Collaborative Ecosystem®
Senior Advisors & Operating Partners
40+ senior advisors and operating partners provide industry experience, deal sourcing, portfolio support and nationwide coverage — a force-multiplier on the core team.
40+
Advisors & Partners ¹
Nationwide
Coverage
Aligned
Co-Investors
Executive backgrounds include former:
- Founding Chief Risk Officer of GSO / Blackstone and Chief Risk Officer of Credit Suisse Alternative Investments
- General Counsel – U.S. Government’s Small Business Administration (SBA) and Investment Committee Member – SBA’s SBIC program
- Managing Directors – Alvarez & Marsal, a leading restructuring firm
- Chief Credit Officer – Fitch Ratings
- CEO – Institutional Limited Partners Association (ILPA)
- Chairperson of Board – Shire (a formerly $45 Billion publicly traded pharmaceuticals company prior to acquisition by Takeda)
- Managing Director & Head of the U.S. and Canada Institutional Client Business – BlackRock ($8.5T AUM)
- President – 3M Investment Management Corporation ($40B AUM retirement plan manager for 3M Company)
- Chief Investment Officer – Employees Retirement System of Texas ($36B AUM)
- President & CEO, John Hancock (~$300B AUMA at his time of leadership)
Our Network
Senior Advisors
C. Shawn Bookin
Senior Advisor
Greenville, SC
- Managing Director, Guggenheim Partners ($300B AUM)
- Managing Director & Co-Portfolio Manager, TCW Group ($200B AUM)
- Senior Investment Director, the Australian Trade Commission
Dr. Lev Borodovsky
Senior Advisor
New York, NY
- Founding Chief Risk Officer, GSO / Blackstone
- Chief Risk Officer, Credit Suisse Alternatives
- Author of The Daily Shot, a graphical macro/markets newsletter (formerly published by the Wall Street Journal)
James R. Boyle
Senior Advisor
Boston, MA
- President & CEO, John Hancock ($870B AUMA U.S. subsidiary of Manulife Financial)
- President & CEO, Foresters Financial ($12B+ AUM)
- Senior Advisor, Blackstone Insurance Solutions
Maury Bradsher
Senior Advisor
Washington D.C.
- 25 years of private equity and operating company experience
- Chairman & CEO of District Equity, a private equity firm serving the defense, healthcare and cyber-security industries
- Founder of Azimuth Business Solutions, a systems engineering and software development firm
Deirdre Breakenridge
Senior Advisor
New York, NY
- CEO, Pure Performance Communications & PR Strategist
- Executive Media & Presentation Trainer
- Seven-time Published business Book Author
- University Professor & LinkedIn Learning Instructor
Marc Brookman
Senior Advisor
New York, NY
- CEO of North America, Schroders (LSE: SDR, ~$950 billion AUM)
- Head of Institutional Wealth Management ($400 billion AUM), Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS)
- Head of Retirement Services, Citigroup (NYSE: C)
Melford Carter
Senior Advisor
Austin, TX
- Principal, GCM Grosvenor, Private Markets group ($75B+ AUM) (NASDAQ: GCMG)
- Co-Founder & Former Vice President, Denali Incorporated
- Senior Vice President, Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce
- Senior Marketing Officer, EnviroTech (Baker Hughes)
Michelle Caruso-Cabrera
Senior Advisor
New York, NY
- Contributor, Anchor and Chief International Correspondent, CNBC
- Chief Executive Officer, MCC Global Enterprises
- Board experience includes Wendy’s, Del Real Foods and Ballet Hispánico
Peter Cieszko
Senior Advisor
New Canaan, CT
- President/CEO, Evergreen Asset Management
- Former Chief Client Officer & Head of Enterprise Strategic Relationships, American Century Investments (~$200B AUM)
- Former President of Fidelity Investment Institutional Services (division of ~$450B AUM Fidelity Investments)
Paul Efron
Senior Advisor
Palm Beach, FL
- 40+ years of leadership experience in investing, investment banking, capital markets and corporate governance
- General Partner, Head of Leveraged Finance, Chair of Credit Markets Committee, Firmwide Capital Committee Member, Goldman Sachs
- Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Pomona College
Steve DeAngelis
Senior Advisor
Philadelphia, PA
- Head of U.S. Advisor Solutions at Goldman Sachs Asset Management
- Executive Vice President and Head of Distribution at FS Investments
- Co-Founder of ADVISORport; grew to over $100B and sold to a division of PNC Financial
T. J. Della Pietra
Senior Advisor
Greenwich, CT
- Global Head – Citi Holdings, a division of $2+ trillion global commercial and investment bank, Citigroup
- CEO, COO and Chief Investment Officer, Citigroup Japan
- Divisional General Counsel roles, Citigroup and J.P. Morgan
Dennis Duerst, CFA
Senior Advisor
St. Paul, MN
- Former President – 3M Investment Management Corporation, the ~$40 Billion AUM retirement plan manager for 3M Company (NYSE: MMM)
- Former Member of Investment Advisory Council – Minnesota State Board of Investment
- Founding Board Member of the Committee on the Investment of Employee Benefit Assets (CIEBA)
Erik Falk
Senior Advisor
Chicago region
- Senior Executive at Magnetar Capital
- Former Global Head of Private Credit, KKR
- Former Global Head of Special Situations, Deutsche Bank
Peter Freire
Senior Advisor
Washington, DC
- Former CEO of the Institutional Limited Partners Association (ILPA)
- Former Managing Director and Executive Committee Member, World Economic Forum (WEF)
Stephen Fromm
Senior Advisor
New York NY
- Vice Chairman of the Financial Institutions Group
- Head of Americas Insurance at Deutsche Bank
- Head of Insurance M&A at Morgan Stanley
David A. Javdan
Senior Advisor
Washington, D.C.
- Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal
- SBIC Investment Committee Member
- General Counsel, Small Business Administration
- Board of directors of the New York State Banking Department
Thomas Jones
Senior Advisor
New York, NY
- Group Co-Head and Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal
- Former Head of Corporate Lending in the U.S., JP Morgan
- Board Member, National Humanities Center
William J. Kelly, CAIA
Senior Advisor
Boston, MA
- Former CEO, CAIA Association
- Former CEO, Boston Partners ($107B AUM)
- Independent Director and Audit Chair, Artisan Partners Funds
- Founder and Managing Member, Educational Alpha, LLC
Dr. Josh Lerner
Senior Advisor
Boston, MA
- Jacob H. Schiff Professor, Harvard Business School
- Managing Partner and Co-Founder, Bella Private Markets
- Founder & Director, Private Capital Research Institute
Sara Mathew
Senior Advisor
New York, NY
- Former Chair & CEO, Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE: DNB)
- Board Member & Chair of Human Resources Committee, State Street (NYSE: STT)
- Board member and Chair of the Compensation and Human Capital Committee at Dropbox (NASDAQ DBX)
- Board Member, Carnival (NYSE: CCL)
George Mattson
Senior Advisor
Palm Beach, FL
- 35+ years of private investing, investment banking and corporate board / governance experience
- 10-year Partner & Co-Head of the Global Industrials Group, Goldman Sachs
- Public and private board experience including Delta Air Lines and Air France KLM Group
Jay Meschke
Senior Advisor
Kansas City, MO
- President of EFL Associates and CBIZ Talent & Compensation Solutions
- University of Kansas School of Business Board of Advisors
Charles Millard
Senior Advisor
New York, NY
- Director & CEO, United States Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation ($100B in assets)
- Managing Director and Head of Pension Relations, Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C)
- Pensions / public policy thought leadership at Yale University and in the media
John Olert
Senior Advisor
New York, NY
- 30 years of financial services experience
- Former Chief Credit Officer, Chief Compliance Officer & Global Head of Structured Credit at Fitch Ratings
- Former roles at MetLife & Chase Manhattan Bank
Gilbert Palter
Senior Advisor
Toronto, Canada
- Chairman & CEO – EGADS Group (a family office investment firm)
- Co-Founder, Managing Partner & Chief Investment Officer – EdgeStone Capital Partners ($2.5B AUM private equity firm)
- McKinsey & Co (Consulting) & Morgan Stanley and Smith Barney (Investment Banking)
Michael Patchen, CFA
Senior Advisor
Greenwich, CT
- Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Colleva (AI Software Company)
- Former Partner & Chief Risk Officer, AQR Capital Management ($140B+ AUM)
- Former Managing Director, Carlson Capital
Dr. Anthony Pesco
Senior Advisor
New York, NY
- Deputy Head, Strategic Risk Management, Credit Suisse
- Global Head of Derivatives, Credit Suisse
- Global Head of Derivative Products, Santander Bank
Frank Porcelli
Senior Advisor
New York, NY
- Head of U.S. Wealth Advisory and Operating Committee, BlackRock
- Head of Corporate Asset Management Services, Goldman Sachs
- Head of Institutional Sales, Putman Investments
Dr. Donald M. Raymond
Senior Advisor
- Chief Investment Strategist, Qatar Investment Authority ($500B+ AUM)
- Chief Investment Strategist, CPP Investments ($500B+ AUM)
- Board and Chair of Investment Committee, Great West LifeCo ($600B+ AUM; TSX: GWO)
Angela Rodell
Senior Advisor
Juneau, Alaska
- Former Chief Executive Officer, Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation ($80B AUM)
- Former Commissioner, Alaska Department of Revenue
- Founder & Principal, Rodell Consulting
Christian Scott
Senior Advisor
San Antonio, TX
- CEO & Founder, Tantalum Labs – Cybersecurity SaaS & Services
- 20+ years in technology leadership, cybersecurity, and IT infrastructure
- Former MD of Cybersecurity, Abacus Group
- Led 2,500+ cybersecurity engagements across global financial services
Lloyd A. Sprung
Senior Advisor
New York, NY
- 20+ years of private debt, restructuring and financial advisory experience
- Managing Director and Head of Restructuring and Private Debt Advisory, UBS
- Senior Managing Director – Restructuring & Debt Advisory, Evercore
Gregory L. Summe
Senior Advisor
Naples, FL
- Vice Chairman of Global Buyout, Partner & Operating Committee Member, Carlyle Group
- Chairman, CEO & President, PerkinElmer Corp (NYSE: PKI)
- Partner, McKinsey & Company, Inc
Tom Tull, CFA
Senior Advisor
Dallas, TX
- Former Chief Investment Officer – Employees Retirement System of Texas ($35B AUM)
- Former Founding Partner, Gulfstream Global Investors (sold to WestLB in 2001)
- Former council member of Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA)
- U.S. Army Veteran who served in Korea and Vietnam
Douglas Waggoner
Senior Advisor
Palm Beach, FL
- 40 years of financial and executive management experience
- Former Managing Director and Head of the US and Canada Institutional Client Business, BlackRock
- Investment Committee and Board of Directors Member, University of Nebraska Foundation
Hands-On Support
Operating Partners
Partners who work directly with portfolio companies to drive growth and value.
Mark Froehlich
Operating Partner
Birmingham, AL
- Founder & Principal of Impact Partners Global
- Former Treasurer of Thompson Tractor Company
- Former Vice President of Thompson Investments
Billy Goldstein
Telecom & Communications Advisor
New York, NY
- Managing Director, Co-Head of Global Satellite, & Head of Wireless Tower Sectors, Goldman Sachs
- Head of North American Telecom, Macquarie Capital
Joyce Hrinya
Operating Partner
Kansas City, MO
- Founder & Managing Partner of A & R Strategy Partners
- Managing Director & Operating Partner at Z Capital Partners
- CEO for Famous Brands International
Isaiah Kacyvenski
Media and Sports Advisor
Boston, MA
- Founder & Managing Partner, Will Ventures
- Co-Founder and Former Managing Director, Sports Innovation Lab
- Former Professional Athlete in the NFL (3-time Captain of the Seattle Seahawks)
Michael Kalen, ChFC, CLU
Insurance & Financial Services Advisor
Hartford, CT
- CEO of Covr Financial Technologies
- President & CEO of Futurity First Financial Corp.
- Board of Directors, Phoenix Life Insurance Company
Susan Kilsby
Healthcare & Consumer Advisor
Sarasota, FL
- Director of Diageo, Unilever, BHP, Fortune Brands Home and Security
- Former Chairman of Shire plc
- Former Senior Advisor at Credit Suisse
Wendell Reilly
Media & Insurance Advisor
Atlanta, GA
- Chairman, Berman Capital Advisors
- Partner, Peachtree Capital Partners
- CFO, Haas Publishing Co. & Lamar Advertising
- Board Member, Brown and Brown, Inc. (NYSE: BRO)
Salem Shuchman
Operating Partner
Philadelphia, PA
- Founder & Managing Partner, Entrepreneur Partners
- Senior Partner, Apax Partners ($12B AUM)
- Principal, Odyssey Partners
Star Mountain has additional Senior Advisors and Operating Partners not listed.
The Value
How They Extend the Platform
Deal Sourcing
Proprietary origination through decades of industry relationships across the U.S. lower middle-market.
Portfolio Support
Hands-on operational guidance, board service and value-creation for portfolio companies.
Strategic Guidance
Sector expertise informing underwriting, diligence and investment-committee decisions.
Network Access
A nationwide ecosystem connecting management teams, sponsors and capital.
Join Our Network
We are always looking to expand our network of senior advisors and operating partners.
¹ Advisor & partner count is as of 9/30/26.