Deven Parekh, using his varied career experiences and educational background as a solid foundation, works to advance the goals of business and charitable organizations. He is a managing director at Insight Venture Partners – an NYC headquartered private equity and venture capital firm. He’s also on the Board of Publicolor (www.publicolor.org). Additionally, Mr. Parekh is a Henry Crown Fellow of The Aspen Institute. This Institute is a fellowship that honors the memory of Henry Crown (1896-1990) – a Chicago industrialist.
Regarding his educational background, Deven Parekh has a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. His extensive business experience includes his prior responsibilities as a Principal at New York based merchant banking firm Berenson Minella & Company, where he served on the Mergers & Acquisitions (M & A) Committee. Prior to joining Berenson Minella, he was with The Blackstone Group. He involved in M & A advisory and principal activities with this firm.
Deven Parekh also serves on the Technical Advisory Board of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the Advisory Board of the US Export-Import Bank. Regarding his responsibilities at Insight Venture Partners, he works with late-stage and expansion software, internet, and data-enabled organizations. On top of that, he carries out analysis on social media startups to identify potential opportunities for investment. Being a venture capitalist and private equity specialist, he specializes in progressive businesses and works to help them bring their innovative developments to the marketplace.
An illustration of the investment focus of Deven Parekh is his investment in Buddy Media. This business enterprise is a social media management software company, and Mr. Parekh will be a Board Observer with Buddy Media. Buddy Media assists advertisers in managing their presence on the Facebook social network, and advertisers can utilize the company for Twitter, and other social network platforms. Buddy Media’s customers include a number of the globe’s most recognized international brands, retailers, and media companies.
When it comes to non-profit initiatives, Deven Parekh works to advance the goals of the aforementioned Publicolor, a non-profit organization. Publicolor enables students to work together to improve the quality and appearance of their educational spaces. Publicolor utilizes color and painting to motivate and involve disaffected teenaged students. Mr. Parekh is Chairman of the Board of this organization, which is targeted on helping students become prosperous members of the nation’s labor force. Publicolor furthers the teaching of the process of commercial painting, helping students develop useable skills and confidence.