It was a pleasure to sit down with Dan Feder, Senior Managing Director with the University of Michigan Investment Office who leads the endowment’s investments in venture capital and private equity.

Prior to joining the University of Michigan, Dan was the Managing Director of Private Markets at the Washington University Investment Management Company. Dan’s career in endowment management began at the Princeton University Investment Company where he led the development of Princeton’s global private equity and venture capital portfolio. Dan has also served as the Managing Director of Private Markets for the Sequoia Capital Heritage Fund (an endowment-style investment fund sponsored by Sequoia Capital) and as a Senior Investment Manager in the endowment services area at TIAA-CREF.

We covered:

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Timestamps:

(0:00) Intro

(0:40) Becoming an endowment manager

(2:59) Constructing an endowment’s portfolio

(9:10) Risk-based investing vs uncertainty

(13:07) Incentive structures in LP land

(16:28) Team construction

(22:26) Backing strategies that are at odds

(26:06) Why LPs invest in venture

(27:38) UMich framework to investing

(32:29) Picking individuals vs firms

(36:40) Big vs small funds

(40:48) How to pick fund managers

(45:41) Herd mentality in LP land

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