Melissa Fenner

From #culture fit to #AI hiring, Jon Landau and Natalie Ryan discuss the themes shaping today's private equity talent & recruiting landscape.

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Read our latest article on Creating an Ownership Culture. This piece dives into how fostering a sense of ownership among employees can lead to remarkable outcomes for both the team and the organization. Here at KKR we are committed to providing ownership to all employees in all new controlled deals, building on recent successes of our Broad-Based Ownership Program. Whether you're a leader seeking to enhance your company's culture or an employee interested in the dynamics of workplace engagement, this article offers valuable perspectives. 👉 Read article here: https://lnkd.in/ejVc2ffd You can download the full report here: https://lnkd.in/ee_vT2rs #Leadership #BusinessCulture #EmployeeEngagement #KKR

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Good read on the evolving nature of portfolio operations teams within PE as there is greater and necessary focus on value creation capabilities. It is critical that portfolio operations teams have "stage appropriate" operating experience coupled with a collaborative/consultative approach work working with portco management teams. https://lnkd.in/gijeb35K

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Team, Market Size, Technology, and Product-Market fit are key criteria VCs assess to evaluate an opportunity. An often-overlooked aspect in team assessment is their Sense of Urgency or, GSD. This cultural advantage, inspired from the top, can turn an average opportunity into a significant win. The FastCompany article below gives ideas on how leaders can inspire their teams to adopt a GSD Mentality. #VC #Technology #Opportunity #GSD

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How do you know when it’s time for a new CEO? My colleagues Bob Stark and Claudius Alexander Hildebrand discuss the new leadership framework laid out in their upcoming book, The Life Cycle of a CEO: The Myths and Truths of How Leaders Succeed with Fortune. Read more: https://lnkd.in/e3EMt4Dv

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If you’re a leader struggling with risk-taking, HBR offers four strategies to make the mindset and behavior shifts to become more collaborative and unlock growth.

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When change is the only the constant, the ability to be "in" the turbulence without letting it overtake you is vital for success. This guide from Wharton offers some excellent advice for navigating uncertainty by strategically managing workloads and priorities. It stresses the importance of maintaining a sustainable pace, making for breaks in the action and rest. Most notably, it suggests creating a list of "anti-goals" that encourages you identify what you can reasonably accomplish and avoid stretching yourself beyond your limits. #Leadership #ChangeManagement #Wellbeing

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Check out my latest blog with 5 things I've learned about being a CEO by NOT being the CEO! These are some hard-won lessons learned about being Number 1 by a guy who likes being Number 2!

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Without meaningful measurement, there is no Advantage Capital mission. That's why we rigorously assess the impact performance of the companies we invest in to ensure they’re driving tangible, traceable change within their communities. In this blog, I explain why job quality is our cornerstone of impact, and how we define it with four key components tied to wages, access to benefits, career advancement opportunities, and wealth-building programs like 401(k) plans, all aimed at fostering family stability and economic independence. I hope that you can take a look. #ImpactInvesting #SocialImpact

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How do organizations ensure that candidates from all communities, including those historically underrepresented, are included in today’s complex Talent Acquisition processes? In this webinar we: - explore success stories - identify potential challenges - address the risks and compliance - discuss what has been effective in creating a more inclusive hiring process - highlight what areas need improvement - share how can we apply these lessons to future strategies Watch the recording: https://lnkd.in/gv-VpjPd #Talent #HR #Staffing #Technology #DEIBKnowledgeExchange #DiversityEquityAndInclusion #DEIB

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Co-Heads of Equity, Matt Nord and David Sambur, spoke to Bloomberg about how Apollo’s disciplined private equity strategy has fueled recent dealmaking and strong return of capital. Read more about our approach to sourcing and building stronger businesses: https://lnkd.in/gUwf5qze

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Thoughtful Monday read from Kellogg Insight -- We're all familiar with the concept of the gender pay gap at this point since the 1990s. However, new research from Nicola Bianci, assistant professor of strategy at Kellogg suggests that the relationship between men's and women's average #wages did indeed change in past four decades. The average man in the U.S. used to make 80% more than the average woman in 1976, and past over four decades, that gap has fallen to a 33%. Interestingly, there was no stark drop but rather a steady decline that has remained active for the long-term. So what's going on here? Some theorize that #older workers are retiring and newer workers are taking their place, relinquishing some higher paid positions. The reason why the 33% remains stagnant though, is because there's still a disproportionate amount of women in more "traditionally feminine" job positions rather than "male" careers. What do you think about this? Do you have any personal theories about the way the pay gap minimized and then #stagnated?

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Last week we shared the challenges around the escalating bottleneck on the grid -- now let's talk about solutions. Beyond policy, there are many ways technology and startups can have huge impact on the electricity supply <> demand crunch. Please reach out if you're working in the space, or just want to mind share. Sam Smith-Eppsteiner #ai #datacenters #electricity #grid #enegrystorage

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Heidrick & Struggles' Karen Rosa West discusses the role of AI in cultivating tomorrow's leaders and the science behind aligning the measured capabilities of leaders within a dynamic system that aligns those data points to roles within the organization. ​ Watch the webinar replay to discover innovative approaches to leadership development in today's evolving HR landscape: https://bit.ly/3wSBaeZ. #HeidrickNavigator #HRTransformation #LeadershipDevelopment #AI

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My ICF colleague Mason Fried is powered by purpose. See how he and his team are using the cloud, data analytics, and science to help solve some of the world’s most difficult climate-related challenges https://bit.ly/3XibQrY

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Honored & Inspired at Columbia Business School 🚀 This week, I had the incredible opportunity to speak with 2nd-year MBA students in the “Launch Your Startup” class at Columbia Business School. We dove deep into what investors look for in founders and teams, navigating critical growth inflection points that demand different skill sets, and the traits that define successful problem solvers in sales. 🔑 We also unpacked a sales framework that starts with a clear, convicted understanding of your customer—focusing on their immediate and long-term priorities, risks, and industry headwinds. 🌍 What I can say is this: the future is extremely bright. The engagement, thoughtful questions, and curiosity I witnessed from these future CEOs and Founders were next level. 🔥💡 Grateful and humbled by the invitation from Professor Brendan Burns to speak to such a talented group. 🤜🏾🤛🏼 This talented group of students inspired me and I encourage those who connected with me to engage in the comments on their ideas, aspirations, and perspectives. 🙏 As they say, “To whom much is given, much is expected.” My existence is greater than me, and I’m excited to continue giving back and sharing my perspective.

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🚀 Sharing Our Latest Collaboration! 🚀 Thrilled to announce a collaboration with Shonna Waters, PhD and Erin Eatough, PhD of Fractional Insights, and Nikki Blacksmith, Ph.D., where we dive into evidence-based strategies for building and empowering high-performing founding teams. In our paper, "How Organizational Psychologists Shift the Odds for Venture Capital Success", we share actionable insights that can reshape how founders and VCs approach founding team development and dynamics. Key takeaways include: 🔑 Data-driven frameworks for selecting exceptional founders 🔑 Science-backed strategies to cultivate high-performing teams 🔑 Proven methods for developing resilient leadership This is just the beginning—stay tuned as we continue to explore how applied organizational psychology can drive success for founders and VCs. 👀 Link in the comments #VentureCapital #Founders #Leadership #TeamDevelopment #OrganizationalPsychology #StartupSuccess #Innovation

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With around 59 tech-focused buyouts in just the first quarter, private equity is capitalizing on late-stage startups that are opting to stay private longer due to high interest rates and a lack of acquisition options. A prime example is AuditBoard, which recently sold for approximately $3 billion after private equity firm Hg quickly made an attractive offer, reinforcing how private equity offers immediate liquidity at competitive prices. As many software companies face challenges in this tricky market, they’re increasingly looking to private equity as a solid exit option, which is likely to lead to more consolidation in the tech world. #IPO #PrivateEquity #StartupAcquisitions #Tech

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