perspectives

Our point of view

Black and white photo of a building facade with repeating diamond-shaped patterns and sharp shadows.

Whitepapers

The Business Underneath

Data shows the business you run. Rarely the one on the door.

How to Build a Modern PE Firm

Six changes that separate a firm from a fund

The Claymore Way

Marketing is the last thing we fix, not the first

Hostage Funds

A new framework for PE governance failure

The Brand Tax

Why the cut you make in year one is the problem you inherit in year three

Bridging the Gap

Why marketing reports never reach the metric the deal team paid for

The Gathering Storm

Why private equity's crisis is deeper than it looks, and what it will take to survive

Marketing as an Asset Class

The PE operating framework that treats a portfolio company’s marketing engine (data, stack, acquisition system) as a balance-sheet asset priced at exit.

Applying Cialdini’s Principles of Influence to Digital Marketing

Reading Cialdini Wrong

The principles work. The way the digital industry uses them does not.

Perspective

Why is the Operating Partner role challenged?

Most operating partners face a fundamental constraint: influence, not authority. Even when the firm owns the portfolio company, they still approach the CEO as an outsider. If the CEO doesn't see the value, they move on. No mandate, no ownership, no accountability for execution.