My first job after college as an IBM marketing rep taught me two important things about myself. Through that initial work, I first discovered and explored my love for sales and marketing. The Art of Persuasion became a passion I would cultivate over the arc of my career. Second, I learned that success is achieved only when the customer believes that their needs are understood and met with care. As my mentor used to say, “Take good care of your relationships or someone else will.”

After getting my MBA at Harvard, I went into private equity where I could integrate these capabilities into the core mission of the investment firms that I worked for. At the time, the investor relations role was still quite new and no one had written the playbook on how it should be done. For me, it meant dissolving the isolation that had long existed between investment professionals and their investors.

Bridging those two worlds became a calling for me. Over the course of my career, that calling  helped me to create authentic and meaningful connections with a broad range of investors while working for world-class investment firms such as JP Morgan, Court Square Capital, and most recently at Kelso & Co.

What I love about General Catalyst is our focus on seeing how big a difference the firm can make for others whether they are limited partners, portfolio companies, or individuals in the firm’s amazing network of entrepreneurs.

Outside of the office, I support organizations devoted to education for underprivileged kids in Brooklyn (my home) and internationally. I also like to get out on the water with boats or a paddle board, and I hold a purple belt in Jiu Jitsu. If you catch me at a party, be prepared to sing: my guitar knows the chords for hundreds of songs.