The Best of Both Worlds

Laila Kassis (Foreign Affairs, Economics ’01), senior associate at Key Venture Partners in Boston
Photo courtesy of Laila Kassis

Laila Kassis (Foreign Affairs, Economics ’01) started her career at Bear Stearns, where she gained a solid education on life in a large public investment firm, then moved on to Spectrum, which focused on buyouts. She is now at Boston’s Key Venture Partners, a firm focused on expansion stage companies.

“I got into investment banking as a way to get a business education. It was a great way to try my thinking and be surrounded by a lot of experts and extremely smart people. I looked at hedge funds, trading, venture capital and even nonprofit, and found I really prefer the private equity world.”

Recently promoted to senior associate, Kassis gets to experience what she calls the best of both worlds, gaining a continuing education in the art of the deal while assisting in the growth of the companies in which the firm invests. The size of the company (six investment professionals, $175 million under management) allows for her to experience virtually everything the business offers, from evaluating investment opportunities to prospecting for companies who might be looking for capital to sitting on corporate boards. (She currently sits on two and holds observer positions in two more.)

She, too, sees her liberal arts background as a huge plus. “They look for people who are easy to work with, who are intelligent and who are willing to work hard. There are so many different backgrounds and different areas of interest. One of the partners at Spectrum was a classics major from Princeton. … And he was a star.”