The Deal

Andrew Shapiro, who ran an activist fund for 32 years, discusses how one campaign helped form his investment vehicle and talks about good and bad investor communication policies.

Brian Breheny, the former chief of the SEC's M&A division, discusses expected changes to regulations affecting activist investors, including why he thinks the nation's securities regulator can eliminate activist shareholder proposals.

Rick Giovannelli, the incoming co-chair of the management committee at K&L Gates, discusses the growth of private equity in Charlotte, N.C., over the course of his career and how his firm teaches lawyers to mentor and train the next generation. 

HCI Equity co-founder and chief investment officer Doug McCormick discusses the firm's approach to buy-and-build strategies in large, fragmented and stable markets as well as navigating the challenging M&A environment in 2025. 

Rob Kindler, an M&A partner at Paul Weiss, discusses his career as an M&A lawyer and banker, doing deals at Morgan Stanley and the importance of lifelong connectivity. 

When corporations install anti-activist poison pills they are less likely to implement new share buybacks and their operationally-focused capital expenditures tend to be higher, UC Berkeley School of Law professor Ofer Eldar explains.

Joele Frank discusses how she came to public relations and her approach to growing her own firm.

Solomon Partners head of business services Tim Shea discusses private equity's growing interest in residential and facilities services and dealmaking activity in the market in 2025. 

Bruce Goldfarb, CEO and president of Okapi Partners, discusses launching the proxy solicitor in 2008 and how the client service skills he learned working in his father's dry cleaning business are relevant on Wall Street.

Kimberly Petillo-Decossard, the co-head of M&A at White & Case, discusses building her career, her decision to change firms and how her husband's willingness to retire from his career as a banker has been pivotal to her success.