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Baird Private Equity is one of the only private equity firms with the breadth and depth of global experience and resources focused on smaller, high-potential companies. The Baird Private Equity team includes over 60 investment and operating professional operating in the U.S., Europe and Asia. Baird Private Equity is sector focused with deep industry knowledge and a successful track record of investing in Business Services, Manufactured Products and Healthcare Companies. Over 30 investment professionals in the United States, Europe and Asia are complemented by operating partners and senior advisors. Our dedicated team of 15 operating professionals in China and India allow us to provide our portfolio companies with unique access to Asia sales/distribution, sourcing, and manufacturing opportunities. Learn more about us below.
Baird Venture Partners is also supported by a Healthcare Advisory Board and a Business Services Advisory Board.
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Director
312-609-4911
Paul Carbone is Director of the Private Equity Group for Robert W. Baird & Co. Baird Private Equity makes venture capital, growth equity and buyout investments in smaller, high potential companies in the US, Europe and Asia. Paul chairs each of Baird Private Equity’s fund businesses. Since 1999, Paul also has served as Managing Partner and Chairman of the Investment Committee for Baird Capital Partners and Baird Venture Partners. Prior to 1999, Paul was Co-Director of Investment Banking responsible for Baird's mergers and acquisitions advisory practice. Prior to joining Baird in 1994, Paul was a Senior Vice President in the Investment Banking Group at Kidder, Peabody & Co. Paul is a member of the board of directors of Baird Financial Corporation, Robert W. Baird Group Limited, Baird Capital Partners Europe, Baird Asia Limited, the Illinois Venture Capital Association, and the Wisconsin Technology Council. Paul also is on the board of directors of several civic, cultural and charitable organizations including the Lyric Opera of Chicago (Executive Committee and Treasurer), and the University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center (Co-Chairman).
He is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of The College of the University of Chicago and a member of its Visiting Committee. Paul received his MBA from the Harvard Business School.
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Partner
312-609-5499
Mike joined Baird Venture Partners in 2006 and concentrates on healthcare and life science investments, focusing on medical devices, life science tools, diagnostics and healthcare services. Prior to joining Baird Venture Partners in 2006, he worked with Advent Venture Partners, a life sciences tech and VC firm based in London, UK. Prior to Advent, he served as a Director of R&D at Cortek, Inc., a medical devices company in Dedham, Mass, where he was responsible for the development of three spinal orthopedic products. Mike is currently a member of the board of directors of Palyon Corporation, PathCentral, Inc., and Veniti, Inc. Previously, he was a board member of Interlace Medical before its acquisition by Hologic in 2011. Mike is also a member of the Rush University Medical Center Associates Board and is a Catalyst for the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) Accelerator Program. Mike received a B.S. from the University of California Berkeley and a Ph.D. in biophysical chemistry from Stanford University. He also conducted a postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard University.
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Partner
312-609-4701
Jim joined Baird Venture Partners in 2003 and focuses on investment opportunities in the business services sector. Jim is currently a member of the board of directors of ClickFuel, Coalfire Systems, InsideTrack, Montage Talent, PayChoice and Pinstripe. Prior to joining BVP, Jim was with Madison Dearborn Partners, where he focused on early stage venture capital investments in the communications services sector. He began his career in Salomon Smith Barney’s investment banking group, where he participated in numerous equity and fixed income financings and mergers and acquisitions. Jim is a member of the Illinois Venture Capital Association, a Charter Member of TiE Midwest, an Executive-in-Residence with the Chicagoland Entrepreneurial Center, and a member of the Leadership Council of The Posse Foundation. He received a BA in Economics, summa cum laude, from Duke University and an MBA with distinction from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
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Partner
312-609-4706
Benedict joined Baird Private Equity in 2000 and concentrates on investments in the Business Services sector, with an emphasis on information services and financial technology. Benedict is a current member of the board of directors at ALI Solutions, Arroweye Solutions, edo Interactive, Fellon McCord, High Street Partners, Sittercity and SnagAJob. He has also worked directly with 15 other investments of Baird Private Equity, including Axcelerant, HireRight, NimbleGen Systems, and PayChoice. Prior to BVP, Benedict worked for KPMG LLP in the information, communications and entertainment group within the assurance practice of the Chicago office, where he focused on the software and telecommunications sectors. He received his BBA, with a major in Accountancy, from the University of Notre Dame. Benedict is a member of the Illinois Venture Capital Association, Irish Angels and Chicago Children's Museum Auxiliary Board.
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Partner
312-609-5494
Pete joined Baird Venture Partners in 2004 and concentrates on healthcare and life science investments, focusing in medical devices, life science tools, diagnostics, and healthcare services. Prior to joining Baird Venture Partners, he spent five years at Vector Fund Management, a life-sciences venture capital firm, investing broadly across the medical device and biotechnology fields. Prior to Vector, he spent over six years in corporate finance, mergers & acquisitions and merchant banking at JP Morgan & Co. and Banc One Capital Corporation. Pete is currently a Director of Celleration, CoAxia, Core Essence Orthpaedics and Molecular Imaging Research. He is a former Board Chairman and Director of Accuri Cytometers and a former Director of Arbor Surgical Technologies, PharMEDium Healthcare Corporation and NimbleGen Systems. Pete is the founding Chair of AdvaMed’s National Venture Capital Advisory Board and also serves on the Boards of the Mid-America Healthcare Investors Network (MHIN) and the Children's Memorial Hospital Foundation. He received his undergraduate degree in Business Administration and Finance from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and his MBA from the Amos Tuck School at Dartmouth College.
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Analyst
312-609-5486
Momei provides analytical support to Baird Venture Partners’ healthcare and business services investment efforts. Prior to joining Baird in 2010, Momei worked at Independence Equity, a start-up venture capital firm in Chicago. She began her career at Merrill Lynch as an analyst in the Healthcare investment banking group in New York. Momei holds a BS in Computer Engineering and a BS in Finance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She also speaks fluent Mandarin.
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Operating Partner & Advisory Board Chairman
312-609-5497
Jim is Chairman of the Advisory Board of Baird Venture Partners and a member of the Advisory Board of Baird Capital Partners. He is also an Operating Partner for Baird Private Equity.
Jim retired in 2003 as co-founder and Managing Partner of Marquette Venture Partners. He has been involved in the venture capital industry for twenty-five years.
His venture capital career began in 1980 at First Chicago Venture Capital (the principals of which later formed Madison Dearborn Partners), one of the largest and most active private equity investors in the industry, and later as a founding general partner of Wind Point Partners, a Midwest-based private equity fund.
Jim has been active in the formation, financing and development of early stage companies; the expansion financing and redirection of later stage companies; and the leveraged acquisition of existing businesses. He is Managing Partner of Redfish Partners, L.P., a venture investment and consulting company. Jim is former Chairman of Marshall Erdman & Associates, Inc., a former Director of PharMEDium Healthcare Corporation and former Chairman of the Board of Directors of CollaGenex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
He is a graduate of the University of Michigan and earned a MBA degree from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
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Director of Portfolio Management
312-609-4930
Rob Ospalik is a Partner with Baird Private Equity. He is responsible for Baird Private Equity's Portfolio Management Program. He joined Baird Private Equity in 1999 after two years in Baird’s Investment Banking Group. Rob previously served as a Certified Public Accountant at the Price Waterhouse LLP audit and business advisory services practice in St. Louis. He is a director of Pentagon Technologies Group, and graduated with a BS in Accounting from Washington University in St. Louis.
Rob also serves on the Board of Directors for the Old Town School of Folk Music.
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Chief Administrative Officer
312-609-4664
Scott is Chief Administrative Officer for Baird Capital Partners and Baird Venture Partners. Prior to joining Baird in 2005, Scott served as Chief Financial Officer for LaSalle Capital Group, a Chicago-based middle-market private equity firm. In addition, Scott has worked extensively as a service provider to private equity firms as a member of Ernst & Young's Transaction Advisory Services group. Scott's experience also includes commercial banking and audit. Scott received his MBA from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.
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Director of Investor Relations & Business Development
312-609-4677
Aaron manages Baird Private Equity’s relationships with current and prospective investors in the United States, Europe and Asia and oversees its business development, communication, sales and marketing activities. Aaron is also involved in broader strategic and new product development initiatives. Aaron joined Baird Private Equity in 2008 and has thirteen years of private equity and entrepreneurial experience. He was previously a Principal at private equity fund-of-funds manager Muller & Monroe, where he was a member of the firm’s investment team and helped manage the firm’s investor relationships. Prior to Muller & Monroe, Aaron spent time with two venture capital firms and was Director of Marketing at a venture-backed software company. Aaron began his career as a James H. Dunn Fellow in the press office of former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and received his MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
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Executive-in-Residence & Operating Partner
312-609-4700
Mohan is an Executive-In-Residence with Baird Venture Partners’ business services team and an Operating Partner with Baird Capital Partners. Mohan works with the team to source and evaluate new investment opportunities and contribute value-added operating experience to portfolio companies. Prior to joining Baird Private Equity, Mohan worked at Apple as a Vice President reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, where he led a team focused on establishing offshore operations in India and Eastern Europe. Prior to Apple, Mohan was Vice President and Managing Director of Dell International Services, where he was responsible for establishing and rapidly scaling Dell’s India operations. Within a two-year period, Mohan launched and grew Dell’s India operation to over 6,400 employees in three cities and four campuses. He also previously served as Vice President of Customer Experience for Dell’s Americas business unit, and held high-level, executive roles at Cummins Engine, Honeywell and Xerox. Mohan earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Minnesota.
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Operating Partner
312-609-4700
Jamie Bellanca joined Baird Private Equity as an Operating Partner in 2010. In this capacity, Bellanca provides guidance on technology strategy and development, operational refinement and investment evaluation in the Business Services sector. Prior to Baird Private Equity, Bellanca was the Vice President of Advanced Technology for Cleversafe, where he led the technology vision, built the patent program and drove the architecture and development of their global storage platform. Bellanca was previously a regional principal/national director at Lante Corporation, a publicly-held software and technology consultancy. Lante purchased his award-winning internet design and development company ingenious, inc. in 1999. Bellanca has led numerous successful technology product teams, receiving accolades including a 2008 Wall Street Journal technology innovation award (software), a Business Week Chicago Innovations Award, a Storage Visions Award, and a Webby Award. Bellanca holds a BS in Interdisciplinary Science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and is based in Chicago.
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Operating Partner
414- 298-7658
Don Layden joined Baird Private Equity as an Operating Partner in 2011. In this capacity Don will work with BVP to source, evaluate and oversee investment opportunities in the Business Services sector, with a particular emphasis on financial technology, business process outsourcing and healthcare services companies. Previously, Layden was President of the International Group and Senior Executive Vice President of Corporate Development and Strategy, General Counsel and Secretary of Metavante. While there, he was instrumental in structuring the spin-off from Marshall & Ilsley Corporation (NYSE:MI) in 2007, a transaction in which Metavante became a public company. He also successfully negotiated the merger of Metavante Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:MV) into Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. (NYSE:FIS) in October 2010. He serves on the boards of Firstsource Solutions, Online Resources, TxVia and Catholic Financial Life. Layden graduated from Marquette University and received his JD with honors from Marquette University Law School. Active in the Milwaukee community, Layden serves on the boards of United Way, Alverno College, Milwaukee Art Museum, Summerfest, Milwaukee Area Workforce Investment Board, Schools That Can Milwaukee, Nativity Jesuit Middle School and Three Harbors Council of the Boy Scouts. He also serves nationally on the boards of the Consuelo Foundation and Ways to Work.
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Operating Partner
414-298-7658
Frederick Robertson joined Baird Private Equity as an Operating Partner in 2011. Fred will work closely with the BVP life sciences team. Robertson recently retired as Chief Executive Officer and Director of TomoTherapy Inc. Prior to joining TomoTherapy, Robertson served in a variety of roles in the medical field including Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology at the Medical College of Wisconsin, President and Chief Executive Officer of GE Marquette Medical Systems, and later as Chief Clinical Officer of GE Medical Systems. He also previously held management positions with Marquette Medical Systems, including President and Chief Executive Officer. Robertson received his MBA from San Diego State University and earned his MD from University of Wisconsin Medical School. He serves on the University of Wisconsin Foundation Board of Directors and the Morgridge Institute for Research Board of Trustees.
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