Growth Investor with GrowthCap‘s RJ Lumba

In this episode we speak with Carmine Petrone, a Managing Director at Advent International, one of the largest and most experienced global private equity investors with over $94 billion in assets under management. Carmine joined Advent in 2010 and focuses on making investments in the healthcare and healthcare technology sectors. Prior to Advent, he worked for Thomas H. Lee Partners, where he was a generalist investor with a focus on leveraged buyouts in the financial and business services and healthcare industries. Carmine has also spent time working in the hedge fund industry. He started his career in investment banking with Citigroup Global Markets where he was a member of the Global Health Care team. Carmine was recognized by GrowthCap as a Top 25 Healthcare Investor of 2024. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode we speak with Darren Cohen, the Co-Head and CIO of the Goldman Sachs Growth Equity team, a position he has held since 2018.  Darren manages a $5.2 billion global growth fund and oversees one of the largest dedicated growth equity platforms in the world focused on the Enterprise Software, Financial Technology, and Healthcare Technology sectors.  He manages a talented, diverse team of over 80 investors and collaborates with world-class operating advisors to accelerate value creation across the portfolio. Darren is an accomplished technology investor with a 25+ year career spanning public and private global markets.  His investment journey began with a strong foundation in fundamental research, honed during his tenure as a technology research analyst in Goldman Investment Research and as a buy-side analyst at a global hedge fund. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with Brian Beutler, the Founder and CEO of Alianza, which delivers the only true cloud-native, carrier-grade communications platform built for service providers. In 2009, after previous years of helping businesses embrace cloud communications, Brian decided to take that same model and help service providers with their next-generation infrastructure. Service Providers that are powered by Alianza are growing faster, drastically simplifying their operations, and delivering better customer experiences. Before Alianza, Brian founded GetFon, which was sold to AT&T/Alestra in 2008. Brian supports Water for South Sudan. To learn more about this organization click here. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with Dr. Robert Mittendorff, a General Partner and Head of Healthcare at B Capital, a multi-stage global investment firm with over $6 billion in assets under management. The firm partners with extraordinary entrepreneurs to shape the future through technology by investing out of multiple funds from seed to late-stage venture growth, while focusing primarily in the technology, healthcare and climate sectors. Previously, Robert was at Norwest Venture Partners for nearly a decade as a Partner and Co-Head of Healthcare. He has been involved in investments and associated exits with public equity value or acquisition value that exceeds a total of $10 billion. Robert is a Stanford-trained, board-certified emergency physician who earned his MD from Harvard in the Harvard-MIT program, his MBA from Harvard Business School and his MA in International Affairs from King’s College London. Robert received his undergraduate degree (honors) in biomedical engineering at Johns Hopkins. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with the Co-Founder and CEO of Armada, Dan Wright. Armada is the world’s first full-stack edge computing platform, revolutionizing connectivity, compute, and AI solutions. Armada enables companies to rapidly deploy, operate and monitor a complete modular data center to the remote corners of the world. Before Armada, Dan was the CEO of DataRobot and COO of AppDynamics. He is invested in the future of technology as an investor, advisor, and board member for various visionary startups, including Abnormal Security, Avi Networks (acquired by VMware), and Embrace. Dan is a Board Member of JDRF. To learn more about this organization click here. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode click to follow.

Mitchell Green, Founder and Managing Partner at Lead Edge Capital, shares insights from his journey in venture capital after a career as a nationally ranked alpine ski racer. He discusses how skiing ingrained values of teamwork and persistence that shape his investment strategies today. Green explains Lead Edge Capital's unique approach to scaling technology companies, the importance of a strong network of partners, and their guiding criteria, the 'Lead Edge Eight.' Additionally, he emphasizes the role of community engagement in sports and arts as crucial to personal growth.

In this episode, we speak with Sami Inkinen, the Founder and CEO of Virta Health. Virta is an online specialty medical clinic that reverses type 2 diabetes safely and sustainably, without the risks, costs, or side effects of medications or surgery. Created in 2014, Virta’s innovations in nutritional biochemistry, data science, digital tools, and clinical expertise are shifting the diabetes treatment paradigm from management to reversal. Before Virta, Sami was a Co-Founder of the leading online real estate marketplace Trulia. He also previously worked for top companies including Microsoft, McKinsey, and Nokia. Sami is also an endurance athlete.  Sami and his wife rowed from California to Hawaii—2,750 miles, completely unsupported. He is also a triathlon age group world champion and 8 hour 24 minute Ironman with seven Hawaii Ironman finishes. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with Andrew Adams, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Oak HC/FT, one of the leading growth investment firms with $5.3 billion in assets under management. Founded in 2014, the firm invests in companies driving transformation in healthcare and fintech, two uniquely complementary and high-growth sectors. With deep domain expertise and strategic resources, the firm partners with leading entrepreneurs at every stage, from seed to growth, to build businesses that make a measurable, lasting impact on these industries. Before founding Oak HC/FT, Andrew spent 15 years, primarily at Oak Investment Partners, investing in early and growth stage companies.  During the over 25 years Andrew has spent investing in leading healthcare companies, he has had 35 exits, including 6 IPOs. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with David Lazovsky, the Co-Founder and CEO of Celestial AI.  Founded in 2020, Celestial AI is the creator of the Photonic Fabric™ technology platform, a pioneering optical compute and memory fabric solution for supercharging AI infrastructure. David leads the company in using his in-depth knowledge of semiconductors, data/telecommunications, photonics, clean energy industries, and extensive international business experience. His impressive career background includes being an Executive Chairman of POET Technologies, Venture Partner at Khosla Ventures, and founder of Intermolecular. David supports Canary Foundation. To learn more about this organization click here. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode click to follow.

Max de Groen and Scott Kirk, Partners at Bain Capital, share their insights on growth investing in tech. They discuss strategic approaches to investments in cybersecurity and digital infrastructure, highlighting successes like BMC Software. The duo emphasizes the importance of talent and organizational culture within investment firms, showcasing a commitment to diversity. Personal experiences reveal how their backgrounds shape their leadership styles, while they express passion for their charitable involvement with the YMCA and Make-A-Wish Foundation.