Christopher Sand is a Managing Director with Ardian’s Buyout team, which invests in high-quality mid- and large-cap companies in both Western Europe and North America, applying transformational strategies to develop global leaders in their niche markets. Based in New York, Christopher focuses on the food and beverage, healthcare, and specialty chemical sectors. The New York team seeks to identify transatlantic opportunities, North American businesses that the team can support as they expand internationally, and compelling acquisitions for European portfolio companies. Previously, Christopher was responsible for investments in the food & beverage, financial services, and industrial sectors at Centre Partners Management. He began his career in leveraged finance at RBS. Christopher received an honors degree in economics, politics, and philosophy from the University of Pennsylvania.

Arta Tabaee is a Partner and Managing Director at Clearlake Capital Group, an investment firm with >$90 billion in assets under management focused on private equity, credit, and special situations in the technology, industrials, and consumer sectors.  Prior to joining Clearlake in 2010, Arta was an investment professional at H.I.G. Capital and TPG Capital.  He began his career as a member of the Mergers & Acquisitions Group at Morgan Stanley.  Arta currently serves on the Board of Directors of BakeMark, Concert Golf Partners, FullBeauty Brands, Intertape Polymer Group, MRP Solutions, Pretium Packaging, and the Wellness Pet Company, and serves on the National Board of Directors of The Posse Foundation.  Arta graduated Magna Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa with a B.S. in Economics and a minor in Spanish from Duke University, and he received his M.B.A. from Harvard Business School, where he was a Baker Scholar.

Agnieszka Rafalska joined EQT Group in 2024 as Head of M&A Legal for North America. EQT is a global asset manager with Nordic roots, overseeing EUR 269 billion in assets under management as of December 2024. In her role, Agnieszka is integrally involved in all aspects of transactions across EQT’s private equity and infrastructure funds.

Prior to joining EQT, Agnieszka was Senior Transaction Counsel, Private Equity at Apollo Global Management, a leading alternative asset manager with approximately $751 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2024. During her tenure at Apollo, Agnieszka was a recipient of The M&A Advisor’s 12th Annual Emerging Leaders Award. 

Agnieszka began her legal career at Sullivan & Cromwell, where she advised corporate and sponsor clients on a wide range of transactions.

Agnieszka earned her A.B. in Social Studies, magna cum laude, from Harvard College, and her J.D. from Yale Law School.

Jim joined GTCR in 2017 and is currently a Managing Director of the firm. Prior to joining GTCR, Jim was a Managing Director and Co-Head of the North American Leveraged & Acquisition Finance Group at Morgan Stanley. Jim also functioned as the Head of the North American Syndicate Desk. Prior to Morgan Stanley, he was an analyst in the Equity Capital Markets and Asset Management Groups at Goldman, Sachs & Co. Jim holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School and a BS in Business Administration summa cum laude from Northeastern University.

Jim is Head of GTCR’s Capital Markets Group. In this role, Jim leads the firm’s capital markets activities as part of the transaction teams and manages key financing and banking relationships.

Kevin Lehpamer is a partner in Clifford Chance New York Corporate practice, with a focus on public and private M&A transactions. He regularly advises sellers, purchasers and other parties in negotiated cross-border and domestic mergers, acquisitions, reorganizations, joint ventures and investment transactions.  Kevin has represented a broad range of clients including Ingersoll–Rand, Blackstone, Toshiba, Tyco, Barclays, Owens–Illinois, KKR and JPMorgan.  He has been recognized in leading legal publication Legal 500 and by IFLR1000 as a “Highly Regarded Lawyer