Park Madison re-hires Kohn as partner – Exclusive

Park Madison Partners has brought a former executive back on board, this time as an equity partner, PERE has learned.

Rob Kohn returned to the New York-based placement agency earlier this month after three years as a senior vice president at Washington DC-based Akridge.

“I know Rob well and other people here have worked with Rob as well, so it’s really like having him come home again,” Nancy Lashine, the firm’s founder, told PERE. “His coming back here puts him in a stronger position to be part of the next generation of leaders at Park Madison Partners.”

Kohn, who left the firm in 2013 as a partner, started his career in investment banking before working as a placement agent. In leaving Park Madison, he said he wanted to gain experience working for a general partner, which he plans to translate into his work as a placement agent once again.

“On the fundraising side, I understood the real estate but never got a chance to invest” before joining Akbridge, Kohn told PERE. “I’d always thought about getting back into the placement world. What better opportunity than a boutique firm that provides amazing service to its clients and has a bit of runway to grow?”

The firm is currently working on five commingled fund mandates. Kohn said he plans to use his new connections from his last role to help execute these fundraises. His role includes capital formation, strategic advisory services and client management. Kohn also noted that a number of the firm’s clients are moving into the alternative investment space, a part of the business he hopes to expand.

He joins Lashine and Carrie Coulson as an equity partner in Park Madison, which Lashine founded in 2006. The senior leadership position was one draw to the firm, and he said he also considered starting his own shop.

“Frankly, a lot of those other [placement] firms might not have a lot of room in upper management,” Kohn said.

Matt Klein, Akridge's president, said in a statement to PERE that Kohn's job change was not unexpected.

“Rob’s roots run deep as a placement agent; he is a solid guy and rejoining Park Madison was a natural move,” Klein said. “I expect we will have opportunity to continue to work with Rob in this new role.”