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Investment Team:
Rational Equity is privileged to have the trust of world-class investors with whom we maintain a close partnership. Our partners provide a unique and complementary mix of skills built on successful and extensive operating and investment experience. The investment team is composed of leading private equity firms, successful CEOs and seasoned executives.
Stan Baratz Graham Weaver
Kent Skidmore PJ Nora
Bill Egan Blake Nixon
Craig Burr Tom Cassutt
Dave Lazier William N. Thorndike, Jr.
Rich Kelley Scott Kellett
Dennis Bergstrom Dave Carver
William Stevenson Rick Bauerly
Institutional Investors:
Search Fund Partners
Alpine Investors
KCA Partners
Housatonic Partners
Granite Equity Partners
The Rahn Group
The Cambria Group
Profiles:
Stan Baratz
Stan Baratz is the founder and president of Baratz Financial, Inc., a Minneapolis-based company specializing in the private placement of debt and equity for growing Midwestern companies. Prior to founding Baratz Financial, he served as a partner and executive vice president of Minnesota's largest full-service real estate firm, Welsh Companies. During his tenure at Welsh Companies, the company grew to become the largest property management firm in the state with over 16 million sq. ft. of industrial, office, retail, and multifamily properties under management. In addition, Baratz arranged over $400 million in permanent and construction loans and oversaw the company's many syndication efforts and supervised over $100 million in acquisition and disposition activities. Prior to joining Welsh Companies, Baratz was the senior vice president of Northland Financial Co. where he originated, underwrote and placed over $450 million in commercial real estate transactions. Baratz received his MBA from the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management and his B.A. from American University.
Bill Egan
Bill is a founder and General Partner of Alta Communications. He founded Alta's predecessor firm, Burr, Egan, Deleage & Co., in 1979, and has identified and backed several of America's leading growth companies in the information technology, life sciences, and communications industries. Prior to founding Burr, Egan, Deleage & Co., Bill was a Partner at TA Associates. Bill began his career as a Manager of Venture Capital for New England Enterprise Capital Corporation. He is past President and Chairman of the National Venture Capital Association, a Trustee of Fairfield University, and a Trustee of the University of Pennsylvania, and a Graduate Board Member of The Wharton School. Bill is also a member of the Board of Directors of New Times Holdings, LLC, AAA Entertainment, LLC, dsd Communications, and Cephalon, Inc. Bill received a degree in Economics from Fairfield University and an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Finance.
Craig Burr
Mr. Burr, no relation to Jeremy Burr, has devoted his career almost exclusively to venture capital and private equity activities, having co-founded Burr, Egan, Deleage & Co. in 1979. Previously, Mr. Burr was a Partner at TA Associates. He has been a member of the Board of Directors of the New England Venture Capital Association and serves on the Boards of Directors of several private companies. Mr. Burr received his BA, cum laude, from Harvard College and his MBA from Harvard Business School.
Rich Kelley
Rich Kelley has been involved in numerous small businesses and start-up companies as an operator, owner, and investor. His varied experience includes: CFO of Score Learning Centers, CEO of San Jose Giants, General Partner of two small hotels (Stanford Terrace Inn and Lake Merritt Hotel), developer of houses and subdivisions, owner of office buildings, investor in successful tech start-ups (Coinstar, PLX Technology, Corcept Therapeutics). He has also invested in many limited partnerships, including venture funds, and has been involved as a search fund investor since 1994. Rich has an MBA from Stanford and a B.A. from Stanford.
Dave Carver
Dave has extensive experience as an operating manager in a variety of high technology companies, both public and private. He has bought and sold companies, and raised significant venture capital. He was CEO of HiFive Networks, Executive VP and GM of Network Associates, Chief Operating Officer of Network General, and served for 19 years in various executive positions in the Hewlett-Packard Company. He spent one and a half years as an EIR at Institutional Venture Partners, an early stage venture capital firm, finding and developing internet investment opportunities. Dave has an MBA from Stanford and a BS in mathematics from the University of Arkansas.
William Stevenson
Prior to joining Building Engines Mr. Stevenson was partner at a boutique commercial real estate firm in Boston, helping to acquire and manage commercial real estate assets in the Northeast. In addition Mr. Stevenson has 8 years of software product management and marketing experience ranging from angle funded startups to publicly traded software firms. He managed projects, including international equity trading systems, asset allocation and modeling software and college application automation process. Mr. Stevenson holds an MBA from Babson College, a Masters from Yale University and a BS from Union College.
Kent Skidmore
Kent is a seasoned high tech sales executive with over 25 years experience. Over his career, Kent has spent a great deal of time immersed in the $22 billion dollar Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) market. He has led a number of highly successful sales team’s consummating numerous multi-million dollar deals with both mid-tier and fortune 1,000 companies. Currently Kent is a sales executive with a leading Oracle implementation services partner where he has exceeded quota each of the past 5 years. Prior to Oracle, Kent was Director of Sales for Corio, one of the first companies to market an On-Demand/SaaS software model for PeopleSoft and Siebel applications. Kent is credited as one of the key sales executives who laid the foundation for Corio in the new emerging On-Demand software sector. Prior to Corio, Kent was Director of Sales at Interactive Group during its rapid ascension in the ERP space. While at Interactive Group, Kent led the western U.S. sales team which was instrumental in taking the company from sub $10 million to over $50 million in revenue. Eventually acquired by Epicor, Interactive Group was considered one of the foundation pieces of Epicor’s current $350 million dollar annual revenue. Kent is originally from Detroit, MI and graduated with a BA degree from Michigan State University. He has spent a majority of his career located in Irvine, California where he lives with his wife Shari. Kent has a son Craig and daughter Jennifer and enjoys the outdoors.
Graham Weaver
Graham Weaver has spent his career in private equity investing. Before founding Alpine Investors, Graham originated and led the acquisitions of five micro-cap private companies within the label industry. Previously, Graham was a Vice President at Oak Hill Capital Management, the private equity investment arm for the Robert M. Bass organization. Prior to Oak Hill, Graham worked at American Securities Capital Partners, a private equity firm focused on the middle-market. Graham began his career at Morgan Stanley Capital Partners, Morgan Stanley's private equity fund. Graham graduated with highest honors from Princeton University and received an MBA from Stanford University's Graduate School of Business. Graham was captain of Princeton University's 1994 National Championship Crew Team.
Scott Kellett
Mr. Kellett is a Vice President-Financial Consultant, Accredited Wealth Manager (AWM) with RBC Dain Rauscher. He is also a member of the firm's Consulting Group. Scott joined RBC Dain in 1987 and advises individuals and corporations on investment matters. He received his BA in Finance from the University of Minnesota, Duluth and his AWM designation from the Academy of Multidisciplinary Practice, Inc. which is accredited by the Estate and Wealth Strategies Institute at Michigan State University. Scott lives with his wife and daughter in Esko, MN.
Rick Bauerly
Rick organized Granite Equity Partners in May of 2002. As Managing Partner, he leads the Firm’s operating activities. Early in his career, Rick was a Business Analyst with Deloitte & Touche, working with a variety of companies in the areas of strategic, financial, and operational planning. Later, as an operating manager at Bauerly Companies, Rick helped integrate a series of prior acquisitions into a cohesive business unit, and helped his division develop strategies, a new team-based structure, and new business systems. As Director of Central Services at Bauerly Companies, he helped organize the company into five strategic business units, and managed the related corporate functions. And, in 2000, Rick founded Venture Allies, a management consulting firm. Rick helped build the firm’s core capabilities and advised clients in strategic planning and systems for execution. Rick serves on the Board of Dezurik Water Controls, the Centracare Health System, and the Anderson Entrepreneurial Center. He is a past president of the Saint John’s University Alumni Association. Graduating with honors from Saint John’s University with degrees in Economics and Management, Rick went on to earn a Masters in Business Administration from the Harvard Business School and a Masters in Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
PJ Nora
Mr. Nora was a founding member of one of Wall Street's preeminent restructuring groups. As a director with Smith Barney Shearson, and previously with Drexel Burnham Lambert, he has structured and negotiated transactions including exchange offers, pre-packaged bankruptcies and specialized M & A. Highlights of Mr. Nora's transactions include the $1.3 billion pre-packaged bankruptcy of SCI Television, including a $100 million new equity infusion and the purchase of an additional $165 million television station; the merger via a troubled debt buyout of Lear Petroleum by BP America; the refinancing and restructuring of Gillett Holdings and Vail Associates including a $40 million tax-exempt financing and a $40 million new equity investment; the restructuring of Harvest Foods and the pre-packaged bankruptcy for West Point - Pepperell. Previously, Mr. Nora was a senior consultant with Arthur Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) developing strategic information systems. Mr. Nora holds an M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School and a bachelor's degree in Human Biology from Stanford University.
William N. Thorndike, Jr.
Mr. Thorndike is Managing General Partner of Housatonic Partners (housatonicpartners.com), a private equity firm he co-founded in 1994. He is a graduate of Harvard College and the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Mr. Thorndike is a Director of Access Information Management; Alta Colleges; Continental Fire & Safety Services, LLC; Carillon Assisted Living, LLC; Rapid Communications, LLC; and a Trustee of the Groton School; the Boston Athenaeum and, the College of the Atlantic.
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