Private Equity
International
International
Operating Partners Human Capital Forum New York 2023
29 - 30 March 2023,
Convene, 117 W 46th St, New York
Driving human capital as a key value creation lever
Now in its second year in person, the Operating Partners Human Capital Forum brings together an elite crowd of human capital value creators and operating partner talent specialists. It is the place to meet key players in the PE community and get a firm grasp on initiatives designed to transform operations, deliver growth, and drive value creation strategies through talent.
You’ll receive insight into the evolving talent market by experts who will share strategies and experiences. At this critical time in the economic cycle, you’ll uncover how leading firms achieve value creation through the “human capital operating partner.”
Secure your place by March 3, 2023, to save $300+ on your pass.
Learn key strategies to accelerate growth & transformation through human capital
Join discussions with the leading PE operating specialists in human capital
Network with top value creators focused on talent and leadership
2023 agenda highlights
- Think tanks led by operating partners for operating partners: talent value creation war rooms
- The economy: impact of a downturn/recession on the human capital function in PE
- Women in PE & VC portfolio operations lunch discussion
- Deal partner perspectives in looking at the talent function: what does the partnership look like?
- The evolving role of the PE human capital operating professional
- The modern C-suite: uncovering the right traits for current economic times
2023 Speakers
Connect with the leading talent operating partner network:
“As someone who is building out the talent function within my firm currently, I found valuable insights from the speakers and attendees. Being in a role that is fairly new to the private equity world makes events like this exceptionally helpful as we learn and grow the talent function together as a community.”
Kelie Morgan
Director of Talent Acquisition
Permanent Equity
2023 Agenda
Download the 2023 agenda covering human capital value creation challenges and opportunities for private equity and portfolio companies.
If you are interested in a speaking role please contact Marc Mele at marc.m@pei.group.
All times are listed in Eastern Time (ET)
View agenda page
Agenda
Day 1 - Wednesday 29th
Registration and breakfast
07:15 - 08:45
Registration and breakfast
07:45 - 08:45
Human capital operating partners think tank (invitation-only)
Dana Allen,
Reid Terry,
Emily Azevedo,
Kelly Carlson
Invitation-only think tank for full-time PE and VC operating partners and talent partners. This closed-door room will allow you to learn and share best practices in human capital and talent management for PE portfolio operations. The think tank will also allow you to submit topics to be introduced by the facilitators and discussed in the room. Please select one of the rooms based on how long you have been in private equity:
Think Tank Room 1
Emerging Human Capital Operating Partners and Talent Partners (1-2 years in PE)
Facilitators:
Dana Allen, Managing Director, Talent, Gauge Capital
Reid Terry, Director, Talent, Trivest,Partners
Think Tank Room 2
Advanced Human Capital Operating Partners and Talent Partners
Facilitators:
Emily Azevedo, Operating Partner and Head of Talent, Mainsail Partners
Kelly Carlson, Managing Director, Head of Talent, STG Partners
08:45 - 09:00
PEI’s welcome and chairman’s opening remarks
Tony Buffum
Chairman:
Tony Buffum, Vice President of HR Client Strategy, Upwork
Plenary sessions
09:00 - 09:40
Investor perspectives: discussing what your deal team wants and needs from you
Dan Hawkins
- What makes a successful talent partner/human capital operating partner in the eyes of the deal team? What do deal teams need from you?
- What do your investors value most in the human capital and talent role?
- How can PE heads of talent get a voice at the table and influence the investor decisions?
- Any tips on how talent operating partners can build their brand and their relationship with deal teams?
- What does a successful partnership look like?
- Talent partner-deal team dynamics: showcasing synergies and best practices across the investment cycle
- How does the current downturn affect the partnership and what talent partner traits are most important in the current environment?
Moderator:
Dan Hawkins, Founder and CEO, Summit Leadership Partners
09:40 - 10:20
The evolution of the human capital function in PE: comparing successful models today and what will be required in the future
Rena Frackt Zimmerman,
Mara Edgar,
Jimmy Holloran,
Melissa Mounce,
Chris Trendler
- Uncovering typical roles and responsibilities of human capital operating partners & talent partners: what does “great” look like today and what will it look like in the future?
- Has the talent function/team grown at your firm? What does your internal team look like?
- What are the skills and capabilities to have ‘in-house’ and what are models for the external ecosystem to consider?
- The evolving talent function: what are you doing to “innovate” and scale the function and what are the implications for private equity?
- What sort of support are you providing to portfolio companies around talent management/optimization? How have you seen that evolve over the last few years?
Moderator:
Rena Frackt Zimmerman, Managing Director and Head of Client Coverage, BluWave
Panelists:
Mara Edgar, Managing Director, Human Capital, The Riverside Company
Jimmy Holloran, Partner, ParkerGale Capital
Melissa Mounce, Managing Director, Leadership Talent and Diversity, GTCR
Chris Trendler, Managing Director, Head of Portfolio Talent, Madison Dearborn Partners
10:20 - 11:00
Operating partner human capital strategies across the entire investment lifecycle
Neel Bhatia ,
Courtney della Cava,
Coley Florance,
Karina Sobieski
- Playbooks in developing human capital strategies throughout the various stages
- When, how, and to what extent do talent partners get involved in the lifecycle
- Pre-deal best practices and talent due diligence: operating partner lessons learned
- Team alignment on strategic direction to execute the investment thesis
- How to think about creating value through human capital in the first 100 days
- Operating during the hold period in the current market
- Talent management best practices for the exit
- Comparing differences and approaches in sectors and industries
Moderator:
Mugdha Narasimhan, Managing Director, Entromy
Panelists:
Neel Bhatia, Operating Partner, Talent, Arcline Investment Management
Courtney della Cava, Senior Managing Director, Global Head of Portfolio Talent and Organizational Performance, Blackstone
Coley Florance, Head of Talent, Spectrum Equity
Karina Sobieski, Director, Portfolio Human Capital, Advent International
Courtney della Cava
Senior Managing Director, Global Head of Portfolio Talent and Organizational Performance, Blackstone
Read bio
11:00 - 11:40
The modern C-suite: uncovering the right leaders for turbulent economic times
Ted Bililies,
Natalie Leone,
Steven Maxwell,
Norty Turner
- How has the profile of executives changed in this economy and what types of leaders are needed?
- Wartime CEOs: how do you lead in turbulent times? How are you dealing with headwinds?
- PE operating partners: what have you changed in terms of who you look for? How can CEOs meet expectations? What are the most critical CEO skills in times of disruption?
- How do you manage talent through this type of environment with current hold periods?
- PE-CEO dynamics: How do you work together efficiently? How have relationships evolved over the past 12 months?
- What are the unique tensions faced but rarely discussed? What are the primary challenges experienced when dealing with investors?
Moderator:
Ted Bililies, Partner and Managing Director, AlixPartners
Panelists:
Natalie Leone, Managing Director, Portfolio Talent, Centerbridge Partners
Steven Maxwell, Senior Vice President, Portfolio Human Capital, Audax Private Equity
Norty Turner, CEO, RESA Power
Networking coffee break
11:40 - 12:10
Networking coffee break
INTERACTIVE WORKING GROUPS SERIES 1
12:10 - 12:50
Interactive Working Group 1 (for operating partners only) — Workforce compensation modern trends: operating partners share thoughts
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive discussion with designated facilitators:
- Inflationary and recessionary pressures on compensation — how do you get the best talent in this market while staying within budget? How are you working with search firms? Any advice to your portfolio company CEOs?
- Compensation benchmarking data: Are you paying accurately? Are you paying enough overtime?
- How are you motivating and incentivizing employees to retain them in this environment?
- How are you thinking about rewards including work life balance?
- Impact of new pay transparency laws: how are you handling it? How are you advising your portfolio companies on it? What’s working and what’s not?
- How are PE firms thinking about pay equity nowadays: do you see that shifting?
12:10 - 12:50
Interactive Working Group 2 (for operating partners only) — Culture as a driving force in the current talent market
Greg Harmeyer,
Laura Hoppa
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive discussion with designated facilitators:
- Considering our current labor market, how does culture matter more now? Which culture initiatives should be prioritized?
- Sharing specific examples where great culture has mitigated labor market challenges
- Culture as part of your retention and compensation plans
- Culture in the due diligence phase: when you are evaluating a prospective portfolio company for the first time, what are some early indicators of cultural health?
- Describing culture’s role in executing on the investment thesis and value creation plan
- Can you share cultural transformation war stories and the challenges of misaligned culture you have faced?
- How do you maintain culture in a remote/hybrid world and across geographies? How do you ensure your culture resonates with the leaders?
- What effective tools, metrics, and information are you using to evaluate your portco’s culture on an ongoing basis?
Facilitators:
Greg Harmeyer, CEO and Co-Founder, TiER1 Performance
Laura Hoppa, Principal, TiER1 Performance
12:10 - 12:50
Interactive Working Group 3 (for operating partners only) — How to spot and develop high-potential talent in your organizations
Alan Foster,
Dina Wang
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive discussion with designated facilitators:
- Succession planning: how to identify and develop your next-gen leaders
- Evaluate whether a management team will be able to scale successfully as the businesses grows
- Uncover models to predict leadership potential through measurable behaviors and traits
- Learn how to assess for Cognitive Quotient (CQ) in how they leverage their intellect, Drive Quotient (DQ) in what motivates them and how they apply their energy, Emotional Quotient (EQ) in how they interact with those around them
- Deploy the models with concrete and objective ways regardless of candidates’ depth of experience
Facilitators:
Alan Foster, Partner, ghSMART
Dina Wang, Partner, ghSMART
Networking lunch
12:50 - 14:00
Networking lunch
BREAKOUTS I
14:00 - 14:40
Track 1 PE portco case study: a journey of organic growth through high-performance culture and committed leadership
Keith Giarman,
Steve Hill
Led by Steve Hill as CEO with two private equity sponsors over the course of 8 years, Thermacell is a journey of impressive organic growth where thoughtful capital allocation, strategic playmaking and, notably, human capital were instrumental in its success. Committed to a high-performance culture where collaboration and accountability were the mantra, Steve continued as CEO in the transition of ownership between PE firms. Many players were essential in the journey, but two stand out, the COO and CFO. This business case will elucidate the key issues faced by Steve and his team and how they navigated their way to success.
Presenters:
Keith Giarman, Managing Partner, Global Private Equity Practice, DHR Global
Steve Hill, Former CEO, Thermacell
14:00 - 14:40
Track 2 Workforce analytics, tools, and metrics for success
- What are the leading human capital indicators of performance and how have they changed?
- What tools and/or data sources are you using to select the best leaders for your portfolio companies? What performance indicators do you look for when identifying talent internally or externally?
- How are you measuring how management teams perform?
- AI, KPIs, metrics and data science for talent development and assessments: technologies used to build and assess teams
- What tools are you using when it comes to automation?
- To what extent are you using people analytics to understand your business, make strategic decisions, and drive business processes across the different phases of investment lifecycle?
- What tools are you using to help HR with the lower and mid-level talent execution plan?
- What technology do you utilize for org structure management: to report on standard roles, people costs, demographics, and opportunities to drive value or synergies
BREAKOUTS II
14:40 - 15:20
Track 3 PE portco case study: how people analytics supports private equity to create value at deal speed
In this session you will experience how modern deal teams and forward-thinking portfolio companies benefit from smart data integration and people analytics:
- Scoping the financial potential of delayering and optimizing spans of control
- Forecasting workforce cost, based on productivity and automation scenarios
- Right sizing overhead functions and coordinate SG&A with revenue
- Monitoring critical talent turnover, from announcement to integration, or carve out
- Integrating leadership pipelines between buyer and target, with smart succession planning
- Exploring opportunities for labor arbitrage
- Building benchmarking capabilities within your PE firm, to support portfolio companies with critical HR insights
14:40 - 15:20
Track 4 Human capital due diligence: uncovering the people side of the deal
Marc Prine,
Michelle Nasir ,
Jimmy Holloran
- Understanding how the operating team and investment team work together in looking at human capital due diligence
- Operational due diligence stories: pre-deal assessments of talent and the leadership team
- Due diligence’s importance in setting the stage for the first 100 days
- Key elements in looking at cultural assessments and integration
- Due diligence in the current market and economy
- In the diligence phase, what data are you collecting?
- Uncovering human capital risks and red flags during diligence
- Working with the right partners and resources in the diligence phase
Moderator:
Marc Prine, Senior Advisor, 29Bison
Panelists:
Jimmy Holloran, Partner, ParkerGale Capital
Michelle Nasir, Chief Talent Officer, Arsenal Capital Partners
Kim Powell, Operating Partner, Talent, Resolve Growth
BREAKOUTS III
15:20 - 16:00
Track 5 Accelerating value creation: 100-day human capital action plans for success
Chris Smith,
Kate Migliaro,
Kristin Schroeder
- What are your top 3 initiatives in the early months at your portfolio companies? How are you accelerating your plan?
- What’s most challenging and different in your 100-day talent action plans in the current environment?
- What to do and what not to do in the first 100 days post close
- How do you engage and provide support to your portfolio companies in the first 100 days?
- Understanding organizational culture as part of 100-day plans
Moderator:
Chris Smith, Partner, Leathwaite
Panelists:
Kate Migliaro, Global Head of Portfolio Talent, Searchlight Capital Partners
Kristin Schroeder, Operating Partner, Talent, Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe
15:20 - 16:00
Track 6 DE&I in Private Equity: where are we now?
Sachi Blue-Smith,
Nicole Strait
- How is the current economic environment affecting your DE&I initiatives? What has changed in the past 18 months?
- Has DE&I been a priority within your portfolio companies? Which DE&I initiatives have you focused on primarily? What is actionable?
- How do you identify, measure, and utilize your DE&I metrics?
- Sharing DE&I maps and strategies and how to execute it all
Panelists:
Sachi Blue-Smith, Chief People Officer, Galvanize Climate Solutions
Susan Edwards, Operating Director, DEI and Impact, The Vistria Group
Nicole Strait, Chief of Organization Strategy, Norwest Equity Partners
BREAKOUTS IV
16:00 - 16:40
Track 7 Winning the war for tech talent: leveling up tech know-how in today’s market
Anil Malhotra,
Kathryn Christie,
Katie Czerepak,
Brian Kasser
- How to find experienced and innovative tech leaders: identifying and accelerating individuals that have what it takes to deliver what is needed in tech from the top down and the bottom up
- What newly created digital roles have you created at your companies? What tech skill sets will be required in the digital future?
- Understanding how leaders must have a vision for where technology is headed to drive innovation, growth, and value
- Overcoming the challenges of scarcity in tech talent – how do you deal with it?
- Comparing models in how digital talent is built and then employed to deliver value
Moderator:
Anil Malhotra, Founder and CEO, Safebox
Panelists:
Kathryn Christie, Head of People, Georgian
Katie Czerepak, Head of Talent, Portfolio Tech Opportunities, Bain Capital
Brian Kasser, Talent Partner, Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe
16:00 - 16:40
Track 8 - The modern CFO: recruitment, training, and development best practices
Rob Kjar,
Cordelia Dolan,
Kristin Patrick
- Recruiting top CFO talent for PE-backed companies: what makes a good candidate as a CFO for a PE-backed company?
- What is your greatest challenge when it comes to recruiting brilliant portfolio CFOs?
- How to assess CFOs in looking at different stages of the investment lifecycle
- How can CFOs drive the value creation plan? What are major challenges for CFOs in looking at the current environment?
- CFO-PE dynamics: alignment and development best practices
Moderator:
Rob Kjar, Senior Managing Consultant, Vaya Group
Panelists:
Cordelia Dolan, Head of Portfolio Talent, Investindustrial
Kristin Patrick, Senior Operating Partner, Human Capital, New State Capital Partners
Networking break
16:40 - 16:50
Networking coffee break
INTERACTIVE WORKING GROUPS SERIES 2
16:50 - 17:30
Interactive Working Group 4 (for operating partners only) — Playbooks in the current economy: impact of a downturn/recession on the human capital function
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive discussion with designated facilitators:
- How do you demonstrate and convince stakeholders about the value of human capital best practices and the function in this economy
- What is the effect of the recession on your role and how you are working with portfolio companies? How are you advising them? What do they need now? How are you changing your approach?
- In which areas can you be most impactful in such an environment to not allow the recession to affect you
- What are the lessons learned in looking at mistakes of previous recessions/downturns
- How do you grow in this environment from a talent point of view: how are you helping your portcos to optimize given the uncertainty?
- What do you foresee for the remainder of 2023?
16:50 - 17:30
Interactive Working Group 5 (for operating partners only) — What makes a great talent partner/human capital operating partner team?
Ruthanne Roth
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive discussion with designated facilitators:
- Discussing the breadth of the role everyone plays and how your team’s work is intertwined or coordinated in delivery value creation
- Understanding the evolving role of the human capital function in PE: what is it today and what will it be? What does great look like? How do you drive faster execution?
- What are the right capabilities in looking at your model and teams: what works and what doesn’t?
- How do PE HC functions measure success and demonstrate ROI? What KPIs or OKRs are tracked?
- How does this role scale? How do you build teams to scale?
- Uncovering networks of human capital inside PE: how do you work with and manage internal and external partners
Facilitator:
Ruthanne Roth, Founder and Managing Partner, Aster Talent
End of day 1 and networking cocktail reception
17:30 - 18:30
Networking cocktail reception
Agenda
Day 2 - Thursday 30th
Registration and breakfast
07:30 - 07:45
Registration and breakfast
07:45 - 08:30
Human capital deep dive breakfast discussion (for operating partners only) —Leadership development: coaching management teams effectively in the current economy
Ted Bililies,
Clark Perry
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive discussion with designated facilitators:
- How do you think about building a management team to deal with a downturn and how that management team forms cohesion?
- How are you supporting new portco leaders as well as leaders new to PE? How do you educate PE CEOs to become PE fluent?
- What steps do you take in establishing productive relationships with leadership teams across the deal lifecycle to help them operate most effectively?
- What does the next generation CEO look like? What can be done to identify that next generation and coach them?
- Leadership training & development program stories: what do you prioritize? How do you track C suite performance? Can you share stories of what works and what doesn’t?
- Dealing with weaknesses of leadership teams: developing the current C suite vs. replacing the C suite
Ted Bililies, Partner and Managing Director, AlixPartners
Clark Perry, Partner, AlixPartners
08:30 - 09:25
Think tanks for full-time operating partners — talent value creation war room (invitation-only)
Ashley Day,
David Cohen,
Anish Batlaw,
Christopher Kim
This closed-door discussion will allow you to learn and share best practices of successful human capital and talent operational models. The think tank will also allow you to submit topics in advance to be covered in the room in looking at what the future holds for PE talent value creation models. Please select one of the two rooms based on portfolio company size:
Think Tank Room 1
Mid-Market
Facilitators:
David Cohen, Partner, Human Capital, Kelso
Ashley Day, Operating Partner – Human Capital, FFL Partners
Think Tank Room 2
Large Cap
Facilitators:
Anish Batlaw, Managing Director, General Atlantic
Christopher Kim, Principal, Head of Human Capital, Platinum Equity
09:25 - 09:30
Chairman's welcome
Tony Buffum
Chairman:
Tony Buffum, Vice President of HR Client Strategy, Upwork
Plenary sessions
09:30 - 10:10
Workforce transformations: how to build a digital culture at your companies
• Operating partners share stories of innovation and how culture drives transformations
• What does a healthy and effective digital culture look like?
• How to digitize with human capital in accelerating the business: looking at the people you need in each of its functions
• Uncovering the skills and traits needed from your leaders in establishing effective digital cultures
10:10 - 10:50
CHRO perspectives: an inside look at PE operating partner-CHRO dynamics
Tony Buffum,
Scott Carroll
- With respect to your role as CHRO and the relationship with PE, what works best and what is most challenging? Why?
- In what ways do you have the greatest impact on providing strategic alignment and delivery of the value creation plan?
- Regardless of industry, economic/market conditions for the next year or two will be unpredictable and dynamic: how are you managing that now and preparing for it looking forward? What are you seeing already? In what ways is this impacting your talent strategies, compensation planning and engagement/retention strategies?
- Remote work has been a hot topic now for the last couple of years and is still top of mind for leaders. What is your current approach and how do you expect that to change over the next year or so?
- Company culture is always a critical component for driving value in companies – what are you leading now and through the next year related to culture?
- What are some creative and innovative initiatives you are driving or evaluating to address these key areas of talent, compensation, engagement and culture?
Moderator:
Tony Buffum, Vice President of HR Client Strategy, Upwork
Panelists:
Scott Carroll, Chief Human Resources Officer, GCT Global Container Terminals
10:50 - 11:30
Effective talent acquisition and retention strategies in the current environment
Dwight Cooper,
Wes Cole,
Jamie Jacobs,
John Knapp
- Developing efficiency/optimization in recruiting: advanced strategies in talent acquisition
- What is your greatest challenge when it comes to recruiting in this environment?
- How do you get searches done faster: working with search firms to get it done faster
- What are you doing at the lower, mid-level and senior level to attract talent? How do you confidently hire the right people that ensure alignment?
- How do you hire versatile people in this economy?
- How are you dealing with layoffs in the current market?
- Understanding the root causes of high turnover and what retention strategies improve turnover
- Looking at how workplace culture and employee value proposition go hand in hand with retention: understanding what your values are to retain people
- How has the remote mindset impacted your hiring plans?
- Sharing concrete examples of leveraging networks, tools, and technology for recruiting
Moderator:
Dwight Cooper, Founder and Executive Chairman, Hueman
Panelists:
Wes Cole, Portfolio Talent Lead, GS Value Accelerator, Goldman Sachs
Jamie Jacobs, Chief Talent Officer, Oak Hill Capital
John Knapp, Operating Director, Portfolio Talent, Berkshire Partners
Networking break
11:30 - 11:50
Networking break
INTERACTIVE WORKING SERIES 3
11:50 - 12:30
Interactive Working Group 6 (for operating partners only) — Employee benefits: value creation in the benefits space: how to take control and keep control — myth buster approach
Todd Miller,
John Weaver
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive roundtable discussion with designated facilitators:
- Saving money requires cost shifting and/or reducing benefits
- Private Equity firms should aggregate the benefits spend across the portfolio to achieve economies of scale
- PE firms/portfolio companies understand broker compensation and how my broker is different
- A claim is a claim is a claim
- We can’t afford all of the HR initiatives that we need
Facilitators:
Todd Miller, CEO, Risk International
John Weaver, Senior Director, Risk International
11:50 - 12:30
Interactive Working Group 7 (for operating partners only) — The future of work: where are we now?
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive roundtable discussion with designated facilitators:
- Operating partners share war stories of where we are now: what has been working and what hasn’t?
- Return to work: who is doing it and who is not? Is your workforce still productive?
- Sharing perspectives on hybrid work models and work/life balance for employees
- Understanding how the balance of power has shifted with the employees
- How is the future of work going to evolve: where are we headed? What is the next generation workforce looking for?
- What does workforce development in the age of digital look like now and in the future for you and your companies?
- How can companies maintain and grow company culture in a remote/hybrid world? How does it affect promotions tied to performance?
- Looking at top challenges and opportunities for HR teams
11:50 - 12:30
Interactive Working Group 8 (for operating partners only) — The new differentiating capabilities of the future CHRO function in portfolio companies: what operating partners need to think about
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive discussion with designated facilitators:
- What expectations do deal professionals have for the portfolio CHROs of tomorrow?
- What challenges do portfolio CHROs face today?
- How can CHROs speak and enable the language of Private Equity to engage talent after close?
- What expectations exist of CHROs to enable a data-driven foundation of metrics to help drive decisions, from the strategic to the transactional?
- What levers matter most during the hold period (cost and availability of labor pools, leadership bench, speed of upskilling, recruitment, retention, engagement, DEI, technology, etc.) and how should they be tracked?
- What can the CHROs drive up exit valuations?
Networking lunch
12:30 - 13:30
Networking lunch
12:30 - 13:30
Women in PE & VC portfolio operations lunch (invitation-only)
Helen Crossen,
Sandy Fiaschetti,
Alice Mann
This closed-door discussion will explore what it’s like being a woman in PE and VC portfolio operations:
- What are the issues causing a disparity in genders?
- Exploring career paths, development, and how to position yourself as female leaders
- Is your firm focused on women’s leadership at portfolio companies?
- Does your firm have any specific programs, leadership coaching and assessments geared towards promoting women’s leadership?
- Are there any changes in recruiting that will create a more equal playing field?
- Looking at trends and stats in gender in PE and VC
Facilitators:
Helen Crossen, Managing Director – Portfolio Talent, Onex
Sandy Fiaschetti, Founder and Managing Partner, Lodestone People Consulting
Alice Mann, Former Partner, Human Capital
BREAKOUTS V
13:30 - 14:10
Track 9 - Tactical elements of board composition and optimization
Kate Berkeley,
Merche Del Valle,
Trish Gilbert
- How do you think about how to structure boards? How do you use it to augment the management team and what is the secret to the best board/CEO relationship?
- Comparing board dynamics in looking at compensation, sizes of boards, and roles
- Board resiliency in the current environment
- Are operating partners on your boards? Should operating partners be on boards?
- Board diversity: practical examples of what needs to be built out
- What initiatives are you driving for women on boards across portcos? What can be done better?
Panelists:
Kate Berkeley, Managing Director, Talent, Gryphon Investors
Merche del Valle, Former Chief Talent Officer and Chief HR Officer
Trish Gilbert, Chief Talent Officer, Wind Point Partners
13:30 - 14:10
Track 10 - Sharing fractional and interim work models: how are you doing it?
- Sharing specific examples and portco case studies of how it’s done efficiently
- Understanding why interim and fractional roles are on the rise
- Best practices with interim executives: how to ensure it’s setup for success beyond the short term deliverables
- What roles should you not have as interim or fractional?
- PE firms compare models: what works and what doesn’t?
Plenary mid-day sessions
14:10 - 14:50
Organizational design and effectiveness: operating partner perspectives
Peter Allen,
Jen Golnick,
Geri House
- Designing environments that support the new strategy and promote high performance in people
- Are there trends that you see impacting the way you think about organizational design?
- At what point do you typically get involved in organizational design with your portfolio companies?
- How do you assess if the organizational design is delivering on its intended purpose? Are there specific KPIs that you utilize?
- What type of leadership is required to achieve the goals of the organizational structure?
- Understanding how organizational development and change can be accelerated
- What should you be looking at from an org design point of view when you are approaching exit?
- What are the common pitfalls and challenges? What have been the most important lessons you have learned?
Panelists:
Peter Allen, Chief People Officer and Managing Director, APL Group
Jen Golnick, Talent Lead, Point72 Hyperscale
Geri House, Chief People Officer, Platform Partners
14:50 - 15:30
Women in PE & VC portfolio operations panel: revealing key talking points from the event’s closed-door lunch discussion
Sandy Fiaschetti,
Helen Crossen,
Alice Mann
For the very first time, this insightful panel will reveal the key discussion points from the event’s closed-door women’s lunch discussion with the entire audience. Please join the main room to learn what matters most to the industry and how progress can be achieved.
Moderator:
Sandy Fiaschetti, Founder and Managing Partner, Lodestone People Consulting
Panelists:
Helen Crossen, Managing Director – Portfolio Talent, Onex
Alice Mann, Former Partner, Human Capital
Closing remarks and end of conference
15:30 - 15:40
Closing remarks and end of conference
Pre-Event Resources
pdf
Private Equity/Venture Capital Compensation Report – Executive Summary
By Private Equity International
For speaking opportunities, contact Marc Mele at marc.m@peimedia.com or call +1 646 581 9295.
Dana Allen
Managing Director, Talent, Gauge Capital
Dana is the Managing Director, Talent at Gauge Capital. He leads the firm’s human capital efforts, advising the firm and portfolio on building and enhancing leadership teams and boards to drive value-creation. Prior to joining Gauge, Dana was an exec… Read full bio
Peter Allen
Chief People Officer and Managing Director, APL Group
Peter Allen is Chief People Officer and Managing Director at APL Group and Head of Learning and Leadership Development at APL’s sister company, Aegis Ventures. He has worked at the Booking Holdings Group, Google Inc., Standard Chartered Bank, and McK… Read full bio
Emily Azevedo
Operating Partner and Head of Talent, Mainsail Partners
Emily is an Operating Partner and head of talent at Mainsail Partners, a growth equity firm that partners with founders of bootstrapped software companies to help them realize their potential. For nearly 20 years, Mainsail has been helping management… Read full bio
Anish Batlaw
Operating Partner, General Atlantic
Anish Batlaw is a Managing Director at General Atlantic and leads the firm’s Human Capital efforts (people, pay, and performance) in support of its global portfolio companies. His responsibilities include development of General Atlantic’s talent netw… Read full bio
Kate Berkeley
Managing Director, Talent, Gryphon Investors
Kate joined Gryphon Investors in 2020 as a Managing Director to lead and scale the firm’s talent acquisition capabilities, both internally at Gryphon and externally with Gryphon portfolio companies. She is also Co-Head of Gryphon’s Diversity, Equity… Read full bio
Neel Bhatia
Operating Partner, Talent, Arcline Investment Management
Neel is currently an Operating Partner at Arcline Investment Management where he is focused on talent assessment and development both within the firm and across portfolio companies. Most recently, Neel was the Managing Partner of Green Peak, a privat… Read full bio
Ted Bililies
Partner and Managing Director, AlixPartners
Ted is an internationally-recognized expert on leadership and organization development. He advises investors, CEOs, and boards globally to help them position the right leaders for key roles and to support those leaders and teams for maximal value cre… Read full bio
Sachi Blue-Smith
Chief People Officer, Galvanize Climate Solutions
Sachi has had a diverse career spanning venture capital and private equity, executive recruiting, and operational roles at startup and public technology companies. At Galvanize, Sachi remains an operator with responsibility for building a global inve… Read full bio
Tony Buffum
Vice President of HR Client Strategy, Upwork
Tony Buffum is VP of HR Client Strategy at Upwork. As a key member of the senior-level executive client strategy team, Buffum is responsible for accelerating growth of current and prospective Upwork enterprise clients, helping them solve HR challenge… Read full bio
Kelly Carlson
Managing Director, Head of Talent, STG Partners
Kelly Carlson is Managing Director, Head of Talent with STG, where she is leading the firm’s talent efforts, working across the portfolio to attract CEOs and executive leadership teams to drive results. Kelly’s mandate includes the curation of a CEO… Read full bio
Scott Carroll
Chief Human Resources Officer, GCT Global Container Terminals
Scott joined GCT in 2018 as Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO). Scott leads GCT's human capital development and acts as an operational business partner to the executive management team. He works closely with the Board of Directors, the Human Resour… Read full bio
Kathryn Christie
Head of People, Georgian
Kathryn is the Head of People at Georgian, a growth-stage firm that invests in high growth technology companies that harness the power of data in a trustworthy way. In her role, Kathryn leads Georgian’s Human Resources function and works closely with… Read full bio
David Cohen
Partner, Human Capital, Kelso
David joined Kelso in 2019. He is focused on applying talent and human capital best practices to enhancing the firm’s investment process, portfolio companies and Kelso Specialist Network. He spent the preceding nine years with American Securities in… Read full bio
Wes Cole
Portfolio Talent Lead - GS Value Accelerator, Goldman Sachs
Wes leads portfolio talent efforts within the Goldman Sachs Value Accelerator. Previously, he led more than 100 successful executive searches for high impact portfolio company leadership, board, and operating partner roles for private equity clients… Read full bio
Dwight Cooper
Founder and Executive Chairman, Hueman
Dwight founded his first start-up, PPR Talent Management Group (Travel Nursing), in 1996 with a $10,000 investment. Under his leadership, PPR grew organically to over $100,000,000 in annual revenue before selling a majority interest to Trivest Partne… Read full bio
Helen Crossen
Managing Director – Portfolio Talent, Onex
Helen is a member of the Onex Partners Portfolio Operations team where she is responsible for portfolio talent. She contributes toward the effort to identify and support value creation at the portfolio companies with a focus on talent. Prior to joini… Read full bio
Katie Czerepak
Head of Talent, Portfolio Tech Opportunities, Bain Capital
Katie Czerepak is the Head of Talent for the Tech Opportunities fund at Bain Capital, where she drives talent initiatives across the portfolio and collaborates with management teams to support key talent and human capital priorities. Prior to joining… Read full bio
Ashley Day
Operating Partner - Human Capital, FFL Partners
Ashley Day, PhD, joined FFL in 2021. Ashley works closely with FFL's portfolio companies advising them on all aspects of talent management including recruiting, compensation, succession planning, retention, team building, and performance management.… Read full bio
Courtney della Cava
Senior Managing Director, Global Head of Portfolio Talent and Organizational Performance, Blackstone
Courtney della Cava is a Senior Managing Director and Global Head of Portfolio Talent & Organizational Performance. She is involved with improving organizational and leadership effectiveness across the portfolio, including building and enhancing… Read full bio
Merche Del Valle
Former Chief Talent and HR Officer
Former Chief Talent and HR Officer, Executive and CEO Executive Coach with extensive global cross-industry experience helping organizations to gain competitive advantage through constructive and inclusive People Strategy. Merche is recognized for her… Read full bio
Cordelia Dolan
Head of Portfolio Talent, Investindustrial
Based out of Investindustrial’s London office, Cordelia brings a decade of experience in talent management and acquisition, most recently serving as Talent Director for Inflexion Private Equity. Prior to that, Cordelia spent six years with Skillcapit… Read full bio
Mara Edgar
Managing Director, Human Capital, The Riverside Company
Mara Lamoureux Edgar is the Managing Director, Human Capital at The Riverside Company where she leads portfolio talent strategy and company value creation on behalf of the Riverside Capital Appreciation Fund. Mara has lead HR and Talent functions for… Read full bio
Sandy Fiaschetti
Founder and Managing Partner, Lodestone People Consulting
Dr. Sandy Fiaschetti is the founder and Managing Partner of Lodestone People Consulting, a firm which provides human capital diligence and value creation services to investors and their portfolio companies. Prior to founding Lodestone, she served as… Read full bio
Coley Florance
Head of Talent, Spectrum Equity
Coley is the Head of Talent at Spectrum Equity working within the firm and across the portfolio to drive growth in the areas of people and team performance. In her role, she partners with investment professionals and portfolio company leadership on a… Read full bio
Alan Foster
Partner, ghSMART
Alan Foster is a Partner at ghSMART where he is head of the Private Equity practice. He co-leads ghSMART’s European business. He serves private equity firms and their portfolio company CEOs . Alan co-authored the Wall Street Journal bestselling book,… Read full bio
Rena Frackt Zimmerman
Managing Director and Head of Client Coverage, BluWave
Rena is a Managing Director and the Head of Client Coverage with BluWave where she leads client relationship and success activities. Prior to joining BluWave, she was a Senior Vice President with Dynata, the world’s largest first-party data platform… Read full bio
Keith Giarman
Managing Partner, Global Private Equity Practice, DHR Global
Keith Giarman serves as Managing Partner of the Private Equity Practice, based out of the San Francisco and New York offices. He is also a member of the firm’s North American Executive Committee driving overall strategy for the organization. Keith le… Read full bio
Trish Gilbert
Chief Talent Officer, Wind Point Partners
Trish is the Chief Talent Officer with Wind Point Partners. Wind Point Partners is a leading Chicago-based private equity investment firm that partners with top caliber executives to acquire well-positioned middle market businesses where it can estab… Read full bio
Jen Golnick
Talent Lead, Point72 Hyperscale
Jen leads talent for Point72 Hyperscale where her role entails assessing management teams during diligence, advising on the human capital strategy post close, and leading firm-wide strategic talent initiatives. Prior to joining Point72, Jen was on th… Read full bio
Greg Harmeyer
CEO and Co-Founder, TiER1 Performance
Greg Harmeyer is the Co-Founder and President of TiER1 Performance and CEO of its parent company, TiER1 Impact PBC, Inc. Over the course of 20 years, Greg has led TiER1 to provide strategy activation and employee experience designs solutions to hundr… Read full bio
Dan Hawkins
Founder and CEO, Summit Leadership Partners
Dan is the CEO and Founder of Summit Leadership Partners. He advises boards, CEO's, investors and business leaders on strategy execution and value creation through leadership and organization performance. After a successful corporate career, Dan foun… Read full bio
Steve Hill
Former CEO, Thermacell
Steve Hill helps high growth executives and companies succeed as a coach, board member, and investor. Currently, Steve is an outside director at four PE owned companies: Buffalo Games and East Point Sports (both owned by Mason Wells PE), All States A… Read full bio
Jimmy Holloran
Operating Partner, ParkerGale Capital
Jimmy is responsible for working with portfolio companies on talent strategy focusing on organizational design and development as well as communication both within each company and across the portfolio. Prior to joining ParkerGale, Jimmy worked on ta… Read full bio
Laura Hoppa
Principal, TiER1 Performance
Laura Hoppa is a Principal Performance Consultant at TiER1 who works with PE Firms and their portcos to create greater organizational value through culture. With over two decades of experience, Laura helps organizations improve performance by helping… Read full bio
Geri House
Chief People Officer, Platform Partners
Geri House is the Chief People Officer at Platform. She is an experienced, strategic human resources executive. Geri has a passion for aligning the people and culture of an organization to its purpose, vision, strategies, and values to unlock individ… Read full bio
Jamie Jacobs
Chief Talent Officer, Oak Hill Capital
Jamie Jacobs serves as the Chief Talent Officer of Oak Hill Capital. Working across the entire portfolio of Oak Hill funds focusing on all aspects of Human Capital with specialties in Talent Management, Talent Acquisition, Organization design and ass… Read full bio
Brian Kasser
Talent Partner, Welsh, Carson, Anderson and Stowe
Mr. Kasser is the Talent Partner for the WCAS technology team. Focusing on executive talent strategy and management, he is responsible for helping WCAS’s technology companies to build outstanding leadership teams. He brings to WCAS more than a decade… Read full bio
Christopher Kim
Principal, Head of Human Capital, Platinum Equity
Chris Kim is a Principal and leads the Human Capital Management team, which is responsible for performing diligence on all Human Capital aspects of prospective additions to the Platinum Equity portfolio. Chris also has responsibilities in ensuring a… Read full bio
Rob Kjar
Senior Managing Consultant, Vaya Group
Rob is a Senior Managing Consultant in Vaya Group’s private equity sector. He leads due diligence executive assessments and develops C-Suite leaders through individual and team coaching. Working with operating partners and portfolio company leaders,… Read full bio
John Knapp
Operating Director, Talent, Berkshire Partners
John Knapp is an Operating Director and Talent Specialist in Berkshire Partners’ Portfolio Support Group, where he focuses on talent leadership and human capital best practices across the portfolio. Prior to joining Berkshire, John was a Partner with… Read full bio
Natalie Leone
Managing Director, Portfolio Talent, Centerbridge Partners
Natalie Leone, Managing Director, Head of Portfolio Talent joined Centerbridge in October 2021 and focuses on the Firm’s portfolio talent efforts. Natalie is responsible for identifying and prioritizing talent activities across the portfolio. She par… Read full bio
Anil Malhotra
Founder and CEO, Safebox
Anil is the CEO of Safebox LLC, an Information Technology staffing and advisory firm that specializes in placing fractional technical leaders (CIOs, CTOs, CISOs) and interim managers with middle-market companies. Prior to founding Safebox in 2017, An… Read full bio
Alice Mann
Former Partner, Human Capital
Dr. Alice Mann, Partner, Human Capital, joined Sentinel in 2022. For more than 20 years, Dr. Mann has advised senior executives on building high-performing leadership teams, developing winning talent strategies, and designing organizations that achie… Read full bio
Steven Maxwell
Senior Vice President, Portfolio Human Capital, Audax Private Equity
Steve is a Senior Vice President for Audax Private Equity where he leads Portfolio Human Capital. Previously, he was the Talent Partner at Kodiak Venture Partners. Steve also worked in the executive search industry at Korn Ferry and Russell Reynolds,… Read full bio
Kate Migliaro
Global Head of Portfolio Talent, Searchlight Capital Partners
Prior to joining Searchlight in 2022, Ms. Migliaro worked as a principal in talent management and organizational effectiveness at Apollo. Previously, Ms. Migliaro was the head of compensation and veteran affairs at UBS and worked in human resources a… Read full bio
Todd Miller
CEO, Risk International
Todd joined Risk International in 2015 as Chief Growth Officer. By 2016 he was promoted to President and in July 2017 named CEO. As CEO, Todd is a key member of Risk International’s development team and Board, taking primary responsibility for leadin… Read full bio
Melissa Mounce
Managing Director, Leadership Talent and Diversity, GTCR
Melissa joined GTCR in 2019 as a Managing Director, Leadership Talent & Diversity. She advises GTCR’s portfolio company CEOs and CHROs on human capital initiatives and leads DEI initiatives across the portfolio companies, at the Board level and w… Read full bio
Michelle Nasir
Chief Talent Officer, Arsenal Capital Partners
Michelle Nasir is Arsenal Capital Partners Chief Talent Officer (CTO), where she leads the firm’s Human Capital efforts (people, culture, organization, and performance). Michelle’s expertise includes M&A due diligence, executive coaching, success… Read full bio
Kristin Patrick
Senior Operating Partner, Human Capital, New State Capital Partners
Kristin joined New State Capital Partners four years ago as Senior Operating Partner, Human Capital with more than 25 years of hands-on growth strategy, executive search, talent acquisition and talent development experience. New State takes a hands-o… Read full bio
Clark Perry
Partner, AlixPartners
Clark is an internationally recognized specialist in leadership assessment and execution, team development, cultural change, and exceptional performance. He has 30 years of experience with elite sporting teams in Australia and the United States by se… Read full bio
Marc Prine
Senior Advisor, 29Bison
Meet Dr. Marc Prine, an industrial/organizational psychologist who is renowned for his dynamic professional style and analytical approach. He uses data and analytics to take an objective perspective on improving human performance, and partners with c… Read full bio
Ruthanne Roth
Founder and Managing Partner, Aster Talent
Ruthanne is the Founder and Managing Partner of Aster Talent Partners. She brings to the Firm over 20 years of recruitment experience partnering with funds across size, strategy and geography. In recent years, she has spent the lion's share of her ti… Read full bio
Kristin Schroeder
Operating Partner, Talent, Welsh, Carson, Anderson and Stowe
Ms. Schroeder is an Operating Partner on the WCAS Technology Talent Team, having joined in 2021. Ms. Schroeder has 15 years of talent experience spanning executive search, corporate recruiting, and talent advisory. Most recently, she served as a Seni… Read full bio
Chris Smith
Partner, Leathwaite
Chris is a Partner with Leathwaite where he leads the firms’ global HR and Human Capital practice while also coordinating the firm’s private equity portfolio company work. Chris has over fifteen years of global search and advisory experience across H… Read full bio
Karina Sobieski
Co-head, Portfolio Human Capital Practice, Advent International
Karina Sobieski joined Advent in 2021 and focuses on Human Capital Management across Advent’s portfolio companies, including leadership assessment, and growing and cultivating network of top senior executives for CXO, Board and Operating Advisor role… Read full bio
Nicole Strait
Chief of Organization Strategy, Norwest Equity Partners
Nicole serves as a key member of the NEP leadership team and leads the firm’s DEI steering committee, operating advisory team, and portfolio services. She is known for building organizational capabilities and teams needed to successfully scale growin… Read full bio
Reid Terry
Director of Talent, Trivest Partners
Reid Terry is the Director of Talent for Trivest Partners, a Miami-based private equity firm focused exclusively on the support and growth of founder-led and family-owned businesses in the U.S. and Canada. As a member of Trivest’s Portfolio Support G… Read full bio
Chris Trendler
Managing Director, Head of Portfolio Talent, Madison Dearborn Partners
Chris Trendler is a Managing Director and the Head of Portfolio Talent for the firm, responsible for leading the firm's talent strategy across the portfolio. Prior to joining MDP in 2021, Chris was a Partner at ghSMART and Company, where he advised i… Read full bio
Dina Wang
Partner, ghSMART
Dina is a Partner and Head of the West Coast Office at ghSMART, where she advises private equity investors and Fortune 500 companies on their most pressing leadership challenges, including talent assessment, top team effectiveness, and organizational… Read full bio
John Weaver
Senior Director, Risk International
John joined Risk International in 2019 and is the Senior Director of Private Equity. John works with Risk International teams in both the Risk Management and Benefits Advisory Practices to drive value creation for Private Equity clients and their por… Read full bio
2023 Sponsors
Sponsorship and Engagement Opportunities:
The Operating Partners forums and events are the most efficient and effective way to connect directly with private equity operating partners and value creation experts. To learn more about ways to create a customized program that maximizes your desired impact and to engage with PEI’s operating partners community, complete the inquiry form or contact Lawrence Dvorchik by email Lawrence.d@peimedia.com or call +1 646 545 4429.
Venue and hotel
Explore our exclusive operating partner networking
Operating partner exclusive networking events are taking place throughout the Forum. The Forum provides operating partners with opportunities each day to network and share thoughts with peers.
Pre-conference networking
Tuesday, March 28
Operating Partners Human Capital Forum Welcome Reception (invitation-only)
5:30 – 8:00 pm
Venue: Bar 54 at Hyatt Centric Times Square, 135 West 45th Street
Join other operating partners and talent partners attending the Human Capital Forum. Experience river-to-river views of NYC from Hyatt Centric Times Square New York and gather for craft cocktails and gourmet fare at Bar 54, the hotel’s rooftop bar.
Hosted by:
Women in PE and VC Portfolio Operations Dinner (invitation-only)
7:45 – 9:00 pm
Venue: Bar 54 at Hyatt Centric Times Square, 135 West 45th Street
Join us as we welcome the women in PE portfolio operations attending the Human Capital Forum for a private sit-down dinner to facilitate networking before the conference.
Day 1 reception
Wednesday, March 29
Operating Partners Human Capital Forum Day 1 Networking Reception
5:30-6:30 pm
Venue: Convene, 117 W 46th St
A casual cocktail reception to chat with your operating partner peers.
Day 2 breakfast and lunch
Thursday, March 30
Human Capital Deep Dive Breakfast (operating partners only)
7:45-8:30am
Venue: Convene, 117 W 46th St
This breakfast deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will focus on leadership development and coaching management teams effectively in the current economy.
Hosted by:
Women in PE and VC Portfolio Operations Lunch (invitation-only)
12:30-1:30 pm
Venue: Convene, 117 W 46th St
This closed-door lunch discussion will explore what it’s like being a woman in PE and VC portfolio operations.
Hosted by:
Featured interactive discussions & networking opportunities
Think Tank Sessions
The closed-door session led by human capital operating partners for operating partners only will allow you to engage in lively discussions with your peers. The thinks tanks will also allow you to submit topics to be covered in looking at the best value creation practices.
Interactive Working Groups
These exclusive deep dive discussions only available to operating partners allow you to participate in interactive roundtable discussions with designated facilitators.