Agenda

Registration

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Chair opening remarks

Anjana Haines, Editor, Real Deals

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Keynote: How psychology helps in decision making

Cindy Yendell, Senior Partner, Culture Practice, ZRG Partners

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Opening panel: Making agility work for portcos to overcome geopolitical influences
  • What global policy shifts and political disruptions in 2025 had the biggest operational impact on PE-backed companies, and how are firms adapting?
  • How can PE firms embed agility into their value creation strategies to quickly adapt to tariff shocks and sudden regulatory changes?
  • How do GPs communicate proactively with LPs to maintain confidence during political and economic upheaval?
  • What geopolitical and economic scenarios are on the horizon in 2026 and how can portfolio companies prepare to protect value and seize opportunity?

Moderator: Timothy Spillane, Operating Partner, Three Hills

Speakers:
Lorenzo Levi, Managing Director and Operating Partner, CDPQ
Leszek Muzyczyszyn, Senior Partner, Innova Capital
Cilian Jansen Verplanke, Partner, Head of Investor Relations, Karmijn Kapitaal
Grayden Reece-Smith, Investment Principal, Aurelius Investment Advisory

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Fireside chat: How to balance value creation and protection in the deal cycle?
  • Why are critical risks like cybersecurity and compliance being uncovered too late in the deal cycle?
  • What does real cyber resilience look like in midmarket companies beyond annual audits and outsourced IT?
  • Why value erosion from security failures often stems from weak operational alignment, not just technical gaps
  • How PE firms are shifting from checklist-style reviews to internal stress testing and scenario-based risk modeling

Moderator: Walid Fakhry, Co-Managing Partner, Soho Square Capital

Speakers:
Richard Sanders, Managing Partner, Sullivan Street Partners
Federico Charosky, Founder & CEO, Quorum Cyber

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Networking break
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Roundtables: Poll, Play and Plan: Shaping future strategies

Participants will be divided into groups. After launching a series of live polls with results displayed in real time, groups will analyse live poll results, explore their implications for value creation in PE and share their insights.

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Panel: How do culture and talent assessments shape successful investments?
  • What are the most practical ways to quantify culture during due diligence and why is it critical to value protection?
  • What red flags are most often missed in traditional talent due diligence and how do they erode value post-deal?
  • What are the most effective early post-close interventions to activate talent and culture?
  • Which leadership profiles and C-suite archetypes consistently drive value creation in volatile market conditions?

Moderator: James Markham, Senior Partner, Graphite Capital

Speakers: 
Laura Atterwill, Managing Director, Synova
Owen Cartier, Partner, Value Creation, Searchlight Capital
Vignesh Kumaravel, Investment Director, Keyhaven Capital Partners
Paul Phillips, General Manager - Interim Solutions, ZRG Partners

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Networking lunch
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Streams

Stream A: Who really drives the value? Rethinking operating models in PE

Speakers:
Alex Mathers, Partner, Inflexion
Christian Schmehl, Managing Partner, Hypax
Emma Flin, Investment Director, Sovereign Capital Partners
Tim Cochrane, Partner & Head of FPP, Montagu

Stream B: Organising for AI: how PE firms are structuring their response to the AI opportunity / threat

Speakers:
Ahmed Khamassi, Chief Digitalisation Officer, Stirling Square Capital Partners
Alessandro Binello, Group CEO, Quadrivio Group
Natalia Sigrist, Partner, Private Equity, Unigestion

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Streams

Stream A: Strategic exits in the age of uncertainty

Speakers:
Dr. Manfred Puffer, Operating Partner, Apollo Global Management
Gemma Braithwaite, Partner & Head of Investor Relations, All Seas Capital
Manuel Galitschke, Senior Operating Director, Private Equity, Ambienta

Stream B: What LPs value most in Private Equity today?

Speakers: 
Imogen Richards, Partner and Head of Primaries, Pantheon

Mark Nicolson, Head of SMAs and Primary Investments, Patria

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Networking break
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Interview: Value Creation – myth or reality?

Interviewee: Mark Vorbach, Founder, Managing Partner and CEO, Eldin Risk Partners
Interviewer: Anjana Haines, Editor of Real Deals

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Panel: What does it really take to lead in private equity today?
  • Real talk on leadership fatigue, decision paralysis and emotional complexity in today’s high-stakes environment.
  • How do great leaders build trust, alignment and followership in this high-change environment?
  • Why is leadership in value creation now about adaptability and trust, not just command and control?
  • Honest lessons from operators and GPs about what it really takes to lead through disruption and deliver results under pressure.

Moderator: Mustafa Khanbhai, VCP Director, Commercial, LDC

Speakers: 
Laurits Bach Sørensen, Senior Partner and Co-Founder, Nordic Alpha Partners
Stephanie Caspar, Partner and Head of Portfolio and Via Summa, Summa Equity
Alex Thomson, Partner, Growth Capital Partners
Pratik Chandaria, Partner, VALPEO

Closing remarks

Anjana Haines, Editor, Real Deals