U-M's Zell Lurie Institute hosts private equity conference headlined by real estate billionaire Sam Zell

“My major objective through the [Zell Lurie] Center for Entrepreneurship is to increase interaction of students with alumni and practitioners,” said David Brophy, director of the Center for Venture Capital & Private Equity Finance in the Ross School of Business.

“This is a great way to bring [alumni and professionals] here to Michigan and see what we’ve got going on here and to tighten the bonds.”

Brophy said the conference was started for business school alumni, but has since branched out and now includes many people from the area and from across the country.

“You need the draw, so we provide outstanding speakers of national importance,” he said. “And the panels tomorrow are particularly important as well.”

Zell will give the first keynote address at 8:15 a.m. Friday. Steven Klinsky, a U-M alum who manages New Mountain Capital in New York City, will deliver the second keynote speech. The speeches sandwich panel discussions and networking opportunities for the professionals and students in attendance.

One panel will deal with the role of limited partners in the private equity business. Limited partners are big companies or institutions like U-M that supply the money behind the industry, and Brophy said one of the big issues going forward in the business will be what those partners think about how funds are conducting their business.

On-site registration opens at 7:30 a.m. Friday at the Michigan Union.