lockton

Jeff Hooke is a senior finance lecturer at the Johns Hopkins Carey School of Business.  Earlier, he was a managing director at Focus, LLC, an investment bank serving middle market companies.  He served as Vice President of Research at the Committee on Economic Development. Previously, Hooke operated his own consulting firm, was a director of Emerging Markets Partnership (a $5 billion private equity fund), a principal investment officer of the World Bank Group, and an investment banker with Lehman Brothers and Schroder Wertheim, respectively, two prominent securities firms based in New York.   

In addition to " The Myth of Private Equity," Hooke is the author of four other books:  Security Analysis on Wall Street (1998, 2nd edition 2013), M&A:  A Practical Guide to Doing the Deal (1996, 2nd edition 2015), The Dinosaur Among Us: The World Bank and Its Path to Extinction, and The Emerging Markets (2001). He has co-authored several peer-reviewed academic papers in finance and has written many position papers for non-profit think tanks. He holds an MBA from the Wharton School and a BS from the University of Pennsylvania. 

Besides Hopkins, Mr. Hooke has taught at several universities and the New York Institute of Finance. He lectures on finance topics at industry forums around the world, including the CFA societies of New York, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Baltimore, Washington, London, Paris, Moscow, Munich, Istanbul, Copenhagen, Beijing, and Bangkok.

Christopher W. Kersey serves as the Founding Managing Partner of Havencrest Capital Management, and prior to founding Havencrest, Dr. Kersey served as a Managing Member and Partner of Camden Partners Holdings, LLC.

From 2011 to 2017, Dr. Kersey served as the Chairman of the Board of Johns Hopkins Medicine International. During that time, Dr. Kersey helped spearhead John Hopkins Medicine International's growth from an emerging pioneer to the established leader in global collaborative health care partnerships by engineering innovative private sector - public sector partnerships with blue-chip institutions such as Saudi Aramco in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, HCL Healthcare in India and Pacifico Salud in Peru.

In 2010, Dr. Kersey was elected to the boards of trustees of Johns Hopkins Medicine and the iconic Johns Hopkins Hospital, U.S. News & World Report's #1 ranked hospital in the United States for 21 consecutive years.

Dr. Kersey also serves on the boards of directors of the Johns Hopkins Hospital Endowment Fund and Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare (JHAH) — a joint venture based in Saudi Arabia and one of the world's largest population health management initiatives. Dr. Kersey is also a member of the Johns Hopkins Medicine Compensation Committee, the Johns Hopkins Medicine Patient Safety and Quality Committee and the Johns Hopkins Hospital Credentials Committee.

In 2017, Dr. Kersey was elected to the board of trustees of the GuideStone Funds, the largest Christian mutual fund in the world with more than $12 billion in assets under management, where he serves on the Investment Management Committee and the Nominating and Governance Committee.

Dr. Kersey earned his Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree from Stanford University, his Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degree from the Emory University School of Medicine and his Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) from Harvard Business School.

Craige L. Stout serves as Chief Executive Officer of Stout, a 600-person global investment bank and advisory firm founded in 1991. With 23 offices around the world, Stout focuses on corporate finance, transaction advisory, valuation advisory, and dispute consulting.  Having worked on over 1,000 projects, his experience is broad and diverse in the fields of investment banking, litigation consulting, and valuation advisory.

Prior to founding the firm, Craig was with Price Waterhouse in it’s Valuable Services Group.

Mr. Stout is a recipient of the Crain’s 40 under 40 award and Ernst & Young’s 2002 Entrepreneur for the Year Award.

Craige and his wife, Molly, have been married for20 years and have three children (Carson (19),Sim on (17),and Estelle (14)). After living in the Chicago area for 18 years (and Detroit for 10 before that), they moves to Dallas in June 2019.

Mr. Stout has served or is serving on numerous non-profit boards, including: YPO Gold-Dallas Maverick Chapter, YPO Gold-Chicago Chapter (Past Chapter Chair), YPO -Chicago Chapter (Past Chapter Chair), the Financial and Estate Planning Council of Metropolitan Detroit, Inc. (Past President); Museum of Science and Industry – President’s Council; the Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State University; Respiratory Health association of Metropolitan Chicago; Junior Achievement of Chicago; Perspective Charter Schools.

Craige has served or is serving on several for-profit boards, including Stout; Solstice Consulting, LLC; Kirco Seniors Housing Fund, LP; Flow stone Partners; and BxC Partners.

Episode 73 features Brandon Bethea, a Co-Founder and Partner of Aterian Investment Partners who serves on the Investment Committee. Mr. Bethea has been a private equity investor since 2000.  Prior to Aterian, he was a Principal with Insight Equity, an investment professional with Freeman Spogli & Co and began his career with Salomon Smith Barney’s investment banking division.

Since 2015, Mr. Bethea has also served on the Endowment Committee of Christ Church in Pelham, New York. Mr. Bethea received his AB from Harvard University where he was a member of the Varsity Men’s Tennis Team. Mr. Bethea also earned an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.  Brandon originally hails from Oklahoma and in another life would aspire to be the Sooners’ Offensive Coordinator.

Mike McGill is a Managing Director, Strategic Capital at Cowen and was a co-Founder of MHT Partners. 

Prior to founding MHT, he spent five years at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette and CS First Boston where he managed the execution of M&A advisory and corporate finance transactions for middle-market companies. Prior to joining DLJ, he was at Lehman Brothers where he focused on M&A advisory.

He is an active member of the Maverick Gold chapter of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO) and in 2019 was named Investment Banker of the Year by D CEO Magazine. 

Mike earned an MBA, with distinction, from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University and graduated from Southern Methodist University with a BBA in Finance and Real Estate.

000000BD 000000BC 00004A55 00004A8F 0001DF2F 0001DF2F 00007F36 00007E4E 0000BAF0 0000BAF0

Episode 70 features Brent Humphries with Alliance Bernstein. Brent joined AB in 2014 as a founding member and President of AB Private Credit Investors, where he has primary responsibility for overseeing all aspects of the business, including chairing the investment committee, fundraising, investor relations, investment originations, structuring and underwriting, as well as ongoing portfolio management and compliance. He previously held the same position with Barclays Private Credit Partners.

Prior to joining Barclays, Humphries served as group head, generalist financial sponsor coverage for Goldman Sachs Specialty Lending Group, and later led its structured private equity initiative. Before that, he served as a partner and managing director of the Texas Growth Fund, a middle market private equity firm. Humphries previously worked in leveraged finance with NationsBank and J.P. Morgan, and as a financial analyst with Exxon.

He holds a BBA in finance with an emphasis in accounting from the University of Oklahoma and an MBA from Harvard Business School. Location: Austin

000001AA 000001A8 00005351 00005366 00087E97 00087E97 00007E54 00007E48 000454FA 000454FA

Kick-Off 2021 with quotes, mottos and mentorship advice from past Private Equity Fast Pitch guests.

Episode 68 of Northstar's Private Equity Fast Pitch features Jerry L. Johnson with EnPro Industries Inc.

Jerry joined the EnPro Industries as their Senior Vice President of Strategy, Corporate Development, and Investor Relations.

Jerry has held leadership roles in finance and consulting for more than 25 years. He has extensive experience in acquisitions and was a founding member and Partner of the private equity firm RLJ Equity Partners for the last thirteen years.

He is a member of the New York Economic Club, Young President's Organization, The University of Tennessee’s Investment Advisory Council and the College of Engineering's Board of Advisors, and a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Mr. Johnson’s career also includes experience as a White House Fellow, merchant banker with Donaldson, Lufkin, & Jenrette, and as a management consultant with McKinsey & Company.

Todd Ofenloch is a Managing Director in the Boston office of H.I.G. Capital. Since joining the firm in 2009, he has been responsible for evaluating and executing new investment opportunities, as well as working with certain existing portfolio companies.

Todd has over 15 years of experience investing in middle market private equity transactions and has worked on investments in a broad range of industries, including building products, business services, enterprise software, food and consumer products, hospitality and travel services, and media and marketing services.

He currently serves on the boards of several H.I.G. portfolio companies.

Prior to H.I.G., Todd was an investment professional at Parthenon Capital Partners, GTCR, and The Halifax Group. He began his career as an investment banker at Lazard Frères, specializing in mergers & acquisitions advisory services.

Todd graduated with Bronze Tablet honors from the University of Illinois with a B.S. in Accountancy (CPA) and received an M.B.A. with honors from Columbia Business School.

00000377 00000376 0000507E 000051E2 00043FC1 00043FC1 00007EAE 00007F1E 000488EB 000488EB

Episode 64 of the Private Equity Fast Pitch features Nik Shah, the co-founder and managing partner of Cohere Capital.

Prior to co-founding Cohere Capital with Daniel, Nik was a Managing Director at H.I.G. Capital / H.I.G. Growth Partners where he focused on private equity investments in high-growth, entrepreneur-owned companies in the business services, technology, media, and Internet sectors. In his 12 years at H.I.G., he has served on the board of over 10 past and current H.I.G. portfolio companies.
Prior to joining H.I.G., Nik was with Landmark Growth Capital Partners in Boston, Massachusetts, a private equity firm focused on buyouts and growth equity investments in business services, manufacturing, and consumer companies. At Landmark, he was responsible for deal sourcing, due diligence, and assisting management as a board director and observer of several portfolio companies.
Earlier in his career, Nik was at AH Ventures and Adams, Harkness & Hill in Boston.

Nik received his Bachelor of Arts degree in biochemistry with honors from Harvard University and an M.B.A. from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth.

000001FA 000001F9 000043D5 0000439E 0000A6A1 0000A6A1 00007F3F 00007F3F 0002880F 0002880F

Episode 63 features Brad Brenneman with Breck Partners.

Prior to founding Breck, Brad was a partner at Wingate Partners for 16 years, where he served as Co-Managing Partner and was Chairman of Nekoosa Coated Products, Dunn Paper, and Sunrise Oilfield Supply, as lead board member for Industrial Container Services, and as a board member of S&N Communications and Binswanger Glass.
​
Prior to joining Wingate, Brad was an executive with Entergy Wholesale Operations where he led project teams in acquiring and developing power generation assets. He joined Entergy from Lufkin Industries where he served as an Officer.  In addition to his leadership roles in operations and finance, Brad developed and implemented Lufkin’s strategic planning process and coordinated the successful acquisition of companies in the U.S. and Europe to help implement the strategic plan.  Previously, he was a consultant with Bain & Company where he advised clients on strategy and corporate turnarounds.
​
Brad holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting, summa cum laude, from Kansas State University and a Master of Business Administration from the Harvard Business School.  He currently serves as an Elder at Preston Trail Community Church and is a Trustee of Legacy Christian Academy.  Brad is married to Leanne and they are the grateful parents of Abigail (21), Jonathan (19) and Matt (17). 000000F4 000000F4 00004BBB 00004BBB 0006C21A 0006C21A 00007E29 00007E29 0006BFA7 0006BFA7

Julia Karol is President and COO of Watermill Group. She is responsible for overall firm operations and helping Watermill portfolio companies develop and implement their strategies. Previously, as a Watermill Principal, Julia helped guide the day-to-day operations of the firm, directed the firm’s investor relations and managed fundraising initiatives for acquisitions.

Prior to joining Watermill, Julia worked at Jumpstart, a national nonprofit organization. While at Jumpstart, she managed Boston-area fundraising, coordinated communication and marketing efforts, cultivated partnerships, developed alumni relations programming, and oversaw staff recruitment efforts.

Julia currently serves as a Partner with Social Venture Partners Boston, a venture philanthropy organization which connects Boston’s most promising nonprofits with the money and minds to fuel their success. Julia has served as a Mentor for Endeavor, a global high-impact entrepreneurship movement and that promotes economic growth and job creation. She also serves as a member for the Budget and Administration Committee for Combined Jewish Philanthropies. Previously, Julia founded and served as board chair for the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network in Boston. Julia is a member of ACG Boston and the Young Presidents Organization (YPO) and has been named as one of the Most Influential Women in Mid-Market M&A by Mergers and Acquisitions Magazine for three consecutive years. In 2019, Julia received the Women of Influence Award from ACG Boston and was named one of Boston Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 honorees. In 2017, Julia was named an Emerging Leader by the M&A Advisor.

EDUCATION:

She received a M.A. in Education Policy, Organization and Leadership from Stanford University, completed the Owners, Presidents, Managers program at Harvard Business School, and the Summer Institute for Entrepreneurship at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, and earned a B.A. from Tufts University.

000000DE 000000DE 000028E3 000028E3 000FD93E 000FD93E 00007C5F 0000790E 00010292 00010292

00000422 00000421 0003004C 0003004C 0003E4F0 0003E4F0 00007F9B 00007F41 0001E5EB 00008A43

Marshall Adkins joined Raymond James in 1995 and serves as the head of the firm’s Energy Investment Banking practice.

Marshall Adkins joined Raymond James in 1995 and serves as the head of the firm’s Energy Investment Banking practice.

Prior to this role, Mr. Adkins served as the director of Energy Research and focused on oilfield services and products. Prior to Raymond James, he spent 10 years in the oilfield services industry as a project manager, corporate financial analyst, sales manager, and engineer.

He holds a B.S. degree in petroleum engineering and an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin.

00000143 00000143 00006988 00006915 0000812F 0000812F 000081C5 000081C5 0001100A 0001100A

Joe Linnen is a Partner of The Jordan Company. He is also a member of the firm's Executive Committee.

Joe joined TJC in 1993. He focuses all of his time on sourcing, originating and evaluating transactions on behalf of TJC.
​He serves on the board of directors of Worldwide Clinical Trials and CFS Brands.

Joe is Chairman Emeritus of the La Lumiere School Board of Trustees and he was Co-Chairman of its Courageous Vision Capital Campaign. Joe was a founding Director of the Oz Park Baseball Association in Chicago.

Joe holds a BS degree in Business Administration with concentration in Finance from the University of Notre Dame.

00000468 00000465 000052FA 000052FA 000CEF53 000CEF53 00007DAE 00007F07 000032D0 000032D0

Episode 51 of the Private Equity Fast Pitch features the quotes and mottos of past podcast guests that inspire them in their daily life.

Vescovo grew up in Dallas, Texas, where he graduated from St. Mark's School of Texas. He earned a bachelor's degree in Economics and Political Science from Stanford University, a master's degree in Defense and Arms Control Studies (Political Science) from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and an MBA from Harvard Business School where he was a Baker scholar.

In December 2018, he became the first person to reach the deepest point of the Atlantic Ocean, piloting DSV Limiting Factor, a reported US$50 million submarine system (Triton 36000/2) - including its support ship the DSSV Pressure Drop and its three ultra-deep-sea robotic landers - 8,375 m (27,477 ft) below the ocean surface to the base of the Puerto Rico Trench. On February 3, 2019, he became the first person to reach the bottom of the Southern Ocean, in the southern portion of the South Sandwich Trench. As of March 2019, he was continuing to lead the Five Deeps Expedition, whose objective is to thoroughly map and visit the bottom of all five of the world's oceans by the end of September 2019.

In April 2019, Vescovo descended nearly 11 km (6.8 mi) to the deepest place in the ocean - the Challenger Deep in Pacific Ocean's Mariana Trench. On his first descent, he piloted the DSV Limiting Factor to a depth of 10,928 m (35,853 ft), a world record by 16 m (52 ft). Diving for a second time on May 1 he became the first person to dive the Challenger Deep twice, finding "at least three new species of marine animals" and "some sort of plastic waste." Among the underwater creatures Vescovo encountered was a snailfish at 26,250 feet and a spoon worm at nearly 23,000 feet, which was the deepest level that the species had ever been encountered.

On 7 May 2019, Vescovo and Alan Jamieson made the first human-occupied deep submersible dive to the bottom of the Sirena Deep, about 128 miles northeast from Challenger Deep. The time spent there was 176 minutes; among the samples they retrieved was a piece of mantle rock from the western slope of the Mariana Trench.

He completed the Five Deeps Expedition on 24 August 2019 when he reached 5,550 m at the bottom of the Molloy Deep in the Arctic ocean. He was the first human to reach this location.\

In 2019, Victor Vescovo was recognized by Guinness World Records as the person who has covered the greatest vertical distance without leaving Earth's surface. As part of achieving the Explorers Grand Slam (Last Degree), Vescovo climbed Mt. Everest (8,848 metres (29,029 ft)) on 24 May 2010, Earth's highest point. Almost nine years later he dove to the bottom of the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench (−10,924 metres (−35,840 ft)), Earth's lowest point, in the deep submersible Limiting Factor on 29 April 2019, for a total vertical distance of 19,772 metres (64,869 ft).

Vescovo completed the Explorers Grand Slam (Last Degree) by climbing the highest peak on each of the seven continents, and skied the Last Degree of Latitude at both the North and South Poles. Uniquely, with the successful completion of his Five Deeps Expedition, Vescovo has also dived the deepest point in each of the five world's oceans.

00000113 00000112 0000472B 0000472B 00179882 00179882 0000802F 00007FD3 00011ED6 00011ED6

Dave Carvajal is a builder of billion dollar businesses. As CEO of Dave Partners, Dave is a sought out advisor and consultant to Board of Directors, venture firms, CEO entrepreneurs and leadership teams of some of the most exciting growth companies in the technology space that are making the world better.

Dave built HotJobs to 650 employees, $125M in revenues, IPO and $1.2B market capitalization as co-founder. The HotJobs team experienced a second exit with the acquisition by Yahoo! in February of 2002. He built TheLadders to 400 employees and $85M in revenues.
​

Graduate of executive education and leadership programs at The Wharton School, Columbia Business School, and The Harvard Business School. Bachelor’s degree from Clemson University. Husband to a great woman, father to identical twin boys, and master to Clover the wonder dog. He is an Ironman athlete, who speaks French and Spanish.

000002F7 000002F6 00009C27 00009C27 000E7314 000E7314 00008159 00008208 000111AC 000111AC