com

This release was published on openPR.