Interactive workshop for executives, investors, and business leaders on strengthening leadership presence, decision-making, and team performance.
Pete Petrella
President
Pete serves as President at TalentRise and is responsible for company strategy, driving growth initiatives, and enhancing TalentRise’s service offerings to meet the evolving needs of our client base. Pete spearheads the development of innovative talent acquisition solutions and leadership programs that align with the company’s mission to empower organizations with top-tier talent and leadership capabilities. Additionally, he is responsible for expanding market reach, fostering strong client relationships, and leading operations to ensure seamless service delivery. Pete also leads the executive search practice, focused on placing c-suite and executive-level talent into leadership positions within organizations. He plays a critical role in the TalentRise growth plan by cultivating c-level, investor, and board of director relationships with companies looking to acquire great leadership talent for their business.
Pete brings over 22 years of experience in a variety of business sectors including sports, healthcare, startups, scaleups, and technology. His areas of expertise include management, sales, marketing, IT, software, and strategy.
Additionally, Pete serves in a dual role at Aleron Group and is President of Viaduct, which assists startups and emerging businesses find talent. He also serves as a strategic advisor for Lume Strategies, helping businesses leverage customized IT solutions that drive efficiency, effectiveness, and workforce productivity through a holistic approach to technology services. He is active in several growth-stage technology organizations in the Buffalo, Upstate NY, Chicago, IL, Toronto, and Austin, TX markets.
Prior to joining the Aleron group of companies, Pete’s various roles included business development positions with the Buffalo Bills of the NFL and Buffalo Sabres of the NHL, along with a sponsorship marketing and business development leadership role with Kaleida Health, a $2B healthcare delivery system. Most recently, he served as Vice President of Enterprise Solutions for HigherMe, a startup aimed at creating efficiencies in the recruiting process. Pete is actively involved in the western New York community and is serving as 2025 Board Chair of the Amherst Chamber of Commerce and sits on the boards of Children’s Hospital of Buffalo Foundation, Explore and More, and Invest Buffalo Niagara, where he also served as the Past Chair on the Be in Buffalo Committee.
Laura Barker
Director, Coaching and Leadership Development
10:30 – 12 PM
Private Equity Investing Workshop
Hands-on session covering the PE deal process, screening opportunities, developing theses, and structuring investments through case studies.
Kim Barnhart, National Center for the Middle Market
Fresh insights into U.S. middle market performance, outlook, and investor implications.
Kim Barnhart
Program Manager at the National Center for the Middle Market
Kim Barnhart is a seasoned Program Manager at the National Center for the Middle Market, based at The Ohio State University’s Fisher College of Business. With a strong foundation in strategic program development and stakeholder engagement, Kim leads initiatives that elevates the center’s mission of providing critical data analysis, insights, and perspectives for middle market stakeholders.
Her work spans cross-functional collaboration with corporations, faculty and students where she facilitates high-impact events, research projects, and executive engagement. Kim’s expertise includes project management, fundraising and stewardship, and organizational development.
Kim is based in Columbus, Ohio, and holds a Masters in Business Administration from Ohio State University and a Bachelor’s in Sports Management from Otterbein University.
2:15 PM
Case Study Panel
“Deiorio Foods: A 95-Year Legacy Reimagined Through Private Equity”
Tim Welles, Pine Street Capital Partners & Richard Rudolph, Rudolph Capital, Luis Pereira, Deiorio Foods
Exploring resilience and growth strategies in a legacy food company.
Tim Welles
Pine Street Capital Partners
A founder of Pine Street, Tim is involved with all activities at Pine Street, including deal sourcing, deal structuring, portfolio management, and administration. Tim currently serves as a board member of several Pine Street portfolio companies.
Prior to co-founding Pine Street, Tim held a variety of positions, including Chief Operating Officer and board member of Colonial Data Technologies, a $75 million revenue publicly traded provider of telecommunications equipment; Chief Financial Officer of First Albany Companies Inc., a $250 million revenue publicly traded investment banking and brokerage firm; and more than 10 years as a senior investment banker providing advisory and capital raising services to small and middle market companies in various industries. Tim began his career as a corporate and securities attorney at Cahill Gordon & Reindel in New York City.
Richard Rudolph
Rudolph Capital
Richard A. Rudolph is the founder of Rudolph Capital, a private equity firm focused on investing in lower middle market manufacturing and distribution companies. Started in 2019, the firm specifically targets family owned business to provide custom tailored solutions and liquidity to founding families to meet their unique needs.
Mr. Rudolph has been investing in this sector for over 30 years. Prior to founding Rudolph Capital, Mr. Rudolph was a partner for 20 years at Bradford Equities, one of the oldest private equity firms in the United States and also focused on lower middle market manufacturing and distribution companies.
Through his career, Mr. Rudolph has acquired over 30 companies with a transaction value in excess of $500 million.
Luis Pereira
CEO of Deiorio Foods
Luis Pereira is the President and CEO of Deiorio’s Foods, leading the company’s transformation from a regional frozen pizza manufacturer into a national provider of custom-formulated doughs. He has more than 20 years of leadership experience in the baking and energy sectors, including roles as CEO of Harvest Time Bread Company and Portuguese Baking Company, and Co-Founder of Mobile Fueling Solutions. Luis holds a BAS and MBA in Business Administration from Rutgers University.
3:00 PM
Afternoon Break
3:30 PM
Panel Discussion
“The Rise of a Market: The Independent Sponsor Ecosystem”
Independent sponsors are reshaping the lower middle market. Panelists will explore growth, capital trends, and what’s next for this model.
Stephanie McAlaine brings 25 years of experience building high-impact communities in private equity, venture capital, and M&A. As Chief Membership Officer at SBIA and Executive Director of the new Independent Sponsor Forum, she leads member growth, strategic initiatives, and platform expansion. A former Chief Customer Officer at ACG and founder of an association management firm, Stephanie is known for driving relevance, revenue, and results across the capital markets landscape.
John Koeppel is a Partner and the Team Leader of the firm’s Private Equity and Independent Sponsor Practices. He is a corporate lawyer who has successfully structured, negotiated, and closed over 250 transactions in the past two plus decades, which typically involve mergers and acquisitions, fund formations and investments, and various private equity transactions. He also works with clients on reviewing/structuring their Qualified Small Business Stock investments.
Mr. Koeppel acts as counsel to a number of leading private equity firms, independent sponsors, middle market companies, institutional investors, family offices, and high net worth investors focused on buy-out, growth, venture, real estate, intellectual property, energy, debt, fund-of-funds, co-investments, secondaries, and other strategies. He also often acts as US counsel to non-US clients on their US private equity and investment fund transactions. He also serves as a director for several private equity-backed companies.
David is a Managing Member at Bluehenge Capital Partners where he invests in unitranche/mezzanine loans and minority equity investments from $3MM to $25MM in size to middle market businesses. Prior to Bluehenge Capital, he was a Director at Stonehenge Capital for 16 years. Ari earned his BA in business administration from the University of Texas at Austin in 1995.
4:15 PM
Panel Discussion
Panel Discussion: Market Views in Private Equity
Private equity continues to evolve as investors, advisors, and operators navigate a shifting economic and regulatory landscape. This panel brings together leaders from banking, accounting, legal, and investment firms to share their perspectives on current market conditions, emerging opportunities, and the challenges shaping private equity today.
Erica Choi
Market President & Commercial Leader, KeyBank
Erica Choi is the Capital Region Market President and Commercial Leader for KeyBank. She is a 10-year banking veteran with 25 years of leadership experience.
Prior to joining KeyBank, Choi worked for Bank of America in Albany as a Middle Market relationship manager. She has also worked as senior area manager for the U.S. Small Business Administration in Albany, N.Y., senior brand manager for Beech-Nut Brand in Amsterdam, N.Y., and senior associate brand manager for Kraft Foods in Glenview, Ill.
Choi earned her bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the United States Military Academy. She subsequently served in the United States Army from 2000 to 2005 as an intelligence officer, deploying in 2004 to lead a counter-terrorism team in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Sean Moskal
Commercial Bank Market Executive
Sean is Commercial Bank Leader in Buffalo at KeyBank where he leverages his international experience to delivery growth through deepening customer relationships and new client acquisition. Previously, Sean was a Commercial Relationship Manager at HSBC, where he was responsible for managing a portfolio of mid-corporate multinational firms and driving growth through new client acquisition.
Kevin Bodner
Managing Partner, Withum
Kevin leads Withum’s Investment Banking practice. He oversees the firm’s investment banking initiatives concentrating on mergers and acquisitions, capital formation and other corporate finance services for middle-market clients. With over 30 years of experience in Investment Banking and Financial Services, Kevin serves as a trusted advisor to owners and senior executive teams on their ability to grow, enhance value and change their competitive position across challenging and dynamic markets.
He works with clients advising middle-market companies across numerous industries helping them achieve their short and long-term goals. His knowledge and experience include M&A solutions, transaction readiness and exit planning, capital formation, and financial restructuring strategy.
Before joining Withum, Kevin started and led the Corporate Advisory division at a New Jersey commercial bank and wealth management firm where he provided merger and acquisition advice, private placements of debt and equity, financial restructuring strategies and value enhancement and strategic advisory services. Prior to that, he helped start and build a New York City boutique middle-market investment bank firm. Before investment banking, Kevin was a founding member of a NJ based SBIC investment fund and began his career at a NJ commercial bank which eventually became part of Bank of America.
Credentials/Education BA, Political Science, Drew University MBA, Finance and International Business, Seton Hall University FINRA 24, 7, 63, 79 and 99 licenses
Mike Paniccia
Vice President, Argosy Capital
Jonathan Jasinski
Partner, Harter Secrest & Emery LLP
Jonathan represents private and public companies in a range of corporate matters, including mergers and acquisitions, corporate formations and dissolutions, contract review, and other general corporate matters. He has extensive experience with corporate governance, financial services regulation (including transactions involving Broker Dealers and Registered Investment Advisors), filings with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) and venture capital financings.
Jonathan also has extensive experience representing private equity funds, private equity portfolio companies, venture capital funds and venture capital-backed companies.
While attending Vanderbilt University, Jonathan was a law clerk at Academy Sports + Outdoors in Houston, TX and a legal/finance intern with the Nashville Predators NHL franchise in Nashville, TN.
The 6th Annual Buffalo Private Equity Summit is the premier private equity event connecting private equity and M&A transaction professionals across the Northeast and Midwest. The event is the place to get insights into how experts see market dynamics and the road ahead, hear what CEOs have learned from their experiences with PE + M&A, and grow relationships with investors and referral sources. Up to 200 people typically attend the event.
Get insights from experts on market dynamics and the road ahead
Hear what CEOs have learned from their experiences with PE + M&A
Grow relationships with investors and referral sources
Demystify how private equity works for entrepreneurs, business owners, and executives
REGISTRATION
Upstate Capital Members receive discounted tickets to select events. Become a member today!
Built in 1914, this iconic venue was originally constructed for the Buffalo Fraternal Order of Eagles and has hosted notable figures like Franklin D. Roosevelt. Today, 500 Pearl blends its rich heritage with modern amenities, making it the perfect setting for social gatherings, events, and milestones in the heart of Buffalo’s Theatre District.
Since 2003, the Upstate Capital Association of New York has connected the investment community, advancing the mission of increasing access to capital for companies and deal flow for investors across New York State. Upstate Capital hosts events regularly throughout the state for investors, transaction professionals, entrepreneurs, and company executives and maintains a robust regional membership network.
