David Cohen

Chairman

PROFESSIONAL

David A. Cohen is the Chairman of Highview Capital. He is also Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Karlin Asset Management, Inc., a Los Angeles based multi-billion dollar private investment firm he co-founded in 2005, and Chairman of real estate direct lending fund Calmwater Capital.

David has over 30 years of experience in principal investing, which includes nearly a decade in senior executive positions with Pacific Holdings, one of the largest private companies in the U.S. He also served as a Principal in a $16 billion alternative investment firm (acquired by Blackrock), and started his career as an investment banker and derivatives specialist at Lazard Frères & Co. in New York. Mr. Cohen is a frequent speaker and thought leader on distressed investing, risk management, asset allocation and contrarian thinking.

EDUCATION

David’s academic background includes degrees from Cambridge University (M.Phil., Finance), and Boston University (B.S., Engineering, summa cum laude), and graduate work at Sydney University as a Rotary Foundation Scholar (Engineering).

PERSONAL

David grew up on the east coast and migrated to Los Angeles over twenty years ago, where he and his wife Laurie raised four children. David enjoys cycling, yoga, and skiing in his spare time. He also serves in executive leadership roles or board positions with a variety of non-profit organizations in the areas of education, public policy, medical research and animal welfare.

Steve Russell

Managing Director,
Sr. Portfolio Manager

PROFESSIONAL

Steve Russell is a Managing Director and Senior Portfolio Manager at Highview Capital. Steve is a founding member of the Highview team and oversees all aspects of the investment process including sourcing, diligence and execution of new investments. Steve currently serves on the Board of American Plastics, Firstlight Media, and GS Foods.

Prior to joining Highview, Steve was a Director at Madison Dearborn Partners, a Chicago-based private equity fund, where he executed investments across business services, healthcare, industrials, technology and other sectors. Steve previously served on the Board of Directors for Fleet Complete, LGS Innovations, Quickplay Media and America SCORES Chicago. Earlier in his career, he worked as an Analyst at Chilton Investment Company and in investment banking at J.P. Morgan.

EDUCATION

Steve holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Texas and an M.B.A. from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

PERSONAL

Steve grew up in Texas and now lives in Los Angeles with his wife and three children. He loves spending time with his family, which also includes an old dog (a Boxer) who still acts like a puppy. In his spare time, Steve enjoys playing golf, watching Dallas Cowboys football and working on his 1967 Ford Bronco restoration

Brice Baradel

Managing Director

PROFESSIONAL

Brice Baradel is a Managing Director at Highview Capital. Brice is a founding member of the Highview team and leads deal sourcing and manages new investment opportunities.

Prior to joining Highview, Brice spent 18 years as an investment banker on Wall Street, where he executed 23 M&A transactions at a total value of more than $17 billion and 32 debt, equity and equity-linked capital financings at a total value of more than $13 billion. Previously, Brice worked at TripleTree, a leading boutique M&A advisory firm focused on healthcare IT and healthcare services companies. He also spent several years as an investment banker at UBS’s Healthcare Group, where he focused on advisory services in the healthcare IT sector. Earlier in his career, Brice worked in investment banking at Banc of America Securities' Technology Group, focusing on technology services, communications equipment and software companies, and at BofA’s Energy & Power Group, where he focused on clean tech and utility companies.

EDUCATION

Brice holds a B.A. in English Literature from the University of Virginia.

PERSONAL

Brice grew up in Maryland (raised in Annapolis and went to high school in Baltimore). He lived in New York City for 15 years, and then started his westward migration by spending 3 years in Minneapolis and finally landing in Palos Verdes. Brice loves watching UVA sports (the ups and downs are forever mitigated by the 2019 national championship in basketball) and is also a long suffering Washington Redskins fan (although his enthusiasm has waned the farther west he’s moved). But mostly, his free time is spent trying to keep up with his two young sons.

P.J. Gilbert

Managing Director

PROFESSIONAL

P.J. Gilbert is a Managing Director at Highview Capital. P.J. is a founding member of the Highview team and is responsible for all aspects of the investment process including sourcing, diligence and execution of new investments. P.J. currently serves on the Board of American Plastics, Firstlight Media, and National Fire & Safety.

Prior to joining Highview, P.J. worked as a Vice President at JLL Partners, a New York-based private equity fund, where he executed investments across industrials, business services, healthcare and other sectors. P.J. previously served on the Board of Directors at First Community Holdings.

Earlier in his career, P.J. was an Associate at Lightyear Capital and a Director of Strategy at Cetera Financial Group, a Lightyear Capital portfolio company. He began his career in investment banking at Bank of America.

EDUCATION

P.J. holds a B.S. in Economics and an M.B.A. with Honors from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. During his undergraduate years, he was a member of the University of Pennsylvania’s varsity lacrosse team.

PERSONAL

P.J. grew up in Baltimore, MD and now lives in Venice. He is especially passionate about private equity’s role in family businesses having grown-up in a 4th-generation family produce company. In his free time, P.J. enjoys skateboarding, losing golf balls, and considers himself a “big appetizers guy.” He is also a co-founder of The Loyalist, an e-commerce platform for custom team apparel. 

Dan Picmann

Principal

PROFESSIONAL

Dan Picmann is a Principal at Highview Capital. Dan is a founding member of the Highview team and is responsible for all aspects of the investment process including sourcing, diligence and execution of new investments. In addition, Dan leads all debt capital placement and related corporate finance activity for new and existing portfolio companies. Dan currently serves on the Board of Firstlight Media.

Prior to joining Highview, Dan worked as a Senior Associate at Post Advisory Group, a Los Angeles-based credit hedge fund, where he executed high-yield bond and leveraged loan investments in the technology sector.

Earlier in his career, Dan worked in the Leveraged Finance Group at J.P. Morgan and at Bank of America’s Special Assets Group, where he restructured distressed middle-market credits during the Great Recession.

EDUCATION

Dan holds a B.B.A. in Finance and Accounting from Western Michigan University and an M.B.A. from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. During his undergraduate years, he was also a member of Western Michigan’s varsity soccer team.

PERSONAL

Dan grew up in Michigan and lives in Los Angeles with his wife and son. He is a die-hard University of Michigan and Detroit sports fan (he knows they can hear him – they need him). In his free time, Dan enjoys golf, tennis, soccer, cooking and traveling with his family. Dan’s birthday is on Groundhog’s Day, so you can always check with him if spring will come early.

Kapish Haldia

Vice President

PROFESSIONAL

Kapish Haldia is a Vice President at Highview Capital. Kapish is a founding member of the Highview team and is responsible for diligence and execution of new investments. Kapish currently serves on the Board of National Fire & Safety.

Prior to joining Highview, Kapish served as an Investment Banking Analyst at Citigroup’s Industrials Group, where he focused on mergers and acquisitions across multiple sectors, including paper, packaging, aerospace and defense. Previously, he spent a year launching an e-commerce start-up.

EDUCATION

Kapish holds a B.S. in Finance and Economics with a minor in Public Policy & Management from the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at New York University, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude. He also served as Portfolio Manager of Stern’s Undergraduate Investment Fund.

PERSONAL

Kapish lives in Venice, CA and is an avid scooter and rideshare enthusiast. He grew up in Studio City and lived in New York for 6 years before moving to Venice. In his free time, Kapish enjoys weekend trips to Europe (and traveling generally), skydiving and reading spy novels. His favorite fiction author is Daniel Silva.

Shan Siddiqui

Senior Associate

PROFESSIONAL

Shan Siddiqui is a Senior Associate at Highview Capital. Shan is responsible for all aspects of the investment process including sourcing, diligence and execution of new investments.

Prior to joining Highview, Shan worked as an Associate at Angeles Equity Partners, a Los Angeles-based private equity fund, where he executed investments across multiple sectors. Previously, Shan was an Investment Banking Analyst at Credit Suisse where he focused on mergers and acquisitions across multiple sectors, including industrials, media, technology, consumer & retail, financial services, and healthcare.

EDUCATION

Shan holds a B.A. in Finance with a minor in Legal Studies from The University of Georgia. He also served as President of the Honors Program’s Investment Banking Organization.

PERSONAL

Shan grew up outside of Atlanta and now lives in Venice. In his free time, Shan enjoys playing pick-up basketball, watching college football (Go Dawgs!) and attempting to surf. He is also working on a screenplay and has future aspirations to become a classic car collector.

Victor Bunce

Associate

PROFESSIONAL

Victor Bunce is an Associate at Highview Capital. Victor is responsible for all aspects of the investment process including sourcing, diligence and execution of new investments.

Prior to joining Highview, Victor served as an Investment Banking Analyst for Harris Williams, where he focused on mergers and acquisitions in the consumer sector.

EDUCATION

Victor holds a M.A. in Finance and a B.A. in Economics from Claremont McKenna College, where he graduated as a Robert Day Scholar. While at Claremont McKenna, Victor was a three-time All-American defensive back for the varsity football team and an executive in the college’s Student Investment Fund.

PERSONAL

Victor grew up outside of Sacramento and now resides in Venice. In his free time, he enjoys all competitive games, snowboarding, and his book club. He also spoils many good walks on the golf course.

Misha Polovneff

Associate

PROFESSIONAL

Misha Polovneff is a Business Development Associate at Highview Capital.

Prior to joining Highview, Misha focused on buy-side mandates across industrial, consumer, niche manufacturing, and technical service sectors in his role as a Vice President at Genz & Associates. Misha began his career as an Associate at Township Capital, a Los Angeles-based real estate investment manager focused on making programmatic equity co-investments.

EDUCATION

Misha holds a B.A. in Political Science with a Pre-Medicine designation from the University of California, Los Angeles.

PERSONAL

Misha grew up in Carmel, CA and now lives in Century City. He is an avid skier, and during the summer months, enjoys Headspace, visiting relatives overseas, and reading. Misha can often be heard rooting for UCLA with the “8-Clap.”

Cindie Ayala

Executive Assistant

PROFESSIONAL

Prior to joining Highview, Cindie worked at Oakmont Corporation which is a private investment firm and family office assisting multi-generational, high net worth extended families and related private foundations. From 2004 to 2019, she served as the Executive Assistant to the Vice Chairman and Presidents.
 
Before Oakmont Corporation, Cindie worked in the entertainment industry supporting top C-Level executives at Deluxe Entertainment Services and Crest National Digital Media.

EDUCATION

Cindie is currently enrolled in the Executive Assistance Series Program at UCLA Extension.

PERSONAL

Cindie is a LA native and currently lives in Bel Air. She enjoys living an active and healthy lifestyle, which includes cooking for her family and friends, meditating, yoga, spinning, river rafting, learning how to surf, snowboard and ride horses. She also has a new found love for the outdoors and visiting national parks.

Tracy McGregor

Senior Advisor

PROFESSIONAL

Tracy McGregor is Chief Financial Officer at Karlin Asset Management, where she leads the finance and administrative operations. Prior to joining Karlin in 2005, Tracy was a Director of Financial Analysis at Alschuler Grossman Stein & Kahan LLC (AGSK), where she was principally responsible for overseeing the budgeting and forecasting functions for the firm. Before joining AGSK in 2002, Tracy was a Manager at Arthur Andersen LLC for nine years.

EDUCATION

Tracy is a graduate of the University of Southern California (B.S. in Accounting) and is a Certified Public Accountant.

PERSONAL

Tracy grew up in Lompoc, California, a small town on the central coast which has become a popular wine region where she visits often to relax and sip wine.

Kenneth Slutsky

Senior Advisor

PROFESSIONAL

Kenneth Slutsky is an investor in both private and public sectors enterprises. His experience spans numerous industries including: technology, energy, real estate and financial services. Among the corporations in which he has held CEO or other senior leadership positions are Kern Oil & Refining Co, Casey Co, and Candle Corporation, a leading provider of systems management software.

He has served or is serving on an advisory board for Northwest Airlines, Red Cloud Capital, AT Curd/PCL Construction Co, Wedgewood Enterprise Corporation, and the Middle East Policy Board for The Rand Corp, among others. Kenny also has been involved with several public sector endeavors including, but not limited to, running political campaigns and providing advice to various governmental agencies.

EDUCATION

Kenny graduated magna cum laude from Bowdoin College and obtained a J.D. from Emory University School of Law.

Mark Barry

Operating Advisor

PROFESSIONAL

Mark is an experienced industrial services sector executive with over 30 years of leadership experience. Mark has deep experience in customer acquisition and retention through direct sales, specialized product distribution, and system installation work. Mark has held senior leadership and operational positions globally at companies focused on recurring service to commercial and residential customers. Most recently, Mark was President of American Home Shield (AHS), where he grew sales from ~$700 million to $1 billion, while doubling EBITDA. Mark led the franchise business units at ServiceMaster Global Holdings (NASDAQ: SERV) from 2012 to 2016 and was a key member of the team that led SERV’s successful IPO in 2014.

Prior to AHS, Mark served as President of Automation and Controls Solutions Division, a $3.2 billion unit of United Technologies’ Climate, Controls and Security business with a global portfolio of 50 companies that design, manufacture and sell security, fire, HVAC and building automation products. Mark joined UTC through its acquisition of GE Fire and Security, where he was President of the America’s from 2008 to 2010. Prior to that, Mark was President of Tyco’s Fire and Security Services Asia division from 2001 to 2007, based in Singapore, where he led a multinational team of 11,000 employees in 12 countries. Mark began his career with ADT Security Services.

Mark currently serves on the Board of National Fire & Safety, a Highview portfolio company.

EDUCATION

Mark earned a Bachelor of Arts, Management from Georgia State University.

Jim Clough

Operating Advisor

PROFESSIONAL

Jim is an accomplished food industry executive with over 35 years of leadership experience across both Retail & Foodservice. Jim has been a leader of multiple companies focused across many food categories and channels. Most recently, Jim served as President and Chief Customer Officer for AdvancePierre Foods (now Tyson Foods), a nationally recognized supplier of value-added proteins and sandwich products to foodservice, retail and convenience channels across the United States. During a period of transformational change, he played an instrumental role that led the company through an IPO in 2016 and ultimate sale to Tyson in 2017.

Prior to AdvancePierre Foods, Jim was President of Schwan’s Foodservice, a leading provider of quality foods in the United States. Earlier in his career, Jim served in various leadership and operational roles at Heinz, ConAgra, and Bunge. Jim currently serves as Chairman of the Board at CTI Foods. He was previously a Board Director at the Kwik Trip Corporation. He also served on the Global Child Nutrition Fund’s Board of Directors and the Board of IFMA.

Jim currently serves on the Board of GS Foods, a Highview portfolio company.

EDUCATION

Jim earned a Master of Liberal Arts, from Baker University, and a Bachelor of Science, Industrial Management from the University of Akron.

PROFESSIONAL

EDUCATION

Doug Knopper

Operating Advisor

PROFESSIONAL

Doug is an accomplished executive who has been at the forefront of media and technology for over 35 years. Doug co-founded and was co-CEO of FreeWheel where he drove the Company’s global business initiatives and strategy. FreeWheel is a provider of comprehensive ad platforms for publishers, advertisers, and media buyers. Under his leadership, FreeWheel provided technological infrastructure addressing the rising needs of the largest entertainment companies in the world, including ESPN, ABC, NBC Universal, DirecTV, Turner, Sky, and others. FreeWheel was successfully acquired by Comcast in 2014. Prior to co-founding FreeWheel, Doug was an executive at DoubleClick in New York and London, responsible for the global ad technology group. He also was a leader at multiple advertising agencies and broadcasting companies, including Lowe&Partners, TBWA\Chiat\Day, J. Walter Thompson, and Bonneville Broadcasting.

Doug also serves on the Board of Directors of Magnite Inc. and advises multiple companies throughout the tech/media space.

Doug currently serves on the Board of Firstlight Media, a Highview portfolio company.

EDUCATION

Doug earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Michigan and an M.B.A. from The McDonough School of Business, Georgetown University.

Wayne Purboo

Operating Advisor

PROFESSIONAL

Wayne is an accomplished executive and serial entrepreneur with over 25 years of experience in the media and telecom industries. Wayne has a range of experience in software development, systems engineering, sales, product, finance and management. He played significant roles in the creation of three highly valuable startups. Wayne was co-founder and CEO of QuickPlay Media, a cloud-native company that powered video services for Tier 1 streaming providers. Under Wayne’s leadership, QuickPlay was successfully acquired by AT&T in 2016. Wayne was also part of the executive team that led a successful exit of Solect Technology Group which was acquired by Amdocs in 2000. At Amdocs, Wayne spent three years as the CTO of the IP Division. Amdocs is a multinational corporation which specializes in software and services for communications, media, and financial services providers and digital enterprises.

Wayne most recently added direct to consumer understandings for carrier grade products for video and broadband at AT&T where he was responsible for a portfolio that included DIRECTV, Uverse, and NFL Sunday Ticket. Over the years, Wayne’s success has been recognized by numerous professional and academic institutions including Canada’s Top 40 under 40, Deloitte Fast 50, Canada’s Spotlight Awards, and most recently by the University of the West Indies - Vice Chancellor’s Award. He has also been active on the boards and advisory of Virgin Unite, Toronto International Film Festival, Arundo, Evergent, Print Parts, and Cellwand.

Wayne currently serves on the Board of Firstlight Media, a Highview portfolio company.

EDUCATION

Wayne earned a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from McMaster University.

Stuart Schuette

Operating Advisor

PROFESSIONAL

Stuart is a leading logistics and supply Chain executive with over 20 years of experience within the food & beverage and automotive industries with a focus on enhancing and transforming operation efficiencies. Since 2016, Stuart has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of American Tire Distributors (ATD), the largest independent suppliers of tires to the replacement tire market. At ATD, Stuart has led the team to be the most connected and insightful automotive solutions provider. Through a customer-centric focus, Stuart has enabled ATD to help customers and manufacturer partners prepare for the future through an emphasis on operational excellence and the development of industry-leading digital platforms and advanced analytics tools.

Prior to joining ATD, Stuart served as COO of US Foods, a $20+ billion foodservice distribution business, where he was critically involved in the transformation of the brand, sales and organization. Stuart also served as an executive at Martin Brower, a subsidiary of Reyes Holdings, LLC, the world’s largest distributor of products to more than 8,400 McDonald’s restaurants. Stuart began his career at Arthur Andersen in Chicago. Stuart is a recipient of the Chairman’s Winners Circle Award by Heller Financial and is a Hall of Fame Member at Illinois State University.

Stuart currently serves on the Board of GS Foods, a Highview portfolio company.

EDUCATION

Stuart earned a Bachelor of Science, Accounting from Illinois State University.

Jim Waters

Operating Advisor

PROFESSIONAL

Jim is senior operations and finance executive with over 28 years of transformational leadership experience. Jim has been a leader of numerous industrial manufacturing and OEM companies, with a demonstrated track record of financial and operations management, project management, strategic planning, acquisition and divestiture leadership, and business development. Recently, Jim served as CEO and COO of The Hillman Group, a leading North American provider of complete hardware solutions to 26,000 customers including Lowe’s, Home Depot, Tractor Supply, Ace Hardware, True Value, Do-It-Best & Walmart. Jim’s tenue at Hillman was a period of extensive growth, including seven acquisitions, significant market share gains and successful international expansion.

Before he began working at Hillman in 1999, Jim served in leadership and operational roles at Curtis Industries and Ernst & Young.

Jim currently serves on the Board of American Plastics, a Highview portfolio company.

EDUCATION

Jim earned Bachelor of Science, Accounting from Miami University.