In this episode, we speak with Katie Storer, a Managing Director with Blackstone Growth. Katie was recently recognized by GrowthCap as a Top Woman Leader in Growth Investing of 2023.

Katie focuses on investments in the consumer sector and was a leader of the all-female investment team for Spanx, the revolutionary womenswear brand founded by Sara Blakely. Katie has also been a leader in BXG’S Talent & Development committee, which focuses on the growth of employees and cultivating that pool of talent.

Blackstone Growth is Blackstone’s dedicated growth equity investing platform. It is backed by the scale, operating expertise, and global reach of the world’s largest alternative asset manager.

Katie supports Delivering Good. To learn more about this organization click here.

I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Srikanth Velamakanni, Co-Founder, Group Chief Executive & Executive Vice-Chairman of Fractal, a provider of artificial intelligence to companies. Fractal's businesses include:  Crux Intelligence , which provides AI driven business intelligence;  Eugenie.ai  for sustainability;  Asper.ai  for revenue growth management; and Senseforth.ai, conversational AI for sales and customer service.

Since its founding in 2000, the company has raised more than $680 million from TPG, Apax, TA Associates and other notable investors and has empowered more than 100 Fortune 500 companies with its AI, data, and analytics-driven business strategies.

I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Jay Hoag, Founding General Partner at TCV. Founded in 1995, TCV has built a track record of partnering with private and public technology companies that have developed into global, category-defining players.

The firm has invested over $17 billion in more than 350 technology companies worldwide and has supported over 145 IPOs and strategic acquisitions, making it one of the most active technology investors. Select investments include Airbnb, Celonis, Clio, Cradlepoint, ExactTarget, Expedia, Facebook, Fandango, GoDaddy, GoFundMe, HomeAway, Netflix, Nubank, Revolut, Splunk, Spotify, Toast, Twillio, and Zillow.

Jay has been a venture capitalist and technology investor for 40 years. Prior to TCV, Jay was a Managing Director at Chancellor Capital Management, where he spent more than 12 years as a technology-focused venture capitalist and fund manager. Jay is currently on the board of directors of Netflix, Peloton, TripAdvisor, and Zillow.

Jay supports Part the Cloud. To learn more about this organization click here.

I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Arturo Elizondo, Co-founder and CEO of The EVERY Company, which is an American biotechnology company that develops proteins and other products traditionally sourced from animals.

The company’s versatile proteins are proven solutions for a variety of applications, from bars and beverages to bakery, alt meat and novel foods and beverages that benefit from a protein boost.

Arturo has led The EVERY Company as its Co-founder and CEO for the last decade from concept through commercialization.  The Company has raised over $200 million dollars from notable investors.

I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Aaron Katz, Co-Founder and CEO of ClickHouse. ClickHouse is an open-source database management system which allows users to generate analytical reports using SQL queries in real-time.

Its technology works 100-1000x faster than traditional database management systems, and processes hundreds of millions to over a billion rows and tens of gigabytes of data per server per second.

Before founding ClickHouse, Aaron helped grow salesforce.com between 2002 - 2014 from a private, 200 employee startup, to a $200 billion market leader. He was also part of the team that took Elastic public and drove revenue from $5 million to $500 million.

I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Andrea Auerbach, Head of Global Private Investments at Cambridge Associates.

Cambridge Associates is a global investment firm that works with endowments, foundations, healthcare systems, pension plans, and private clients to implement and manage custom investment portfolios. With 50 years of institutional investing experience, the firm delivers a range of portfolio management services, including outsourced CIO, non-discretionary portfolio management, staff extension, and asset class mandates.

Andrea leads a 50-person team sourcing and underwriting private equity, growth equity, distressed, and venture capital funds, as well as direct, co-investment, and secondary investment opportunities, resulting in over $10 billion being invested annually across these strategies. She is also a member of the firm’s Leadership Team and leads CA’s Discretionary Private Investments practice.

I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Lorien Gabel, Co-founder and CEO of Figment, the leading provider of blockchain infrastructure. The company has raised over $150 million and is backed by Thoma Bravo, B Capital, Two Sigma, and other notable investors.

Figment provides comprehensive staking solutions for over 250 institutional clients. The world’s largest asset managers, custodians, exchanges, foundations, and token holders leverage Figment’s infrastructure and APIs to earn staking rewards. Staking is a process in which token holders can earn rewards by helping to secure a blockchain network.

Before Co-Founding Figment, Lorien was both a serial entrepreneur and corporate executive.  Along with his brother, Lorien founded three companies - 1) pingg.com, which was acquired by 1800-Flowers, 2) Bird on a Wire Networks, which was acquired by AT&T Canada and 3) Interlog, one of Canada’s first commercial ISPs, which was acquired by a large multinational telecommunications provider.

Lorien also spearheaded the exponential U.S. growth of UK-based tech company MessageLabs as Global VP Business Development, ran a division of Fortune 500 company Micron, and has served on the advisory board of a number of start-ups.

Lorien supports The Murph Challenge. To learn more about the annual event click here.

I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Joanne Yuan of Turn/River Capital, a leading technology growth equity and buyout firm that specializes in buyouts, spin-outs, growth capital investments, founder liquidity, and recapitalizations of technology, web, and SaaS companies.

Based in San Francisco, the firm is highly effective in rapidly scaling operations. With deep expertise in sales, marketing, customer success, and finance, its team acts like a software firm - they adapt Silicon Valley’s best modern software growth tactics to companies everywhere, carving a path for capital-efficient growth without compromises. 

Joanne is a Partner at Turn/River. Growing up, she spent most weekends selling parts at computer trade shows, helping her dad run his one-man shop. That’s how she experienced firsthand the challenges bootstrapped companies face and the resiliency of their leaders. Joanne has invested in software from pre-launch to post-IPO, and worked everywhere from seed-stage venture to Google.

Joanne was selected as one of GrowthCap’s Top Women Leaders in Growth Investing of 2023.

I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Matt Aston, President and CEO of GPRS, who has built his company from an idea to over $160 million in annual revenue. GPRS or Ground Penetrating Radar Systems is the nation’s largest company specializing in the detection of underground utilities, video pipe inspection, and the scanning of concrete structures.

Matt founded GPRS in 2001 and the company has grown to be a great success in its market. Its 99.8%+ accuracy rating on over 250,000 projects leads the industry.  The company has worked on some of the largest and most significant construction projects in the country. GPRS is backed by CIVC Partners.

Matt supports LifeWise Academy. To learn more about this organization click here.

I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Marcelo Gigliani, Managing Partner of Apax Digital, where he is focused on growth equity investments in the software, internet, and technology-enabled services areas. He serves as a member of the Apax Digital Fund Investment Committee and the Apax Inclusion & Diversity Council.

Apax Digital partners with exceptional founders and leadership teams of innovative SaaS, internet, and tech-enabled services companies worldwide to unlock their maximum potential. The firm has 35 years of tech investing experience and typically invests $50-$200 million per partnership.

Marcelo joined Apax in 1999 and co-founded Apax Digital in 2017. Marcelo has led a number of the Apax Funds’ digital deals, including Accurate Background, Boats Group (BoatTrader), Dealer.com, idealista, MetaMetrics, Solita, SoYoung, Trader Corporation (AutoTrader Canada), and Wizeline.

Marcelo supports BUILD NYC.  To learn more about this organization click here.

I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.