Investment Management Operations

John Fitzpatrick is the Senior Managing Director and Chief Technology Officer at Blackstone, specializing in alternative asset management technology. He discusses the evolving landscape of data acquisition and automation, emphasizing strategic integration to enhance investment decisions. Key topics include the challenges of technology adoption, zero-based budgeting for impactful projects, and fostering a culture of innovation. Fitzpatrick also addresses the future threats posed by quantum computing on cybersecurity, urging proactive adaptations in security protocols.

Melissa Dickerson, Managing Director of Operations and CFO at Genstar Capital, shares insights on private equity operations. She discusses the firm's strategy of maintaining a single office while diversifying revenue through product expansion. The conversation explores how the industry has adapted to global LP needs, the evolution of portfolio company management, and the shift to specialized models in talent management and finance. Melissa also reflects on her career journey and highlights the importance of culture and proactive communication in private equity leadership.

Scott Farden is the COO of Nonantum Capital Partners, a Boston-based private equity firm that spun out of Charlesbank Capital Partners in 2018. Launching a first-time private equity fund has a myriad of challenges from leaving your old firm, raising capital, finding talent and activating operations, so I turned to Scott to share his experience. We also cover topics like proper preparation and common pitfalls when pitching LPs, building a team that can evolve with future organization complexity and things one can do to proactively build culture for firm durability.  After our sit down, Scott shared that he believes that Operations can add alpha to a PE portfolio by running it so well that it leaves the investment team out of the back office. Learn MoreFollow Capital Allocators at @tseides or LinkedInSubscribe to the mailing listAccess transcript with Premium Membership 

We can’t ignore the fact that AI is playing an increasing role in our day-to-day lives. But the question is how do we do it properly? So I turned to Kathleen to get her insights on bringing AI in house. We cover a range of topics like how to develop an AI policy, how do we identify and assess the growing list of AI service providers. Once selected, how does one perform proper legal and technical due diligence?  As an ops or legal professional what can you do yourself and when to bring in third-party vendor due diligence providers. We also discuss the state of legal tech today and how things like ChatGPT and Perplexity AI can play a role in the fast-moving pace of investing in our highly regulated world.  This information provided is for general informational purposes only and should not be considered legal advice. For specific legal guidance, please consult your own legal counsel. Learn MoreFollow Capital Allocators at @tseides or LinkedInSubscribe to the mailing listAccess transcript with Premium Membership 

Rob McGrail is General Counsel and CCO for DUMAC, the management company for Duke University As one of the world’s leading endowment managers, Rob shares his career evolution from being the first lawyer at DUMAC, how to create strong team dynamics when closing deals and how the operational investment process has evolved over time.  We cover best practices when working with established and emerging managers and the evolution of the technical and reporting requirements across direct fund investing, separate accounts and co-investments.Learn MoreFollow Capital Allocators at @tseides or LinkedInSubscribe to the mailing listAccess transcript with Premium Membership

Emi Larson is the COO of UCLA‘s endowment. Emi shares what it’s like going from an ops role at an emerging market manager to a hedge fund of funds and how it led to a COO role of a well-known university. We cover how to make that leap from Director of Operations to the COO seat and the key skills needed for that position. We tackle how non-profits keep up with growing business complexity, the challenges with West Coast hiring and how overbuilding select parts of your tech stack can help you scale. I would like to note that we recorded this not long before the fires engulfed Los Angeles. With UCLA being is in the heart of LA, our hearts are with the folks out there.Here is a link to donate to the LAFD Foundation.Learn MoreFollow Capital Allocators at @tseides or LinkedInSubscribe to the mailing listAccess transcript with Premium Membership

Eric Wortman is the COO and CCO of Stable, a GP stakes firm with over $4.5B in assets.If you are an emerging manager or thinking about spinning out, this is the episode for you. As people will tell you, building your own firm and team is vastly different than managing a portfolio.We cover the fuzzy topic of what it means to be “institutional”, how to select the right service providers, critical tech, talent acquisition and other foundational areas of launching a firm.We then tackle best practices on designing a repeatable sales process, the importance of branding and common areas that slow down early-stage managers.Take Capital Allocator’s Audience Engagement SurveyLearn MoreFollow Capital Allocators at @tseides or LinkedInSubscribe to the mailing listAccess transcript with Premium Membership

Mike Peltier is the COO of VCU Investment Management Company, supporting Virginia Commonwealth University and its related entities in Richmond, Virginia. Virginia Commonwealth University is pioneering what it means to be a public research university while remaining focused on innovation, diversity, and access in the Commonwealth and beyond.Mike shares lessons learned from his audit and tax background helped him lead the operations of the investment office.We discuss the key pillars of the tech stack and some unique ways to leverage common technology to create efficiency. Mike discusses AI use cases you can use today that reduces the friction with investment and operations teams of all sizes.We then turn to outsourcing service providers and the importance of building personal networks to stay on top of an ever-changing industry.Take Capital Allocator’s Audience Engagement SurveyLearn MoreFollow Capital Allocators at @tseides or LinkedInSubscribe to the mailing listAccess transcript with Premium Membership

Ron Lanen is a Partner, Chief Administrative Officer, and General Counsel at HighVista Strategies, an alternative asset manager with approximately $11 billion in assets.  Given the uptick in M&A activity, I was interested in getting Ron’s input following their acquisition of abrdn’s US private markets business.     Ron’s background makes him uniquely positioned to share best practices with acquiring another investment firm. He shares how the organization effectively doubled in headcount and assets and the implications on legal, IR and operations.    We also talk about the importance of culture, integration, hiring for range and the “knock on” effects of managing new service providers. Take Capital Allocator’s Audience Engagement Survey Learn MoreFollow Capital Allocators at @tseides or LinkedInSubscribe to the mailing listAccess transcript with Premium Membership

This Sponsored Insight features Troy Pospisil, CEO of Ontra, a legaltech firm created for the private markets industry.  It was great sitting down with Troy to talk about the evolution of how legal and compliance workflows are going digital. We cover his career from management consulting to the investment team at H.I.G. Capital where he saw a glaring need for better solutions with doing deals and raising funds. We discuss product development opportunities and challenges, multi-stakeholder engagements and how digital-native leaders are embracing software to speed up fund closings at a lower cost and compliance risk.Take Capital Allocator’s Audience Engagement Survey Learn MoreFollow Capital Allocators at @tseides or LinkedInSubscribe to the mailing listAccess transcript with Premium Membership