IVCA Feature: The Best Quotes and Perspectives of 2022
December 21, 2022
Happiest of Holidays and peace in the coming New Year of 2023 to the membership of the IVCA. As we keep moving through the years, the VC and PE industries continue their unprecedented investment and success. Simultaneously, the IVCA continued in their mission to represent the VC/PE community and their support organizations, and updated the membership throughout the year on the website and through the biweekly newsletter and profiles.
In one more look at 2022, here are the best quotes and perspectives from those various articles, including the Stanley C. Golder Awardee at the recent IVCA Awards Dinner …
“Many clients here, and advisors to clients, were wondering whether to invest last year at the top of the market. But as we know, unlike stocks and bonds, with Private Equity you’re going to invest for a number of years. So in a sense we’re rooting for a decline in market, as we have a tremendous amount of planned dry powder – as does the industry – to invest into lower and lower valuations. As Warren Buffet famously said, if you have money to invest, why would you ever want the stock market to go up?”
~ T. Bondurant “Bon” French of Adams Street Partners at the 2022 IVCA Spring Luncheon
“In ‘re-ups,’ there are always considerations as to what it on the bubble. But I think it’s more of a quality issue that would put them on the bubble. It’s the qualitative that you keep your eye on for a couple years. We’ve come through a massive time of growth and great returns, anything can happen, and people have forgotten about years like 2008-09. So, of course I can invest in Venture funds. What we’ve seen is that it has become more unrealistic. The terms have gotten so far to one side that we’ve actually turned down one of our existing managers. We’re thinking a partnership on a 10-15 year horizon, but what the market is now, and this is what their attorneys are saying. But it should be about partnership.”
~ Melissa Richlen of the MacArthur Foundation at the 2022 IVCA Spring Luncheon
“People of color and women are still underrepresented in the investment space and although there has been some improvement, we still have a long way to go, especially in Private Equity. Pattern matching and the tendency to find more comfort with people we see as similar to ourselves continues to perpetuate the status quo. To make changes, it is paramount to do the work which means ensuring that candidate pipelines are diverse, changing internal cultures to provide a sense of belonging to diverse employees and advocating for DEI initiatives at senior levels of firms.”
~ Jessica Patton of 5th Century Partners, New Member Profile
“The most important thing that has to happen right now is the people of Chicago need to focus not on the person running for mayor but to their positions and platform. And if there is one thing I learned when I hit the campaign trail back in 2017 and ’18, there are a lot of Chicagoans who are disconnected from how important that the decisions Mayors and other office holders make to influence our daily lives, and more importantly that it can make a significant difference.
So part of my commitment right now is not necessarily telling folks who to go with or support, but focusing more on unpacking and unravelling what their platforms mean, what these policies and positions will actually do to change your life, affecting your bottom line and your comfort level in the city … and your willingness to stay here. Because at the end of the day that is what matters most.”
~ Neal Sáles-Griffin, Managing Director of TechStars Chicago
“We all have multiple aspects to who we are, and we have choice as to which parts of us we reveal and/or express in different areas of our lives. If we are creating a facade, it’s not authenticity … but we don’t have to share every part of ourselves to be authentic. As long as you don’t have to pretend to be someone or something you are not, you can experience authenticity. If you are pretending, that takes a lot of energy, and it’s not sustainable.”
~ Dr. Arin N. Reeves, the President and Principal at Nextions.
“The Peoria NEXT Innovation Center fosters the welcoming environment entrepreneurs need to find the resources to grow and scale in Central Illinois. This collaborative environment extends beyond the walls of the innovation center. The Peoria NEXT Innovation Center’s active participation in the Illinois University Incubator Network offers opportunities to expand collaboration with other incubators throughout Illinois, including assistance with SBIR and STTR grant submissions.”
~ Michael Stubbs, Director of Peoria NEXT innovation Center
“Steve founded Prairie on the principal tenet of stewardship – whether as a steward for the family businesses he would purchase as a principal of Prairie or as an active and engaged participant of the personal and professional communities within which he participates. On the personal front, he provides financial support, personal time and leadership to numerous philanthropic, civic and cultural organizations, programs and events. By virtue of his leadership, civic engagement permeates Prairie Capital, with the principal group active supporters of 30 plus organizations.”
~ Christopher T. Killackey – Partner of Prairie Capital – on Stephen V. King, Recipient of the 2022 IVCA Stanley C. Golder Award