MATTHEW CHRISTENSEN -
CEO and Portfolio Manager
mqc@roseparkadvisors.com
Mr. Christensen brings expertise in identifying and applying disruptive
innovation frameworks and assessing whether management can capitalize on
or defend against a disruptive strategy. Mr. Christensen was formerly a
Senior Associate at Innosight, LLC, leading engagements in the biotechnology,
enterprise software, grocery, and financial services industries, among others.
Mr. Christensen was also head of Innosight's small business and workshops
initiatives. Before Innosight, Mr. Christensen worked at the
Boston Consulting Group, working on projects in various industries,
including specialty chemicals, telecom, technology and industrial goods.
Prior to receiving an MBA from Harvard Business School, Mr. Christensen
graduated from Duke University with a B.S. in economics and a BSE in civil
engineering with an emphasis in structural engineering. While at Duke, he
won a national championship in 2001, playing basketball for Coach Mike Krzyzewski.
In 2002, he won the Coaches' Award, given to the player best embodying the spirit
of Duke Basketball, as well as the Dr. Deryl Hart Award (Top Scholar-Athlete).
Christensen served as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints in Frankfurt, Germany.
WHITNEY JOHNSON -
President
wlj@roseparkadvisors.com
Prior to co-founding Rose Park Advisors, Ms. Johnson was Merrill
Lynch's Senior Telecom and Media analyst for Latin America. As a sell-side
equity analyst, Ms. Johnson developed expertise in valuing publicly traded
securities and in analyzing how management can create or destroy value. She was
rated by Starmine as a superior stockpicker vis-a-vis her peers, and
became an Institutional Investor all-star within a year of becoming an
analyst -- an honor she was accorded for eight consecutive years.
Her specialty is Mexico where the stocks she followed accounted for roughly 40% of
Mexico's market capitalization. In 2005, when Ms. Johnson left sell-side
research, she had earned a coveted double-ranking in the Institutional
Investor survey -- #1 in Latin American media and #2 in Latin American
telecoms -- and was widely considered the axe on stocks under her coverage.
She was graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in music from Brigham Young
University, having played at the Montreux Jazz Festival with Synthesis, the
university's award-winning big band. Ms. Johnson was born in Madrid, Spain, is
fluent in Spanish, and served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints in Montevideo, Uruguay. She currently volunteers as the
director of her church's Public Affairs Committee in greater Boston.
SHAWN COX -
Principal
sec@roseparkadvisors.com
Shawn Cox joined Rose Park Advisors after founding Cox Capital Partners where as a
portfolio manager he gained experience in comprehensive company research and
financial modeling and became adept in fund operations. Prior to founding Cox Capital
Partners, Mr. Cox was an equity research analyst for Marshall Wace Asset Management
where he focused extensively on fundamental research in the technology, media, and
telecom industries. He is also a CPA and worked as a senior analyst at Analysis Group
and as a senior auditor at Ernst & Young.
Mr. Cox earned an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management and received Master's
and B.S. degrees in accountancy from Brigham Young University. He also speaks fluent
Portuguese, which he learned while working as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints in Lisbon, Portugal and the Republic of Cape Verde.
WILLIAM SKELLEY -
Principal
wcs@roseparkadvisors.com
William Skelley is responsible for business development and investor relations. Prior to joining Rose Park Advisors, Mr. Skelley was the founder of Pallas Global, a private investment firm with locations in New York City and Panama.
Since its founding, Pallas has focused on making investments in the real estate and healthcare markets. Mr. Skelley led the investment activities at Pallas, and has been involved in over $200MM of transactions across the capital structure. He was also General Partner of The Pallas Opportunity Fund that targeted distressed assets throughout the US.
Prior to founding Pallas, he consulted for a number of Fortune 500 companies, focusing on corporate strategy and business process engineering improvements.
Mr. Skelley attended Hobart College and continues to serve as a director at Pallas Global. He is also a director at Skelley Medical, a medical equipment distributor.
CLAYTON CHRISTENSEN -
Chairman and Senior Advisor
cmc@roseparkadvisors.com
Dr. Christensen is the Robert and Jane Cizik
Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School, with a
joint appointment in the Technology & Operations Management and General Management
faculty groups. His research and teaching interests center on managing
innovation and creating new growth markets.
Dr. Christensen became a faculty member at the Harvard Business School in 1992.
He is the bestselling author of five books, including his seminal work
The Innovator's Dilemma (1997) which received the Global Business Book
Award for the best business book of the year, The Innovator's Solution (2003),
and Seeing What's Next (2004). Recently, Christensen has focused the
lens of disruptive innovation on social issues such as education and health care.
Disrupting Class (2008) looks at the root causes of why schools struggle
and offers solutions, while The Innovator's Prescription (late 2008) examines how
to fix our healthcare system.
In 2000, Christensen founded Innosight, a consulting firm that builds on disruptive
innovation frameworks to help companies create new growth opportunities. He is
also the founder of Innosight Institute, a non-profit think tank, whose mission is
to apply his theories to the most vexing problems in the social sector. Dr. Christensen
continues to have a financial interest in Innosight, but no ownership interest.
Prior to joining the HBS faculty, Professor Christensen served as chairman and president
of Ceramics Process Systems (NASD: CPS), a firm he co-founded in 1984 with several MIT
professors. From 1979 to 1984 he worked with the Boston Consulting Group. In 1982, Dr.
Christensen was named a White House Fellow, and served as assistant to U.S. Transportation
Secretaries Drew Lewis and Elizabeth Dole. Dr. Christensen has served as a director on the
boards of a number of public and private companies. He is currently a board member at Tata
Consulting Services (NSE: TCS), Franklin Covey (NYSE: FC), W.R. Hambrecht and Vanu, Inc.
Christensen also serves on Singapore's Research, Innovation and Enterprise Council.
Given his academic and other commitments, Dr. Christensen will have no
day-to-day management obligations pertaining to the Fund's portfolio,
although he will be available to consult with the Investment Manager
from time to time regarding investment strategies and will use reasonable
efforts to contribute to the marketing of the Fund. Dr. Chirstensen will
work exclusively with the Investment Manager and the Fund with respect to
applying the disruptive innovation framework to investment management
activities. The Investment Manager may share information regarding investment
ideas and portfolio holdings with Dr. Christensen.
Dr. Christensen holds a B.A. with highest honors in economics from Brigham
Young University (1975), and an M.Phil. in applied econometrics and the
economics of less-developed countries from Oxford University (1977), where
he studied as a Rhodes Scholar. From 1971 to 1973 he worked as a missionary
for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the Republic of Korea,
learning to speak fluent Korean. Professor Christensen received an MBA with
High Distinction from the Harvard Business School in 1979, graduating as a
George F. Baker Scholar. He was awarded his DBA from the Harvard Business
School in 1992.
For more information, visit Dr. Christensen's homepage at www.claytonchristensen.com