Patient Capital: The Future of Long-Hold Investment

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A Case for the future of private investment in the middle market

Hosted by the Koch Center for Family Enterprise, with sponsorship from the Graduate Programs Office, investment groups Permanent Equity, and Broadview Group, this year’s Olin Impact Competition will focus on “The Future of Private Investment in the Middle Market.” In 2024, Olin Business School partnered with The Brookings Institution to map the motivations of owners, the behavior of investors, and the experience of employees in the transition of ownership in the middle market. Building on this data, this year’s case competition asks students to present an innovative model of private investment for middle-market businesses. In doing so, students will look to explore opportunities for innovation in 1) strategies for extended time horizon investment that address the need for investor liquidity, 2) the role of employee ownership in fund design, 3) the mix of private debt and equity investment, and 4) the right mix of strategies and data analytics to drive value and track its accrual. Selected teams will travel to St. Louis to present their recommendations to leading middle-market investment firms and key faculty experts.

The competition is open to both graduate and undergraduate students in any program of study. Each team is composed of four presenters. Teams must register as either graduate or undergraduate only; the teams cannot include both. Students participating on a team must be enrolled in their respective programs through the Spring 2025 semester.

Awards Per Team

Graduate Teams

1st Prize: $7,500

2nd Prize: $5,000

3rd Prize: $2,500

Undergraduate Teams

1st Prize: $5,000

2nd Prize: $2,500

3rd Prize: $1,500

Cash prizes will be paid to the winning teams’ schools for distribution by the students’ home institute.

PART I 

  • Submit a 3-page maximum single-space submission with appendices as needed that address how to structure a novel private capital investment model in the middle market to address the challenges outlined in the case.
  • Key challenges in this case include but are not limited to different investor time horizons and the need for liquidity, inventive alignment for the fund management team, and approach to the strategic leadership of the operating companies.
  • Finalists will be identified based on Part I submission.

PART II

  • In advance of the competition, submit a PowerPoint of the original investment model updated based on the response to the judge’s feedback from Part I.
  • Apply this investment thesis to 3-5 hypothetical investment opportunities (provided in advance of the St. Louis trip), focusing both on investment decisions (yes/no) and strategic and operational plan post-investment.

PART III

  • Present the PowerPoints of one’s final investment model and investment decisions to the panel of judges (12 mins.)
  • Respond live to feedback offered by the panel of judges (8 mins.)
  • Winners will be identified based on the quality of the final presentation and Q&A.
The Olin Brookings Commission Recommendations article by Sara Savat
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Key Dates

Registration Opens: November 8, 2024
Teams must submit a completed registration to participate in the competition.

Registration Closes: November 24, 2024
Teams must submit a completed registration by 11:59 PM on 11/24 to participate in the competition.

Case Distribution: November 25, 2024
Registered teams will receive access to an interactive experience online.

Qualifying Round: December 22, 2024
Each team must submit a short write-up (limit to 3 pages, single space + appendices) by 11:59 p.m. CST on the due date.  Five graduate and five undergraduate teams will advance to the final round of the competition.

Preliminaries: January 6, 2025
The five selected graduate and five selected undergraduate teams will receive notification and advance to the finals. The finals are in person; teams unwilling to travel to Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, will be disqualified. A team’s commitment to travel must be established one month before the final five in both graduate and undergraduate.

Finals: February 14, 2025
Selected teams will travel to St. Louis to present in person to a panel of judges. Each team will receive two complimentary double-occupancy rooms at the Charles F Knight Executive Center on the WashU Danforth Campus for a two-night stay (February 13-14, 2025) and some meals.