Private Equity Value Creation Podcast

Shiv interviews Alex Russ, Senior Managing Director & Head of North America at Evercore’s Private Funds Group. In this episode, Alex shares his experience helping private equity GPs raise funds from LPs. Learn how to approach fundraising in the current market, the characteristics that successful fundraisers have in common, and the importance of a strong narrative, sector specialization, and/or operational expertise to make you stand out from other PE firms.

Shiv interviews Chris Sznewajs, Founder and Managing Partner at Pacific Avenue Capital.In this episode, Chris and Shiv discuss carve-outs, buyouts, and the non-traditional types of investment deals available for “unnatural” owners – founders and investors who are ready for a transition. Learn how to underwrite these types of deals, and what benchmarks Chris’s team looks for in potential portcos. Hear about how Pacific Avenue Capital leverages their internal ops team during diligence and how they execute value creation plans post-close, as well as the balancing act of deploying more capital in order to generate higher returns from portcos. 

On this episode of the Private Equity Value Creation podcast, Shiv speaks with Amanda Kim, Principal at Avante Capital Partners. As a majority women- and minority-owned private credit and structured equity fund, the team at Avante Capital Partners uses their unique insights and network to win deals, generate better returns and help women advance in the private equity world. Learn how focusing on a positive social mission can be a value-add rather than a cost, why it’s vital to find a competitive edge in the current investment market, how to build a supportive and productive community, and the advantages of having a diverse investment team.

Shiv interviews Mason Myers, Founder and CEO at Greybull Stewardship. In this episode, Mason explains why Greybull Stewardship focuses on pre-middle-market companies and the steps they take to set these companies up to be true middle-market companies primed for PE backing. Learn how they take companies under $5M in EBITDA and grow them organically, first by building foundational work, like adding the right software and building the team, before they can begin to see the value creation payoff. 

Shiv interviews Devon Kirk, General Partner, and Jonathan Metrick, Chief Growth Officer at Portage. Devon and Jonathan share their perspectives from different sides of the investment table – Devon is on the investing team while Jonathan is on the internal ops team. Learn about their experiences investing in global FinTech and financial services, when in the deal cycle to bring in the ops team, and how they interface with each other during diligence and beyond. Plus, hear about how specializing in one vertical impacts the investment approach.

Shiv interviews Joseph Hanna, Founding Partner at Pivoting Model Partners.In this episode, Joseph talks about differentiating between your product’s feature set and the customer’s perceived value in that feature set. Learn why companies should consider pivoting to AI to grow and sustain their business, and how companies can deploy and leverage AI agents to be more efficient, capture more customers, generate more leads, and improve their product overall.

Shiv interviews Jim Sharpe, Partner and Head of Propel at Unity Partners.In this episode, Jim talks about how to truly action a company’s values and incorporate them into your growth plans while ensuring alignment with founders. Learn about building a culture of ownership, how to use employee equity as a growth strategy, and why clear and transparent communication makes a big impact.

Shiv Narayanan, Founder and CEO of How To SaaS, explains how AI can be leveraged by the private equity world. Learn about the differences between general and verticalized (or specialized) AI and how data is the product. Listen to how PE firms can use AI in the diligence phase, and the business strategy for companies to build their own vertical AI tool using proprietary data.

Shiv interviews Josh Schwartz, Operating Principal at Growth Factors. In this episode, Josh talks about the unique operating partner model between Growth Factors and Bregal Sagemount. Learn his approach to value creation from the GTM side, how to look for growth levers during diligence, and how to navigate the political dynamics between operating partners and a portco’s leadership team.

Shiv interviews Todd Morrissey, Partner at Hidden River Strategic Capital. In this episode, Todd shares alternative avenues for founders and entrepreneurs other than a growth equity buyout and private credit deals. Learn how they help companies determine how much capital they need to scale, the opportunities for combining debt and equity as an investment avenue, and why some types of companies are best suited for this approach.