NextGen Growth Partners (NGP), a private equity firm that partners with Entrepreneurs-in-Residence and management teams to invest in sustainable, growing companies, has appointed Jim Bland as a partner, with a specific focused on the firm’s new investment and portfolio company efforts.
“Jim brings an immediate positive impact to our team and business,” says Brian O’Connor, NGP Founder and Managing Partner. “His extensive investing and operating experience, ability to lead others and care for the legacy of the businesses we invest in are evident in everything he does. We are thrilled to welcome Jim as a Partner at NGP and are excited about all he brings in our early days of investing out of NGP Fund II and well beyond.”
Bland joins NGP with nearly 17 years of private equity investment experience. Most of his private equity career was spent with HCP & Company where he was a partner responsible for sourcing, evaluating, structuring, and negotiating transactions along with portfolio management across two institutional funds. He has also spent time with a multi-family office and, prior to his private equity career, he worked at Ernst & Young and HSBC. Bland started his career as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Army where he continues to serve as the Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army (CASA) for Illinois, a three-star general protocol appointed position. Bland earned his BS from the United States Military Academy at West Point and his MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
“I’m thrilled to join Brian and the NGP team,” Bland says. “NGP has developed a sterling reputation in the private equity community, specifically through their unique ‘entrepreneurship through acquisition’ approach to investing and has developed a highly effective and differentiated approach to private equity investing. NGP is the go-to equity partner for entrepreneurs who wish to acquire and operate middle-market companies. NGP has demonstrated they have the best approach to source both talented entrepreneurs and quality companies. I look forward to sustaining and building upon the current success to ensure NGP is the most logical partner for an owner who desires to transition their company to a talented entrepreneur-operator.”
Bland joins the firm at an exciting time, as NGP begins to invest out of their sophomore fund and look to expand their team significantly. NGP is hiring for open positions both at the firm level and across their portfolio of companies. Specifically, they seek to add another senior-level investment professional, a Director of Portfolio Operations, and several Entrepreneurs-in-Residence to the team.
“Jim is joining at a very exciting time,” says Ron Wexler, NGP’s Director of Business and Talent Development. “His leadership track record will prove invaluable as the team expands in size and capability. This is surely a monumental event for both Jim and all of us at the firm.”
