ACG WI: Corporate Development Series - Winning Deals and Achieving Financial Returns in a High-Valuation Environment

Ryan Van Den Elzen focuses his practice in the areas of private equity, mergers and acquisitions, institutional investor services, venture capital, private placements, and general business law services. Ryan has extensive experience representing privately and publicly held businesses, private fund sponsors, and institutional investors in various significant transactions, including acquisitions and divestitures, fund formation, investments in private funds and other alternative asset classes, and secondary market transactions.

Keith Walz joined Jason in March 2015. He previously held roles as the company’s Vice President of Corporate Development and Strategy. Prior to joining Jason, Keith was Vice President of Corporate Development at Brady Corporation and a Founding Partner of Kinsale Capital, a private investment firm focused on control equity investments in the middle market.

Mike is a senior member of Baird’s Global Industrial Group and its M&A Fairness Opinion Committee. Since joining Baird in 2003, he has participated in over 65 completed mergers and acquisitions and corporate financing transactions. Mike has extensive experience leading public and private company transactions within a broad range of industrial sectors. During 2007, Mike served in Baird’s London and Frankfurt offices as a member of Baird’s International M&A team. Mike also serves on the Board of Directors of the Milwaukee Winter Club and on the Board of Directors and as Treasurer of the Pettit National Ice Center.

Lisa Reardon has over 30+ years of experience in senior level operations, consulting, finance, marketing, sales, and sales management. In 2015, she strategically created a holding company named OwnersEdge whose purpose is to provide economic diversity to the ESOP and employee owners. Lisa’s current board experience includes public, private and ESOP structured organizations. She leads the OwnersEdge board as Chairman and in addition to general board member duties, she has extensive experience on the following committees: CEO Search, Audit, Financial and Compensation. She is also a member of YPO and Vistage.

Steve co-founded Bel Air Growth Partners and serves as Managing Director. Prior to founding Bel Air, he was a co-founder and principal at another private equity firm. He has also worked in investment banking and money management.

​He is a past board member of the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) as well as a current board member and past president of the ACG Wisconsin Chapter. Steve earned a CFA Charter, an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern, and a BS from the Carlson School at the University of Minnesota.