Portfolio
DB Capital Partners
Website
In 2001, Deutsche Bank had a global division focused on private equity, venture capital, fund of funds and related businesses. Although the team of 150 professionals managed more than $10 billion, they had a very low profile in the marketplace and within Deutsche Bank. As a marketing consultant, I developed a website for the group that would tell their story and raise their profile. After conducting research among the key partners, I drafted copy and a layout consistent with the requirements of other DB websites. I coordinated with counterpart webmasters in other divisions and global offices, securing reciprocal links. The site launched in six weeks, ahead of schedule.
Media Outreach
DB Capital Partners had a low profile among reporters in the private equity and venture capital sectors; simply put, no one at DBCP or Deutsche Bank had been assigned to handle media outreach. I took on this responsibility; I identified reporters at key publications and cultivated relationships with them. When there was news of a pending transaction, I drafted a press release, secured the approval of a contact in Compliance, and arranged distribution by the press office. This resulted in deals being covered by the leading business and trade publications: The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Daily Deal, Buyouts, Investment Dealers’ Digest and others.
Chuck Flynn
In November 2001, Charles (Chuck) Flynn was hired by DB Capital Partners to manage the fund-of-funds and secondary fund investing businesses. Like many senior executives, Flynn was limited in his ability to share the news of this position with the colleagues and clients he had worked with at his former employer. Fortunately, many of his contacts read the news articles that he joined the group that were published in The Wall Street Journal, European Venture Capital Journal, and other leading financial publications. Flynn was happy to return their calls of congratulations; he re-established relationships that brought in significant investments to DBCP.
Outlook for 2002
The Editor of Deutsche Bank’s intranet proposed a series of 10 articles on the Outlook for 2002, highlighting a group or a country each day. I had regularly communicated with the internal communications team on new hires and transactions; here was the payoff — an interview with Ted Virtue, Head of DB Capital Partners. This article fit in with my campaign to raise awareness of the group and promote cross-divisional business opportunities.
