Private Debt Leader: First Eagle Alternative Credit’s Garrett Stephen

In this episode, we speak with Ross Devor, a Partner at Thoma Bravo, which is one of the largest software investors in the world with approximately $138 billion in assets under management. Ross co-heads Thoma Bravo’s growth equity platform, a dedicated fund focused on making minority investments in high growth software and technology companies.  He leads the team’s close collaboration with founders and management teams to implement world-class operating principles and help realize their visions and growth potential. Ross was recognized by GrowthCap as one of the Top 40 Under 40 Growth Investors of 2023. Ross supports Boys and Girls Club of Miami-Dade and Feeding South Florida. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with Bill Gibson, CEO of Deposco, a provider of cloud-based supply chain applications for retailers, distributors, 3PLs and brand companies. Deposco’s Bright Suite of omnichannel fulfillment supply chain applications allows fast-growing companies to rapidly scale their warehouse management and order management operations, so they can see what inventory they’ve got, where it is, and where to position it to fulfill demand. Bill first got his start in 1993 as an account executive at Manugistics. From there, he went on to Grotech Ventures and then became a Managing Partner at The Albermarle Group. Bill was recognized as one of the Top 50 SaaS CEOs of 2023 by The Software Report. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with Garrett Stephen, Managing Director, Co-Head of Origination & Structuring at First Eagle Alternative Credit, a credit-focused investment manager with $21 billion of assets under management, $5.7 billion of which is invested through its direct lending platform focused on private equity-backed U.S. middle market companies across various industries. Garrett became part of First Eagle in 2020 upon the firm’s acquisition of THL Credit, which he had joined in 2012. Previously, he worked in the restructuring group of Lazard’s investment banking division. Before that, he specialized in corporate turnarounds and restructurings across a variety of industries at CDG Group, a middle-market restructuring firm.  First Eagle Alternative Credit was recognized as one of the Top Private Debt Firms of 2023 by GrowthCap. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with Tianyi Jiang (TJ), CEO and Co-Founder of AvePoint, an independent software vendor of SaaS solutions to migrate, manage and protect data. More than 17,000 customers trust AvePoint’s Confidence Platform to optimize their SaaS operations and secure collaboration. AvePoint’s SaaS solutions are also available to managed service providers via more than 100 cloud marketplaces. TJ co-founded AvePoint in 2001 and has served as the company’s CEO since 2005.  TJ was recently named a Top 50 SaaS CEO of 2023 by The Software Report. TJ launched MaivenPoint, an edtech company that enables educators, students and organizations to create engaging learning experiences to meet their unique, evolving needs. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with Rashmi Gopinath of B Capital, a multi-stage global investment firm that partners with extraordinary entrepreneurs to shape the future through technology. With $6+ billion in assets under management across multiple funds, the firm focuses on seed to late-stage venture growth investments, primarily in the enterprise, financial technology and healthcare sectors. Rashmi is a General Partner and Head of Enterprise Investing at the firm. She focuses on enterprise software investments in cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, devops, and artificial intelligence and machine learning. She has over two decades of experience investing and operating in enterprise technologies and was recognized as one of the Top Software Investors of 2023 by GrowthCap. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with Bill Lucchini, CEO of Nextech, the complete healthcare technology solution for specialty providers. The company services more than 16,000 physicians and over 60,000 office staff members in the clinical specialties of Dermatology, Ophthalmology, Orthopedics, Plastic Surgery, and Med Spa. Bill’s focus is on expanding the company's industry-leading product suite into a true end-to-end ecosystem designed specifically for specialty practices. He has spent his entire career in technology and software, most recently serving as CEO of Dealer-FX Group. Prior to that, he was with Sophos, OnForce and Intuit. Nextech was recognized as one of the Top 100 Healthcare Technology Companies of 2023 by The Healthcare Technology Report. Bill supports Tunnel to Towers Foundation. To learn more about this organization click here. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with Nader Naini, Managing Partner of Frazier Healthcare Partners. Nader joined the firm in 1991 and has served on Frazier’s Management Committee, Investment Committee, and led its Growth Buyout practice since 1995. Under his leadership, the Growth Buyout team has scaled from an initial team of four to over sixty and raised over $5 billion AUM from institutional limited partners globally. During his over three-decade tenure with the firm, he has been responsible for and served on the Boards of numerous successful investments including Aspen Education Group, CHG Healthcare, Priority Solutions International, Bravo Health, Laboratory Supply Company, Pentec Health, Solis Mammography, DSI Renal, Northfield Medical, and United Digestive. He currently serves on the Boards of Elevate Patient Financial Solutions, Accuity Delivery Systems, and Effective School Solutions. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with Taylor Rhodes, CEO of Applied Systems, the leading global provider of cloud-based software that powers the business of insurance. Recognized as a pioneer in insurance automation and an innovation leader, Applied is the world’s largest provider of agency and brokerage management systems. Taylor joined Applied in 2019 after serving as Chief Executive Officer of SMS Assist, the leading cloud-based software platform for multi-site property management. Previously, he was CEO of Rackspace, where he led the company’s growth from a cloud pioneer to an industry leader with more than two billion dollars in revenue. Taylor was recognized as one of the Top 50 SaaS CEOs of 2023 by The Software Report. Taylor supports World Vision.  To learn more about this organization click here. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode we speak with Alan Cline, Hg’s Head of North America, a Partner and a member of Hg’s Senior Leadership Team. He leads the firm’s activity across the USA and Canada. Alan has a long and impressive track record across leadership, tech investing and operations, having built the Foundation Fund within Vista Equity, following hands on experience as a technology entrepreneur.  He was previously Senior Managing Director, Fund Co-Head at Vista. Hg has over 400 employees across London, Munich, New York, Paris and San Francisco, and a current portfolio of around 52 businesses, worth approximately $135 billion in aggregate enterprise value. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.

In this episode, we speak with David Ratner, CEO of HYAS, a cybersecurity company leading the charge in the war against attacks of all kinds, including ransomware, supply-chain attacks, phishing, and trojans. David’s career spans various areas of software and technology, from writing code for some of the first and largest mobile and messaging systems to scaling, growing, and exiting multiple venture-backed, private-equity-owned, and public software companies. Before joining HYAS, David was the CEO at Realm and CEO and President at Openwave Messaging. He earned his PhD and MS in computer science at UCLA and his undergraduate degree in mathematics and computer science at Cornell University. David was recognized as one of the Top 50 SaaS CEOs of 2023 by The Software Report. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to follow.