The HPScast

We’re back with Season 6 of the HPScast. To kick it off, Colbert sits down with Michael Davies, who was recently named the Executive Producer of Jeopardy!. We talk about how he plans to honor the legacy of the iconic game show brand while still pushing it forward and keeping it fresh. We also hear stories from Michael’s early television days and how he helped reshape American television by introducing popular British game shows like Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. And he discusses his lifelong passion for soccer, which he’s turned into the successful podcast and digital brand Men in Blazers – and how he’s using his sports coverage to inform his approach to game shows.Learn more about Michael Davies and his production company, Embassy Row, here. Watch Slow Horses, Colbert’s Best Idea for this week, here. Or listen to our earlier interview with Michael’s Men in Blazers co-host, Roger Bennett, here.

This week marks the end of Season 5 of The HPScast. Join host Colbert Cannon as he looks back at some of the season’s most memorable moments – from guest playbooks’ on how to navigate unprecedented situations to some tried and true career advice. We’ll be back in the second half of 2022 with all new episodes, but until then, make sure to catch up on any conversations you might have missed from this season and beyond. Or try out one of the many Best Ideas shared at the end of every episode. You can find links to those in the show notes of each episode. 

On a very special episode of The HPScast, host Colbert Cannon is this week’s guest. He sits down with longtime colleague and former HPSCast guest, Jeff Fitts, to discuss his path to joining HPS and his current role as a Managing Director of the firm. We hear about how Colbert has navigated macroeconomic events like long-term zero interest rates, tech bubbles and now the Coronavirus pandemic, as well as his long term view on how these factors will affect markets and the HPS portfolio. Colbert also shares insights about his formative years as a banker at Goldman Sachs before deciding to move to the principal side of investing.  Learn more about Colbert and his work with HPS here. You can check out Colbert’s Best Idea for this week, the cookbooks’ Dining In and Nothing Fancy by Alison Roman, here. Or, give her cooking a trial run by first making her legendary caramelized shallot pasta recipe here. 

This week, Colbert sits down with Amor Towles, the author of several New York Times bestselling novels including A Gentleman in Moscow and Rules of Civility. We hear about Amor’s long road back to writing, after spending two decades as a finance executive at Select Equity. Amor offers a look into his writing process and shares practical advice about how to carve out time for passion projects that could turn into a new career chapter. We also discuss how Amor’s business background helped him navigate the publishing industry.Learn more about Amor and his writing here. You can check out Colbert’s Best Idea for this week, Union Square Cafe, and how to order items to ship nationally here.

The HPScast is taking a brief midseason break, but we'll be back in two weeks with all new episodes. If you’ve missed any of our earlier episodes, we highly encourage you to take a listen to those. Or, take a page from our Best Ideas and check out any one of the many great books or TV shows shared so far. You can find links to all of our Best Ideas in our show notes for every episode.

On this week’s episode, Colbert sits down with Sheldon Kimber, CEO and Founder of Intersect Power. We learn how Sheldon plans to grow and scale low-carbon technology at Intersect Power to propel the future of the clean energy industry forward. He also shares his personal journey into the energy sector, from working on smaller scale utilities projects at Accenture to critical reliable power for Calpine – and his short-lived attempt to exit the space in business school before rejoining with Recurrent Energy. We discuss his efforts to build an innovative portfolio as COO of the solar developer before eventually leaving to start his own clean energy company. Learn more about Sheldon Kimber’s tenure at Intersect Power here. You can check out our guest’s Best Idea, reading his work for The Intersection Blog, here. Watch the Apple TV seriesTehran, Colbert’s Best Idea for this week, here.

This week, Colbert sits down with Tom Wasserman, Managing Director at HPS Investment Partners. Tom breaks down the world of SPACs, or special purpose acquisition companies and HPS’s position in the space. We also hear about Tom’s foray in tech at telecommunications startup, 360 Networks, where he rode the rise and burst of the Dot-com bubble before joining Bear Stearns, which would later be acquired by J.P. Morgan amid the 2008 financial crisis. Tom shares what it was like meeting with CEOs and negotiating contracts early in his career and imparts advice to young professionals looking to follow in his footsteps.Learn more about Tom Wasserman’s tenure here. Find a link to order  Rock Me On The Water by Ron Brownstein, Colbert’s Best Idea for this week, here.

Join host Colbert Cannon as he sits down with Bill Stephenson, the Chief Executive Officer of HPS’s Global Leasing platform. We do a deep dive into the vendor finance industry and gain insight into that $1 trillion market. Bill shares key lessons learned from his over three decades long tenure at DLL and how he helped grow that business into the world's largest global leasing company. He also discusses how he is bringing that expertise and experience to HPS. To learn more about Colbert's Best Idea, the HBO Max series Station Eleven, visit the show’s website here.

Host Colbert Cannon sits down with Artie Starrs, the CEO of TopGolf. Artie shares how his team is democratizing the game of golf and how TopGolf is staying relevant through constant innovation. He also gives insights into his time helming one of the world’s largest restaurant concepts, Pizza Hut, including through the pandemic. We also discuss his decision to transition out of banking to the operations side early in his career as he left boutique banking firm Wasserstein Perella to serve as the CFO of Rave Cinemas. To learn more about Artie’s role at TopGolf, see his full bio here. To plan a visit to Colbert’s top rec, Five Iron Golf, visit their website here. Find a link to purchase Artie’s Best Idea, the book Factfulness by Hans Rosling, here.

On this week’s episode, host Colbert Cannon speaks with Erik Hirsch, the Vice Chairman and Head of Strategic Initiatives at Hamilton Lane. We hear about the evolution of the firm as it transitioned from solely advisory to one that now oversees just over $800 billion in assets under management and supervision. He speaks about his role in advancing the firm’s evolution by not only adopting, but also investing in, new technologies. To learn more about the Montage Palmetto Bluff, Colbert's Best Idea, and how to stay, visit the hotel property’s website here.