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MAVA Press Contact: Stacey Sweeney
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Stacey@StaceySweeney.com
Inc. Magazine Editor Bo Burlinghham And Renowned Economist And "Freakonomics" Author Steve Levitt To Keynote Capital Connection 2006
Carlyle Group's Robert Grady to Lead Limited Partner Panel at Region's Premier Venture Event, May 30-May 31
Timonium, MD - April 19, 2006 - Today the Mid-Atlantic Venture Association (MAVA) announced that Bo Burlingham and Steve Levitt will deliver addresses at the organization's annual venture fair, Capital Connection 2006, being held May 30-31, 2006 at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Washington DC. An anticipated nearly 1,000 fair attendees, including local and national private equity firms, entrepreneurs and professional services firms will gather to hear award-winning author and Inc. magazine editor Bo Burlingham deliver the luncheon keynote address. Economist and author Steve Levitt will deliver the morning opening session keynote address.
Bo Burlingham is the author of Small Giants: Companies That Choose to be Great Instead of Big and an editor-at-large of Inc. magazine. Steve Levitt is the author of the best-selling book, Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything, and is a professor of economics at the University of Chicago. He recently was recognized as one of the best American economists under 40. Both Burlingham and Levitt will participate in book-signing events during the conference.
Venture capitalist attendees to the conference will partake in the fair's exclusive Limited Partner panel being moderated by Robert Grady, Managing Director of The Carlyle Group. Mr. Grady serves as managing partner for Carlyle's U.S. venture and growth capital operation, Carlyle Venture Partners. Mr. Grady coordinates Carlyle's global venture and growth capital group, which has more than $1.7 billion under management in five funds.
"Following Capital Connection's nearly 20-year history of showcasing the region's hottest and most fundable technology companies, we are pleased to match that level of excellence in our programming with this line-up of impressive speakers," said Julia Spicer, Executive Director of MAVA. "Leveraging years of experience working with fast growth companies, Burlingham will share his thoughts on the traits that make companies great. Levitt, on the other hand, will enlighten us as he takes aim at conventional economic wisdom."
With the guidance of this year's strong slate of co-chairs Karl Khoury of Columbia Capital, Gina Dubbé of Walker Ventures, Joe Zell of Grotech Capital Group and Tim Meyers of Updata Partners, Capital Connection 2006 will showcase technology companies pre-screened by venture capitalists and coached through a formal mentoring process. The selected companies represent the premier entrepreneurial investment opportunities in the mid-Atlantic region and beyond. Since 1996, presenting companies at MAVA venture fairs have raised more than $2.5 billion. A list of the final companies selected to present at this year's Capital Connection will be announced in advance of the fair.
About MAVA
MAVA represents private equity and venture capitalists with investment interests in the mid-Atlantic. Founded in 1986, MAVA provides a wide range of programs, information and forums designed to facilitate quality deal flow, encourage collaboration, and foster relationships with entrepreneurs and investors in order to promote private equity investment. Membership includes more than 500 venture capital professionals representing nearly 125 firms with collectively more than $10 billion in capital under management. In addition, more than 250 key professional service providers from the legal, financial, executive search and consulting fields are also MAVA members. For more information, please visit www.mava.org
Capital Connection is a registered service mark of the Mid-Atlantic Venture Association (MAVA).
