LOCATION
London
DATE & TIME
May 21, 2025
3:30 pm - 4:10 pm GMT
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PEI Operating Partners Forum Europe 2025

PEI Operating Partners Forum Europe 2025

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LOCATION
London
DATE & TIME
May 21, 2025
3:30 pm - 4:10 pm GMT
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Accordion Panel: A Deep Dive into the Private Equity Sponsor / CFO Dynamic in an Uncertain Environment

The world for Sponsors and portfolio company CFOs has changed massively in just the past few months. At the start of 2025, we were all hoping the “dam would break” this year and we would return to deal making. Certainly there were portfolio companies approaching time to exit, LPs clamouring for money back, and dry powder waiting to be deployed. Fast forward to today, the level of uncertainty has shot up – massively impacting the industry at both the deal-making level and the portfolio company level. CFOs, as always, sit at the centre of all these competing forces. In Accordion’s panel at PEI’s Operating Partners Forum Europe (hosted by Atul Aggarwal), we’ll explore practical examples of what the best CFOs are doing to navigate these conflicting priorities. Additional topics include:

  • Balancing “offence” (fuelling / maintaining the growth agenda) and “defence” (preparing for and protecting the business from uncertainty)
  • What practical measures can be taken and how / what to prioritize under both offence and defence
  • How PE sponsors can support their CFOs as they strike this balance – and help them flex their strategic muscles – especially during economic fluctuation

Meet the Moderator:

Atul Aggarwal
President, Growth Markets, Accordion
Atul became the President of Accordion in 2019. He joined Accordion from Bain & Company, where he was a Partner in the New York office. During his 20-year career at Bain, Atul worked for both corporate and Private Equity clients. He spent his early years working across a variety of assignment types, including: M&A and carve-outs, strategy, cost, customer experience, and organizational work.
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Meet the Panelists:

Ralph Friedwagner
Operating Partner, CDPQ
Ralph is a Managing Director and Operating Partner in CDPQ’s Private Equity team. He has experience as an active control and minority investor, board director, CEO, and advisor of private companies. Previously, he was a partner at Montagu Private Equity, CEO of a PE-backed company, partner at Bain & Co, and start-up entrepreneur.
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Simon Hardy
Head of Portfolio Operations, Attestor Capital
Simon is Head of Portfolio Operations at Attestor Capital and has previously held Operating Partner roles at SVP Global and Bain Capital Credit. Prior to working in private equity, Simon worked in strategy consulting with L.E.K. Consulting and in various corporate ＆ P＆L roles with Element Six, part of the De Beers Group of Companies. Simon is also President of the Harvard Business School Alumni Angels of the UK.
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Markus Nagel
Managing Director & Operational Finance Practice Head, Astorg
Markus Nagel joined Astorg in 2024 and is a member of the Portfolio Performance Team. In this capacity, he works closely with the portfolio companies to provide comprehensive support on all CFO office-related matters. Markus brings over 20 years of experience in finance, including 10 years with Sun European Partners and Apax Partners.
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Paul Reading
Partner, Chief Strategy Officer, Mayfair Equity Partners
Paul joined Mayfair in 2019 and works alongside portfolio companies to identify and unlock performance improvement opportunities. He has a particular focus on post-merger integration and carve outs. Prior to joining Mayfair, Paul was an equity partner at EY where he led the UK mid-market private equity value creation team. Paul has also been CFO and COO of two private equity backed businesses, as well as working in the portfolio and investment teams at LDC where he completed the successful investments in uSwitch and Blue Rubicon.
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Leo Scanavino
Director, British International Investment
Leo Scanavino is a Director in the Value Creation team at British International Investment based in London. In this role, Leo unlocks value from BII direct equity portfolio through six pillars of value creation: i. board development, ii. strategy, iii. operational improvements, iv. management and organizational structuring, v. digital transformation and vi. exit planning and preparation. Before BII Leo was the Finance Director and Executive Director at RJD Partners, a UK mid-cap Private Equity Fund backed by the European Investment Fund, as well as working as an Advisor and Board Member of Africa Platform Capital, a start-up investment platform with focus on Sub-Saharan Africa. He previously worked for Actis Capital as a Fund Management Director, and Citi Venture Capital International (CVCI) as Finance and Portfolio Management Director. In his early career he worked for PwC and KPMG in Financial Advisory Services.
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