My name is Robert Mitchell and I am currently a private equity senior associate at GTCR, a private equity firm based in Chicago, IL. GTCR focuses on leveraged buyouts of middle and upper middle market businesses in the Business & Consumer Services, Healthcare, Financial Services & Technology, and Technology Media & Telecommunications industries. I started my career as an analyst at GTCR in the Business & Consumer Services group. I attended the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign and graduated with highest honors in 2020 with a B.S. in Finance. I'm happy to discuss any questions related to recruiting, day-to-day responsibilities, technical knowledge needed, or personal navigation of all things Private Equity. 

I am currently a private equity associate at Comvest Partners in West Palm Beach, Florida. Prior to joining Comvest Partners, I was an analyst at Deloitte Consulting where I focused on private equity due diligence engagements. I began my career at a consumer goods startup in China called Laiba Beverages. At Indiana University, I studied finance and Chinese. I grew up on the southside of Indianapolis.

While in college, I explored a wide range of career options including consulting, investment banking, private equity, and startups. I ultimately chose consulting for its interesting work, fun culture, and exit opportunities to private equity (as well as a myriad of other roles). I am happy to discuss the challenges of choosing a career field, recruiting for consulting, and breaking into private equity from a non-banking background. Feel free to reach out to the PFF general email or shoot me a note directly!

My name is Fernando Arrascue Quiroz, and I am currently a private equity associate at Corsair Capital based in New York. Prior to joining Corsair, I was an investment banking analyst in the Global Technology Group at Stifel. I grew up in Venezuela and Florida. I graduated from Penn State University in 2019 with a major in Industrial Engineering. I am aware of how challenging recruiting processes are and how difficult it is to standout in a sea of well-prepared applicants. Having gone through both IB and PE recruiting, I would be happy to provide candid insight on each process. You should reach out to me if you would like more information on IB/PE recruiting, being an engineering major in wall street, being an international student applicant, working in NYC, networking, etc.

My name is Ganggas Harjianto and I am a private equity investor at NewSpring Capital in the Philadelphia area. Prior to this role, I was a part of the lower middle market strategy at Main Street Capital Corporation in Houston and the leveraged finance group at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey (now Truist). I grew up in northern Delaware in a middle-class, immigrant household and attended the University of Delaware for undergrad, where I graduated with a degree in finance in 2017. Coming from a “non-core” / state school background, recruiting for my first role was a monumental challenge that taught me the power of forming and developing strong networks, and I can wholeheartedly say that I would not be where I am today without the help offered by those along the way. Finance is such an interesting field that allows you to test the limits of your knowledge, drive decision-making, and meet and interact with successful executives and peers from all walks of life, and as such, I am always eager to pay it forward and help out where I can. Feel free to reach out to me if you would like to learn more about (i) recruiting from a “non-core” background or (ii) the nuances of lower middle market private equity!

My name is Ryan Fox, and I am currently an associate with Hark Capital in New York where I underwrite and execute loans to private equity funds and their portfolio companies. Prior to joining Hark I worked for Hamilton Lane in Philadelphia where I worked on investments in private equity funds and sponsor-backed companies. I graduated from the University of Richmond in 2018 with a BA in business with concentrations in finance and management. I am fortunate to have gained experience in private markets investments straight out of college and would be happy to talk about different areas of the private equity and private debt ecosystem.

I am a Private Equity Senior Associate at Ancient. Previously, I was an investment banking analyst in the Media and Communications group at Morgan Stanley and was previously an investment banking analyst in the TMT group at UBS. I graduated from the University of Richmond in 2020 with a BA in Business Administration with concentrations in finance and accounting. I decided to pursue a career in finance, and more specifically in investment banking, after many discussions with helpful mentors and peers. If you would like to discuss the recruitment process, networking, investment banking or different career paths in finance, please reach out!

I am an associate on the portfolio operations team at L Catterton, a global consumer-focused private equity firm. In my role at L Catterton I work to enhance investment returns by driving operational improvement in our portfolio companies. I was previously a consultant at Kearney in their Strategic Operations practice. I graduated from the University of Richmond in 2018 where I studied finance and management. I chose an initial career in consulting because I was excited by the idea of working on a wide variety of business problems across different industries. Consulting provides an awesome foundation of skills to launch into almost any business career, so it's a great option if you don't know exactly what type of job you want to pursue. I know the idea of "consulting" can be super vague and opaque, so I'm happy to chat about what a career as a consultant looks like, guide you through the various types of consulting, interview prep, or really anything that might be helpful. Don't be afraid to reach out!

Hi, everyone. My name is Nicole D’Onofrio – I am a private equity investor with Astira Capital Partners in Boston, MA. Astira was founded in 2023 as a software and tech-enabled services private equity firm. Prior to joining Astira, I was an M&A Associate and Analyst with Harris Williams where I spent time across E&P, technology, and business services.  

I was inspired to start my career in investment banking after attending the Harris Williams Women’s Leadership Summit during my sophomore year of college. I pursued internships with Harris Williams, BB&T Capital Markets, and EisnerAmper prior to accepting a full-time role with Harris Williams upon graduating from the University of Richmond. I graduated with a dual degree in International Business and Italian Studies.

My areas of expertise include recruiting from non-traditional majors, leveraging diversity programs, evaluating opportunities across geographies, and private equity pivots among other topics. I have found my career to be incredibly exciting and rewarding – so I look forward to connecting and supporting you all in your next steps!

Hello, my name is R.J. Shamberger. I am currently a first-year private equity analyst at Partners Group, a Swiss-based private markets firm. I am based out of Denver, CO and rotating on our integrated investments team where we focus on primaries, secondaries, and co-investments. I am originally from Charlotte, NC, and earned my BA in Economics from Williams College in 2020. I spent my first year post-college as a teaching assistant at a New England prep school before transitioning into my current role. As someone with a non-traditional background, I initially found breaking into finance a daunting task but through building connections and exploring my passions I bridged my own path. I am happy to share the ins-and-outs of how I worked my way from the classroom to the desk and the lessons I learned along the way.

I am a private equity associate at Permira in Menlo Park focusing on technology investments. Previously, I was an associate at H.I.G. Capital in the San Francisco office and, prior to this, was an investment banking analyst in the Industrials group at Guggenheim Partners, based in New York. I completed my undergraduate degree at Washington University in St. Louis where I studied applied math, economics, and French. While at Wash U, I was also a member of the soccer team. My interest in finance originally stemmed from my search for a career path and professional environment that mimicked the competitive nature of the soccer team, and subsequently evolved into a passion for investing, which I view as one of the few fields that is interesting and truly demanding from both a quantitative and soft skills perspective. Between my experience at Guggenheim and Wash U, I bring several years of experience in helping undergrads succeed in the finance recruiting process and would be happy to chat with any students about all things related to investing, finance or academics. If you have any questions or are interested in learning more about PFF, please email me!

Hello! My name is Michael Zhang. I’m currently a strategic finance senior director at GoGuardian. Prior to GoGuardian, I spent time as a tech growth investor at Sumeru Equity Partners, buyout investor at H.I.G. Capital’s Advantage Fund, and leveraged finance investment banker at Nomura. I’ve always been passionate about business, and I initially pursued finance for the opportunity to interact with a wide array of companies, industries, and management teams. After spending 5 years in finance, I decided to switch over to an operator role at GoGuardian to get closer to the ground in terms of driving change and creating value within businesses. As both LGBTQIA+ and a minority, I’m excited to share my experience with you as you evaluate potential career paths within investment banking, private equity, and/or corporate finance as well as provide any help with interview prep.

My name is Kyle Doran. I am currently an Associate with Nonantum Capital Partners, a private equity firm based in Boston. Prior to joining Nonantum, I was a consultant for McKinsey & Co in Atlanta. I graduated from Johns Hopkins University in 2018 with a BS in Mechanical Engineering and a Minor in Entrepreneurship and Management. While attending Johns Hopkins I was a member and captain of the basketball team. I did not know I wanted to get into consulting or finance early on in college and majored in a completely different field of study. I ended up at McKinsey through cold calling and emailing current and former employees. I owe it to all of them to help as many people as possible. I am always happy to chat through your next steps and hope that once you land your position that you will do the same.

My name is Sam Lampert. I’m currently a private equity associate with ORIX Capital Partners in New York. Prior to OCP, I was an investment banking analyst in the global industrials group at Jefferies in NYC. I graduated from The University of Colorado at Boulder in 2017 with a degree in business administration with a concentration in finance. Growing up in Denver and staying in the state of Colorado for college, investment banking and working on Wall Street were not on my radar as a potential career path when I started at university. I secured an internship at Jefferies my junior year and fell in love with the level of exposure I had to management teams and the amount of responsibility I was given. After two years at Jefferies, I found myself wanting to work with companies on a longer-term basis and made the switch to PE. I’m happy to hop on the phone to discuss career aspirations or share more about my journey to banking from a “non-target school”.

My name is Spencer Korek and I am a private equity associate at New Mountain Capital. Previously, I was an investment banking analyst at Jefferies in NYC where I worked in the Global Industrials Group, primarily focused on Services. I graduated from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, concentrating in finance. I pursued a career in finance because I enjoy learning about different types of businesses / business models and love the fast-paced nature of the industry. I’m happy to chat about preparing for an interview, an internship, resources to learn more about finance and various career paths within the industry.

Hello! My name is George Kang and I am currently a private equity vice president at BRS & Co. in NYC. Prior to my time at BRS, I was an investment banking associate in the Global Industrials Group at Jefferies in NYC where I also spent three years as an analyst. Prior to Jefferies, I spent two years as a credit risk analyst at UBS in NYC after graduating from Cornell University in 2012 with B.S. degrees in Finance and Marketing. I always knew I wanted to pursue a career in finance but was unclear what I was exactly looking for. I look forward to sharing the lessons learned from my serpentine journey, offering advice on how to navigate the path from the middle-office to the front-office to the buy-side and helping identify where to even begin the process. Additionally, I am currently pursuing my part-time MBA at Columbia Business School and I am more than happy to answer any questions around the business school application process and what business school entails.

Hello! My name is Brynn Jackel, I’m an associate at Gridiron Capital in New Canaan, CT. Prior to joining Gridiron, I was an analyst at Wells Fargo in the Industrials investment banking coverage group in NYC. I grew up in Worcester, Massachusetts and went to Wake Forest University for undergrad where I majored in finance with a minor in entrepreneurship. I was drawn to investment banking for the opportunity to gain a skill set in financial analysis in a teamwork-based environment, and later transitioned to private equity seeking longer-term relationships with companies and more hands-on operational experience. I never had a grand 10-year plan and have figured it out as I went along, but I was lucky enough to have some awesome mentors from college and Wells who helped me better understand the paths and process, and most importantly prepare for interviews. I’d love to be able to do the same for others pursuing a career in finance, so please reach out to me and I’m happy to be a resource however I can!

My name is Bryan Kozin and I am currently an investor at Lindsay Goldberg, a private equity firm focused on leveraged buyout and growth capital investments in middle-market companies. In this role, I create partnerships with families and founders to build businesses. Prior to Lindsay Goldberg, I was an investor at CI Capital Partners, a middle-market private equity firm focused on working with entrepreneurs to transform small- and medium-sized companies into market leaders through investments in organic growth and add-on acquisitions. I started my career in Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s investment banking division after graduating magna cum laude from Elon University with a BSBA in Finance. I am originally from Philadelphia, PA.

My name is Max Meyer, and I am currently and MBA student at Wharton. Prior to Wharton, I was a Private Equity Associate at TH Lee. Previously, I was an Investment Banking Analyst at Goldman Sachs in NYC and in investment banking at Stifel in the TMT M&A practice. I graduated from Tulane University in 2019 with a B.S.M. in Finance. I did my summer internship at J.P. Morgan in the middle market banking group. I took a bit of a circuitous route to land my current role and have learned valuable lessons along the way. My impetus for working in investment banking was largely shaped by my deep passion for learning and desire to excel in intense environments. Finance has always intrigued me, and I took my time to figure out where exactly I wanted to drive my professional endeavors. Throughout my career, I have participated in summer analyst recruiting, full-time recruiting, and lateral recruiting. If you need advice on any of these areas, please reach out to me!

My name is Ahan Patel and I am a private equity analyst at NewSpring Capital just outside of Philadelphia, PA. I graduated from Villanova University in the Fall of 2020 with a BBA in finance and economics. I pursued a career in finance for two reasons a) because I wanted to work in a field where I could work with, analyze, and invest in different businesses; b) I wanted to be surrounded by driven and ambitious people who wanted a career path with more involvement than the traditional 9-5, like myself. I’m happy to help out with any questions anyone may have regarding investment banking or private equity, as I recruited for and interned in both fields. Many people choose to enter finance through investment banking; given that I took a slightly different path, I’d love to be a resource for anyone looking to enter private equity directly from undergrad.

My name is Dino LaValle. I am currently a private equity associate at The Jordan Company based in New York City. Prior to my time at The Jordan Company, I was an investment banking analyst in the Global Industrials Group at Jefferies in New York City. I grew up on Long Island just outside of NYC before attending and graduating from Brown University in 2017 with a B.A. in Business Economics and where I was also a member of the varsity lacrosse team. For anyone out there coming from a liberal arts background or who is an athlete with no familial or educational ties to the finance industry, I would be happy to speak about my path breaking in and assist with any part of the recruiting process.