Practical Applications of When to Go and How to Go? Founder and Leader Transition in Private Equity Firms

Abstract

In When to Go and How to Go? Founder and Leader Transition in Private Equity Firms, published in the Fall 2021 issue of The Journal of Alternative Investments, Josh Lerner of Harvard Business School and Diana Noble, founder of Kirkos Partners, examine leadership transitions at private equity (PE) firms. They find that the philosophy of the founder and the context in which the firm finds itself usually drive most leadership transitions, which typically are complex multiyear processes with substantial frictions. PE firms encounter challenges with leadership transitions partly because there has been little research about the process. As the PE industry matures, the pace of leadership transitions will accelerate and the need for accepted best practices for the process will be amplified.