Best Startup
At Best Startup US we track over 1,000,000 US startups and over 3 million people who hold key positions in these companies. We use this directory of startups to highlight top employees, founders and board members we think deserve more appreciation than they are currently getting.
This list showcases the top New York based Partner operating in the Consulting space. If you think a Partner is missing from this list, feel free to contact our editor on editor@beststartup.us.
The individuals on this list have been included because of exceptional performance in one of the following categories:
- Innovation – Operating as a key part in an extremely innovative business or startup.
- Growth – Operating as a key figure in the growth and upscale of a market leading business or startup.
- Management – Showing exceptional management skills.
- Societal impact – Putting their business on the map for their positive societal or environmental impact.
Our Data – We source our data from OSINT (open source intelligence) and public directories such as Crunchbase, SemRush and many more. The data from these sources should be treated with a degree of caution and verified yourself.
David Foley
Sr. Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Blackstone Energy Partners of Blackstone Group
David I. Foley is a Senior Managing Director in the Private Equity Group and Chief Executive Officer of Blackstone Energy Partners. David Foley is based in New York and is responsible for overseeing Blackstone’s private equity investment activities in the energy & natural resource sector on a global basis. Since joining Blackstone in 1995, David Foley has been responsible for building the Blackstone energy & natural resources practice and has played an integral role in every private equity energy deal that the firm has invested in, including: Premcor, Kosmos Energy, Foundation Coal, Texas Genco, Sithe Global Power, OSUM Oil Sands, PBF Energy, Global Offshore Wind, GeoSouthern, Alta Resources, Moser Baer, Cheniere and LLOG Exploration. Before joining Blackstone, David Foley worked with AEA Investors in the firm’s private equity business, and prior to that served as a consultant for the Monitor Company. David Foley received a BA and an MA in Economics, with honors, Phi Beta Kappa, from Northwestern University and received an MBA with distinction from Harvard Business School.
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About Blackstone Group: Blackstone is an investment and advisory firm providing financial solutions for investors and clients.
Michael Petryczenko
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Strategic Partners of Blackstone Group
Michael A. Petryczenko is a Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for Strategic Partners, Blackstone’s secondary private fund of funds business, which was acquired from Credit Suisse in August 2013. Michael Petryczenko is involved with overseeing the financial reporting, tax structuring and treasury operations related to Strategic Partners’ secondary private equity funds. Before joining Strategic Partners, Michael Petryczenko was the Tax Manager for the Peabody Fund, an opportunistic real estate fund jointly managed by J.P. Morgan and The O’Connor Group. Prior to joining the Peabody Fund, Michael Petryczenko was a Tax Manager at Ernst and Young, LLP in the Real Estate Group. His clients included DLJ Real Estate Capital Partners and SL Green Realty Corp. Michael Petryczenko received a BS in Accounting from St. Francis College, New York and an MS in Taxation from Pace University, New York. He subsequently earned the C.P.A. designation.
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About Blackstone Group: Blackstone is an investment and advisory firm providing financial solutions for investors and clients.
James Quella
Senior Managing Director and Senior Operating Partner of Blackstone Group
James Quella has been a director since December 2009. Quella was a Senior Managing Director and Senior Operating Partner in the Corporate Private Equity group of The Blackstone Group until June 30, 2013. Quella was responsible for monitoring the strategy and operational performance of Blackstone portfolio companies and providing direct assistance in the oversight of large investments. He was also a member of the firm’s Private Equity Investment Committee. Currently, James serves as a Senior Advisor to the Private Equity Group of Blackstone and continues to be involved in a few key portfolio companies as a board member and executive advisor, as well as participating in selected portfolio review processes and due diligence. Prior to joining Blackstone in 2004, Quella was a Managing Director and Senior Operating Partner with DLJ Merchant Banking Partners-CSFB Private Equity. Prior to that, Quella worked at Mercer Management Consulting and Strategic Planning Associates, its predecessor firm, where he served as a senior consultant to CEOs and senior management teams, and was Co-Vice Chairman with shared responsibility for overall management of the firm. Quella received a BA in International Studies from the University of Chicago/University of Wisconsin-Madison and an MBA with dean’s honors from the University of Chicago. He is also the co-author of Profit Patterns: 30 Ways to Anticipate and Profit from the Strategic Forces Reshaping Your Business. Quella has been a member of various private equity company boards and currently, in addition to Catalent, serves as a Director of Freescale Semiconductor, Inc., Michaels Stores, Inc., and DJO Global.
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About Blackstone Group: Blackstone is an investment and advisory firm providing financial solutions for investors and clients.
Ilya Golubovich
Founder, Managing Partner of I2BF Global Ventures
Ilya has been a partner since the fall of 2005. He is a member of the Board of Directors of JSC Russian Investors, a private equity group with $200 million under management, and Linxlogic, a business software corporation in Los Angeles. Ilya formerly worked in the Energy Department of the London office of Louis Dreyfus in commodity trading and as a project manager at the Siberian Internet Company (Sibintek) at both their Novosibirsk and Moscow offices. Mr. Golubovich has an industrial engineering degree from Stanford University.
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About Aeroxo, Buzzoola, Enki.com, I2BF Global Ventures, Octi, Presto, Primus Power, ServiceTitan: I2BF is a venture capital firm that focuses on early stage technology companies.
Karl Alomar
Managing Partner of M13
Karl Alomar is a serial entrepreneur turned investor with extensive experience in starting, developing and selling high growth businesses in various market segments. Karl co-founded two successful ventures of his own, followed by 6 years as COO at DigitalOcean helping build the company from ground up to $250MM ARR. Karl received his MBA from Columbia Business School in New York and a BEng in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Imperial College London and currently hold the position of Managing Partner at venture firm M13.
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About M13: M13 provides strategic counsel and operational expertise to help founders grow their companies.
Latif Peracha
General Partner of M13
I spent 8 years working for Sir Richard Branson, and during this time frame I developed a clear understanding of how a single brand and visionary was able to scale 8 companies in disparate industries and geographies to a billion dollars or more of enterprise value. Specifically, Virgin’s fearless approach at entering markets is driven by its singular focus on creating a sustainable value proposition to the consumer, always enhanced by elegant technology, creative marketing strategies and the power of brand.
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About M13: M13 provides strategic counsel and operational expertise to help founders grow their companies.
Matt Hoffman
Partner, Head of Talent of M13
Matt is the VP, People at DigitalOcean and is responsible for leadership in the practice areas of talent acquisition, talent development, people operations, and employee experience. DO is one of the world’s leading cloud infrastructure solutions provider, and one of the fastest growing and most successful technology startups in NYC. In the three years Matt has been with DO it has grown from under 100 employees to close to 500; and has received a number of external recognitions including being named one of the top 7 Best Places to Work by USA Today. Matt is also the NY lead of PeopleTechPartners advisory group.
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About M13: M13 provides strategic counsel and operational expertise to help founders grow their companies.
Brian Carroll
Partner of M13
I’ve held most startup roles at some point in my career. My progression may seem eclectic (from software engineering, to network engineering, to sales engineering, to marketing, to product, to VC [during business school], to startup operations exec, to startup finance exec, to private equity finance—whew) but it’s given me invaluable insight into the many (many) distinct worlds that come together to help a business succeed.
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About M13: M13 provides strategic counsel and operational expertise to help founders grow their companies.
Robert Olson
Partner, Head of Data Strategy of M13
Robert Olson is a Partner and Head of Data Strategy at M13. Prior to that, he was the Director of Data and Analytics at DigitalOcean and Director of Analytics and Insights at MDC Partners in the Performance Marketing Services Group. Olson obtained his bachelor’s degree in economics from Princeton University. He resides in New York, United States.
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About M13: M13 provides strategic counsel and operational expertise to help founders grow their companies.
Manoj Singh
Global Managing Partner – Operations of Deloitte
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About Deloitte: Deloitte provides audit, consulting, financial advisory, risk management, tax, and other related services.
Thalia Smith
Partner of Deloitte
Thalia Smith is a Partner in Deloitte’s Assurance and Advisory Insurance practice, with 16 years of experience across the financial services industry. Thalia leads Deloitte’s national insurtech initiative within the Emerging Growth Company practice. She works with insurtech startups to provide advisory support, including market entry/business strategy, accounting, tax, risk and compliance, audit, IPO readiness support, and sell-side advisory.
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About Deloitte: Deloitte provides audit, consulting, financial advisory, risk management, tax, and other related services.
Scott Lippstreu
Global Lead Consulting Partner – Global Crown Jewel Accounts of Deloitte
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About Deloitte, Deloitte: Deloitte provides audit, consulting, financial advisory, risk management, tax, and other related services.
George Simeone
Senior Client Service Partner of Deloitte
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About Deloitte: Deloitte provides audit, consulting, financial advisory, risk management, tax, and other related services.
Lilya Tessler
Partner, NY head of FinTech and Blockchain Group of Sidley Austin
Lilya Tessler focuses her practice on regulatory, general corporate and business issues related to US and non-US broker-dealers, financial services firms, blockchain projects, cryptocurrency funds and financial technology companies. Lilya advises broker-dealers and technology companies throughout the start-up phase. She also counsels financial institutions with day-to- day securities issues, private placement agent requirements, custody rule requirements, cross-border regulatory issues, policies and procedures for implementation, FINRA and SEC regulatory inquiries, as well as mergers and acquisitions, and other corporate matters. She also advises several US and non-US FinTech companies, including robo-advisors and high-frequency trading firms in evaluating the broker-dealer and investment advisor registration requirements. Lilya is a certified public accountant, FINRA dispute resolution arbitrator, and holds FINRA Series 7 and 24 licenses.
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About Digital Asset Regulatory Legal Alliance, Sidley Austin: Sidley is a law firm providing legal advising services for businesses.
Tony Feuerstein
Partner, M&A of Sidley Austin
Mr. Feuerstein provides clients with general corporate and securities law advice. In addition, he has served as corporate counsel in bankruptcy and workout transactions and restructurings, including representing official and informal creditors committees, out-of-court restructurings and exchange offers, and sale transactions of distressed companies in chapter 11 proceedings. Mr. Feuerstein joined Akin Gump in 2008. He previously was an associate at a major New York based global corporate law firm. Prior to law school, Mr. Feuerstein worked for two years as an economist at the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
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About Sidley Austin: Sidley is a law firm providing legal advising services for businesses.
Geoffrey Levin
Partner of Sidley Austin
GEOFF LEVIN concentrates his practice on complex business transactions and governance matters for private equity sponsors and their portfolio companies. His representations span a variety of industries, situations and enterprise values, having counseled clients on domestic and international mergers, acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, going private transactions, proxy contests, spin-offs, joint ventures, recapitalizations, venture capital financing, growth equity investments, senior and junior debt financings, restructurings and workouts. Geoff’s representations have covered a broad range of industries including life sciences, financial services, communications, energy, retail, automotive and heavy industrial. Geoff regularly comments on developments in the healthcare industry and speaks at investment conferences. He is the author of “New M&A Concerns and Strategies” that recently appeared in Aspatore Books Inside the Mind series. He is listed by IFLR 1000 as a leading M&A lawyer and has been recognized by Institutional Investor News as one of the “10 Rising Stars of Private Equity and M&A Law” and by Mergermarket as a 2009 “Dealmaker of the Year.” Prior to joining Sidley, Geoff was a partner at another global law firm. Geoff received his J.D., magna cum laude and Order of the Coif, from the University of Minnesota, where he was executive editor of the Journal of International Economic Law & Policy, and a B.B.A., with high distinction, from the University of Michigan. He is admitted to practice in the State of New York.
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About Sidley Austin: Sidley is a law firm providing legal advising services for businesses.
Adam Weinstein
Partner, M&A of Sidley Austin
ADAM WEINSTEIN represents large-cap and middle-market private equity funds and their portfolio companies in leveraged acquisitions, mergers, strategic investments, growth financings and similar transactions. For the last 20-plus years, Adam has served as a trusted adviser to a mega-cap private equity fund and its affiliates and portfolio companies in many of its complex, global leveraged buyout/carve-out transactions and public company acquisitions. Adam is also actively involved in advising private equity investors in the management of their portfolio companies, including: liquidity events, including private sales and public offerings, add-on acquisitions and investments, divestitures, strategic joint ventures and alliances liquidity rights, including drag-along rights, forced sale arrangements, tag-along rights, put and call rights, rights of first refusal and rights of first offer corporate governance rights, including board election rights, board and board committee composition and board and shareholder voting rights, including minority and other shareholder protections day-to-day executive compensation, labor and employment, environmental, tax, intellectual property and litigation matters Adam is recommended in The Legal 500 U.S. 2017–2018 for M&A: Middle-Market
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About Sidley Austin: Sidley is a law firm providing legal advising services for businesses.
John Butler
Partner of Sidley Austin
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About Sidley Austin: Sidley is a law firm providing legal advising services for businesses.
John Butler
Partner of Sidley Austin
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About Sidley Austin: Sidley is a law firm providing legal advising services for businesses.
Pete Maulik
Managing Partner of Fahrenheit 212
Pete Maulik is Managing Partner and Chief Growth Officer at Fahrenheit 212, where he is responsible for driving growth of the firm through strategic planning, establishing client relationships, cultivating business development and forging strategic partnerships. With over 20 years spent working with Fortune 500 companies and private equity firms on a wide range of growth projects, Pete knows what it takes to create real innovation for companies and drive change in the marketplace. In 2005, Pete helped launch Fahrenheit 212, the first privately-held innovation consultancy built on a performance-based compensation model. Since then, he has helped the firm execute more than 200 projects spanning industry sectors and develop a host of innovations that are in various stages of commercialization. He has held several key roles as part of the senior management team during his tenure at the firm. Most recently, he served as Chief Strategy Officer where he led the development of all innovation strategies and managed the firm’s implementation efforts. Pete is committed to driving innovation across the corporate landscape and is a well-respected thought leader. He is a frequent keynote speaker on innovation, recently speaking at conferences including the Chief Innovation Officer’s Summit, American Express Luxury Conference, and Ivy League MBA Innovation Summit. He is also active lecturer at business schools ranging from Harvard, Columbia, Stanford, and Wharton as well as within the investment community. His thought leadership and work have been featured in publications including the Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Private Equity International, and Inc. Pete holds an undergraduate degree with honors from Harvard University, where he was a John Harvard Scholar and an MBA from Columbia Business School. He sits on the Board of Columbia Business School’s Eugene Lang Center Of Entrepreneurship and is an active investor with various private equity-backed companies. He resides in New York City with his wife and two daughters and spends his time regaling them with stories of his ever-improving glory days as a college football player.
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About Fahrenheit 212: Fahrenheit 212 is an innovation consultancy that drives top-line growth by creating transformational new products, brands and businesses.
Mark Payne
Founder, Partner of Fahrenheit 212
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About Fahrenheit 212: Fahrenheit 212 is an innovation consultancy that drives top-line growth by creating transformational new products, brands and businesses.
Sree Ramaswamy
Partner of McKinsey & Company
Sree Ramaswamy is a Partner at the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI), McKinsey’s business and economics research arm. He leads research on the economics of digitization and the economics of multinational corporations. He is responsible for shaping MGI’s research initiatives, leading research on trends in competition, technology, and global forces influencing multinationals. Sree is also a co-leader of MGI’s research on North America, and has authored reports and articles on the ongoing digital transformation of the US economy, on new investment opportunities, on opportunities and challenges for the NAFTA region, and the role of US multinational firms in the global economy. Sree is a frequent speaker at conferences, policymaker, business, and media roundtables, and media briefings on topics related to his core research and to MGI’s broader themes around global forces, technology, trade and investment, and the global and US economic outlook. His research is frequently cited in the Economist, Financial Times, Harvard Business Review, and Wall Street Journal among other publications. Prior to joining McKinsey, Sree spent a decade in the US telecom and aerospace sector. He worked in regulatory affairs and engineering research for broadband satellite networks and holds three patents. He has an MBA and Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees in engineering and telecommunications. Sree is based in Washington, DC.
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About McKinsey & Company: McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm and trusted advisor by businesses, governments, and institutions.
Greg Phalin
Director (Senior Partner) of McKinsey & Company
Greg Phalin is a senior partner in McKinsey & Company’s New York office, where he leads the retail banking operations and technology practice for North America and is a key leader of McKinsey’s service operations practice. Greg has over 25 years of experience in operations and technology, with a particular focus on credit cards, payments, retail banking, and property and casualty insurance, as well as retail, travel, and entertainment, high tech, and telecommunications. He is also a deep expert in technology-related issues and has assisted clients with IT strategy, IT architecture, big data management, application development and maintenance, infrastructure, and transformation program management and led dozens of large, complex technology programs for clients. Previously, Greg spent 19 years at Accenture, where he specialized in financial services operations and technology issues, particularly customer experience, operations, (customer service and back-office), technology, and outsourcing
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About McKinsey & Company: McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm and trusted advisor by businesses, governments, and institutions.
Dan Singer
Enterprise Partner, Leader of Sports & Gaming practice of McKinsey & Company
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About McKinsey & Company: McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm and trusted advisor by businesses, governments, and institutions.
Jonathan Gordon
Partner & Global Co-Lead Marketing Practice of McKinsey & Company
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About McKinsey & Company: McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm and trusted advisor by businesses, governments, and institutions.
James Kaplan
Partner of McKinsey & Company
James Kaplan is the Principal at McKinsey
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About McKinsey & Company: McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm and trusted advisor by businesses, governments, and institutions.
Zachary Surak
Partner of McKinsey & Company
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About McKinsey & Company: McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm and trusted advisor by businesses, governments, and institutions.
Katy George
Senior Partner of McKinsey & Company
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About McKinsey & Company: McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm and trusted advisor by businesses, governments, and institutions.
Liz Hilton Segel
Director ,Senior Partner of McKinsey & Company
Liz is a member of the leadership team of McKinsey’s Media and Entertainment Practice and leads the business-to-consumer (B2C) capabilities of the Marketing & Sales Practice. Since joining the firm in 1992, Liz has largely focused on consumer marketing, strategy, and performance improvement in subscription media businesses. She has served clients across the media industry in newspapers, magazines, cable networks, cable operators, internet service providers, internet content players, and gaming. She also serves major marketers on growth and marketing spend effectiveness. She recently helped a US cable operator revise its go-to-market strategy to accelerate high-speed-data revenue growth; developed strategic insights into trends in video and cross-platform advertising to assess opportunities for advanced advertising in the US cable industry; and worked with a large cable operator to craft a marketing strategy and develop programs to improve customer experience operations designed to increase market penetration and increase customer lifetime value.
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About McKinsey & Company: McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm and trusted advisor by businesses, governments, and institutions.
Harrison Lung
Partner of McKinsey & Company
Harrison is passionate about helping telecommunication clients capture the full benefits of large-scale digital transformations, using his in-depth knowledge of IT, operations, and networks to help them achieve impact at scale. Although he focuses on clients in Asia, Harrison also serves clients in Europe and North America. His other specialties include wireless technology assessment, analysis, recommendation and evolution, network and cybersecurity, lean operations, and due diligence.
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About McKinsey & Company: McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm and trusted advisor by businesses, governments, and institutions.
John Redett
Partner of The Carlyle Group
John Redett is a Managing Director focused on opportunities in the global financial services sector. He is based in New York. Mr. Redett is a former Vice President, Financial Institutions Group at Goldman Sachs. Prior to that he was a Vice President, Financial Institutions Group at J.P. Morgan. Mr. Redett was also a Vice President and Associate, Financial Institutions Group at Credit Suisse First Boston. Mr. Redett earned his M.B.A. from New York University and his B.S. from the University of Colorado.
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About The Carlyle Group: The Carlyle Group is a global private equity firm that caters to early and later stage companies.
Jonathan Bylin
Partner of The Carlyle Group
Jonathan M. Bylin is a Managing Director focused on investor relations. Mr. Bylin is based in New York. Prior to joining Carlyle, Mr. Bylin was the Director of Product Management at Dubin & Swieca Capital Management, LLC, where he was responsible for product development and marketing for the firm’s multi-manager hedge fund business. Prior to that, Mr. Bylin was a Vice President in charge of product development and marketing for Carlyle Asset Management Group, where he helped create and manage the firm’s multi-manager hedge fund program. Prior to this, Mr. Bylin was the North American Product Manager for Goldman Sachs’ Hedge Fund Strategies Group and worked for Bloomberg LP as a Sales and Analytics Representative. Mr. Bylin received his M.B.A. from the University of Michigan Business School. He received his B.A. from Brown University. Mr. Bylin is a registered lobbyist in California and New York City. From 1999 to 2004, Mr. Bylin held Series 3, 7 and 63 licenses. He currently holds Series 63 and 82 licenses.
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About The Carlyle Group: The Carlyle Group is a global private equity firm that caters to early and later stage companies.
Sanjay Chadda
Partner & Managing Director of Petsky Prunier LLC
Sanjay Chadda runs one of the most active investment banking practices on Wall Street focused on the broader media, digital advertising and marketing, commerce, information and marketing technology and services industries. He has played an instrumental role in helping the firm become Bloomberg’s leading investment bank for mid-market internet & advertising transactions and has been named one of AlwaysOn’s “Power Players New York City” every year the honor has been awarded. As a trusted advisor to CEOs and private equity sponsors, Sanjay has led more than 70 transactions during his career and has successfully completed over 25 transactions since 2010 alone. In his engagements, he focuses on origination, due diligence, marketing, management, and negotiation of both M&A and private placement transactions in order to drive successful results for his clients. He is active in all of the firm’s industry practice areas and brings to his engagements a unique combination of extensive sell-side and buy-side M&A experience as well as a deep understanding of business models of companies in the sectors he covers. Sanjay has been a speaker at Strategy Institute’s Digital Out-of-Home Media Conference and the DMA Annual Leader’s Summit. He has also been a guest lecturer at New York University’s School of Continuing & Professional Studies Interactive and Direct Marketing Program. Prior to joining Petsky Prunier in 1999 he served as a financial analyst in GE Capital’s Financial Management Program. Sanjay holds a B.S. from the Charles F. Dolan School of Business at Fairfield University, where he graduated with honors.
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About Petsky Prunier LLC, Petsky Prunier LLC: Leading investment bank to the technology, media, marketing, eCommerce, and healthcare industries.
Nikhil Lele
Partner & Principal of Ernst & Young
Nikhil is a Principal in EY’s Financial Services Organization, and is the Americas Strategy and FinTech Advisory practice leader. He has a proven track record of effectively collaborating with executive management teams to drive a wide array of strategy formulation, operating model transformation, technology blueprint and roadmap, and performance improvement initiatives that yield measurable and sustainable operating results. Nikhil has worked extensively across the Banking, Capital Markets, Asset Management and Insurance sectors solving issues pertaining to improving operational efficiency, driving competitive advantage, and optimizing the business value of technology. Nikhil also has significant international experience leading large global transformation initiatives in LATAM, Europe, and Asia. Nikhil earned his B.S. in Computer Science and MIS from The College of New Jersey and his MBA in Strategy from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
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About Ernst & Young: Ernst & Young is a provider of assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services.
Chen Zur
Partner and Principle of Ernst & Young
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About Ernst & Young: Ernst & Young is a provider of assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services.
Roger Park
Partner and Principal of Ernst & Young
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About Ernst & Young: Ernst & Young is a provider of assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services.
Gregory Smith
Partner of GP Bullhound
Greg Smith is a Partner at GP Bullhound, and Head of the firm’s New York office. Greg has over 30 years of extensive digital marketing and technology M&A experience. Prior to joining GP Bullhound, he was Managing Partner of AdMedia Partners. Previously, he was a Managing Director and Head of the Media and Technology group at Dean Witter’s investment banking division, responsible for all technology, communications and media business. Prior to that he worked in technology investment banking at E. F. Hutton and at Dillon, Read. During his investment banking career, Greg has completed more than 200 M&A transactions and 75 equity public offerings for communications, technology and media companies. Clients and transactions have included ADTRAN, aQuantive, Ansira, Arnold Communications, AT&T, Bell South, Bozell, CKS Group, COMPAQ , Cunningham Communications, Dell, Epsilon, Frankel, IBM, Interpublic Group, Glover Park, LEVEL Studios, Media Storm, Olson, and Poppe Tyson. He has an undergraduate degree from Williams College and an M.B.A. from the Kellogg School at Northwestern University.
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About GP Bullhound: GP Bullhound is a technology advisory and investment firm that provides transaction advice and capital to entrepreneurs and founders.
David Azad
Co-Chief Investment Officer, Head of Private Investments, and Partner of MIO Partners
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About MIO Partners: MIO Partners provides a wide range of asset management services for retirement plan.
Praveen Agrawal
Client Partner of Tata Consultancy Services
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About Tata Consultancy Services: Tata Consultancy Services is a multinational information technology services, business solutions and consulting company based in India.
Jason Slusher
Partner of Great Place to Work Institute, Inc
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About Great Place to Work Institute, Inc: Great Place to Work Institute, Inc is an institute of consulting that studies work environments by collecting and analyzing information.
Eva Kalawski
Partner and General Counsel and Secretary of Platinum Equity
Eva Kalawski oversees Platinum’s in-house legal staff and is responsible for addressing legal issues relating to due diligence, mergers and acquisitions and transitions, as well as the legal affairs of its portfolio companies. Prior to joining Platinum in 1997, Eva Kalawski was Vice President of Human Resources, General Counsel and Secretary for Pilot Software, Inc. Eva Kalawski earned a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and French from Mount Holyoke College and a Juris Doctor degree from Georgetown University Law Center.
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About Platinum Equity: Platinum Equity is a private equity investment firm that focuses on leveraged buyout investments of established companies.
John Diggins
Partner of Platinum Equity
John Diggins brings a comprehensive background in financial growth management and mergers & acquisitions activity to the company, in addition to broad operating experience. Through the successful development and execution of strategic sales and marketing programs, John Diggins is responsible for growing the revenue base of Platinum Equity’s operating companies as well as identifying product strengths to help build market advantage. Prior to joining Platinum in 1996, John Diggins was CEO for both Pilot Software and Foresight Software, which were acquired by Platinum. John Diggins was also a co-founder of Ventec Systems with Platinum Equity Chairman and CEO Tom Gores. John Diggins holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of New Mexico.
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About Platinum Equity: Platinum Equity is a private equity investment firm that focuses on leveraged buyout investments of established companies.
Philip B. Weymouth
Partner of Hakluyt & Company
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About Hakluyt & Company, Saint Amour Partners: Hakluyt & Company is a British strategic intelligence and advisory firm.
Kenna Baudin
Partner, Head of US Private Equity, Board and CFO Specialist of Egon Zehnder
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About Egon Zehnder: Egon Zehnder is a true professional services firm, passionately devoted to your success, ethical in our actions
Evan Zawatsky
Partner / Fractional CFO of Wells Group of New York
Evan Zawatsky is a partner of Wells Group and specializes in CFO and Controller services. At Wells Group, he has served as the VP of Finance at Draper James, interim Controller at Daily Harvest, and consultant CFO at Snowe, FEED, and State Bags, among others. Currently, he consults with 20+ organizations in consumer goods & services, healthcare, food & beverage, and financial services. Evan began his career in audit at KPMG, where he earned his CPA, and later joined Ernst and Young’s Advisory group. After completing his MBA, Evan spent four years as an independent consultant while partnering with Nomad Financial and Catalant, focusing on working with start-ups in finance, accounting and management consulting engagements. He consulted 100+ start-ups in tech, consumer goods & services, healthcare, and manufacturing, while also working with Anheuser-Busch’s ZX-Ventures, Estee Lauder and Covanta Energy. Evan received his BS in Accounting from the University of Delaware and MBA from UNC Chapel Hill’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.
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About STATE Bags, Wells Group of New York: Wells Group provides Interim CFO, COO, & Controller services acting as a cost-effective solution for companies at all stages.
Thomas Olsen
Partner of Bain & Company
Thomas Olsen is a partner with Bain & Company based in Singapore. He leads the C&IB and Market Infrastructure practice globally and the Strategy and Corporate Finance practices in Asia Pacific. Thomas has more than 20 years of experience in financial services and consulting across Asia, Americas and Europe. He focuses on corporate and transaction banking, and market infrastructure – and, in particular, on the impacts of new technologies. He has deep expertise in corporate and portfolio strategy, M&A, risk and capital management, M&A, and operating model. His experience prior to Bain includes the World Bank, Marakon Associates, and the Chicago Board of Trade. Thomas holds a BA from Carleton College, MSc from Cornell University, and MBA from INSEAD.
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About Bain & Company: Bain & Company is a management consulting firm that provides solutions on change in management, strategies, and technology.
Thomas Taylor
Partner & Managing Director of The Boston Consulting Group
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About The Boston Consulting Group: The Boston Consulting Group is a global management consulting firm and an advisor on business strategy.
John Rose
Senior Partner and Managing Director of The Boston Consulting Group
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About The Boston Consulting Group: The Boston Consulting Group is a global management consulting firm and an advisor on business strategy.
Neal Zuckerman
Partner and Managing Director in the New York Office of The Boston Consulting Group
Neal Zuckerman is a partner and managing director in the New York office of the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), a global management consulting firm and advisor on business strategy with 81 offices in 45 countries. His professional advisory work is centered on media and entertainment companies, with a particular focus on supporting the transformation of media companies into sustainable, digitally-oriented businesses through growth strategies, business development and large-scale change. Prior to BCG, Zuckerman served in related roles at Time Warner and McKinsey & Company. Zuckerman is a resident of Garrison, NY (the station from which he commutes on Metro-North), and was appointed as Putnam County’s representative to the Metro North Railroad Commuter Council (MNRCC) in 2010 by Governor David Paterson and nominated by then-County Executive Bob Bondi. Zuckerman is a member of the Philipstown Planning Board, a trustee of the Desmond-Fish Library, and a former president and trustee of the Putnam County Historical Society. He is also the former chair of the New York Public Radio Community Board of Advisors. Prior to his business career, Zuckerman was a Captain in the U.S. Army, serving as a helicopter pilot and in various staff roles. He holds a B.S. in history from the United States Military Academy at West Point, NY, and an M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School.
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About The Boston Consulting Group: The Boston Consulting Group is a global management consulting firm and an advisor on business strategy.
Christy Carter
Managing Director & Partner of The Boston Consulting Group
Christy Carter is the Managing Director & Partner at Boston Consulting Group
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About The Boston Consulting Group: The Boston Consulting Group is a global management consulting firm and an advisor on business strategy.
Alanna Gregory
Managing Partner & Founder of Constellation
Prior to founding Constellation, Alanna Gregory was the founder and CEO of Vive, a YC-backed technology company with the mission of giving all busy women a faster, easier and more convenient way to maintain great-looking hair. Alanna has led product and growth consulting engagements and coached product and growth teams for venture-backed startups and Fortune 500 companies across NY, SF, LA and Europe. Alanna holds a degree in Operations Research Engineering from Princeton University and, following graduation, worked in Thailand as a consultant where she founded Thailand’s first V-Day campaign.
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About Constellation: Constellation builds products that connect with audiences and implement processes for sustained growth.
Leslie Pfrang
Principal & Partner of Class V Group
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About Class V Group: Class V Group is a firm dedicated solely to the IPO market and the long term success of new issuers.
Christopher Boies
Partner, Founder & Chair of the Corporate Practice of Boies Schiller
Boies is partner at Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP, where he leads the firm’s corporate practice, which he developed, and also serves as a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. Since joining Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP in 1998, Boies has represented a multitude of prominent corporate and individual clients including: several major energy companies, numerous international financial and investment groups, a variety of manufacturing and industrial concerns and public and private company boards of directors in a number of important transactional matters involving mergers and acquisitions advisory work, project and corporate finance matters, corporate governance advice and contract interpretation, construction and amendment issues. Prior to joining Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP, Boies was an investment banking associate in the Project Finance group at Credit Suisse First Boston and an associate at Sullivan & Cromwell in New York City.
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About Boies Schiller: Boies Schiller is a law firm practicing & specializing in appellate & trial law.
Kristopher Brown
Partner of Dechert
Corporate lawyer and angel investor.
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About Dechert: Dechert is a global specialist law firm delivering practical commercial insight and judgment for its clients’ most important matters.
Timothy F. Ryan
US Chairman and Senior Partner of PwC
Tim Ryan is U.S. chairman and senior partner of PwC, and he also serves on PwC’s U.S. Board of Partners and Principals, and its Global Board. Ryan is also the founding signatory of The CEO Action For Diversity & Inclusion — the largest ever C.E.O.-driven business commitment to advance diversity and inclusion in the workplace. Ryan previously served as vice chair, having responsibility for PwC’s strategy function and stakeholder relationships including investor relations, regulatory affairs, public policy, corporate responsibility and human capital. Prior to that, he led the firm’s Assurance practice and before that, he led PwC’s U.S. Financial Services Practice and Consumer Finance Group. Ryan has been published and quoted in numerous publications and is a frequent contributor to industry events and the World Economic Forum. He plays an active role in the Center for Audit Quality — a nonpartisan, nonprofit group dedicated to enhancing investor confidence and public trust in the global capital markets. Ryan is a certified public accountant in Massachusetts and New York and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He serves on the Board of Trustees for the Securities and Exchange Commission Historical Society and the Children’s Aid Society. He graduated from Babson College where he studied accounting and communications, and joined PwC after graduation. Ryan is a Boston native, marathon runner and proud father of six children.
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About PwC: PricewaterhouseCoopers is an accounting firm that provides tax, HR, transactions, performance improvement, and crisis management services.
Julien Courbe
Partner of PwC
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About PwC: PricewaterhouseCoopers is an accounting firm that provides tax, HR, transactions, performance improvement, and crisis management services.
Rich Cebula
Partner of PwC
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About PwC: PricewaterhouseCoopers is an accounting firm that provides tax, HR, transactions, performance improvement, and crisis management services.
Scott Abramowitz
Partner of Ropes & Gray
Scott Abramowitz is a partner in Ropes & Gray’s private equity transactions practice group, based in New York. He has broad experience representing private equity funds, their portfolio companies and corporate clients in a wide variety of complex business transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, recapitalizations, leveraged buyouts, growth equity financings, joint ventures and other investment transactions. He also regularly counsels clients on general corporate matters and corporate governance. Scott has advised on transactions across many industries, including financial services, insurance, asset management, business services, health care, technology and education.
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About Ropes & Gray: Ropes and Gray is an international law firm offering a diverse range of consultancy services for legal and business needs.
David Blittner
Partner of Ropes & Gray
David Blittner is a seasoned corporate transactions attorney with nearly 25 years of experience practicing in New York. He advises private equity sponsors in connection with acquisitions, dispositions and financings. He has deep experience steering leveraged buyouts and dispositions of public and private companies, as well as minority investments, public recapitalizations and restructurings. He also represents clients on general corporate matters, including governance, equity capital markets liquidity events and securities law compliance matters. Mr. Blittner is ranked as a leading lawyer in private equity by Chambers Global, Chambers USA, IFLR1000 and The Legal 500. Clients describe him as “very practical and detail-oriented” and note him to be a “very seasoned and talented deal partner” and a “rock-solid adviser.” (Chambers USA) Prior to joining Ropes & Gray, Mr. Blittner represented leading private equity sponsors, including Avista Capital Partners, CCMP Capital Partners, Partners Group, Diamond Castle Partners, DLJ Merchant Banking Partners, Lion Capital and Capital Z Partners.
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About Ropes & Gray: Ropes and Gray is an international law firm offering a diverse range of consultancy services for legal and business needs.
Gregg Galardi
Partner of Ropes & Gray
Gregg Galardi is a renowned restructuring attorney with broad global experience. Gregg has represented some of the most well-known debtors and distressed borrowers in the world, in a wide variety of industries. He also serves the firm’s sponsor client base and portfolio company clients in distressed M&A and special situations. Further, Gregg’s litigation acumen, including at the appellate level, plays a key role in the firm’s hallmark creditor practice, representing distressed investment funds, hedge funds, and creditors’ committees. Gregg is a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy. He formerly served as an adjunct professor at Vanderbilt Law School and is a frequent speaker on Chapter 11 issues. Gregg has garnered significant accolades for his work, including recognition as a “Star Individual” by Chambers & Partners. Chambers USA has recognized Gregg in the area of Bankruptcy/ Restructuring. Clients regard him as “a first-rate bankruptcy litigator: he has a wealth of knowledge, which allows him to really push the envelope and try new directions.” His “reputation as an outstanding practitioner precedes him,” as he “is considered one of the foremost restructuring experts in the country,” with “a very strong track record in large debtor cases.” In addition, he has been praised for his “understanding of client objectives” and for “wanting to execute aggressively and take a pragmatic approach in reaching those goals.” Gregg “does a great job of being succinct and capturing issues in a way that can be digested by business people.” In 2013 and 2014, the Global M&A Network honored Gregg as one of the Top 100: Global Restructuring and Turnaround Professionals. The Legal 500 United States has recommended him, as he has a “wealth of experience.”
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About Ropes & Gray: Ropes and Gray is an international law firm offering a diverse range of consultancy services for legal and business needs.
Michael Littenberg
Partner of Ropes & Gray
Michael R. Littenberg is a partner in the securities & public companies practice group. Michael has more than 25 years of experience representing U.S. and foreign public and private companies, investment banks, private equity funds and other private investment funds in transactional matters, including securities offerings and mergers and acquisitions. His clients range from large well-known institutions to younger, growing companies and his experience spans every major industry. Michael’s transactional capital markets experience covers a wide range of products, including equity and equity-linked securities, investment grade and non-investment grade debt and SPACs, BDCs and other permanent capital vehicles, through SEC registered, Regulation D, Rule 144A and Regulation S offerings (including registered direct offerings and PIPEs). His M&A experience includes representing strategic and financial buyers and sellers, special committees and financial advisors in connection with U.S. and cross-border mergers and acquisitions of both public and private companies. As a significant part of his practice, Michael also counsels domestic public companies and foreign private issuers and their boards, board committees, special committees, executive officers and investors in connection with ongoing compliance under the U.S. securities laws, including under Dodd-Frank, Sarbanes-Oxley and the JOBS Act, exchange requirements and governance and executive compensation matters. In addition, as a part of his practice, Michael advises a significant number of leading companies on supply chain compliance (including the SEC’s Conflict Minerals Rule), responsible sourcing and corporate social responsibility, and is widely viewed as a leading practitioner in this area. Michael is a frequent speaker at conferences and seminars, has authored numerous articles and is frequently quoted as an expert in the business and specialty press on topics pertaining to his areas of expertise. He is listed in Who’s Who in Securities Law and, for multiple years, has been listed in New York Super Lawyers for securities and corporate finance and as one of the Top 100 lawyers in the New York metro area. He received his J.D., magna cum laude, from Tulane University Law School, where he was an editor of the Tulane Law Review and a member of the Order of the Coif, and his B.S. from Indiana University
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About Ropes & Gray: Ropes and Gray is an international law firm offering a diverse range of consultancy services for legal and business needs.
Marc P. Berger
Partner of Ropes & Gray
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About Ropes & Gray: Ropes and Gray is an international law firm offering a diverse range of consultancy services for legal and business needs.
Andrew Snead
Managing Partner of Delta Partners Capital Limited
Andrew is a Managing Partner and leads the firm’s management consulting services in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. In addition, Andrew plays an active role in assessing investment opportunities across the regions, in close coordination with Delta Partners Capital in Dubai, whilst also working closely with Delta Partners Corporate Finance on M&A and transactional services activities. With over 18 years of strategic consulting and M&A experience, Andrew has worked with major telecommunications, media and technology/digital firms in the UK, Ireland, Sweden, US, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. He brings with him extensive advisory experience, which includes corporate strategy, M&A, transactional services (e.g. due-diligences), market entry strategy, turnarounds, ICT strategy and start-ups. Andrew has significant fixed-line, mobile & media experience including NGN strategies, Pay TV and content strategies, mobile re-launches and the development of mobile data strategies. Andrew started his career with Andersen Consulting Strategic Services in London, focusing purely on the telecoms, media and digital (TMD) sector. The early part of his career centred on triple-play and digital TV strategies for cable operators and incumbents across Europe. Between 1997 and 2001, Andrew assisted in the strategy and implementation of four triple-play launches across the UK and Ireland. Just before joining Delta Partners, Andrew focused heavily on developing and implementing ICT strategies in an advisory and interim management capacity. Andrew holds a BSc in Economics and Quantitative Methods from the University of Birmingham. Andrew’s native language is English and he is conversational in German.
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About Delta Partners Capital Limited: Delta Partners is a Private Equity arm focuses on the telecoms, and provide funding to fund companies’ growth in emerging markets.
Wei Ke
Managing Partner of Simon-Kucher & Partners
Wei Ke, Ph.D. is a Partner based in Simon-Kucher & Partners’ New York and Toronto offices. He currently heads the Financial Services Practice in North America and serves as the President of Simon-Kucher Canada. Wei has advised leading financial institutions in North America and Europe on product innovation, pricing strategy, marketing & promotional tactics, customer value management, risk management, value communication, sales effectiveness, consumer behavioral biases, and big data analytics for both sides of the balance sheet. Wei is a frequent speaker at banking and fintech conferences in the US, UK and Canada, and is regularly published in leading financial services journals, including Bank Accounting & Finance, BAI Banking Strategies, American Banker, and Mortgage Finance Gazette, on both sides of the Atlantic. Wei is currently also an adjunct professor for pricing and marketing analytics at Columbia Business School and at Queen’s University Smith School of Business. Wei received a Ph.D. in Decision, Risk, and Operations from Columbia Business School, and a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering & Applied Mathematics, summa cum laude, from Columbia University.
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About Simon-Kucher & Partners: Simon-Kucher & Partners is a global consulting firm.
Gaurav D Garg
Partner and Global Head of Property & Casualty Insurance of Oliver Wyman
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About Oliver Wyman: Oliver Wyman is a management consulting firm that specializes in strategies, operations, risk management, and organizational transformation.
Jatin Goradia
Partner of Oliver Wyman
Jatin Goradia serves as a Partner at Oliver Wyman.
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About Oliver Wyman: Oliver Wyman is a management consulting firm that specializes in strategies, operations, risk management, and organizational transformation.
Michael Wagner
Partner of Oliver Wyman
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About Oliver Wyman: Oliver Wyman is a management consulting firm that specializes in strategies, operations, risk management, and organizational transformation.
Rick Chavez
Partner of Oliver Wyman
Rick is a New York based Partner at Oliver Wyman. He has significant expertise applying proven methods for ‘dealing with disruption’ – pressure-tested in the tech sector – to the challenges of growth, innovation and modernization for executives in banking, insurance and life sciences. His ~3 decades of experience span a wide range of organizations – from pure startup-up ventures through $80Bn global corporations – as general manager, advisor and Board member. He has lived and worked across innovation ecosystems in Boston, Austin, San Francisco and Seattle, and his work has been the basis of case studies in leading books on disruptive innovation.
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About Oliver Wyman: Oliver Wyman is a management consulting firm that specializes in strategies, operations, risk management, and organizational transformation.
Jeremy Goldstein
Lawyer, Partner of Jeremy L. Goldstein & Associates
One of New York’s top corporate law authorities, [Jeremy Goldstein](https://lawtally.com/lawyers/jeremy-goldstein/) represents some of the city’s elites. He practices at his boutique law office, JLG (Jeremy L. Goldstein) and Associates, where he’s a managing partner. His law firm predominantly focuses on representing corporations, management teams, CEOs, and compensation committees. As an advisor to these entities, JLG Associates has extensive litigating experience in corporate governance and executive compensation disputes. In the branch of corporate governance, attorney Goldstein primarily mitigates sensitive issues and transformative events. Jeremy Goldstein also functioned in a partnership capacity at a top New York law firm, before he established JLG Associates. He studied law at NYU (New York University), where he graduated with a doctoral degree. Mr. Goldstein also matriculated at Cornell University, where he earned his BA and an MA from UChicago (University of Chicago). He’s known for representing and spearheading high-profile acquisitions for some prominent clients, including United Technologies acquiring American aerospace company, Goodrich. His litigating experience also extends to handling acquisition transactions for Goldman Sachs/Kinder Morgan, Duke/Progress Energy, Verizon Wireless/ALLTEL and more. With his diverse legal acumen, he serves numerous advisory boards. He’s among the panel of directors, advising the charitable organization, Fountain House. He retains a similar position at NYU’s JLB (Journal of Law and Business), where he’s an elected board adviser. Jeremy Goldstein also serves the national ABA (American Bar Association), where he chairs the ECC’s (Executive Compensation Committee) subcommittee. This section specializes in M/A (mergers/acquisitions). He’s a top-ranked [executive compensation attorney](https://bestlawfirms.usnews.com/profile/jeremy-l-goldstein-associates-llc/overview/70073), recognized by the global ranking directory, Legal 500. JLG partner, Jeremy Goldstein also maintains a ranking as a top Chambers USA legal talent. Besides his leadership roles, Mr. Goldstein continues to advance his experience in professional public speaking. He frequently contributes opinion pieces on executive compensation matters and corporate governance to popular legal journals.
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About Jeremy L. Goldstein & Associates: Law Firm in New York
Jamie Levitt
Partner of Morrison & Foerster
Jamie Levitt is a Partner at Morrison & Foerster.
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About Morrison & Foerster: Morrison & Foerster is an international law firm that provides legal services across a range of industries and practices.
Dave Hohman
EVP, Global Client Business Partner, Agency Solutions of Nielsen
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About Nielsen: Nielsen provides a comprehensive understanding of what consumers watch and buy.
Slade Kobran
Managing Partner of Chief Outsiders
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About AlphaTrust, Chief Outsiders: Chief Outsiders is the United State largest management consulting company providing chief marketing officers services to mid-size companies.
Kut Akdogan
Partner of Gaussian
Kut is a founder of HERO, a home health appliance. He spent time at Bain & Company in the healthcare and tech practices, and also created several local platforms like Almond and Storyfractals. He is a Partner at Gaussian, a technology holding company, and runs its investment and incubation arm, Newton Three.
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About Gaussian: Gaussian Holdings is a diversified technology holding company based in New York focusing on physical industry tech.
Stacy Kanter
Partner of Skadden Arps
Stacy J. Kanter has served as a member of our board of directors since May 2019. Ms. Kanter has been practicing law for more than 30 years with Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, where she was a partner from 1993 until December 2018 and Head of the Global Capital Markets practice from 2009 until December 2018 and has been Of Counsel since January 2019. Ms. Kanter also chaired Skadden’s Global Diversity and Inclusion Committee. Ms. Kanter was an associate at Skadden from 1984 to 1986 and from 1988 to 1993. Ms. Kanter served as a law clerk to the Honorable Raymond J. Dearie, United States District Court Judge for the Eastern District of New York from 1986 to 1987. Ms. Kanter received her B.S. in Business Administration and Management from the University at Albany School of Business and her J.D. from Brooklyn Law School. We believe that Ms. Kanter’s extensive legal and business expertise in corporate finance and capital markets, corporate governance and mergers and acquisitions qualifies her to serve on our board of directors.
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About Skadden Arps: Skadden Arps is a law firm that offers legal services to corporate, industrial, and financial entities.
John Repetti
Partner, Shipping Practice Leader of Citrin Cooperman
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About Citrin Cooperman: Citrin Cooperman is a US-based accounting, tax and business consulting firm.
Niles Citrin
Co-Founding Partner of Citrin Cooperman
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About Citrin Cooperman: Citrin Cooperman is a US-based accounting, tax and business consulting firm.
Patricia Cummings
Co-Managing Partner, New York Office of Citrin Cooperman
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About Citrin Cooperman: Citrin Cooperman is a US-based accounting, tax and business consulting firm.
Robin Jones
Principal and Partner of Deloitte Consulting
Robin Jones is a Principal in Deloitte with 20+ years of organization and workforce transformation consulting experience. At Deloitte, Robin leads markets and services for Workforce Transformation where she advises senior executives on strategy and execution of large-scale initiatives on the future of work as they contemplate how advanced technologies and shifts in society and business are impacting their work, workforce, and workplace strategies. She lives in Brooklyn, NY and holds a PhD in Civil & Environmental Engineering from Georgia Tech, and an MS in Architecture and BS in Interior Design from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
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About Deloitte Consulting: Deloitte Consulting offers consulting services to technology-based companies.
Amadeo Brenninkmeijer
Senior Partner of inPositiv
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About inPositiv: InPositiv is a specialist with a broad knowledge of methodologies and technologies that tackle organizational change.
Jeremy Bohrer
Partner of Brown Rudnick
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About Brown Rudnick: Brown Rudnick is a law firm specializing in various areas of corporate and civil litigation.
Vidak Radonjic
Founder – Managing Partner of Beryl Consulting Group
VIDAK RADONJIC is the CEO of The Beryl Consulting Group. He is an investment executive who thrives in entrepreneurial environments that value teamwork, creativity, independent thought and leadership. In the late 1990s, after working for some of the world’s largest investment banks including UBS and Morgan Stanley, he founded a fintech company that provides analytics to the hedge fund industry. In 2004, he founded The Beryl Consulting Group, an investments consulting firm, that advises mainly family offices on their allocations in alternative investments. Mr. Radonjic has a unique blend of expertise across alternative and traditional asset classes and served as a member of the investment committee team at firms. He has developed an in-depth expertise in launching alternative asset management businesses and has invested in long/short equities, event driven, credit, emerging markets, and global macro strategies. He possesses a strong ability to develop sophisticated and compelling investment strategies and has performed due diligence on over thousand managers across the U.S./Europe/Asia resulting in over a billion dollar allocations since 2002. He is an expert guest speaker on global markets and geopolitics on CCTV (中央电视台), Bloomberg TV and i24 News and is frequently quoted in the financial press. Mr. Radonjic holds dual Masters degrees from Columbia University, School of International & Public Affairs, and Lubin School of Business, Pace University.
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About Beryl Consulting Group: Beryl Consulting Group provides hedge funds, PE/VC advisory to family offices and institutions.
Veronika Sonsev
Partner of Chameleon Collective
Veronika Sonsev is a Partner with Chameleon Collective and also an advisor to a number of startups. She works with B2B clients in retail and digital media to help them accelerate revenue through strategy, marketing and business development. Prior to Chameleon Collective, Veronika founded and ran inSparq (acquired by Adiant Media), a software company that worked with some of the largest retailers and brands to market their trending products in real time. She has also held senior leadership roles at Jumptap (acquired by Millennial Media) and AOL, and has experience launching to international markets, building new business lines, and developing strategic partnerships. Clients rely on Veronika to help them develop strategies for growing their business, tell their story in a way that gets customer attention, and secure those all-important deals to help their businesses scale. Veronika is an active advocate for women in business, and in 2009, she founded the global non-profit Women in Wireless, which now has over 12,000 members and 10 chapters around the world. Recognized as a thought leader and industry expert, Veronika has spoken at dozens of retail conferences, including Shop.org Digital Retail Summit, FashionDigital and Goldman Sachs dotCommerce Day, contributed to a number of business publications, such as Inc., Forbes, Business Insider, and Retail Touchpoints, and been interviewed by NPR, the Wall Street Journal, and TechCrunch. Her success as an entrepreneur combined with her support for women in the digital industry has led Fast Company to include her in its League of Extraordinary Women and TechWeek to name her as one of the Top 100 digital leaders in New York. Veronika holds a B.A. in Economics and Russian Studies from American University and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
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About Chameleon Collective, Chief, Clyde, CommerceNext, Forbes, mBolden (formerly known as Women in Wireless): Chameleon is a collective that works together to help business grow and transform from the executive to the executional level.
Paul Ponzo
Partner and Chief Technology Officer, Americas of Virtual Clarity
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About Bridgewater Associates, Virtual Clarity: Virtual Clarity delivers strategic systems transformations, enabling you to create the right environment for successful business change.
Kristine Di Bacco
Partner, Corporate of Fenwick & West
Kristine Di Bacco represents emerging technology companies primarily in the consumer Internet, e-commerce, FinTech, digital health, consumer hardware and software sectors. Her practice includes a broad range of corporate transactional matters, including the formation of new startup companies, venture capital financings, mergers & acquisitions and public offerings. Kristine provides clients with practical and thoughtful advice to help solve their business and legal issues, and assists clients in structuring, negotiating and closing business transactions quickly and effectively. Kristine also represents and advises leading incubators, angel investors and venture capitalists investing in technology companies.
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About Fenwick & West: Fenwick & West provides legal advisory services focusing on high technology and life sciences industries.
Vejay Lalla
Partner of Fenwick & West
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About Fenwick & West: Fenwick & West provides legal advisory services focusing on high technology and life sciences industries.
Jerome Levy
Founder and Managing Partner of MESA
Founder and Managing Partner at MESA, where Jerome has spearheaded an array of investment banking, strategy and valuation engagements for companies throughout the media space. Compass Partners, a leading M&A advisory boutique, where he worked on structuring transactions between financial institutions and clients including EMI and McGraw-Hill. Business Development at Canal Plus, a division of Vivendi Universal, responsible for managing acquisitions in the fields of video, music publishing and production. Began career at Goldman Sachs International in London, where he worked on privatizations and M&A transactions. Jerome serves as a Director of the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. M.B.A. from The Wharton School of Business; B.A. from Northwestern University.
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About MESA: MESA is a leading boutique merchant bank focused exclusively on media and entertainment industry transactions.
Harlan Milkove
Managing Partner of Foundational
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About Foundational, Founder Institute, Quake Capital Partners, Techstars, Wilshire Phoenix: Foundational expedites the pursuit of early-stage venture capital with VC market intelligence.
Kenneth L. Stein
Partner of Greenfield Stein & Senior
Kenneth L. Stein serves as partner of Greenfield Stein & Senior, LLP. Mr. Stein served as Director of LeaRonal, Inc. since 1987. Mr. Stein practice areas include trusts and estate litigation, commercial litigation, and estate planning. He received B.S. in 1959 from Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and LL.B. from Columbia Law School, New York in 1962.
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About Greenfield Stein & Senior: Trusts and estates litigation and Surrogate’s Court practitice.
Gireesh Sonnad
Partner, CEO & Co-Founder of Silverline
Gireesh sets the corporate vision and mission for Silverline. He is a technology leader and cloud solutions expert with proven abilities to execute and achieve business goals.
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About Silverline: Silverline is a Salesforce platinum partner that provides solutions across the healthcare and financial services industries.
Jonscott Turco
Managing Partner of Elevare Partners, LLC
Jonscott Turco is the Principal Consultant at Jonscott Turco.
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About Elevare Partners, LLC, Jasper Project, Jonscott Turco, Manhattan College, Manhattan College, SoulSpark: Global management, leadership, and cultural strategy consulting firm
Predrag Dizdarevic
Partner of Element22
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About Element22: Data Technology and Advisory Firm focused on Data Management, Data Quality and Data Governance
Thomas Bodenski
Founding Partner, Chief Data & Analytics Officer of Element22
Thomas Bodenski joined Element22 as Partner in 2014.
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About Element22: Data Technology and Advisory Firm focused on Data Management, Data Quality and Data Governance
Edward Hawthorne
Partner of Element22
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About Element22: Data Technology and Advisory Firm focused on Data Management, Data Quality and Data Governance
Jonathan Ballan
Partner of Dentons
Jonathan A. Ballan is a partner in the law firm Dentons US LLP, where he is head of New York Public Finance group and member of the firm’s Global Infrastructure and Public-Private Partnerships practices. He is involved in municipal and infrastructure finance, public authority finance, stadium finance, economic development, housing finance, health care finance, project finance, not-for-profit finance, government relations, and privatization and securitization of public assets. He has broad experience developing innovative legal structures for financings for numerous state and local governments. In addition to his law practice, Mr. Ballan has served for many years in a number of significant governmental positions, including chairman of the Municipal Assistance Corporation for the City of New York, chairman of the New York State Public Asset Fund, and board member and chairman of the capital committee of the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation. Mr. Ballan earned his B.A., magna cum laude, from Williams College, and his J.D. from George Washington University National Law Center. He lives in Scarsdale, N.Y.
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About Dentons: Dentons is a global law firm driven to provide you with the competitive edge in an increasingly complex
Kapin Vora
Partner, North American Wealth Management of Capco
As Partner for the North American Wealth Management practice at Capco, Kapin is responsible for the market offerings with a keen focus on the development of digital initiatives that will enhance the capabilities of today’s progressive financial institutions. A recognized thought-leader and expert in the Wealth Management sector, Kapin has obtained over 15 years’ experience while delivering large-scale, transformation initiatives for a variety of enterprises. Whether working with boutique Wealth Managers, leading Investment Banks or Asset Management firms, he has led the implementation of clearing transformations and the adoption of digital innovations. With a particular expertise in operational strategy and planning, Kapin has been instrumental in helping these organizations successfully review and address their technology and outsourcing requirements. Kapin is a graduate of NJ Institute of Technology with an MBA from NYU, and lives in New Jersey with his wife and two children.
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About Capco, Capco: Capco provides consulting for the financial services and energy industries.
Gwen U. Nguyen
Partner of Pixel
Gwen Nguyen leads Indiegogo’s new enterprise crowdfunding service, helping Fortune 500 companies leverage crowdfunding to validate and source innovation. Early partners include GE, Hasbro, Harman / JBL, Westinghouse, Philips and Anheuser-Busch.
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About Indiegogo, Indiegogo, Pixel: Pixel is a full-service boutique digital agency that helps global brands create digital products and experiences.
Matt McIntyre
Partner of Walkup Studio
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About Walkup Studio: Walkup Studio is a full service social media agency offering strategy, creative, production, and platform management.
Eric Ramseur
CTO, Partner of Anant Corporation
Eric Ramseur specializes in .NET 1.x-4.5 technologies with 13 years total experience in the field and has held Software Solution Architect and Team Lead titles. One intangible asset is his keen ability to think outside the box and contribute brilliant solutions to problems. He is currently a Microsoft Beta Tester and has beta tested such products as Visual Studio 2002/3, Visual Studio 2008, and the .NET 4.0 beta frameworks. He likes developing n-tier Applications on the .NET framework using Web Technologies that include but are not limited to: ASP.NET applications, Enterprise Portal Applications, ASP.NET Web Services, and Mainframe Applications. Eric’s primary roles include Remedy Developer, Software Development Lifecycle Administrator, and Architectural Advisor in a wide variety of business applications. He is particularly interested in client/server, internet application services and relational database design. A migration project through remedy development is also a strong focus in either updating your next big thing or applying maintenance through application integration. Specialties:.NET, C# , VB.NET, WCF Services, Remote .NET Developer, Component Design , Portal Systems, .NET Integration, ASP.NET 2.0-3.5, SQL Server, Oracle, Web Services, WSE 2.0,3.0, Report Writing, Agile Project Management, Enterprise Development, ASP to ASP.NET Migration, Extreme Programing (XP), Sharepoint 2007 develpment, MS Project 2007 Server development
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About Anant Corporation, Appleseed Portal: Business Platforms, SaaS, Cloud
Bonnie Gwin
Vice Chairman , Co-Managing Partner, Global CEO & Board Practice of Heidrick & Struggles International
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About Heidrick & Struggles International: Heidrick & Struggles International, Inc. provides executive search and leadership consulting services in the Americas, Europe, and the Asia.
Brian Korn
Head of Digital Finance & Marketplace Lending, Partner of Manatt, Phelps & Philips
Brian Korn is of counsel at Pepper Hamilton LLP, and co-heads its crowdfunding and peer-to-peer lending practice. He appears frequently in electronic and print media, including Fox Business TV, Bloomberg, NPR and CNBC, on the JOBS Act, capital raising, investor liquidity and related topics. Brian is widely quoted and published, including “The Trouble with Crowdfunding” published in Forbes. Before joining Pepper, Brian worked in senior legal and compliance positions for Barclays and Citigroup Global Markets Inc.
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About Manatt, Phelps & Philips, Pepper Hamilton: Manatt, Phelps & Phillips is a law and consulting firm providing legal and consulting services to its clients.
John W. Heilshorn
Partner of LHA
John Heilshorn, co-founding partner of LHA, joined Keith Lippert in 1984 to create a firm that would pioneer the professional practice of investor relations and corporate communications. Working early on with international high-technology clients, John helped build LHA into a premier provider of strategic communications services to public and soon-to-be public companies. In the process, he established his own reputation as a knowledgeable, capable and credible advisor to growth companies in a variety of sectors. Since 1982, John has advised hundreds of public and private companies on financial disclosure, strategic and crisis communications, investment thesis formation, analyst and shareholder relations, navigating the capital markets, and media relations. Drawing on his extensive relationships with investing institutions and investment banks, John advises clients in a variety of industries, including telecom/data center, cleantech, consumer goods, technology, financial services and building materials companies. A recognized ambassador for investor relations, John has addressed National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI) conferences across the country and serves on the Board of Advisors for Main Street Resources, a private equity firm. John began his career as a registered investment advisor for Merrill Lynch, and holds a BA in Government from Lawrence University.
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About LHA: LHA is a leading provider of investor relations services.
