Investors & Operators

Why listen to this? Starting with 100 members in Jan 2019, Sam Jacobs has built a 1,400-person, invite-only global community of revenue leaders, charging $100-200/month. He’s also host of the Sales Hacker Podcast (25,000+ downloads).Before Revenue Collective, Sam helped companies scale from just north of $0 in revenue to just shy of $300M. He gets growth. He gets community. Now, more than ever, we need to build community in our respective industries.TOPICSWe go DEEP in this episode and cover:How to build a strong community: homogeneity + curationHaving his back against the wall for 7 years and the long road to entrepreneurshipHow to start a podcastDaily habits & having coachesPlaying the long gameMarketing in a 2020 environmentBIO FROM LINKEDINRevenue Collective is an exclusive membership for growth operators dedicated to providing support, assistance, education, and career growth to our Members. We come together to ensure CROs, CMOs, COOs, and CCOs perform better in their roles, earn the title and compensation they desire, and achieve their professional goals. We are a global organization with official chapters in New York, London, Denver, Toronto, Boston, Indianapolis, and Amsterdam and more chapters coming online in the next few months and years.For the past 15 years, I have helped companies scale from just north of $0 in revenue to just shy of $300M. During that time, I’ve developed deep operational expertise with particular emphasis on go-to-market strategy and execution mainly with SaaS and recurring revenue businesses. I've been a commercial operator at GLG, Livestream/Vimeo, The Muse, and Behavox.We created Revenue Collective based both on my personal experience and the experiences of my friends, partners, and colleagues in the high growth community.Membership is invitation-only and you must be nominated by an existing Member. If you'd like to learn more, feel free to reach out.I also host the Sales Hacker Podcast. My friends and relatives tell me it's pretty good.

It’s not often that you meet someone who is truly a center of influence, a powerbroker, and a pioneer in their industry. Kelly Williams is that individual.TOPICSAt 8 years old, she wrote her first contract with her mom...for a lunchboxThe “Teflon Associate” and working in Japan doing project financeHow focusing on the hard work that others didn’t want to led to co-founding the Customized Fund Investment Group (CFIG), which managed $30B+ for clientsFounding PEWIN, the largest global network of senior women in private equity with over 700 membersBIOKelly Williams is the Founding Chair and Co-CEO of the Private Equity Women Investor Network (PEWIN). Ms. Williams was a founder of the Customized Fund Investment Group (CFIG) at Prudential Insurance Company in 1999. CFIG was a market leader in providing customized solutions in private equity, real estate and infrastructure, with more than $30 billion managed on behalf of clients. The business was moved to DLJ in 2000 (subsequently acquired by Credit Suisse AG) and Ms. Williams served as its Managing Director and Group Head until 2014, when the business was sold to GCM Grosvenor. At GCM Grosvenor she served as President of Private Markets until June of 2015, and a Senior Advisor from 2015 to 2019. Prior to the founding of CFIG, she was an Executive Director with Prudential's private equity group, where she specialized in product development. Prior to joining Prudential in 1993, Ms. Williams was an associate with Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy specializing in project finance.Ms. Williams is a member of the board of the Robert Toigo Foundation, the Olana Partnership, and the National Philanthropic Trust and is the founding board chair of the Private Equity Women Investor Network. She serves as President of the Board of the Nantucket Historical Association. She also serves on the board of trustees and executive committees of Union College and the NY School of Interior Design. She is the Vice Chair of the Board of Commissioners of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. She is an investment committee member of Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. She also serves as the chair of the Limited Partner Advisory Council to the Sponsors for Educational Opportunity. Ms. Williams was appointed in 2015 to the Board of Directors of The Greenbrier Companies (GBX). Ms. Williams has received many awards throughout her career in the financial services industry and was recognized by the National Organization for Women in 2012 with its Women of Power and Influence Award and was named in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 as one of The Most Powerful Women in Finance by American Banker Magazine. She graduated magna cum laude from Union College in 1986 and received her Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law in 1989.

John Stewart is a Partner at MiddleGround, a private equity firm focused on  Industrials & Specialty Distribution companies. He is responsible for overall management of the firm and management of the Investment Team with Lauren Mulholland. John started his career as an hourly line worker at Toyota Motor Corporation and held numerous management and executive positions over an 18-year career. John made the move to private equity in 2007, joining Monomoy Capital as an Operating Partner. In 2010, John was named the Head of Operations and built out the Operations Group over the next six years with Scot Duncan. In 2016, John became a Partner. Throughout his career, John has worked on numerous transactions and served on the Board of Directors of nearly 20 businesses across both middle market and Fortune 100 companies.Topics:- Upbringing in Kentucky- Starting as a second shift team member at Toyota putting bumpers on Camrys, to managing 7,000 people and being the first American to be promoted to run a division for Toyota Motor - Moving to private equity- Co-founding MiddleGround with Lauren Mulholland and Scot Duncan- Leadership & life lessons

Javier Saade is Founder & Managing Partner of Impact Master Holdings which works with insightful people and dynamic companies building a better future. He is also Venture Partner at Fenway Summer, a VC firm that has backed 50+ companies innovating at the intersection of finance & technology. He serves as board member on several prominent companies and previously led the $30B Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) program, a growth capital fund capitalizing >300 PE, VC and structured debt limited partnerships investing in 1000s of businesses, including via a $1B Impact Investment Fund.Topics:- His life from operations management at a pharmaceutical company to leading a $30 billion SBIC program to a respected entrepreneur, investor and board member - Traits of successful entrepreneurs - What he learned from his first business failure- His superpower - The SBIC Program and the issue of diversity and inclusion in business - The importance of storytelling for GPs and entrepreneurs - His advice to the 25-year-old version of himself- His “Why”- Doing things differently and doing things that make him feel uncomfortable - How to be an effective board member and what not to do- Consensus building

Karan Rai is Founder and Managing Partner at ASGARD Partners & Co. Karan has a deep passion for fixing, growing, and investing in small and medium sized companies. He loves working with entrepreneurs and inspired leaders who are building purpose-driven companies. He also, at times, serves as the interim CEO for ASGARD portfolio companies.Topics:- How he’s changed since coming out of a massive anxiety attack 2 years ago- His ”why” and the moment he realized "this is why I do what I do"- Meditation creates time for him - His superpower and how he cultivates it- Entrepreneurship is lonely and difficult - “There’s no work-life balance; it’s all life”- Means goals vs. end goal - Running a marathon in Antarctica - His keystone habits

Chris Sznewajs is Managing Partner at Pacific Avenue Capital Partners, a Los Angeles-based private equity firm with deep expertise in operations and growth enhancement in the middle market.Topics:- His wanting to fix things led to his mindset in restructuring and turnaround - The Gores Story, how it inspired him, founding of the firm - Starting the firm and family support - Building a team of people with different DNA- Picking his bets and finding the right deals- Morning routines and habits that can lead to success - The next chapter for Pacific Avenue Capital

Dan Lee is a Partner and serves as a member of the Investment Committee for Comvest’s direct lending strategy. He is responsible for originating, structuring, and managing investments.Topics:- Muay Thai – “I relished that it made me feel and look tough. But Yoga is far better for me, it grounds and opens me.”- From wanting to be perceived as tough to being comfortable with who he really is- Don’t do New Year resolutions, do “Prior Year Reviews”- Refocusing on what really matters and appreciating what’s right in front of him - Ask for help...it’s okay to be vulnerable

Jeri Harman is the Founder & Chairman of Avante Capital Partners, a women and minority-owned private credit and structured equity fund based in LA and founded in 2009. Topics:- Why she took the plunge into entrepreneurship (in 2009) and what it took to get the business off the ground- Failure is not an option- The importance of storytelling in fundraising- Balancing the desire to lean into her identity as a women-owned fund vs just being known as an outstanding investor- Creating an ecosystem and how it has helped source 60% of their deals- The evolution of women in finance, PEWIN, and Kelly Williams- Her #1 advice for women in finance