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People make the difference

For over 20 years, and across over 300 companies, Peterson Partners has partnered with exceptional entrepreneurs. This experience has confirmed for us that people are the key differentiator in success. Entrepreneurial leaders are different from other leaders. They’re the people creating the future, the people so determined to get things done that they make magic. They are the change makers.

We back leadership teams who have the grit and passion to build enduring enterprises that make a difference. Partnering with people like this is our dream job. We love nothing more than rolling up our sleeves to help great people build great businesses.

You really want an investor that will work with you, teach you, and help you through hard times. You’re trying to find a fit. We’re not the right investor for certain entrepreneurs and we are for others. I think there are times when entrepreneurs get so desperate and hungry for money that they’re selling. They shouldn’t be selling. They should be interviewing investors as much as the investor is interviewing them.

History

We were founded by Joel Peterson, a teacher of entrepreneurs, a long-time backer of entrepreneurs, and an entrepreneur himself. After helping to build Trammell Crow Company into a multi-billion-dollar enterprise as Managing Partner, Joel founded Peterson Partners with the mission of helping entrepreneurs achieve their dreams and began teaching at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Peterson Partners, comprised of Private Equity, Venture, and Search Funds, seeks to fulfill that mission by building organizations and leaders on the principles Joel has taught for the past 25 years.

Our Team

Andrew Tuitele Associate

Andrew Tuitele Associate

Andrew is an Associate at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Andrew was an Investment Banking Analyst in the Technology group at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in Palo Alto. His experience includes working primarily with software and semiconductor companies on various M&A, debt, and equity transactions. Andrew graduated magna cum laude from the University of Utah with a B.S. degree in Finance.

Ben Capell Partner

Ben Capell Partner

Ben is a Partner at Peterson Ventures. Prior to joining Peterson Ventures, Ben was the first employee hired at an enterprise tech startup based in Northern Virginia where he was the product and business manager. Prior to his startup days, he spent several years at Charles River Associates, a leading global economic and business consulting firm headquartered in Boston. Ben received an MBA and a B.S. in Finance from Brigham Young University, where he was a Hawes Scholar.

Board Directorships

  • Blyncsy
  • Chatbooks (observer)
  • Dropship Commerce (observer)
  • EcoScraps
  • Grow (observer)
  • HireVue (observer)
  • LifeSeasons
  • MicroBenefits
  • Social Dental
  • Therapydia

Brett Stohlton Partner

Brett Stohlton Partner

Brett is a Partner at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Brett was the CEO of Marucci Sports, a sporting goods brand and manufacturer. Before Marucci, Brett was a partner at Equity Pacific Partners, a Newport Beach-based private equity and advisory firm. Before Equity Pacific Partners, Brett was an Associate at Goldman Sachs & Co. in New York and Los Angeles. Brett received an MBA and B.A. from Brigham Young University, where he was a Hawes Scholar.

Cameron Crittenden Associate

Cameron Crittenden Associate

Cameron is an Associate at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Cameron was an M&A Associate for a Private Equity backed consolidator in the insurance space. Cameron began his career as a Management Consultant with Cicero Group. His experience includes completing M&A transactions in insurance and related fields as well as business strategy advisory for a wide variety of industries. Cameron graduated from Brigham Young University with a B.S. in Finance from the Marriott School of Business.

Carolyn Carpeneti Talent Partner

Carolyn Carpeneti Talent Partner

Carolyn is a Talent Partner at Peterson Partners and Peterson Ventures. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Carolyn was the Vice President of Talent at All Raise, a venture funded organization designed to support female founders and build diversity in the Board Room. Carolyn built out their Board Xcelerate program, which placed diverse candidates onto pre-IPO corporate boards. Prior to All Raise, Carolyn spent several years as an executive recruiter. Most recently as Managing Director at The Leadership Group, a boutique executive search firm focused on placing C-level executives, VPs, and Board candidates within early, late-stage, and public companies.

Chalise Moore Analyst

Chalise Moore Analyst

Chalise is an Analyst at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Chalise was a strategy consultant at Leavitt Partners in Salt Lake City. Her experience includes working on market entry strategies for multinational conglomerates, M&A integrations, and advising on the sourcing, evaluating, and monitoring of search investments. Chalise is a graduate of Brigham Young University and holds a B.S. in Finance from the Marriott School of Business.

CJ Ekstrom Senior Associate

CJ Ekstrom Senior Associate

CJ is a Senior Associate at Peterson Ventures. Prior to joining Peterson Ventures, CJ was an Investment Banking Analyst at Morgan Stanley in Los Angeles. While at Morgan Stanley, CJ worked with companies primarily in the consumer and digital commerce industries on a variety of M&A and equity transactions. CJ graduated from the University of Utah with a B.S. degree in Finance.

 

Clint Peterson Managing Partner

Clint Peterson Managing Partner

Clint is a Partner at Peterson Partners. Prior to Peterson Partners, Clint was a Senior Principal with TowerBrook Capital Partners, a London and New York-based investment management firm with approximately $8 billion AUM. Before working with TowerBrook, Clint was an Associate at Soros Private Equity in London. Clint received an MBA from Harvard Business School and a B.A. from Stanford University.

Curtis Feeny Senior Advisor

Curtis Feeny Senior Advisor

Curtis is a Senior Advisor at Peterson Partners. Prior to Peterson Partners, Curtis was a General Partner in four venture capital funds at Voyager Capital and Silicon Valley Data Capital. Prior to Voyager Capital and Silicon Valley Data Capital, he was Executive Vice President of Stanford Management Company and a Partner at Trammell Crow Company. Curtis has served on 35 public and private boards. He most recently served on the board of CBRE (NYSE) and is currently on the boards of Khan Academy and Stanford Federal Credit Union. Curtis received an MBA from Harvard Business School and a B.S. in M.E. from Texas A&M University.

Dan Hanks Partner

Dan Hanks Partner

Dan is a Partner at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Dan was an Associate in the Transaction Services group of PricewaterhouseCoopers in New York. Dan received an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a B.S. from Brigham Young University.

Emily Jensen Director of Finance

Emily Jensen Director of Finance

Emily is a Director of Finance at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Emily was a Tax Manager at KPMG in their Alternative Investments practice. She started her career in Charlotte at Ernst & Young in their Financial Services Office. At KPMG and EY, Emily provided tax compliance and advisory services to private equity, venture capital, and hedge fund clients. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from the University of Memphis.

Emily Jones Senior Associate

Emily Jones Senior Associate

Emily is a Senior Associate at Peterson Ventures. Prior to joining Peterson Ventures, Emily worked at the Blackstone Group, where she was an Analyst on the Portfolio Operations team. In this role, Emily was responsible for ensuring operational and commercial synergies across the entire portfolio. Before Blackstone, Emily was the first business hire at Boom Supersonic, a Y Combinator company focusing on commercializing supersonic travel. Emily completed her internships at Tesla Motors, SpaceX, and Boeing during her time at Babson College where she graduated with a B.S.

Enrico Curzola Vice President

Enrico Curzola Vice President

Enrico is a Vice President at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Enrico was an Investment Banking associate in the West Region Advisory group of Goldman Sachs in Los Angeles. In that role, he worked with companies in the consumer/retail and healthcare industries on a variety of M&A and equity transactions. He began his career as an analyst in credit research and leveraged finance at Goldman Sachs. Enrico graduated magna cum laude from Brigham Young University with a B.S. in Finance.

Eric Noble Chief Financial Officer & Chief Compliance Officer

Eric Noble Chief Financial Officer & Chief Compliance Officer

Eric is the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Compliance Officer at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Eric was an Audit Manager with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Boston and Salt Lake City. At PwC, Eric provided audit services to asset management clients, including: private equity funds, hedge funds, and endowments. Eric is a Certified Public Accountant; he holds a B.S. degree in Accounting from Utah State University and a M.S. degree in Finance from Suffolk University.

Erin Adams Associate Counsel

Erin Adams Associate Counsel

Erin is the Associate Counsel at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Erin was an Associate at the law firm Greenberg Traurig in their Corporate and Mergers & Acquisitions practices. Before Greenberg Traurig, Erin was an Associate at Stoel Rives. At these firms, Erin advised companies and investors in mergers and acquisitions, private equity and debt financings, and startups and venture capital. Erin holds a J.D. from the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University and a B.A. from Brigham Young University.

Hayden Jeppson Associate

Hayden Jeppson Associate

Hayden is an Associate at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Hayden was an Associate at Reef Capital Partners, a real estate focused private equity and credit firm. In that role, he worked on all facets of the investment process including investment analysis, financing, ongoing investment monitoring, and operational support. Hayden is a Certified Public Accountant and received a Master’s and B.S. degree in Accounting from Brigham Young University.

Holly Schippers Executive Assistant

Holly Schippers Executive Assistant

Holly Schippers is an Executive Assistant at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Holly was an Executive Assistant at Andina Capital Management.

Ilana Stern Partner

Ilana Stern Partner

Ilana is a Partner at Peterson Ventures. Prior to joining Peterson Ventures, Ilana worked as Founder and CEO of Weddington Way, a direct to consumer brand, which was acquired by Gap Inc. in December 2016. After selling Weddington Way to Gap Inc., Ilana joined the executive team at Gap Inc. and was a leader in customer experience and innovation for the company. She began her career in NYC as a buyer for Bloomingdale’s. Ilana is an active angel investor, board member, and a lecturer in entrepreneurship at Stanford GSB. Identified as an “Accelerator” by WSJ, “40 under 40” by SF Business Times, Ilana approaches brand building with unwavering focus and industry-changing boldness. Ilana received an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania where she graduated summa cum laude.

Jake Kastan Principal

Jake Kastan Principal

Jake is a Principal at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Jake worked as the Political Director for Speaker Paul Ryan in Washington DC. He was Paul Ryan’s personal aide during the 2012 presidential election and began his career working for Mitt Romney in Boston, MA. Jake received an MBA from the Georgetown McDonough School of Business and a B.S. from Tufts University.

Joel Peterson Founding Partner & Chairman

Joel Peterson Founding Partner & Chairman

Joel Peterson has been on the faculty at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University since 1992, teaching courses in real estate investment, entrepreneurship, and leadership. Joel served as Chairman of the Board of Overseers at the Hoover Institution at Stanford from 2016 to 2019. He also served as Chairman of the Board at JetBlue Airways for 12 years (2008-2020). Joel is also on the boards of Franklin Covey and Packsize.  Prior to Stanford Business School and founding Peterson Partners, Joel was Chief Executive Officer of Trammell Crow Company, then the world’s largest private commercial real estate development firm. Joel earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and received his Bachelor’s degree from Brigham Young University, where he was valedictorian. www.joelcpeterson.com

Joel is the author of Entrepreneurial Leadership: The Art of Launching New Ventures, Inspiring Others, and Running Stuff and The 10 Laws of Trust: Building the Bonds that make a Business Great.

Jordan Christensen Director of Finance

Jordan Christensen Director of Finance

Jordan is a Director of Finance at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Jordan was a Senior Associate at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Salt Lake City, UT. At PwC he provided audit services to publicly traded manufacturing and mining clients and was a member of the audit team on Peterson Partners. Jordan is a Certified Public Accountant and holds a Master’s & B.S. degree in Accounting from Utah State University.

Jordan Lusk Principal

Jordan Lusk Principal

Jordan is a Principal at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Jordan worked in the Investment Banking division at Morgan Stanley in New York City where he helped advise on a variety of M&A, debt, and equity transactions. Jordan graduated from Brigham Young University with a B.S. degree in Finance.

Krista Steed Administrative Assistant

Krista Steed Administrative Assistant

Krista is an Administrative Assistant at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Krista worked as a Customer Service Associate at Zeel. Krista received a B.S. in Journalism with a Public Relations emphasis from Utah State University.

Laurel Mills Executive Assistant

Laurel Mills Executive Assistant

Laurel is an Executive Assistant at Peterson Ventures. Prior to joining Peterson Ventures, Laurel worked at Overstock as an Executive Assistant to the Chief Product Officer. She obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Education from Utah Valley University and a Master’s degree in Learning and Technology.

 

Lewis Aynesworth Associate

Lewis Aynesworth Associate

Lewis is an Associate at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Lewis supported the launch of a private equity fund in Waco, Texas where he helped manage all fund activities, including investor relations, investment due diligence & execution, and fund administration. He began his career with Aether Investment Partners in Denver where he was responsible for sourcing, evaluating, and monitoring investments across eight funds. Lewis earned his B.B.A. in Finance from Texas Christian University.

Marc Fuller Senior Partner

Marc Fuller Senior Partner

Marc is a Senior Partner at Peterson Partners. Prior to Peterson Partners, Marc was a Managing Director with Leucadia National Corporation, a New York-based investment company with approximately $50 billion in assets. Before working with Leucadia, Marc was an Associate at a merchant bank, Coleman Furlong, in San Francisco and an Analyst at CS First Boston in New York. Marc received an MBA from Harvard Business School and a B.A. from Brigham Young University.

Max Artz Partner

Max Artz Partner

Max is a Partner at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Max worked as Chief of Staff at Flow Commerce. Prior to joining Flow, Max was the General Manager of China at The Aromatherapy Company, a New Zealand home goods company, based in Shanghai. Max began his career with The Royal Bank of Scotland in the International Banking division. Max received an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a B.S. from Babson College.

Nate Gibby Senior Associate

Nate Gibby Senior Associate

Nate is a Senior Associate at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Nate was an Investment Banking Analyst in the Mergers & Acquisitions group at Credit Suisse in New York. His experience includes advising on a variety of M&A transactions in the consumer retail, industrial, financial institutions, and technology industries. Nate graduated magna cum laude from Brigham Young University with a B.S. in Finance from the Marriott School of Business and a minor in History.

Paul McKinnon Senior Advisor

Paul McKinnon Senior Advisor

Paul is a Senior Advisor at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Paul was on the faculty of the Harvard Business School, where he taught courses focusing on the Management of Human Capital. Prior to HBS he was the Head of HR and Talent Management at Citigroup in New York, NY and the Head of HR at Dell in Round Rock, TX. Paul holds a PhD in Organizational Studies from the Sloan School of Business at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Master’s Degree in Organizational Behavior and a B.A. in History from Brigham Young University.

Preston Phillips Partner

Preston Phillips Partner

Preston is a Partner at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Preston was a Senior Associate at Freeman Spogli, a consumer and distribution focused private equity firm. He began his career as an Investment Banking Analyst at Credit Suisse in Los Angeles. Preston graduated from Brigham Young University with a B.S. degree in Accounting.

Sara Milligan Operator in Residence

Sara Milligan Operator in Residence

Sara is an Operator in Residence at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Sara worked as the Head of Value Added Products and Services at AppFolio, a vertical software company based in Santa Barbara. Sara began her career as an Associate at KKR and an analyst at Deutsche Bank in New York. Sara received an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a B.A. from Duke University.

Shalyce Oman Office Manager & Executive Assistant

Shalyce Oman Office Manager & Executive Assistant

Shalyce is the Office Manager and an Executive Assistant at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Shalyce worked as a Health Educator for the Southwest Utah Public Health Department. Shalyce received a B.S. degree in Healthcare Administration from Brigham Young University Idaho.

Shannon Thackray Strategic HR Advisor

Shannon Thackray Strategic HR Advisor

Shannon is a Strategic HR Advisor at Peterson Partners.  Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Shannon was the Senior Vice President – Human Resources for Rev360, a Peterson portfolio company.  Prior to Rev360, she was the North America Technology Recruiting Lead for Accenture and the Director of Human Resources for their North America HR outsourcing business unit.  Shannon received a B.A. in Organizational Studies/Human Resource Management from the University of Michigan.

Spencer Clawson Partner

Spencer Clawson Partner

Spencer is a Partner at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Spencer was a Manager in the Transaction Services group of PricewaterhouseCoopers in New York City. At PwC, Spencer provided advisory services to large private equity and corporate clients on buy-side and sell-side transactions in the consumer, healthcare, business services, and industrial sectors. Spencer received an MBA and a B.S. in Accounting from Brigham Young University.

Sydnee Urick Executive Assistant

Sydnee Urick Executive Assistant

Sydnee is an Executive Assistant at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Sydnee worked with Senator Steve Daines’ legislative team in Washington, D.C. Sydnee received a B.A. in History from Brigham Young University.

Tanner Merrill Associate

Tanner Merrill Associate

Tanner is an Associate at Peterson Ventures. Prior to joining Peterson Ventures, Tanner was an Associate at Crosslink Capital in Menlo Park where he led early-stage investments in enterprise software and fintech companies. Previously, Tanner was an Analyst on the early-stage investment team at Headline in San Francisco where he backed companies in digital commerce, infrastructure and fintech. Tanner completed internships with Album VC and University Growth Fund during his time at Brigham Young University where he graduated with a B.S. degree in Economics.

Taylor Jones Partner

Taylor Jones Partner

Taylor is a Partner at Peterson Ventures. Prior to joining Peterson Ventures, Taylor was the co-founder and COO at Blue Matador, a cloud infrastructure monitoring startup. Prior to Blue Matador, Taylor worked in partnership and sales strategy roles at Google and marketing and finance roles at American Express. Taylor holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a B.S. in Accounting from Brigham Young University.

Trent Johnson Senior Associate

Trent Johnson Senior Associate

Trent is a Senior Associate at Peterson Partners. Prior to joining Peterson Partners, Trent was a strategy consultant at L.E.K. Consulting in Los Angeles. Trent began his career at ExxonMobil as a part of their controllers’ organization. His experience includes working on a variety of private equity due diligences, growth strategy studies, and M&A integration projects. Trent graduated from Brigham Young University with a B.S. in Finance from the Marriott School of Business.

 

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