International
Investor Relations & Fundraising Forum San Diego 2024
25 - 26 September 2024,
The Westin San Diego Bayview, San Diego
Maximize your firm's fundraising potential
The Investor Relations & Fundraising Forum connects leading professionals within private markets and venture capital to discuss changing markets.
Improve your strategy by hearing from market leaders about best practices and trends in fundraising, investor relations, branding, communications, marketing, and more.
Discover solutions to your most pressing challenges through engaging panels, interactive roundtable discussions, and extensive networking opportunities.
The Forum will connect you with peers to exchange ideas on the changing fundraising landscape, how to navigate oncoming headwinds, and significant day-to-day pain points.
Perspectives for IR, marketing, and communications professionals
With industry-leading speakers on sessions covering key investor relations, marketing, and communications topics, your entire team will leave the forum with a clearer picture of the future of their role within private equity and venture capital.
Marketing and communications professionals
Leverage your position in the market to exceed your firm’s fundraising goals.
Investor relations professionals
Discover your ideal investor personae and set the foundation for positive relationships.
Why attend the forum?
Improve your strategy
Industry thought-leaders will discuss emerging trends and best practices to improve your investor relations, marketing, and branding strategies.
Overcome your challenges
This year’s forum features exclusive keynotes, panels, roundtable discussions, networking opportunities, and a newly-added workshop on day two to help answer your most pressing questions.
Build your network
Consult with your peers to discuss significant day-to-day pain points, the changing fundraising landscape, and how to differentiate your firm from the rest.
Developing a solid crisis communications strategy
At the 2023 Forum, General Catalyst’s VP of Brand & Communications, Sue Kwon, led a conversation on creating a proactive communication strategy during a crisis.
Sue discussed:
- How to establish brand pillars while keeping all decisions consistent with your firm’s values
- Promoting transparency in your communications with LP’s
- Having an adequate plan in place to ensure a crisis can be handled quickly and effectively
- And more…
Key 2023 agenda themes
Last year’s agenda was built through consultation with influential IR and marketing leaders in private markets and venture capital.
The topics covered provide relevant information to impact processes and practices within firms, such as:
- Lessons learned from the SVB collapse
- The growing class of non-traditional investors and sources of capital
- The new politics of private investing
- And more…
New in 2023!
Build customer engagement strategies to raise capital
Last year, attendees joined us on day 2 of the Forum for the Private Equity Customer Engagement Workshop. Through roundtable discussions they heard new strategies to identify sources of capital and build strong relationships with investors.
Attendees left the workshop with:
- Strategies to create a consistent brand strategy
- A better understanding of how to leverage technology
- Knowledge on creating reports compliant with the Marketing Rule
- And more…
Past attendees included:
2023 speakers included:
What our attendees say about the Forum
Kate Gallego
Data & Operations Specialist, CIVC Partners LP
This PEI Conference was fantastic and all of the attendees have similar situations as their firms are starting to implement marketing/IR and wear multiple hats…
Rikki Gibson
Senior Associate, Northleaf Capital Partners
A great event to network with and learn from other private markets marketing professionals.
Andrew Hines
Marketing Manager, Pacific Current Group
As a new member of the finance/investment industry, I found this conference to be extremely helpful in my development of understanding and evolution of my strat…
Kate Gallego
Data & Operations Specialist, CIVC Partners LP
This PEI Conference was fantastic and all of the attendees have similar situations as their firms are starting to implement marketing/IR and wear multiple hats in their role. The speakers were very helpful having excellent experiences at a range of firms and the moderators kept the pace of the Q&A and topic. The highlight was the small groups, where I was able to network and share part of my story and hear others’ stories. It was a positive networking experience and I will definitely attend this conference again in the future.
2023 agenda
Download the 2023 agenda to see a sample of which timely and relevant topics could be covered at this year’s Forum.
If you are interested in a speaking role please contact contact Brian Anderson at brian.a@pei.group.
Agenda
Day 1 - Wednesday 20th
Registration – Breakfast
The new politics and changes for private investing
- How will last month’s new rules and amendments from the SEC change LP relations?
- How might the world of private investing change over the next two years?
- What are the practical implications of politics to investor relations, marketing & communications teams?
Moderator:
Jeff Mills, Managing Director, Fundraising and Investor Relations, Gryphon Investors
Speakers:
Rob Kaufman, Head of Investor Relations, Linse Capital
Tom Pierce, Partner, CFO, CCO, Sorenson Capital
Opening remarks & chair's welcome
Chairperson:
Tiffany Davis, Director, Sofinnova Investments
Keynote - Real-time crisis communications
- What lessons can investor relations leaders learn from events like the Silicon Valley Bank collapse? Can fund managers take on potential crises proactively?
- What is the role of your firm’s brand in crisis communications, and can fund managers take on potential crises proactively through their brands?
- When it comes to public relations and communications with your investor base, what does transparency mean for your firm?
Moderator:
Sue Kwon, Vice President of Brand & Communications, General Catalyst
Panelist:
Lawrence Aragon, West Coast Bureau Chief, PEI
New investor personae - non-traditional investors
- Who are the non-traditional investors making an impact in managers’ fundraising strategies, and what motivates them?
- How do you define your ideal investor personae for your firm?
- What are the common themes across different non-traditional investor personae, and how can you use those themes in your branding and communications strategies effectively & successfully?
Moderator:
Jennifer Stroud, EVP, Bay Area Head, Financial Communications and Capital Markets, Edelman
Speakers:
Karen Heidelberger, Partner, Chief Partnership and Communications Officer, Deerfield Management
Ann Lee Steinberg, Head of Investor Relations, NFX
Olga Serhiyevich, Head of Investor Relations, Village Global
Karen Heidelberger
Partner, Chief Partnership and Communications Officer, Deerfield Management
Read bioNetworking coffee break
Designing your investor experience – Content, AGM and beyond
- How will the “democratization” of private investing shape the investor experience, from prospect to AGM?
- What are the types of content and content strategies that engage your investor base?
- How do you leverage your firm’s brand, and the personal brands of your firm’s leadership, to design and plan a meaningful and effective AGM?
Moderator:
Tim Flannery, Co-founder and CEO, Passthrough
Speakers:
Mary E. Adams, CMP, Founder & CEO, Avivant Partners
Chelsea Dodge, Head of Investor Relations, Fin Capital
Amy Holmes, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Communications, Fengate Asset Management
Alycia Simons, Manager of Investor Relations, Mercato Partners
Networking luncheon
Careers in investor relations, marketing and communications in the private investment industry
- How can private investment firms tap non-traditional talent pools to advance their fundraising, branding, and communications goals?
- What are the skillsets and competencies most sought after in today’s private IR and marcomms departments?
- Where are the most exciting opportunities for professional growth in IR and marcomms in the private investment industry?
- How to ensure talent in leadership with succession planning with enhanced internal opportunities for professional growth
Moderator:
Sarah Abboud, Director of Marketing & Communications, VMG Partners
Speakers:
Andrea Chrysanthou, Vice President, TAS
Kathlika Fontes, Director of Investor Relations, Grain Management
Cindy Mesaros, Head of Marketing and People, Foresite Capital
Gretchen Robinson, Director, Capital Formation, GI Partners
Think tank A | Venture capital (GP ONLY)
- How are venture capital firms faring in today’s competitive fundraising landscape?
Facilitator:
Debbie Liao, Partner, Investor Relations, Battery Ventures
Think tank B | Growth equity (GP ONLY)
- How are growth equity firms faring in today’s competitive fundraising landscape?
Facilitator:
Jessica Schmitt, Director, Investor Relations, Arrowroot Capital Partners
Think tank C | Middle-market buyout (GP ONLY)
- How are middle-market buyout firms faring in today’s competitive fundraising landscape?
Facilitator:
Chelsea Reichard, Vice President, Fundraising, Bow River Capital
Networking refreshment break
Breakout session: Marketing & communications | Rebrand strategies
- Considering the when and the why of a corporate rebrand
- Identifying the most impactful changes
- Internal communication and getting firmwide buy-in
- Ensuring a seamless rollout across all channels
Moderator:
Ira Berg, Managing Director, Business Consulting & Advisory Services, Ext Marketing
Speakers:
Mike Marderosian, Vice President, 50 South Capital
Soo Song, Head of Marketing, WiL (World Innovation Lab)
Jamie Viggiano, Chief Marketing Officer, Fuel Capital
Hillá Watkins, Chief Marketing Officer, Scale Venture Partners
Ira Berg
Managing Director, Business Consultancy & Advisory Services (U.S.), Ext. Marketing
Read bioBreakout session: Investor relations | Adapting to the current fundraising environment
- What is the current landscape like?
- Accelerated pace of capital deployment and fundraising
- Increased demands on reporting
- Extreme competition
- What areas of the fundraising process are you being forces to evolve/adapt?
Moderator:
Jeff Mills, Managing Director, Fundraising and Investor Relations, Gryphon Investors
Speakers:
Gina Bauman, Head of Capital Formation, Cota Capital
Jimmy Carrion, Senior Vice President, Investor Relations, Lloyd Jones
Laura Fahrney, Partner, Investor Relations, Ridgemont Equity Partners
Allan Petersen, Managing Director, Investor Relations, Nautic Partners
Scaling up your IR & marketing and communications tech stack
- How do you assess your firm’s IR & marcomms technology needs?
- How do you assess the capabilities of various tools and professionals to create a plan to scale up your tech stack (on a budget)?
- How do you get buy-in from your firm’s leadership?
Moderator:
Jeff Williams, Chief Strategy Officer, Altvia
Speakers:
Michelle Chao, Head of Investor Relations, Bertram Capital
Anne Gherini, CMO, Sierra Ventures
Sarah Mattina, former Marketing & Communications Director, Venture Forward
Avery Williams, Head of Investor Relations & Marketing, Healthquest Capital
Cocktail reception
Agenda
Day 2 - Thursday 21st
Continental breakfast
Will AI impact fundraising in private markets?
- Survey the market landscape to identify risk and opportunity
- Make sequencing activities more efficient for a win
- Identify LP questions/concerns and generate strategic answers/responses accordingly
- Hear other use cases for AI tools
Moderator:
Hye Kyung (HK) Lee, Chief Solutions Officer, InvestorFlow
Speakers:
Laura Deitz, Investor Relations Principal, Northgate
Jessica Hoffman Brennan, Partner, Head of Strategy & Investor Relations, Kohlberg & Company
Oren Michaely, Director of AI, Motive Partners
Think tank A | Marketing & communications (GP ONLY)
What are the unique challenges faces by marketing & communications professionals working in the private investment industry today, and what are the solutions your peers are finding to be most effective in overcoming those challenges?
Facilitator:
Peter Delevett, Director of Communications, National Grid Partners
Think tank B | Investor relations (GP ONLY)
How is the role of investor relations changing in a highly competitive fundraising environment? Including, what are the pros and cons of placement agents and how do global versus regional placement agents measure up.
Facilitator:
Matt Lien, Director, Investor Relations, Longwater Opportunities
Chair's opening remarks
Chairperson:
Tiffany Davis, Director, Sofinnova Investments
Keynote fireside chat: Use meaningful metrics and make them matter
- Setting strategic goals to know what success looks like
- What KPI’s are relevant to brand authenticity?
- Scorecard metrics that matter when it comes to DEI and ESG
- Measuring success broadly: tangible and intangibles
Moderator:
Lawrence Aragon, West Coast Bureau Chief, PEI Group
Keynote:
Mark Barnhill, Partner, Platinum Equity
Networking coffee break
Breakout session: How to define and measure IR success
- What KPIs are you tracking?
- Does your CRM help track whether specific investors have switched firms or funds?
- Conducting investor studies/surveys
- How to continue building on success
Moderator:
Grace Kim, Managing Director, Fundraising and Investor Relations, The Riverside Company
Speakers:
Catherine Chen, Vice President, Investor Relations, FFL
Kelly Golden, Director of Investor Relations, G2 Venture Partners
Lindsay Grider, Global Head of Fundraising and Investor Relations, Levine Leichtman Capital Partners
Brian Kriebel, Managing Director, HighBar Partners
Breakout session: Future-proofed ESG & DEI
- In states where ESG and DEI investing have become politicized, how can your firm’s branding reflect a non-political, “dollars and sense” approach to these concepts?
- How do you work with your firm’s management to establish who “owns” ESG & DEI and how can this be reflected in your firm’s branding?
- How do you plan for the next ESG or DEI-related crisis?
Moderator:
Nick Condie, Senior Account Executive, SS&C Intralinks
Speakers:
Tanya Loh, Chief Marketing Officer, Forgepoint Capital
Amrita Mainthia, Vice President, Investor Relations, General Catalyst
Lisa Parks, Head of Investor Relations, Base Ventures
Luncheon
Private Equity Customer Engagement Workshop
The Private Equity Customer Engagement Workshop will equip you with strategies to identify new sources of capital and build strong relationships with investors.
Opening remarks
Private equity customer engagement: making the right first impression
- What is private equity customer engagement?
- Managing its customers’ expectations through digital, mobile and social experiences.
- Being proactive in telling your own story
- Why is customer engagement becoming a top priority?
- Key areas of focus for standing out and thriving in this digital era
- Brand road mapping, website development and digital marketing, data visualization, and presentation and sales collateral design
Moderator:
Stephanie Bednar, Principal, Capital Formation Group, H.I.G. Capital
Speakers:
Devin Banerjee, Sr. Managing Editor, Industry News & Community, Linkedin
Tiffany Davis, Head of Investor Relations, Sofinnova Investments
Jon Hoffman, Managing Director, Investor Relations, Rhône Group
Natalie Yates, Head of Business Development and Investor Relations, Vance Street Capital
Roundtable 1 | Brand road mapping
- How to identify investor targets – who are they, and what do they want
- How to manage multiple stories for multiple investor types
- Content marketing for private investors
Facilitators:
Jennifer Janson, Director of Communications, OMERS Ventures
Hadley Wilkins, VP, Communications, Atomic
Roundtable 2 | Designing compelling and compliant marketing materials, reports, and data visualizations
- What makes a piece of marketing collateral in the private investment industry compliant with the SEC Marketing rule?
- The SEC Marketing rule – undertaking the task of educating your investors on how to read and interpret SEC Marketing rule compliant reports (e.g., gross vs. net profits in portfolio performance reporting)
- Tools and techniques for data visualization: data collection, analysis, distribution
Facilitators:
Jason Jerista, Managing Director, Investor Relations, LLR
Tracie Kelly, Director of Marketing, Excellere Partners
Roundtable 3 | Using technology to prospect, attract and retain investors
- CRM best practices to manage investor relationships
- Using social media platforms and tools to attract, retain, and cultivate new investor relationships
- Using data to identify new prospects
Facilitators:
Anne Gherini, CMO, Sierra Ventures
Nancy Katz, Senior Director of Investor Relations, Costanoa Ventures
Roundtable 4 | Executing your next AGM
- In-person, digital, or hybrid event production strategies? How do you get the right mix of strategies for your AGM?
- Agenda design and writing
- Event vendor management and tool selection
Facilitators:
Mary E. Adams, CMP, Founder & CEO, Avivant Partners
Katie Riester, Partner, Felicis Ventures
Networking break
Roundtable 1 | Brand road mapping
- How to identify investor targets – who are they, and what do they want
- How to manage multiple stories for multiple investor types
- Content marketing for private investors
Facilitators:
Jennifer Janson, Director of Communications, OMERS Ventures
Hadley Wilkins, VP, Communications, Atomic
Roundtable 2 | Designing compelling and compliant marketing materials, reports, and data visualizations
- What makes a piece of marketing collateral in the private investment industry compliant with the SEC Marketing rule?
- The SEC Marketing rule – undertaking the task of educating your investors on how to read and interpret SEC Marketing rule compliant reports (e.g., gross vs. net profits in portfolio performance reporting)
- Tools and techniques for data visualization: data collection, analysis, distribution
Facilitators:
Jason Jerista, Managing Director, Investor Relations, LLR
Tracie Kelly, Director of Marketing, Excellere Partners
Roundtable 3 | Using technology to prospect, attract and retain investors
- CRM best practices to manage investor relationships
- Using social media platforms and tools to attract, retain, and cultivate new investor relationships
- Using data to identify new prospects
Facilitators:
Anne Gherini, CMO, Sierra Ventures
Nancy Katz, Senior Director of Investor Relations, Costanoa Ventures
Roundtable 4 | Executing your next AGM
- In-person, digital, or hybrid event production strategies? How do you get the right mix of strategies for your AGM?
- Agenda design and writing
- Event vendor management and tool selection
Facilitators:
Mary E. Adams, CMP, Founder & CEO, Avivant Partners
Katie Riester, Partner, Felicis Ventures
Closing panel: Bringing it all together: marketing and branding for deal flow
- What motivates founders today and how to increase your firm’s deal flow?
- How to leverage your firm’s brand to draw in founders to your portfolio
- How to design the founder experience as an expression of your firm’s brand
Moderator:
Zoe Guttendorf, Head of Marketing and Investor Relations, Artis Ventures
Speakers:
Shernaz Daver, Operating Partner and CMO, Khosla Ventures
Kimberley Kasper, Chief Marketing Officer, Strattam Capital
Kelly Lassing, Head of Marketing and Communications, Energize Ventures
Ryan Parker, Chief Marketing Officer, Trivest Partners
End of conference
2023 speakers
Have a topic you would like to discuss at this year’s Forum? Contact Brian Anderson at brian.a@pei.group to discuss speaking opportunities.
Be part of industry-leading events for global private equity professionals
Engage with networking sessions, thought leadership, and more to build lasting relationships and meet your business goals. Sponsorship gives you:
- VIP access
- Thought-leadership opportunities
- High-profile branding
- And much more…
For more information about sponsorship opportunities, contact Jimmy Kurtovic at jimmy.k@pei.group or call +1 646 356 4504.
Pre-Event Resources
2023 venue
Parc 55, San Francisco
55 Cyril Magnin St
San Francisco, CA 94102
All forum sessions will take place at the Parc 55, San Francisco.
We’ve reserved a room block for attendees. Please book your room before Friday, September 15.
2023 advisory board
Connect with industry leaders
Join the forum to network with an expansive community of investor relations, marketing, and communications professionals from leading private markets and venture capital firms.
Learn how to secure more capital, improve your marketing strategy, and make the most of your communication efforts by conversing with industry experts throughout the event.
Make lasting connections with your peers by participating in:
- Think tanks
- Roundtable discussions
- Networking breaks
- End-of-the-day reception
- And more!
Past attendees include...
Build customer engagement strategies to raise capital
In 2023, the Private Equity Customer Engagement Workshop equipped attendees with strategies to identify new sources of capital and build strong relationships with investors.
Through roundtable discussions, we covered a range of topics including:
- Building your firm’s brand for success
- Using technology to prospect, attract and retain investors
- How to produce successful annual general meetings for prospects and investors
- Creating SEC compliant marketing materials and data visualizations
- And more…
Why you need to attend
Solidify your brand
The focused roundtable discussions look to give you the tools needed to create a brand for your fund that investors can trust.
Streamline your tech
Our roundtable facilitators will show you how to leverage new technologies to improve and streamline firm processes.
Simplify your reporting
Learn how to create effective and compliant performance reports.
Roundtable discussions that will improve your strategies
Roundtable discussions are 30-minute interactive, peer-driven conversations, facilitated by two industry experts, on various customer engagement topics that are important to investor relations, marketing & communications professionals.
Throughout the afternoon, facilitators will rotate tables to ensure all delegates participate in each discussion.
Brand road mapping
- How to identify investor targets – who are they, and what do they want
- How to manage multiple stories for multiple investor types
- Content marketing for private investors
Designing compelling and compliant marketing materials, reports, and data visualizations
- What makes a piece of marketing collateral in the private investment industry compliant with the SEC Marketing rule?
- The SEC Marketing rule – undertaking the task of educating your investors on how to read and interpret SEC Marketing rule compliant reports
- Tools and techniques for data visualization: data collection, analysis, distribution
Using technology to prospect, attract and retain investors
- CRM best practices to manage investor relationships
- Using social media platforms and tools to attract, retain, and cultivate new investor relationships
- Using data to identify new prospects
Executing your next AGM
- In-person, digital, or hybrid event production strategies? How do you get the right mix of strategies for your AGM?
- Agenda design and writing
- Event vendor management and tool selection
Differentiate your firm from the rest
As investors become more selective about who they’re investing in, it’s more important than ever to make sure your firm is standing out in the crowd. The 2023 Forum ensured that attendees had an effective marketing and communications strategy that was backed by a solid brand.
It included engaging panel discussions, interactive think tanks for marketing professionals only, an exclusive keynote discussion, and much more over the two-day forum.
Sessions crucial to your role
Explore some of the marketing and communications discussions presented in 2023.
Crisis communications
Keynote panel: Day 1 | 9:15-10am
We’re excited to have General Catalyst’s Vice President of Brand & Communications, Sue Kwon lead a discussion on how to effectively manage your communication strategies during a crisis.
She’ll take a deep dive into lessons learned from the SVB collapse and how your firm can be proactive in preparing for any potential crises.
Rebrand strategies
Panel discussion: Day 1 | 3:30-4:20pm
It all starts with your brand and who your firm is. This session will dive into when and why you should rebrand and the steps needed to make sure it’s solid from the ground up.
Our panelists will also discuss the most impactful changes internally within your firm as well as externally in the market.
Technology
Panel discussion: Day 1 | 4:25-5:15pm
As technology continues to advance, it’s important to assess how your firm can effectively leverage it to improve your marketing strategies.
This session will discuss how to find where technology can help you and which tools are best suited for your needs.
Customer engagement
Workshop: Day 2
New for this year, the half-day customer engagement workshop will get into the day-to-day work of your full marketing team. Click here for more information.
Marketing professionals offering their expertise
Kelly Howard
Partner, Head of Marketing, Adams Street Partners
Jennifer Janson
Director of Communications, OMERS Ventures
Kimberley Kasper
Chief Marketing Officer, Strattam Capital
Tracie Kelly
Director of Marketing, Excellere Partners
Sue Kwon
Vice President of Brand & Communications, General Catalyst
Sarah Mattina
former Marketing & Communications Director, Venture Forward
Cindy Mesaros
Head of Marketing and People, Foresite Capital
Hillá Watkins
Chief Marketing Officer, Scale Venture Partners
Reach your fundraising goals
With the growing class of non-traditional investors, it can be difficult to find the right investors for your firm. The 2023 Forum helped define your ideal investor persona, improve your relationships with them, create an engaging investor experience, and much more.
This year’s event will include engaging panel discussions, interactive think tanks for IR professionals only, an exclusive keynote discussion, and much more over the two-day forum.
Sessions crucial to your role
Explore some of the investor relations discussions that took place at last year’s Forum.
Leveraging non-traditional investors
Panel discussion: Day 1 | 10:00-10:50am
The class of non-traditional investors is growing and while that is exciting, it’s important to make sure you’re finding the right investor fit for your firm.
This session will discuss how non-traditional investors are impacting the field, how to find the right ones for your firm, and how to tweak your messaging to reach them effectively.
Current trends
Breakout session: Day 1 | 3:30-4:20pm
The fundraising landscape is everchanging and this session will make sure you’re up to date on all of the latest trends. We’ll discuss capital deployment and fundraising strategies, new reporting methods, the competitive market, and more.
Your investor experience
Panel discussion: Day 1 | 11:20am-12:10pm
As private investing becomes more democratized you must keep your investors engaged. We’ll discuss how to create an engaging investor experience, show you what content investors are looking for, and help you leverage your brand to hold an effective AGM.
Private investing politics
Breakout session: Day 1 | 8:00-9:00am
This session will cover the impact the 2024 election may have on private investing, new pressures you’ll face as the industry becomes more democratized, and how you can better prepare your teams for what’s to come.