2019 Private Equity Outlook

Fueled by an internal drive for success, Michael Poole has been at the helm of PCE for nearly two decades. His dedication has built a middle-market investment banking, valuation and advisory firm that is without peer.

During this time, Michael has been instrumental in cultivating PCE’s philosophy of teamwork, industry leadership, and client focus. He finds his greatest satisfaction in helping business owners identify unique and imaginative strategies to meet their goals. Michael understands the importance of putting his clients’ needs first, always recommending ideas and tactics that he himself would pursue.

Michael has nearly 30 years of M&A and corporate finance experience within the public and private sector, with an emphasis on the Building Products, Construction & Engineering, and Finance industries. Over the course of his career, he has personally handled more than $1 billion in transactions in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.

Kyle is a partner with KLH Capital and leads the firm’s business development efforts. He is primarily responsible for identifying, structuring and executing transactions. He serves on the board of directors for BMI Merchandise, MS Industrial, and Data Display Systems. Prior to joining the private equity group in 2009, he was involved in a variety of brokerage-related capacities within the insurance industry. An active member of the industry, he serves on the board of directors of the M&A Source and was the 2013 chairman of the Alliance of Merger & Acquisition Advisors (AM&AA).

Kyle is a native of Amherst, New Hampshire. He graduated from the University of Tampa’s John H. Sykes College of Business with a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance. He enjoys fishing, boating, snow skiing, and spending time with his wife, Christine.

Sean McLaughlin

Sean McLaughlin is an accomplished finance and strategy professional who works with successful investors in order to help them achieve their goals.  Currently, Sean is the Chief Investment Officer for SunGate Capital, LLC, a single-family private equity and investment office.  He serves as a strategic advisor to portfolio companies and is responsible for developing and implementing the investment strategy for the firm.  Sean joined SunGate in 2015.

Previously, Mr. McLaughlin served for ten years as the Chief Investment Officer for CNL Holdings, LLC, a leading private investment management firm providing global real estate and alternative investments, as well as JDS Holdings, a single-family office.  Sean was responsible for developing and implementing the investment strategy for JDS Holdings and CNL Financial Group, as well as providing strategic insight into the markets in which the company operated.  He oversaw portfolio companies, served as a trusted advisor to the principal during high profile transactions, and developed strategy for a portfolio company with over $8B in assets.

Prior to joining CNL, Mr. McLaughlin served as a Principal for Lockheed Martin Corporation, the world’s largest defense contractor.  He led the effort to acquire critical technology for a $3 billion dollar defense program.  Before moving to Florida, Sean served as a Global Director for A.T. Kearney, a leading global management consulting firm to the Global 2000 with a focus on board-level strategic issues.  He was responsible for leading alliance, divestiture, and acquisition activities.  He also developed strategies for Fortune 100 clients that emphasized maximizing long-term value.  Earlier, Sean was the Chief Financial Officer for ActiveSky, a 40-person software development, Silicon Valley start-up dedicated to building the next generation wireless multimedia platforms, where he was responsible for all financial aspects of the company and raised $22M in Series A funding.  Sean started his career at PriceWaterhouseCoopers a global accounting and consulting firm that provides financial advisory services to corporations.

Mr. McLaughlin holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and graduated with honors (cum laude).  He earned his MBA at the University of Chicago where he was elected to Beta Gamma Sigma honors society and graduated with High Honors (top 5% of class).

Mr. McLaughlin currently serves as the nominating chair for the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida, the largest provider of homeless services in Orlando.  He is also on the advisory board of FORGE, a national organization focused on single-family office, peer-to-peer collaboration.  Sean is the past president and chair of the Florida Family Office Forum, the largest single-family office association in the state.

Sean currently lives in Winter Park, Florida with his wife, Jill, and their two children.