Keynote speaker Terry McGuire, co-founder and managing general partner, Polaris Venture Partners

Center for Private Equity and Entrepreneurship

Private Equity and Growth Ventures Conference connects practitioners and students

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - March 28, 2006

CONTACT: Kim Keating - 603-646-2733

HANOVER, N.H.—Private equity is a tight-knit industry, and one where relationships matter. Recognizing this, the Center for Private Equity and Entrepreneurship along with the Private Equity Club at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth hosted the first annual Private Equity and Growth Ventures Conference in February. The day-long event educated Tuck students and alumni about relevant issues and trends in the venture capital and buyout industries, and facilitated networking among leading private equity firms, institutional investors, and growth companies.

"Industry practitioners traveled from as far away as California, Texas, and Chicago to attend the conference, and the networking opportunities were as great for them as they were for the Tuck students," said Jeff Danley T'06, one of the conference's student organizers and moderator of the panel on Limited Partners. "I received positive feedback on the conference from senior-level GPs and LPs in attendance, and overheard deals getting done at the conference—a clear sign of a successful event! With a conference attendance ratio of 50/50—industry practitioners to students—everyone was able to get something out of attending."

"We were delighted when students approached the center with the idea for this conference, as it had been on the horizon for some time," said Fred Wainwright, executive director of the Center for Private Equity and Entrepreneurship at Tuck. "Together we organized an event that was rich in content and offered Tuck students and alumni access to leading industry practitioners who could answer questions on industry and career-focused issues. Our first conference was received so favorably that we had to close registration early. With the success of the event, we are confident that this will become an annual experience at Tuck."

More than 150 people attended the conference, which featured Colin Blaydon, center founder and director, as master of ceremonies and Paul Danos, dean of the Tuck School, who delivered welcoming remarks. Keynote speeches were made by Terry McGuire (a 1982 graduate of Dartmouth's Thayer School), co-founder and managing general partner of Polaris Venture Partners, and Fred Whittemore D'53, T'54, advisory director at Morgan Stanley. David Russ, chief investment officer at Dartmouth, addressed panelists and student hosts at a private dinner held the evening before the conference. 

Panel discussions ran throughout the day and focused on four areas: Venture Capital—Financing Innovation; LBO Industry—Present & Future; Limited Partners—Supporting PE Industry Growth; and Entrepreneurship—Building and Leveraging an Effective Board. Panelists included Alicia Cooney T'76, co-founder and managing director at Monument Group; Peter Denious T'97, partner at FLAG Capital Management; Steve Graham T'86, senior managing principal at Graham Partners; Fred Maynard T'85, managing director at HarbourVest Partners; Andy Palmer T'94, CEO and co-founder of Vertica Systems; and Renny Smith T'83, managing director at TH Lee Putnam Ventures. Tuck students served as panel moderators.

"The Entrepreneurship panel gave us real-world perspective on issues surrounding entrepreneurs and boards, which can be crucial to the long term success of any venture," said Erik Cafarella T'06, Tuck Entrepreneurship Club co-chair and panel moderator. "The discussion covered areas that entrepreneurs find challenging—such as building a board, qualities that make a board effective, and difficulties presented by boards during both good and bad times."

Career roundtables were held in conjunction with the panel sessions, where 10-15 students at a time could speak with industry practitioners about job opportunities post-MBA. This provided a unique opportunity for interaction in a more intimate setting, where career-specific questions—such as how to approach the job search process—could be asked.

Platinum conference sponsors included Morgan Stanley and Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr. Gold conference sponsors included Deloitte, Goodwin Proctor, Graham Partners, Houlihan Lokey Howard & Zukin, Landmark Partners, Torys LLP, and The Nelson A. Rockefeller Center at Dartmouth College.  

For more information about the conference, please contact the Center for Private Equity and Entrepreneurship at 603-646-0522 or visit their website at www.tuck.dartmouth.edu/pecenter.

Founded in 1900, Tuck is the first graduate school of management and consistently ranks among the top business schools worldwide. Information about the Tuck School is available at www.tuck.dartmouth.edu.