News & Analysis

Private equity is in its technology infancy

Tricia Mackechnie joined private equity investor HarbourVest as its CTO in February. She spoke to pfm about her to-do list

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What is tech priority number one at HarbourVest?

Tricia Mackechnie: I think there are three: one is cybersecurity, another is our focus on operational efficiencies, and the third is related to our data and analytics. 

Cybersecurity speaks for itself. I am pleased with where we are, but no organization should ever rest on its laurels.

When you look at driving operating efficiencies, we are identifying ways to automate processes and eliminate manual data capture. 

When it comes to our data and analytics capabilities, we are building out a robust platform that puts data in the hands of our team to enable better decision-making, while also providing an enhanced client experience. The latter is a particular area of collaboration with our chief data officer and managing director Julie Eiermann.

How involved will you be in cybersecurity at the firm? How is the industry as a whole approaching the issue?

TM: I am actively involved in cybersecurity at the firm and I serve as the chair of our IT risk and information council. Given the importance of cybersecurity, I believe it is necessary to have the appropriate security practices and governance to protect our firm, our partners and our clients.

Additionally, the industry is putting greater emphasis on cybersecurity, and quite frankly, I think it would be crazy not to. We are continuing to see that in RFPs from clients and prospective clients who want to understand what we are doing as it relates to cybersecurity practices. As this part of the industry continues to evolve, I think it is crucial to consider what data you are protecting and the importance of the tools and processes you establish around that.

Awareness and training are absolutely critical when it comes to cybersecurity and protecting information, as bad actors continue to get more sophisticated in how they try to penetrate a company’s infrastructure.

How big is the tech team at HarbourVest? And is it growing?


TM: We have about 30 IT professionals who are focused on building and supporting our application portfolio as well as enabling data and analytics capabilities. As we continue to look at our strategic initiatives and our future investments, I think we’re going to continue to grow to support those areas.

For a firm like HarbourVest, is there useful off-the-shelf software, or do you have to build from scratch?

TM: Given the structure of a firm like HarbourVest, and private markets in general, there is a need for a combination of both off-the-shelf and custom built tools. In the same way our clients will invest in one of our commingled funds while also utilizing a custom solution through an SMA, we take advantage of technology tools that will meet some of the needs, but still find instances where there’s a need for custom-built solutions outside of that.

Is the private equity industry is harnessing the power of technology yet?

TM: Private equity is really in its infancy in terms of leveraging technology solutions. I think the technology industry has an opportunity to continue to build products geared towards the industry. In general, the available products are more generic in terms of corporate-type capabilities.