Berenson Capital Announces Operating Executive Program
Berenson Capital, a division of Berenson, is pleased to announce the formation of its Operating Executive Program. Since its inception more than thirty years ago, Berenson has aligned itself with seasoned executives to support its investment activities. The Operating Executive Program represents the formalization of a key tenet to Berenson’s investment approach: partnering with talented industry executives throughout the investment life cycle, from sourcing and diligence of investment opportunities to creation of value post-close. The inaugural program members are Marc Eigner, David Fetterolf, and Ron Kasner, each of whom is a proven operator within the technology industry.
“We are thrilled to welcome Marc, David, and Ron to the Berenson team,” says Mohammad Ansari, Berenson President. “Each brings extensive industry and operational expertise to the role and will provide our investment professionals and portfolio company management teams with hands-on support to fast-track value creation.”
These executives will be partnering with the Berenson team to target B2B software and tech-enabled services investment opportunities in the following areas:
- Compliance & Life Sciences (Marc Eigner)
- Healthcare (David Fetterolf)
- Human Capital Management (Ron Kasner)
Compliance and Life Sciences Technology – Marc Eigner
Companies of all sizes are finding it increasingly difficult to maintain a regulatory compliant organization given the growing magnitude and complexity of the regulatory environment. Compliance mandates were historically addressed with stretched internal personnel and limited technology. There is a growing ecosystem of compliance technology businesses that have emerged over the past several years addressing all segments of the market, SMB to enterprise. Such businesses are often regulatory framework-specific with either a vertical (e.g., healthcare, financial services, etc.) or horizontal (e.g., 3rd party risk, identity) focus. The Firm is agnostic to the regulatory framework and will focus on vendors with propriety content or workflow tools that address key compliance challenges, drive business outcomes, and are positioned for accelerated growth. Within life sciences, the Firm will focus on not only compliance-related opportunities but also to vendors that are addressing critical needs across the rest of the value chain (medical affairs, commercial and clinical).
Marc has over 20 years of senior leadership experience across compliance and life sciences software businesses. Marc is known as one of the founding fathers of life sciences commercial compliance technology. As co-founder of Polaris, he led the company from inception to over $40 million in revenue before facilitating a sale to IQVIA in 2017. Marc has served more recently as the Chief Commercial Officer of H1 and the Chief Executive Officer of Anju Software. Marc’s experience includes leading companies to two successful liquidity events while managing companies in self-funded, private equity, and venture capital structures.
“Marc’s experience scaling and ultimately selling Polaris to one of the largest strategic businesses in the industry is a prime example of his leadership and operational prowess. He brings that background, as well as deep sector-level expertise, to his work with us,” says Mohammed Ansari, President of Berenson.
Healthcare Technology – David Fetterolf
The healthcare ecosystem is facing unprecedented challenges as it navigates the COVID pandemic and resulting staffing shortages across the industry. Both payers and providers alike are continuing to look to technology to improve care, drive efficiencies and reduce costs. Initially, the Firm will focus on the behavioral health subsegment of the market. The need for behavioral healthcare is soaring and there is growing recognition amongst key stakeholders that these services are a critical part of improving healthcare outcomes and reducing costs, driving expanded access and reimbursement issues. Behavioral health facilities are at the very early stage of technology adoption, providing significant opportunities for software vendors that drive better clinical or operational outcomes.
“David’s partnership with Berenson began in 2020 when he helped source Interactive Digital Solutions and MedSitter. David became Executive Chairman of those companies at close and has been instrumental in developing the strategic plan and building out the go-to-market infrastructure required to accelerate growth,” says Brendyn Grimaldi, Managing Director of Berenson.
David has nearly thirty years of experience as CEO/President of healthcare technology and service companies. He previously served as President of Stratus Video, a private equity-backed healthcare remote interpreting company, where he grew revenue to over $100 million before the company was sold to AMN Healthcare for $475 million. Before that role, David served as President of MDeverywhere, a software and revenue cycle company serving physicians and hospitals.
Human Capital Management Technology – Ron Kasner
Companies are continuing to recognize the shift toward the knowledge economy, where they gain a competitive advantage by attracting and retaining the best talent. Business leaders are looking to technology vendors to help achieve these objectives in a hyper-competitive labor market, which is evolving toward remote and hybrid work models. Our initiative will span the entire employee lifecycle, from talent acquisition to off-boarding. We are particularly interested in vendors that are either leveraging new technologies to automate HCM processes or promoting higher workplace standards to improve the employee experience.
Ron has over 20 years of executive leadership experience. He previously spent more than a decade in executive roles (including CFO, COO, and interim CEO) at SaaS talent acquisition company iCIMS, scaling the company’s annual recurring revenue from $20 million to over $250 million. Ron was also advisor to public safety software company Envisage Technologies which sold to Vector Solutions. He is currently an advisor to SEO and content marketing technology company Conductor, human resources technology company AbsenceSoft, and qualitative research software company Tetra Insights.
“Ron is an accomplished strategic and operational executive with extensive sector expertise in HCM and B2B SaaS broadly,” says Josh Woodbridge, Managing Director of Berenson. “His proven framework for scaling businesses and driving accelerated growth through to a successful exit will be invaluable to our portfolio company management teams.”
Berenson plans to expand the program over time, welcoming new executives and incorporating new subsectors of focus.