We are pleased to announce The Top Women Leaders in Growth Investing of 2022. This award, focused on women leaders, provides a closer look at those individuals who, despite being in the minority, have excelled through hard work, determination and outstanding performance. It also highlights to the thousands of pensions, endowments and other institutional limited partners in our audience those firms who have played a positive role in creating more equitable work cultures.
Since 2013, GrowthCap has been publishing its information on investors based on nominations submitted by professionals in the industry as well as our own proprietary research and the direct feedback we receive. Our goal has been and continues to be to provide private company CEOs as well as institutional limited partners with additional insights on investors.
The individuals selected for The Top Women Leaders in Growth Investing of 2022 are those who have demonstrated deep expertise in private company investing, portfolio management, firm operations as well as business expansion strategy and execution. Moreover, they have demonstrated a high level of consistent professional performance over a sustained period of time.
Please join us in congratulating this year’s awardees.
Firm: Insight Partners
Title: Managing Director
Rachel Geller started her career at Insight Partners in 2008 as one of the first hires for the firm’s ScaleUp engine, Insight Onsite, where she scaled and led the strategy and M&A team. Rachel eventually made the jump to the investment team, where she currently serves as a Managing Director. In this role, she helps lead investments in high-growth software and internet companies, with a focus on application software and marketplaces.
Rachel has helped evaluate hundreds of potential Insight investments, and has provided investment, growth and M&A support for more than 50 portfolio companies, including next-gen EDI platform Sento.io and commissions tracking and automation solution QuotaPath most recently. Rachel also counts Conga, Qualtrics (acquired by SAP), HealthcareSource (acquired by Francisco Partners), Kinnser (acquired by Mediware), eVestment (acquired by NASDAQ), and HauteLook (acquired by Nordstrom) among her investments.
Prior to joining Insight, Rachel worked as a strategy consultant and product marketer at American Express. Rachel’s background sets her distinctly apart in the investment ecosystem and the CEOs of her investment companies value her hands on practical experience and sage advice in scaling a software company.
Rachel is a vocal advocate for increased diversity in both the software and investment sector. She is a driving force behind many of the firm’s DE&I initiatives including the CEO ScaleUp Pledge, which aims to support software CEOs and their teams to drive positive change within their organizations. Rachel graduated with honors from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor of science in economics.
“It is a privilege to be a part of the talented Insight Partners team and to have the opportunity to work side-by-side with the amazing founders and entrepreneurs in our portfolio. Through our work, we are able to provide the world’s most innovative software companies with the tools they need to grow, including the best thought leadership, scale-up expertise, and a community of tech leaders within software investing. I’m proud of our firm’s commitment to our portfolio companies and to be part of an amazing group of colleagues.”—Rachel Geller
Firm: Warburg Pincus
Title: Managing Director, Head of Business Services
Stephanie Geveda joined Warburg Pincus in 2010 and leads the Business Services Group with a focus on investments in Human Capital and Technology enabled services. Prior to joining Warburg Pincus, Stephanie worked as an investment professional at Silver Lake Partners, Fox Paine & Company and J.P. Morgan Partners, where she has focused on private equity transactions including leveraged buyouts, growth equity and venture investment opportunities across a wide range of industries. She began her career working in Morgan Stanley’s Investment Banking Division where she advised companies on mergers, acquisitions and restructuring transactions.
Stephanie has been involved in the firm’s investments in ARAMARK, GrubHub, Seamlessweb, Electronic Funds Source, WEX, Endurance International Group, Sotera Health, Hygiena, Labstat International, Certified Sciences, Arise Virtual Solutions, GA Foods, Sweeping Corporation of America, FlexXray, SPINS, and A-LIGN. She currently serves on the boards of Sotera Heath, SPINS, Arise Virtual Solutions, Sweeping Corporation of America, Certified Group, A-LIGN, FlexXray, TRC, and GA Foods.
She serves as the Co-Head of Women@Warburg and was named by Global M&A Network as a Top Female Dealmaker of the Year in 2021. Stephanie is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame (BBA in finance and economics, summa cum laude, Beta Gamma Sigma). She also holds a master of business administration from Harvard Business School where she graduated as a George F. Baker Scholar.
“Over the past twelve years at the firm, I’ve had the opportunity to work with an incredible team on interesting and significant investments. The focus on partnership and working closely with our management teams to develop unique growth strategies is a major differentiator for Warburg Pincus. I’m proud to be a leader on both the investing side of the business and for our DE&I efforts. As Co-Head of Women@Warburg, the firm’s female professional network, I’ve seen firsthand the impact of strong leadership, mentorship and inclusivity can have on the success of a firm. I look forward to many more milestones at the firm and appreciate the recognition from GrowthCap.”—Stephanie Geveda
Firm: Norwest
Title: General Partner, Co-Head of Growth Equity
Sonya joined Norwest in 2011 and brings more than 20 years of investment experience to her role as General Partner and co-Head of the firm’s Growth Equity team. Based in Norwest’s Palo Alto office, Sonya is focused on growth equity and buyouts investing across a wide range of sectors with particular interest in consumer products and services, internet/eCommerce, retail, and business services. Her current investments include Babylist, Forum Brands, Jolyn, Junk King, Kendra Scott (recapitalized by Berkshire Partners), MAËLYS, MTN OPS, SENREVE, and SmartSign. Sonya is responsible for Norwest’s investments in PCA Skin (acquired by Colgate-Palmolive) Bailey 44 (acquired by Digital Brands Group) and The Learning Experience (acquired by Golden Gate Capital). She is a board observer at Madison Reed. Before Norwest, Sonya was at Summit Partners, a private equity firm managing $20 billion for almost a decade.
Prior to Summit, she was a founder and General Partner of iXL Ventures in 1999, where she oversaw the funding and growth of various technology and internet companies. Sonya holds a bachelor of science degree from Northwestern University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
“At Norwest, our mission is to partner with innovative companies with transformational businesses and empower our portfolio leaders with the resources and connections to enhance their growth and create sustainable value. For the past 12 years I have had the privilege of working with many exceptional management teams and colleagues who inspire me every day.”—Sonya Brown
Firm: Vista Equity Partners
Title: Senior Managing Director, Co-Head Endeavor Fund
Rachel Arnold is Co-Head of Vista’s Endeavor Fund. She is responsible for directing the Fund’s investment strategy and oversees sourcing efforts and portfolio operations alongside René Stewart, with a focus on high-growth companies in the $10 to $30 million ARR range. Rachel is also a member of Vista’s Executive Committee (EC) and Private Equity Management Committee (PEMC).
Rachel joined Vista in 2012, following almost two decades in the Vista ecosystem at four different portfolio companies and started her investment team role as an operations partner at the firm. She shows that the professional path of those pursuing careers in private equity investing isn’t a one-size-fits all approach, providing inspiration to other women who may be earlier in their careers or for those looking to shift into investing roles from other roles or industries. Her roles have included interim CEO at Bonterra (formerly Social Solutions), Senior Vice President of Engineering, Product Management and Marketing at Mitratech, Vice President of Product Management and Strategy at MicroEdge, and running Business Development and Channel Programs at SRC Software.
Beyond investing, Rachel is a key culture carrier for Vista, investing heavily in building up the next generation of investors and leaders and promoting diversity and inclusion, including acting as executive sponsor for Vista’s annual Women of Vista program and for portfolio events and initiatives.
“Our industry has often held to an outdated model of perceived—and often biased—requirements for leadership. As leaders today, we need to place meaningful value on talent, hard work, achievements and demonstrable results, in order to affect lasting change in leadership representation. This has never been more important, as women still only fill 10% of senior roles in our industry.”—Rachel Arnold
Firm: Vista Equity Partners
Title: Senior Managing Director, Co-Head Endeavor Fund
René Stewart is Co-Head of Vista’s Endeavor Fund, which she helped to launch and today leads in partnership with Rachel Arnold. Endeavor seeks to capture the opportunity among high-growth enterprise software companies in the lower-middle market. Since launch, Vista’s Endeavor platform has successfully raised two funds and now manages over $2.0 billion, investing in a growing portfolio of innovative businesses with $10 to $30 million in annual recurring revenue.
René joined Vista in 2007 and currently sits on the boards of Dispatch, iN2L, Kazoo, OfficeSpace, Tripleseat and Zapproved. She is a member of Vista’s Private Equity Management Committee, the firm’s governing and decision-making body for the overall management of Vista’s private equity platform.
In the past twelve months, the Endeavor team announced seven new platform investments in Schoox, mabl, BlueConic, BigTime, Jebbit, OfficeSpace and MedTrainer. Endeavor also realized an investment with the sale of SecureLink. Over the course of Endeavor’s five-year partnership, SecureLink expanded its customer base, tripled annual recurring revenue and grew employee headcount by 350%.
René has opened the door for Vista to leverage its experience and operational expertise to support earlier-stage investments and their leadership teams. She is a fierce advocate for founders, helping them level up and realize their company’s vision as they look to excel past their next stage of growth.
“Together with my co-head, Rachel Arnold, I am proud to lead one of the world’s largest tech buyout funds led by women, with one of the strongest teams in the market. We all get up in the morning thrilled to partner with world class executive teams, bring creativity to affect growth strategies and translate opportunity into tangible results.”–René Stewart
Firm: Battery Ventures
Title: General Partner
Chelsea Stoner, based in San Francisco, is a general partner at Battery Ventures focused on software and healthcare-IT investments. She has been at Battery since 2006 and became a general partner in 2014. Currently Chelsea—who has a particular interest in vertically focused SaaS businesses—serves on the boards of Maxio, ContinuumCloud, Curve Dental, Ontra (formerly InCloudCounsel), PageUp and Redox. She is also an investor in Honeybook. Her previous investments include Avalara (NYSE: AVLR), Brightree (acquired by ResMed), ClearCare (acquired by Wellsky), Data Innovations (acquired by Roper Industries), Glassdoor (acquired by Recruit Holdings), Groupon (NASDAQ: GRPN), Guidewire (NYSE: GWRE), Intacct (acquired by Sage), Marketo (NASDAQ: MKTO, acquired by Vista Equity Partners), RealPage (NASDAQ: RP) and WebPT (acquired by Warburg Pincus).
In 2013, Chelsea was named to the Forbes Midas “Hot Prospects” list of up-and-coming venture capitalists, and in 2018 she was included on Business Insider’s 23 Top Venture Capitalists in Enterprise Tech list. At Battery, Chelsea is a founding member of the firm’s diversity and inclusion committee. She received a BS with honors in chemical engineering from Northwestern University and an MBA from the University of Chicago. She also sits on the Northwestern University Engineering School Board.
“I’m extremely excited about the growth-investing market now, specifically new opportunities to partner with forward-thinking software companies focused on disciplined growth as they scale. It’s something that is a perfect fit for today’s market environment, and also something Battery has been doing successfully for more than a decade.”—Chelsea Stoner
Firm: General Catalyst
Title: Partner
Elena Viboch is a Partner at General Catalyst, a venture capital firm investing in companies across all stages and multiple sectors. By investing in life sciences companies such as Maze Therapeutics, Elena is helping to fulfill the firm’s mission to create a healthcare system designed to help people stay well, bend the cost curve, and make quality care more affordable and more accessible to all.
Prior to joining General Catalyst, Elena served as an Investment Director at SoftBank where she helped build SoftBank Vision Fund’s life sciences portfolio, driving investments in companies such as Devoted Health, Dewpoint Therapeutics and Vividion Therapeutics. Elena also served as an investor at Kearny Venture Partners, where she worked closely with rising entrepreneurs to help them bring their work from idea to execution to impact.
Elena is passionate about helping women in science to advance their careers and continues to invest in women-led life-sciences companies. She holds an MS from Johns Hopkins University, an MBA from Harvard University and a BA from Swarthmore College. Elena lives in San Francisco where she enjoys swimming and hiking throughout the Bay Area.
“I’m honored to be recognized by GrowthCap this year alongside so many incredible women leaders and investors. At General Catalyst, we believe that healthcare should be affordable and accessible to all. I feel fortunate to work in a sector where every day there is an opportunity to transform medicine and people’s lives.”—Elena Viboch
Firm: Thomas H. Lee Partners
Title: Managing Director
Megan joined Thomas H. Lee Partners (“THL”) in 2008 following two years of investment banking at Credit Suisse. Since joining THL, Megan has played a leading role in deepening the firm’s sector expertise in healthcare, making it one of THL’s most active areas. Now as a Managing Director, Megan continues to expand the healthcare practice and oversees THL’s efforts across pharmaceutical services, home-based care, consumer healthcare, and med-tech services.
Megan is currently a director of Adare Pharma Solutions, Agiliti Health, Inc., Autism Home Care Holdings, Inc., Ingenovis Health, Hospice Care, Senior Home Care Holdings, Inc, and Smile Doctors. She also serves as Treasurer on the Board of Directors of Friends of Excel Academy, a network of charter schools serving the greater Boston area. Megan holds a BA in political economy, cum laude, from Georgetown University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
“Over the last few years, we’ve helped management teams and portfolio companies navigate the challenging market environment while also supporting growth and value creation. I’m very proud of the work these companies are doing to enhance and improve our healthcare system. And I feel fortunate to work in a sector that has the ability to help people.”—Megan Preiner
Firm: Catalyst Investors
Title: Partner
Susan joined NYC-based growth equity firm Catalyst Investors in 2009 and has since become the firm’s first female partner. She is responsible for leading investments in software and business services companies. In addition, she serves on boards of portfolio companies, usually as one of the more active board members, with a particular focus on C-level team building and advising on strategic growth initiatives. Susan currently serves on the boards of Catalyst portfolio companies Datavail and LinkSquares (as a board observer) and previously served on the boards of Envoy Global, eSUB, Ascentis, MINDBODY (as a board observer), and WeddingWire (as a board observer).
Prior to joining Catalyst in 2009, Susan served as an Analyst at CIT Group where she was responsible for performing due diligence and credit analysis for various senior secured debt transactions within CIT’s Communications, Media & Entertainment Group. Susan graduated from Georgetown University, cum laude, with a BS in business administration.
“I’m so thankful to have the opportunity to partner with such truly inspiring management teams. There’s nothing more rewarding than helping a company realize a vision for a product or service and seeing the team grow and find success in the market.”—Susan Bihler
Firm: OMERS Growth
Title: Managing Director, Growth Equity
Teresa serves as Managing Director and leads healthcare investing at OMERS Growth Equity (OGE). OGE is a long-term direct investor, focused on supporting companies to pursue growth opportunities—including scaling operations, making acquisitions, expanding product lines, or entering new markets. OGE was launched in 2019 as the dedicated growth equity investment arm of OMERS, one of Canada’s largest defined benefit pension plans ($121 billion under management as at December 31, 2021). Teresa is a founding member of the Growth Equity team and since its inception has led investments in innovative sector leaders such as Aledade, Innovaccer and Evidation.
Teresa has a bachelor of commerce from University of Toronto and is a Chartered Business Valuator and a CPA. She currently serves as a Board Director or Observer for Evidation and Aledade. Since 2019, Teresa has served as a judge for EY’s annual “Entrepreneur of the Year” award program for Ontario.
“At OMERS Growth Equity we support businesses that use technology to build the future of software, healthcare, education and fintech. It’s a privilege to partner with exceptional CEOs and management teams who are executing towards a future that aligns with OMERS values of creating a better global community.”—Teresa Lee
Firm: Turn/River
Title: Partner
Joanne co-leads the Investment team at Turn/River. She led the investments in and sits on the boards of Invicti Security (Acunetix and Netsparker), CoSoSys, and Pair Software (PaperSave and Paramount). She has nearly a decade of experience investing in, scaling, acquiring, and selling enterprise software companies at Hellman & Friedman, Morgan Stanley, and Google. Prior to joining Turn/River, Joanne was an investment partner at Cowboy Ventures, a seed stage venture fund. She has an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business and graduated magna cum laude with dual BS/BA degrees from the University of Pennsylvania.
“Turn/River was forged out of our belief that a software investment firm should reflect the companies that it invests in. We have built a team of software executives across different go-to-market functions, who have experienced the same challenges in scaling a software business that our portfolio companies are experiencing right now. We offer empathetic and practical advise to help CEOs achieve their goals. This model, combined with our agile and data-driven approach, drives organic growth results with higher certainty and faster speed of execution.”—Joanne Yuan
Firm: TCV
Title: Partner
Clarey Zhu is a Partner with TCV, and she has been with the firm since 2018. Headquartered in Menlo Park, California, TCV partners with CEOs and founders of exceptional growth-stage technology companies globally. It manages over $24 billion in capital and has invested in more than 350 companies over 27+ years. Clarey leads thesis development, deal origination, and company evaluation across consumer internet, fintech, digital health, and blockchain / web3. She has also been active in multiple emerging markets. Clarey has invested more than $1.3B in a range of category leading internet and software companies including Nubank (NYSE: NU), ByteDance, Peloton (NASDAQ: PTON), Brex, Hinge Health, LegalZoom (NASDAQ: LZ), Hotmart, among others. Prior to TCV, she was an investment banker at JP Morgan, where she focused on M&A advisory and financings for tech companies. Clarey received a BA in mathematics and economics from Yale University.
“I’m honored to be recognized by GrowthCap alongside so many leaders in growth investing. After 27 years, TCV is prioritizing the same things: quality above all else, and teams that we’re confident can go the distance. Our deep partnerships with founders are the key to not only our success, but our portfolio companies’ success.”—Clarey Zhu
Firm: Sapphire Ventures
Title: Partner
As a daughter of a software engineer and a small business owner, Cathy has been immersed in technology and entrepreneurship from an early age. She has experience investing at multiple stages, ranging from buyout to venture capital, and has also served as business operator. Her experiences have shaped her passion for deeply understanding business models and working hand-in-hand with entrepreneurs to help scale companies. Through investing, Cathy strives every day to express her core values of conviction, partnership, and passion.
As a Partner at Sapphire Ventures, Cathy specializes in B2B SaaS companies with a focus on digital customer experience, the future of work and collaboration, and digital health. Cathy led the firm’s investment in and sits on the boards of involve.ai and SafeGraph and is a board observer at Gem, Medable, and UJET. She also was closely involved with Sapphire’s investments in and supports the teams at CaptivateIQ, Paradox, CircleCI, Gorgias, Splashtop, and Moveworks. Prior to Sapphire, Cathy was an investor at AXA Venture Partners where she invested in enterprise software. She started her career at Blackstone and TA Associates and was an operator at Gusto, joining shortly after the Series B.
“As a female and as an immigrant, I know all too well the uphill battle women face on both sides of the VC table—as investor and entrepreneur. We work in an industry where only 4.9% of partners at US-based VC firms are women, and female-founded companies receive just 2% of total VC dollars invested. I’m humbled by this award and hope to use it as an opportunity to show women that we won’t let socio-demographic factors dictate our seat at the table.”—Cathy Gao
Firm: Five Elms Capital
Title: Partner
Stephanie Schneider is a Partner at Five Elms Capital, a leading growth equity firm that invests in fast-growing B2B software businesses. Stephanie has been with Five Elms for seven years, during which time she’s been involved in over 20 deals. As a member of the investment committee, Stephanie brings her prior experience in advising corporations and financial sponsors to help Five Elms partner with growing, founder-owned SaaS businesses, and provide them with capital and resources to accelerate growth and further cement their role as industry leaders. Prior to joining Five Elms, Stephanie worked as an investment banker in Citigroup’s Technology Group where she advised both corporations and financial sponsors on mergers, acquisitions, and general corporate finance. Before working at Citigroup, she was an investment banker for Sterne Agee in its Financial Services Group. Stephanie holds a BA in journalism and advertising from Southern Methodist University.
“At Five Elms, our mandate is to partner with fast-growing B2B software businesses that users love. It is a privilege to work alongside world-class founders and management teams who are delighting customers by providing a solution to problems that they’ve often experienced firsthand. I am grateful to be part of the Five Elms organization and am excited to continue to add to our portfolio.”—Stephanie Schneider
Firm: General Atlantic
Title: Managing Director, Chief Compliance Officer, Associate General Counsel
Kelly Pettit is a Managing Director and serves as Chief Compliance Officer and Associate General Counsel at General Atlantic, where she leads the investments fund practice, oversees the global regulatory compliance program and assists with general corporate matters as part of the Legal & Compliance team. She also serves on the firm’s Operating Committee. Prior to joining General Atlantic in 2010, Kelly was an Associate at the New York law firm Hutner Klarish LLP.
Outside of her work at General Atlantic, Kelly is also an active member of Chief, a private network whose members include some of the most powerful female senior executives in the United States. The organization aims to strengthen members’ leadership, magnify their influence and pave the way to bring others with them. Kelly graduated with a BA in political psychology from Lafayette College and a JD from Brooklyn Law School.
“I’m thrilled to uphold, support and protect General Atlantic’s mission and principles that were established over 40 years ago. It’s an honor to partner with our investors and help provide capital and support to the visionary-led businesses in our portfolio as they foster global growth and support communities both local and global across a range of sectors.”—Kelly Pettit
Firm: FTV Capital
Title: Partner
Karen Derr Gilbert is a partner at FTV Capital where she leads the firm’s efforts in strategic business development, investor relations, fundraising and marketing. Most recently, Karen led fundraising efforts for FTV VII, the firm’s seventh and largest fund to-date, which closed in March 2022 at its hard cap of $2.3 billion. The fundraise came less than two years after Karen led fundraising for FTV VI, which closed at $1.2 billion. Karen is a voting member of FTV’s investment committee and served on the board of directors for several FTV portfolio companies.
Karen institutionalized FTV’s Global Partner Network® (GPN), a strategic network of over 500 global 1000 executives that provides market intelligence and diligence to the FTV investment team and facilitates commercial introductions for FTV portfolio companies to catalyze their growth. She has also been instrumental in shaping FTV’s approach to ESG and DEI, implementing robust ESG standards as the head of FTV’s ESG committee.
Prior to joining FTV, Karen spent nearly a decade with Wells Fargo in a variety of marketing and product management positions. Previously, she held roles at Merrill Lynch Capital Markets and Shearson Lehman Brothers in New York. Karen holds a BA in economics from UCLA and an MBA from the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University.
“It’s an honor to be recognized by GrowthCap, along with the many other accomplished women leaders within the growth equity industry. Throughout my tenure at FTV, I’ve had the privilege of partnering with many thoughtful investors, collaborative GPN executives, talented portfolio company leaders and brilliant FTV colleagues, making the past 23 years an incredible ride. Helping to build a highly successful growth equity platform has been truly rewarding, and I can’t wait to see how the industry evolves, especially with contributions from a rising generation of female talent.”—Karen Derr Gilbert
Firm: JMI Equity
Title: Chief Financial Officer
Maggie Schmitt serves as JMI Equity’s Chief Financial Officer, overseeing the firm’s financial activities. She joined the firm as a senior accountant in 2009 from the audit and enterprise risk services practice of Deloitte and has worked her way up the ranks at JMI, last serving as a Principal, Finance. Maggie has played a key leadership role spanning fundraising, portfolio company management, limited partner reporting, and firm operations. She received a bachelor of science in accounting and information systems from the Pamplin College of Business at Virginia Tech and is a certified public accountant (inactive).
“I’m thankful to have a leadership role at JMI, where the commitment to developing and investing in professionals across all functions and from a diverse range of backgrounds runs deep. I am proud to have contributed to JMI’s strategic expansion and look forward to our continued success well into the future.”—Maggie Schmitt
Firm: TZP Group
Title: Partner
Erin O’Brien Edwards is a Partner at TZP Group, a premier private equity firm in the lower middle market. Headquartered in New York City, TZP Group manages approximately $2 billion of assets and primarily invests within the United States and Canada. At TZP Group, Erin leads the Growth Equity Practice where she specializes on investments in consumer products and services.
Prior to TZP Group, Erin spent 10 years at North Castle Partners, a private equity firm where she focused on healthy living and aging trends. Erin worked closely with her executive management teams and stepped in as interim-CFO on several occasions to help those teams maximize shareholder value. Prior to joining North Castle, Erin was an investment professional at AEA Investors, where she focused on the execution and monitoring of investments across various B2B and B2C segments, and Insight Venture Partners, where she sourced, executed and monitored various investments across the software and technology verticals. Erin also worked as Director of Corporate Development at Acronis Software, where she helped lead various financial and strategic initiatives.
Erin serves on the board of Directors of Feel the World, Inc. d/b/a/ Xero Shoes, Akerson Enterprises LLC d/b/a Kindred Bravely, Quintessential Tots LLC d/b/a Itzy Ritzy and Knix Wear, Inc.. Erin graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania with a BA in economics.
“TZP Group is a values-based organization devoted to partnering with founders and management teams and helping them achieve their vision. Over the past 15 years, TZP Group has created a powerful platform to support the needs of our management teams as they seek to drive continued innovation and growth in their respective categories. I am fortunate to lead the consumer products and services growth equity strategy at TZP and am honored to have had the opportunity to partner with amazing management teams and brands.”— Erin O’Brien Edwards
Firm: TA Associates
Title: Director
Amara Suebsaeng is a Director in TA’s Boston office, where she focuses on investments in data, technology-enabled and other services companies in North America. An active investor, Amara builds trusting relationships with management teams to drive value, including leveraging her deep sector expertise to source and execute strategic acquisitions. She currently serves on the Boards of Directors for LeadsOnline, OMNIA Partners, PurposeBuilt Brands, Stackline and TouchTunes, and formerly served on the Board of Backstage, which was sold to Cast & Crew.
Prior to joining TA as an Associate in 2010, Amara worked as an Analyst in the Investment Banking Division, Global Power & Utilities Group at Morgan Stanley. She also worked in the Product Management & Business Development Group at Logi Analytics. Amara holds an MBA, with distinction, from Harvard Business School, and received a BA in economics, magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, from Princeton University.
“At TA, our approach to working with portfolio companies is grounded in trust and partnership. I am grateful for the opportunity to work hand-in-hand with passionate founders and management teams to drive ambitious growth strategies and build lasting value.”—Amara Suebsaeng
Firm: KKR
Title: Principal
Lauriane Requena was promoted to Principal at KKR after joining the Tech Growth team in 2019. She has since built and continued to drive the firm’s growth equity strategy in France, and has been actively involved in a number of investments not only in France (Ornikar, Qonto, +Simple) but also in the Nordics (Wolt), the UK (Darktrace) and the US (ReliaQuest).
Lauriane is a key driver of the investment pipeline in France and Europe and seen as a key asset for the Tech Growth team, where she stands out with strong investment judgement, and successfully creates like and trust across all walks of life, geographic and cultural areas.
Lauriane is one of the youngest team members to have taken a senior position within KKR’s DEI council and has also done a lot for the LGBTQ+ community within KKR and beyond. She also plays a key role in recruitment, having been very influential in building the team, and is an invaluable mentor to a pool of Associates and Analysts where she plays an important role in their training and development.
Lauriane joined KKR after a role at Silver Lake Partners in London, where she was focusing on software and internet investments. She holds an MSc with first class honours in finance from the London School of Economics.
“It is an honor to have been nominated among such an incredible group of professionals. I am proud and humbled to be helping to build a more inclusive industry in private equity, and specifically in tech growth investing, supported by the strength of the KKR platform in France, Europe and globally.”—Lauriane Requena
Firm: Thoma Bravo
Title: Principal
Christine Kang is a Principal on the Growth team at Thoma Bravo, a leading software investment firm, where she plays a key role in the firm’s Web3/crypto and technology investments. Christine joined Thoma Bravo in 2021 and has been instrumental in Thoma Bravo’s investments in Vivian Health, FTX, Figment and Anchorage. She currently serves on the board of Vivian Health and has been a board observer at companies including JumpCloud, Pendo and SPINS. Christine has significant experience in growth-stage investing, having previously served as a Vice President at General Atlantic where she led growth equity investments across the technology industry. Prior to this, she served as an Associate at Thomas H. Lee Partners in Boston. She began her career as an Analyst in the Investment Banking Division at J.P. Morgan in New York.
Christine holds an MBA from Harvard University and received her BA with honors in economics from Stanford University. During her undergraduate experience, she received the J.E. Wallace Sterling Award for Scholastic Achievement.
“Leveraging Thoma Bravo’s extensive software and financial technology expertise to invest in growth-stage Web3/crypto companies has created a very exciting opportunity for both myself and the entire Growth team. Through identifying and partnering with high-quality companies and accelerating their growth, we are truly shaping the future of the technology industry. This is both one of the most challenging and most rewarding parts of the job, and I look forward to many more years of supporting transformational companies and entrepreneurs.”—Christine Kang
Firm: Summit Partners
Title: Principal
Sophia Popova is a Principal on Summit’s Technology team. She joined the firm in 2017 and quickly distinguished herself as a smart and thoughtful technology investor. Sophia has played an active role in seven Summit investments, representing more than $1.0 billion in invested capital. Her investment and board experience includes Invicti Security, Klaviyo, Markforged (IPO in 2021, NYSE: MKFG), PrismHR (majority recap by Stone Point in 2019), Mavrck and Sifted.
Sophia’s investment acumen is enhanced by deep technical expertise gained through product management and business development roles at several startups, including Contactive (acquired by Fuze in 2015) and Recombine (acquired by CooperSurgical in 2016). While at Harvard Business School, Sophia was an investment partner at the Dorm Room Fund, where she advised numerous student founder-led startups.
Sophia has demonstrated a keen talent for identifying innovative growth-stage companies. She leverages her technical background to connect with founders and entrepreneurs; she effectively builds a trusted rapport with management teams and serves as an insightful and committed partner post-investment.
Since joining the Summit team, Sophia has invested her time generously to mentor colleagues on the Technology team and beyond. She is deeply involved in Associate training and development, has served on the firm’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion committee and has helped recruit several women to Summit’s investment team.
“At Summit, our focus is on growth—growth of our portfolio companies, of our people and of the teams with which we partner. As an investor and board director, I’m incredibly proud to work alongside and help support the growth of talented executives and dedicated teams who are driving innovation across the technology sector.”—Sophia Popova
Firm: General Atlantic
Title: Vice President
Jessie Cai is a Vice President at General Atlantic, where she concentrates her efforts on investments in the technology sector with a specific focus on consumer internet and software. Jessie is active on the boards of Chess.com, the world’s largest online chess platform, and Kiwi.com, a leading online air travel platform, and also works on and helped lead General Atlantic’s investments in EngageSmart (NYSE: ESMT), Articulate and Pendo.
Before joining General Atlantic in 2018, Jessie was a Growth Equity Investment Associate at Summit Partners. In 2017, she was a summer MBA Intern at General Atlantic. Jessie also worked as an Investment Banking Analyst at Citigroup. Jessie graduated with a BA in mathematics and economics from Northwestern University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
In addition to her role at General Atlantic, Jessie is an Operating Board Member at Pursuit, a social impact organization that creates transformation through four-year intensive training programs for adults with the most need and potential to gain their first tech jobs, advance in their careers and become part of the next generation of tech leaders.
“I have deep conviction in General Atlantic’s ability to drive impact through partnering with mission-driven entrepreneurs to accelerate their businesses and support their founding missions and core values. I’m thrilled to work alongside these global business leaders as they continue to break barriers, drive innovation and increase access and opportunity from within the technology sector.”—Jessie Cai
Firm: Pamlico Capital
Title: Principal
Christiane Felts is a Principal with Pamlico Capital. Founded in 1988 and based out of one office in Charlotte, NC, Pamlico manages approximately $4 billion of investments across middle-market businesses in the software, communications, healthcare and services sectors. Since joining the firm in 2017, Christiane has focused on investments in software and tech services. She is currently a board member at Cartegraph, ISAAC Instruments, Personify, and Veson Nautical. Prior to joining Pamlico, Christiane worked at The Carlyle Group, where she supported investment efforts in enterprise software and financial technology. She began her career at a middle-market M&A advisory firm, Edgeview Partners. Christiane also serves on the board of the Women’s Impact Fund, a collective-giving organization making high-impact grants addressing key needs in the Charlotte area. Christiane received her MBA from Harvard Business School and holds a bachelor of science in economics from Duke University.
“At Pamlico, our focus is on building true partnerships with founders and management teams. We bring deep experience in building great businesses and provide resources and support at a critical growth inflection point. But, we also know that we do not have all of the answers and seek to be active in the right ways and in the right spots. Through this approach, we empower growing companies to thrive. It is genuinely so much fun for me to have the opportunity to partner with exceptionally talented founders and entrepreneurs to support a new chapter in their company’s history.”—Christiane Felts
Firm: Mainsail Partners
Title: Principal
Katherine Claire (KC) Kanoff is a Principal at Mainsail Partners. KC joined Mainsail in 2019 and focuses on investing in growing, bootstrapped software companies. While at Mainsail, KC has worked on and helped execute numerous investments in founder-owned software companies and has developed significant specialization in vertical SaaS and financial technology. She currently sits on the boards of JobNimbus, Inspect Point, and Extensiv (formerly 3PL Central). KC graduated from Amherst College with a BA in economics and geology and earned an MBA from Harvard Business School. KC started her career at Goldman Sachs and prior to Mainsail, worked at Leonard Green & Partners.
“I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to work with great people every day and am consistently motivated and inspired by the founders who have entrusted Mainsail to be their partner in the next phase of growth. Founders of bootstrapped software companies tend to share common values, including their focus on customers, efficient growth and strong cultures. It’s fun and rewarding to support these special leaders.”—KC Kanoff
Firm: Kayne Partners
Title: Vice President
Sabrina Chaudhury joined Kayne Partners Fund (“KPF”) in 2019 and is a vice president for Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors’ growth equity activities, responsible for identifying and executing on growth equity investment opportunities in technology and technology-enabled services businesses, as well as monitoring existing investments in portfolio companies. Her current investment and board experience includes CreatorIQ, Panzura, Proficio, and Shipfusion. Her prior experience includes 4C (acquired by Vista-backed Mediaocean), Cloudbreak Health (merged into UpHealth Holdings), Fully Managed (acquired by Telus), and RfXcel (acquired by Antares Vision Group). Sabrina has over 12 years of experience in investing and corporate finance roles, and has completed numerous deals across both leveraged buyouts and minority transactions.
“At Kayne Partners Fund, I am lucky to work in partnership with world-class management teams that are disrupting traditional industries through the application of technology and targeting massive addressable markets. KPF has a longstanding track record of supporting entrepreneurs through access to resources including our Operating Network and Vendor Network. It is truly a privilege to work closely with our management teams to enhance and accelerate their growth journey.”—Sabrina Chaudhury
Firm: Silversmith Capital Partners
Title: Vice President
Lyndsay is a Vice President at Silversmith Capital Partners, a Boston-based growth equity firm with $2.0 billion of capital under management. Lyndsay joined Silversmith in 2019 and was promoted to Vice President in 2020. Her investments at the firm focus on SaaS & Information Services companies including sales and marketing related technologies. Her investments include: Appfire, Apphub, Constructor.io. Microblink, Unily, and Zonos. As a board member, Lyndsay builds genuine relationships with founders rooted in empathy and personal relationships. She currently serves on the board at Appfire and Apphub, and as a board observer at Constructor.io, Microblink and Zonos.
Prior to Silversmith, Lyndsay was a Senior Associate at JMI Equity, where she focused on enterprise software investments. Before joining JMI she was an analyst in Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s technology investment banking group. She holds a BS in computer science and biology from Duke University.
Lyndsay co-founded the Boston chapter of Synergist Network, an organization helping position women in their first decade of investing for long-term success, sits on the leadership Committee for the Boys and Girls Club of Boston, and serves as a mentor to college students for Duke’s business-oriented women’s group.
“Silversmith was founded to partner with and support growing, profitable founder-led businesses in the technology and healthcare sectors. I feel incredibly lucky to work alongside the entrepreneurs we’ve backed at Silversmith who bring tenacity and creativity to solving their customers’ problems, all while building collaborative cultures within their teams.”—Lyndsay Kerwin
Firm: Great Hill Partners
Title: Vice President
Veda Eswarappa is a Vice President at Great Hill Partners, where she specializes in the healthcare and software sectors. Her responsibilities include idea generation, deal execution and portfolio development. She is passionate about the power of innovative service models and technology to improve healthcare outcomes, enhance the patient experience, and reduce unnecessary costs. At Great Hill, she has helped to execute and support investments in companies including ParetoHealth, a leading employee benefits group captive manager, and Quantum Health, a leading provider of care coordination and healthcare navigation solutions.
She also mentors women and other underrepresented populations in the alternative investment space, including through Synergist, a national network of women in investing that seeks to connect women early in their professional careers.
Before joining Great Hill in 2018, Veda was a case team leader at Parthenon-EY. She earned a bachelor’s degree in biomedical sciences and engineering with honors from Harvard College and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
“I love learning from talented management teams who are doing meaningful work to improve the healthcare ecosystem and partnering with them to help grow and scale their businesses. I am also lucky to work with some of the most brilliant investors in the healthcare and software sectors here at Great Hill, where I have benefited tremendously from the firm’s supportive and intellectually curious culture.”—Veda Eswarappa
Firm: Volition Capital
Title: Vice President
Claude is a Vice President on Volition Capital’s Internet and Consumer investment team. She joined Volition in 2019 and focuses on investments in direct-to-consumer products, tech-enabled services, and marketplaces, with sector interests in beauty and wellness, age tech, and healthcare. Claude is a Board Observer for Burst Oral Care, Medly Health, and US Mobile. In addition, she has investment experience on Dragonfly. Prior to Volition, she interned during her MBA summer at Bullish, a seed fund that’s backed direct-to-consumer disruptors including Peloton, Harry’s, Warby Parker, and Casper. Claude holds a BA from Yale University in economics and environmental studies, and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
“I feel honored to be recognized among these talented women making strides in the venture capital and growth equity space. At Volition Capital, we work daily to bring forward disruptive ideas from diverse voices that will change the way people work, shop and communicate. Being included on the Top Women Investors list is a reminder that many talented business leaders are also working to support disruption. I look forward to seeing how the world changes as a result of our efforts.”—Claude De Jocas
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