Insight from John Huhn of Compass Group Equity Partners

Fund Flow

On this premiere episode of Fund Flow, a new show from McGuireWoods for emerging managers, host Jon Finger sits down with John Huhn, founder and managing partner of Compass Group Equity Partners, to discuss independent sponsorships, committed funds, and overall business practices.

John began his professional life as an engineer, but he’s more than made up for his lack of financial degree with his entrepreneurial spirit, willingness to always face a new challenge, and 30 years of experience.

“We like to say that we're operating engineers more than financial engineers. We really partner with our portfolio companies and help build and grow great businesses, and take them to the next level of success,” John says.

John discusses the early challenges he and his team faced following the independent sponsor model. While they were still meeting their clients’ needs, the work became difficult on the administrative end with so many different investors, which led to their switching to a fixed pool of committed funds.

During this episode, John breaks down his company’s successful business strategies while offering ways for emerging managers to make it in a competitive market. What he believes makes the Compass Group Equity Partners unique is the combination of a geographic focus, a sector focus, a founder focus, and a target profile — and, of course, doing all four things well. Everyone, and every company, thinks they’re special, but John provides pointed direction for how to actually stand out.

💡 Featured Guest 💡

Name: John Huhn

What he does: John is the founder and managing partner at the Compass Group Equity Partners. With more than 30 years of experience, John has been involved in transactions that represent over 3 billion dollars.

Organization: Compass Group Equity Partners

Connect: LinkedIn

🗝️ Key Points 🗝️

Top takeaways from this episode

★ The independent sponsor model might not be sustainable. According to John, the independent sponsor model created some administrative challenges, and his team found themselves spending too much time dealing with board members and investor groups rather than working in tandem with the portfolio companies to help them grow.

★ Whatever you do, do it well. Standing out in the world of fund management is difficult, but John knows that following your own business model, proving your success, and doing all aspects of your job well is key to success.

★ Really choose a partner that best fits your plan. John and the Compass Group used a placement agent to find their ideal investors. Set your criteria and put work into finding the right placement agent, so that the end result is the perfect fit for you.

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