Lessons learned

Leaves are rustling, class bells are ringing, and school is back in session this month for students across the country. To mark the start of another school year, we asked six US-based private equity CFOs, CCOs and COOs to look back on their college and graduate school experiences and tell us how those formative years helped to inform their positions in the private funds industry. Lessons have carried over from classroom to boardroom, and what these execs learned on campus is still relevant in their roles today.

Pam Hendrickson 

COO, The Riverside Company 

MBA, Finance and Marketing, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University 

BA, Public Policy and History, Duke University

As a Public Policy major at Duke, I had a crucible moment when I chaired a committee tasked with making campus housing more equitable. The committee included many constituencies, and we all faced a lot of controversy and pressure. A week before we released our recommendations, the information was leaked, sparking an angry response that affected all committee members. It was a huge learning experience, and my three big takeaways were  1) never ignore your gut (I didn’t think a student should chair this controversial committee, but I relented); 2) always do thorough due diligence (the leakers should have been better vetted); and 3) find ways to ease pressure when many people possess sensitive information. That tough experience earned me an A in Organizational Behavior during my Kellogg MBA years and I’m happy to say – with an alumnus son and daughter currently enrolled – that today, Duke housing is very equitable.

 

Sahil Desai 

CCO, Silver Lake Partners

JD, The University of Chicago

BA, Political Science, The University of Michigan

While studying for my law degree at the University of Chicago, I had the great intellectual experience – and challenge – of taking Judge Richard Posner’s course on Law and Economics.  As one of the founding scholars of that discipline (and the most cited legal scholar of the 20th Century), Judge Posner offered a singular perspective on the application of microeconomic theory to legal analysis, a perspective that I call upon today when confronted with a novel legal or compliance question at Silver Lake. I still recall hearing his booming voice fill the classroom, drilling into us the principles of Pareto efficiency and cheapest cost avoiders. When I think of the beginning of a new academic year and the possibilities it presents, I think of Judge Posner.

 

Joshua Cherry-Seto

CFO, Blue Wolf Capital Partners

MBA, New York University, Stern School of Business

Executive IT Management Program, Columbia University

BS, Cornell University, ILR School

While an undergrad at the ILR School of Cornell University, I had the opportunity in 1996 to assist the local union in their contract negotiations with the university. I got to see practical business at work and be party to important negotiations, material to the university and the personal lives of hundreds of employees. Working with the staff of the Cornell on campus Statler Hotel, I felt the care employees have for their jobs and the university, and how important their role is in the success of the business.  Sometimes in finance we get lost in the numbers on a spreadsheet and forget the critical human factor.  Honing one’s technical analysis skills are a definite requirement for success in our field, but I learned that business ultimately is personal.  That reminder has served me well in becoming a more effective private equity CFO and successful executive.

 

Lance Taylor

CFO, HGGC

MBA, Duke University

Master of Accountancy, Brigham Young University

BS, Accounting, Brigham Young University

I received both my undergraduate and graduate degrees in accounting from Brigham Young University.  Sticking to the “blue school colors” theme, I received my MBA from Duke University.

I recall spending a very late evening teaching my Duke classmates how to prepare a cash flow statement in preparation for the accounting course mid-term exam. I was one of the few MBA students with an accounting background, so lending my expertise was a natural element of being a good team member.  That and other similar experiences have been building blocks for the team-based approach at HGGC.  Leveraging the expertise and experience of each team member is an important element to the firm culture at HGGC.

Professional development beyond my formal education keeps me abreast of the current issues facing CFOs in the private equity space. I believe participating in industry conferences, like those sponsored by PEI, and building out a network of CFO peers are critical to any private equity CFO’s professional development.

 

Marc Unger

CFO, Harvest Partners

MBA, Finance, Columbia Business School

BS, Accounting, Lehigh University

Professor Sinclair is one of the keys to the success of Lehigh University’s accounting program, but as an accounting major at Lehigh in the 80’s nothing invoked more fear than hearing that you had a class with Professor Sinclair. I still have nightmares of those little blue books on exam days, but I survived his class…barely. The rigorous program helped to provide me the skills to succeed in public accounting, move on to earn an MBA from Columbia Business School and ultimately become a CFO in private equity. Since graduating from Lehigh I have developed a great relationship with Prof. Sinclair and it was not until many years later that I found out that when I was a Senior, and interviewing for my first job, he was contacted by the Partner in charge of recruiting at Arthur Young (the predecessor to E&Y for those too young to remember) to get a reference and find out more about me. Prof. Sinclair stepped up for me to give me my first opportunity and now I enjoy giving back, including hiring Lehigh interns and speaking with students looking to build careers in private equity. My daughter is currently a junior at Lehigh and I know the school, and maybe even Prof. Sinclair, will play a crucial role in her success.

 

Stephen Hoey

CFO, KPS Capital Partners

BBA, Accounting, Mendoza College of Business, The University of Notre Dame

Upon arriving on campus [at Notre Dame] I quickly came to see that the place was filled with people who were articulate, smart, athletic and very competitive, both in the classroom and on the athletic fields. Everyone was at or near the top of their high school class. My freshman year, Joe Montana was the back-up quarterback to start the football season and the dorm inter-hall basketball team that I played on included five players who were all-state varsity players in high school the year before. I was a member of the Norte Dame Lacrosse Club, which, in my junior year, petitioned the University for varsity status, not an easy task for a men’s sport in the years in which Title IX was being rolled out. But we prevailed thanks to the efforts of our coach, Rich O’Leary, and our club’s student leadership and we played my senior year as a Division I varsity sport.

What I took away from my experience at ND was understanding how to operate in a culture filled with Type As, people who were driven to succeed, but who did so in an ethical manner, never losing sight of a guiding principle. The Golden Rule was emphasized under the Golden Dome. Our business school curriculum included required courses in philosophy, theology and business ethics, well before Gordon Gekko era of the late 80’s and 90’s begat the introspective late 2000’s with its emphasis on compliance, good corporate governance and ethical business practices following the trading and banking scandals and particularly the economic meltdown in 2008.