Private Equity
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International
Operating Partners Technology Forum San Francisco 2023
8 June 2023,
Hotel Nikko San Francisco
Unlocking the next frontier in digital value creation
On day two of the San Francisco Forum, PEI’s Operating Partners Technology Forum gathers an elite crowd of tech value creators in PE and VC portfolio operations.
In an increasingly digital world, our community of operating partners will discuss and debate strategies and actions at a critical time in the economic cycle to deliver growth through technology.
Get a firm grasp on tech transformation and innovation initiatives, and discuss the best digital strategies in impacting returns with a concentration of digital operating partners, C-level executives, suppliers, and resources.
“As a serial CTO turned Operating Partner, I really enjoyed meeting and hearing from my peers who have had a similar career journey.”
David Rowley
Technology Operating Partner, Diversis Capital
Carve your niche in technology operations
Hear first-hand perspectives on how to further develop your operational skill set.
Learn key technology strategies to create value
Find the right tools and knowledge to deliver successful cross-portfolio initiatives.
Network with top PE
and VC tech value creators
Meet with the largest community of technology operational experts all in one place.
2023 agenda highlights
- Digitally enabled commercial effectiveness and transformations
- AI as a key element of value creation
- Tech value creation playbooks in the current economy
- Uncovering future trends in tech and how they will impact PE portfolio operations
- What makes a great digital/tech operating partner?
- IT strategic roadmaps: preventing roadblocks and sharing initiatives across the investment lifecycle
- And much more…
Connect with the leading tech operating partner network:
2023 speakers
Join the two-day value creation event
The leading West Coast value creation event
Day 1
Unlocking the next frontier in digital value creation
Day 2
2023 agenda
View agenda page
Agenda
Day 2 - Thursday 8th
07:30 - 09:15
Registration and breakfast
07:45 - 08:30
Technology deep dive breakfast discussion (for operating partners only) — Digitally enabled commercial effectiveness and transformations: operating partners share strategies and perspectives
Yale Kwon,
Hoyoung Pak,
Saurabh Singh
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive discussion with designated facilitators:
- Innovative approaches for working with portco leadership to maximize value creation and returns
- Best practices for operating partners to build Al/ML capabilities focused on digitally enabled commercial effectiveness, including hiring digitally savvy leaders, and implementing effective change management programs to embrace digital commercial innovation
- Case examples of tools and success stories of digitally enabled commercial transformation
Facilitators:
Yale Kwon, Director, AlixPartners
Hoyoung Pak, Partner and Managing Director, AlixPartners
Saurabh Singh, Director, AlixPartners
08:30 - 09:15
Think tanks for full-time operating partners — tech value creation war rooms (for operating partners only)
Geoffrey Baird,
Misha Logvinov,
Milo Sprague
Invitation-only think tanks for full-time PE and VC operating partners. This closed-door discussion will allow you to learn and share value creation practices of successful operating partners. Please select one of the two rooms:
Room 1: Tech value creation playbooks in the current economy
Facilitator:
Geoffrey Baird, Independent Operating Executive, Palladium Equity Partners
Room 2: Future trends in tech and how they will impact PE/VC portfolio operations
Facilitators:
Misha Logvinov, Director, Mubadala Performance Partners, Mubadala
Milo Sprague, Chief Technology Advisor, FTV Capital
09:15 - 09:30
Chairman’s welcome
Tim Sanders
Tim Sanders, Vice President of Client Strategy, Upwork
Plenary Sessions
09:30 - 10:10
Operating partner perspectives: tech trends to optimize business performance in a recessionary climate
Mike Cochran,
Raj Kushwaha,
Chris Satchell ,
Carsten Weber
- Operating partners: what does your tech scorecard look like in a downturn? How is your tech playbook changing/evolving in the current macro climate?
- What can tech and tech operations do to protect EBITDA? What measures and initiatives are most effective? What can and should be automated? How can tech drive more efficiency across functions in your companies to preserve and deliver value in the current environment?
- Understanding cost optimization and bringing down your tech debt with better processes and new technologies
- Sharing tech war stories in the current downturn as well as previous downturns to maximize value in the years to come
Moderator:
Mike Cochran, Managing Director, Head of CFO Tech Services, Accordion Partners
Panelists:
Raj Kushwaha, Co-Head of Value Creation and Chief Digital Officer, Warburg Pincus
Chris Satchell, Operating Principal Technology and Digital, Clayton Dubilier & Rice
Carsten Weber, Technology Director, The Sterling Group
Raj Kushwaha
Managing Director ＆ Partner, Co-Head Value Creation and Chief Digital Officer, Warburg Pincus
Read bio
10:10 - 10:50
AI/ML as a key element of value creation: what does the future hold for PE?
Declan Morris,
Cory Eaves,
Lucia Soares,
Michael Todd
- How to differentiate between AI and ML
- Examples where AI/ML have been put to the test along with outcomes
- With the advent of ChatGPT, what are the risks/challenges with generative AI that PE should consider
- How to measure the value of AI/ML
- What kind of impact will AI/ML have on the PE operating model
Moderator:
Declan Morris, Private Equity Transformation Advisor, Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Panelists:
Cory Eaves, Operating Partner, General Atlantic
Lucia Soares, Managing Director and Chief Information Officer, The Carlyle Group
Michael Todd, Operating Executive, Silver Lake
10:50 - 11:30
Leveraging zero trust security in PE to improve cyber resiliency, increase EBITDA and enhance business agility
Akshay Grover,
Deron Grzetich,
Marcus Tonsmann,
Carsten Weber
This panel discussion will focus on key tenets of zero trust, highlight approaches to embrace zero trust in PE portfolio companies and financial benefits of cyber resiliency:
- Zero Trust: Is it a new cyber security industry buzzword? How to separate noise from true zero trust? What should operating partners and portfolio company CIO/CISOs know?
- Improve Cyber Resiliency: How to reduce cyber risk, prevent cyber-attacks and drive secure digital transformation at portfolio companies? Where and how to start the journey with portfolio company CIO/CISOs?
- Increase EBITDA: How a cloud native cyber security platform contributes to both top and bottom line? How can PE portfolio companies reduce infrastructure, network and security costs while providing better user experience?
- Enhance Business Agility: How zero trust drives accelerated time to value for add-on or carve-out acquisitions?
Moderator:
Akshay Grover, Managing Director – Global Private Equity Practice, Zscaler
Panelists:
Deron Grzetich, Senior Partner, National Cyber Leader, West Monroe
Marcus Tonsmann, Cybersecurity Program Manager, Hellman & Friedman
Carsten Weber, Technology Director, The Sterling Group
11:30 - 12:00
Leveraging cloud infrastructure to improve performance, reliability, and scalability
Sachin Satija ,
Misha Logvinov,
Jeffrey Malcolm,
Milo Sprague
- Uncovering cloud transformations success stories at your companies
- Leveraging cloud to meet business challenges and improve performance, scalability, and reliability
- Meeting customer requirements to scale as their requirements scale
- Understanding the shift in looking at cloud spend
- Public cloud vs private cloud vs. hybrid cloud
- Multi-cloud vs. single cloud
Moderator:
Sachin Satija, Partner, KPMG
Panelists:
Misha Logvinov, Director, Mubadala Performance Partners, Mubadala
Jeffrey Malcolm, Value Accelerator Operating Advisor, Technology, Goldman Sachs Asset Management
Milo Sprague, Chief Technology Advisor, FTV Capital
12:00 - 12:20
Networking break
Interactive Working Groups Series 3
12:20 - 13:00
Interactive Working Group 7 (for operating partners only) — Cybersecurity operating partner workshop: dos and don’ts in the modern landscape
Chris Hueneke ,
Matt Hollcraft
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive discussion with designated facilitators:
- Cybersecurity in today’s world: how do you define good cybersecurity and what is enough security? How prescriptive are you on cybersecurity?
- Sharing views on: virtual risk, governance, risk, & compliance, incidence response plans and dealing with breaches, security policies
- Looking at security starter packs, security programs and controls
- How to protect new companies and their functional areas of business?
- Cyber assessments and resource allocation: how is security diligence changing
- Cost effective portfolio security measures and risk management
Facilitators:
Chris Hueneke, Chief Information Security Officer, RKON
Matt Hollcraft, Operating Partner – Cybersecurity, H.I.G. Capital
12:20 - 13:00
Interactive Working Group 8 (for operating partners only) — PE-leadership team alignment in delivering digital value creation and digital transformations across sectors
Ketan Awalegaonkar,
Vikram Mahidhar
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive roundtable discussion with designated facilitators:
- Understanding how to interact with lower mid-market management teams and other management teams that are generally not sophisticated with tech/new tech: how to handle objections due to what is foreign to them
- What are some of the roadblocks that you encounter and how do you resolve them?
- How is the C-suite evolving to deliver digital transformations? How do sectors differ? How will CEOs adapt and what does the next generation CEO look like in a more digital world?
- What skills do you look for in management teams in their ability to effectively lead digital value creation?
- Sharing war stories in getting management teams up to speed to deliver digital value creation in the current environment and years to come
- What are you primarily focusing on in achieving alignment with leadership, strategy, and IT teams?
- Uncovering dos and don’ts in different stages of the lifecycle: what does your digital roadmap for execution look like?
Facilitators:
Ketan Awalegaonkar, Chief Data & Analytics Officer, PwC
Vikram Mahidhar, Data and Digital Transformation Operating Partner, Apollo Global Management
12:20 - 13:00
Interactive Working Group 9 (for operating partners only) — The evolution of digital operating partners: comparing models, networks, and structures
Cory Eaves,
Nick Maglaris
This deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will allow the audience to join an interactive roundtable discussion with designated facilitators:
- Discussing the breadth and depth of your roles as digital/tech operating partners today and what the role/model will look like in future
- Sharing how tech operating partners drive value creation: comparing models, networks, teams, structures, and technologies
- How can tech operating partners drive more efficiency across functions in your companies?
- How can you improve your value creation process in looking at the overall ecosystem?
Facilitators:
Cory Eaves, Operating Partner, General Atlantic
Nick Maglaris, Vice President – Midmarket Strategic Initiatives, SAP
Lunch
13:00 - 14:00
Networking lunch
Breakout Series V
14:00 - 14:40
Track 12 | Value creation for SaaS companies: keys to success
Shaz Mian,
Ryan McMullin,
Josh Rogers,
Ken Yagen
- PE operating partner-CEO dynamics: uncovering engagement models that lead to growth and greater value creation
- Working with and supporting SaaS MRR/ARR growth in the current economy
- What are your top optimization initiatives, and will AI be a lever? How do you approach transformative technology investment considerations?
- How can SaaS companies monetize their data to scale or to create multiple revenue streams?
- Sharing war stories and exposing the biggest challenges in the sector and how to overcome them
Moderator:
Shaz Mian, Equity Principal, RSM US
Panelists:
Ryan McMullin, Operating Principal Accel-KKR
Josh Rogers, CEO, Precisely
Ken Yagen, Senior Vice President, Digital Strategy and Innovation, Warburg Pincus
14:00 - 14:40
Track 13 | Making your tech investment count: how to track and drive R&D ROI
Will Lytle,
Jane Moran
- How important is tech delivery in overall value creation in the current low growth/high cost of capital environment?
- Understanding R&D ROI, the size of the prize, and the benefits of getting it right – why the focus on R&D ROI?
- How can operating partners and CTOs concerned about tech ROI in the current low-growth environment get started?
- How do you track and communicate value created? How does culture drive value creation?
Presenters:
Will Lytle, Chief Operating Officer, Plandek
Jane Moran, CTO, Benevity (Hg portfolio company)
Breakout Series VI
14:40 - 15:20
Track 14 | Reshaping value creation from tech due diligence to the first 100 days
Ben Cao,
Neil Roseman,
Ercan Ucak,
Brit Yonge
- Reframing your tech diligence: how is tech due diligence changing in the current climate?
- As a digital/tech-focused operating partner, when and how are you engaging with deal teams in the diligence phase?
- What gaps/challenges are you finding in the first 100 days and how are you filling them?
- Sharing war stories in measuring/uncovering tech debt in looking at costly old technologies and other risks
- What is most critical to accurately understand about a company’s technology capabilities pre-deal and what is most critical to plan for after integration?
- Data for due diligence: assessing the investment through data in looking at potential returns
Moderator:
Ben Cao, Chief of Staff, Symphony
Panelists:
Neil Roseman, Technologist-in-Residence, Summit Partners
Ercan Ucak, Vice President, Cerberus Capital Management
Brit Yonge, Operating Partner, Corsair Capital
14:40 - 15:20
Track 15 | The next frontier in data science and advanced analytics in private equity
Roy Nicholson,
Tye Howell,
Sajjad Jaffer,
Miles Rowland ,
Cathy Tanimura
- Modern data strategies for portfolio value creation: how to go about developing a data strategy, data governance, what does good look like, how are you getting good data?
- What do you see as the most influential change in data and analytics in the PE space?
- Where is the most value being delivered from data/analytics initiatives for your companies in different phases of the lifecycle?
- How are you working with management teams to adopt analytics and data science? Are you working with data scientists?
- What are some mistakes/lessons learned that you can share when implementing analytics/ data science with portfolio companies?
Moderator:
Roy Nicholson, National Managing Principal, Digital Transformation, Grant Thornton
Panelists:
Tye Howell, Managing Director, Data and Digital, Blue Point Capital Partners
Sajjad Jaffer, Head of Data, Analytics and Machine Learning, GrowthCurve Capital
Miles Rowland, Head of Data and Analytics, Searchlight Capital Partners
Cathy Tanimura, Vice President, Analytics and Data Science, Summit Partners
Plenary Sessions
15:20 - 16:00
The future CIO/CTO: working with PE to deliver value creation
Rory Gaston,
Greg Kegeles,
Julio Palacio,
Eli Potter ,
David Rowley
- Sharing PE operating partner-CIO/CTO dynamics and engagement models
- How the CIO and CTO role is evolving: looking at responsibilities within an organization
- How can CIO/CTOs add value and work with internal teams to drive change
- Uncovering the importance of discovering and integrating new technologies within portfolio companies
- Looking at best practices in working with companies in different sectors
- Buy vs Build – CTO vs CIO
- Discussing the impact of M&A on technology plus integrating and aligning tech
Moderator:
Rory Gaston, Director, Saragossa
Panelists:
Greg Kegeles, Operating Partner, Digital Transformation, Newlight Partners
Julio Palacio, Chief Technology Officer, Mainsail Partners
Eli Potter, CIO as a Service, Insight Partners
David Rowley, Technology Operating Partner, Diversis Capital
16:00 - 16:40
What makes a great digital/tech operating partner?
Rohini Williams,
Gilad G. Amir ,
Sebastien Bilodeau,
Vikram Mahidhar,
Lee McCabe
- Building out tech operating teams: how operating partners add value in working with other partners throughout the lifecycle
- What are the top tech trends you believe operating partners should be paying close attention to, and why?
- Uncovering success stories in partnering with the deal teams and engaging with management teams
- Looking at reasons for success and failure in the tech operating partner role
- How will the tech operating partner role evolve over the next 5 years? What will the tech operating partner of the future look like?
- How tech operating partners work differently in different markets
Moderator:
Rohini Williams, Global Head – Private Equity, Infosys
Panelists:
Gilad G. Amir, Digital Operating Partner, Pollen Street Capital
Sebastien Bilodeau, President, Cerberus Technology Solutions, Cerberus Capital Management
Vikram Mahidhar, Data and Digital Transformation Operating Partner, Apollo Global Management
Lee McCabe, Operating Partner, AEA Investors
Vikram Mahidhar
Data and Digital Transformation Operating Partner, Apollo Global Management
Read bio
16:40 - 16:45
Closing remarks and end of conference
Explore our exclusive operating partner only networking
Expand your relationships and build your network with our operating partner exclusive networking events taking place throughout the Forum. Join our community of the brightest leaders in value creation that will help you in your day-to-day operations.
Pre-conference reception
Tuesday, June 6, 2023
Operating Partners San Francisco and Technology Forum Welcome Reception (invitation-only)
5:30 – 8:00 pm
Venue: Hotel Nikko Main Lobby, 222 Mason Street
Join the operating partners attending the San Francisco and Technology Forum at our opening reception in the main lobby of Hotel Nikko. Exchange valuable insights with your peers in a relaxed setting and build your connections before the conference kicks off.
Hosted by:
Pre-conference dinners
Tuesday, June 6, 2023
Women in PE and VC Portfolio Operations Dinner (invitation-only)
7:30 – 9:00 pm
Venue: KANPAI Lounge, Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason Street
Join us as we welcome the women in PE portfolio operations attending the San Francisco and Technology Forum for a private sit-down dinner to facilitate networking before the conference. Increase your connections and exchange ideas with women leaders in value creation.
Technology Operating Partners Dinner (invitation-only)
7:30 – 9:00 pm
Venue: Restaurant Anzu, Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason Street
Join us as we welcome the digital and tech operating partners attending the Forum for a private sit-down dinner to facilitate networking before the conference starts. Increase your connections and exchange ideas with tech leaders in value creation.
Hosted by:
Day 1 lunch and reception
Wednesday, June 7, 2023
Women in PE and VC Portfolio Operations Lunch (invitation-only)
12:50 – 1:50 pm
Venue: Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason Street
This closed-door lunch discussion will explore what it’s like being a woman in PE and VC portfolio operations.
Hosted by:
Operating Partners San Francisco Forum Day 1 Networking Reception
5:30 – 6:30 pm
Venue: Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason Street
Our grand reception will allow you to chat and get to know your operating partner peers at the end of the first day of the Forum. Hear what is on everyone’s mind after a full day of valuable insights.
Day 2 breakfast and lunch
Thursday, June 8, 2023
Technology Deep Dive Breakfast (operating partners only)
7:45 – 8:30 am
Venue: Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason Street
This breakfast deep dive discussion designed solely for operating partners will focus on key strategies in digitally enabled commercial effectiveness and transformations.
Hosted by:
Featured interactive discussions & networking opportunities
Think Tanks
The closed-door session led by operating partners for operating partners only will allow you to engage in lively discussions with your peers. The thinks tanks will also allow you to submit topics to be covered in looking at the best value creation practices.
Interactive Working Groups
These exclusive deep dive discussions only available to operating partners allow you to participate in interactive roundtable discussions with designated facilitators to learn from experts in functional areas of value creation.
Pre-Event Resources
pdf
Operating Partners San Francisco and Technology Forum 2023 Attendees
By Private Equity International
2023 speakers
For speaking opportunities, contact Marc Mele at marc.m@pei.group or call +1 646 581 9295.
Raj Kushwaha
Managing Director ＆ Partner, Co-Head Value Creation and Chief Digital Officer, Warburg Pincus
2023 sponsors
Sponsorship and Engagement Opportunities:
The Operating Partners forums and events are the most efficient and effective way to connect directly with private equity operating partners and value creation experts. To learn more about ways to create a customized program that maximizes your desired impact and to engage with PEI’s operating partners community, please contact Lawrence Dvorchik by email Lawrence.d@pei.group or call +1 646 545 4429.
2023 venue and hotel
Hotel Nikko
222 Mason St
San Francisco, CA 94102