Private Equity Group

At University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business FT MBA Program

Are the private markets calling?

The Private Equity Group (PEG) is Booth’s student community for those interested in exploring private equity

Get access to modelling and financial trainings put on through PEG and partnerships with Training the Street and Elevate

Learn from those in the field and second year students who have recruited for and worked in PE

Meet with firms in New York, San Francisco, and our hometown of Chicago

Attend lunch-and-learns with firms and guest speakers visiting campus

Join us March 6th, 2026 for the Booth Annual PE Conference. Speakers in past years have included Pete Stavros (KKR) and Carl Thoma (Thoma Bravo)

Join an amazing community of students and alumni in private equity

Programming || Communications || Career Services

Giovanna Pinciroli is one of two PEG co-chairs primarily responsible for Programming and Career Services
After spending time at McKinsey, Giovanna worked at BC Partners and Apax Partners, as Private Equity Analyst and Associate. During this time, she was staffed on several portfolio companies and was a deal-team member on important acquisitions, including the largest private transaction closed in Italy in 2022
Born and raised in Milan, Giovanna Pinciroli studied Management Science and Engineering and Economics at Stanford University. She graduated with Honors and Distinction and is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa and Tau Beta Pi honor societies
Giovanna joined Booth as MBA Candidate and Distinguished Fellow, where she completed the Accounting and Finance concentrations. Giovanna is also working closely with Professor Steven Kaplan with whom she is co-writing a Private Equity case, and she is a Teaching Assistant for the “Advanced Financial Analysis and Valuation for Global Firms” as well as “Internal Information for Strategic Decisions” courses

Programming || Communications || Career Services

Zack Spear is one of two PEG co-chairs primarily responsible for Programming and Career Services
After beginning his career in the Consumer & Retail investment banking group at Wells Fargo, Zack worked as buyside analyst for Columbia Threadneedle covering small and mid-cap stocks before transitioning to private equity where he spent a couple of years at Silver Oak Services Partners completing deals in the healthcare services, consumer services, and business services sectors. While at Silver Oak, Zack also served on the Private Equity Association of Chicago’s board
Zack studied at Washington and Lee University where majored in Accounting & Business Administration and graduated magma cum laude and was a member of the Beta Gamma Sigma and Alpha Beta Psi honor societies
Currently Zack is an MBA Candidate at Chicago Booth where he is an 1898 scholarship recepient and is completing concentrations in finance and entrepreneurship. In addition to being a private equity co-chair, Zack is also a co-chair of the golf club and career advisor for private equity

2026 Booth Private Equity Conference Co-lead

Brian Lucido is one of two PEG co-chairs primarily responsible for the 2026 Booth Private Equity Conference
Brian began his career at Vista Equity Partners within their Value Creation Team as a go-to-market specialist for portfolio operational support. He worked with portfolio companies on various engagements designed to drive maturation of go-to-market processes, with specific concentrations in revenue operations, sales strategy, and customer success
Brian received his undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan, with a focus in business strategy and political science
This summer, Brian will be interning with Erie Street Growth Partners, a Chicago-based private-equity firm that partners with founder-led, tech-enabled business-services companies to help management teams accelerate organic growth and build the operational infrastructure needed to scale
After Booth, Brian aims to return to a portfolio operations role at a firm that has a sector focus on either software / SaaS, healthcare technology, or business services, with the long-term goal of moving directly into a portfolio company in a leadership role

2026 Booth Private Equity Conference Co-lead

Vedant Sood is one of two PEG co-chairs primarily responsible for the 2026 Booth Private Equity Conference
Prior to Booth, Vedant was a Management Consultant at BCG, primarily focused on the Financial Services, TMT, and PIPE practice areas
Vedant graduated with a BA in Economics from the University of Chicago
He participated in the winter section of the PE lab with MPowered Capital in Chicago, and will be a summer intern at Stone-Goff Partners in Boston, focused on investing in tech-enabled services businesses
Vedant was on the winning team at the 2024 Water Street Private Equity Case Challenge (PECC) and is also a Career Advisor (CA) for Private Equity

New York Trek || East Coast Alumni Relations

Juan Pablo Archila is a PEG co-chair primarily responsible for planning the New York PE Trek and assisting with East Coast alumni networking and relations
Before joining Booth, Juan Pablo was a Principal at ACON Investments, a U.S.-based generalist PE firm, evaluating and executing private equity investments across Latin America
Prior to ACON, he began his career in investment banking, first as an analyst at Axia IB, a boutique firm in Colombia, and later at BTG Pactual, a regional Latin American investment bank
Juan Pablo holds a B.S. in Industrial Engineering with a minor in Business Law from Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia

Chicago Trek || Midwest Alumni Relations

Dennis Choi is a PEG co-chair primarily responsible for planning the Chicago PE Trek and assisting with Midwest alumni networking and relations
Prior to Booth, Dennis was a Senior Associate at Pritzker Private Capital, a middle-market investment firm focused on the manufactured products and services sectors
Prior to Pritzker Private Capital, Dennis was an Investment Banking Analyst at Houlihan Lokey in the industrials group
Dennis graduated from Indiana University Kelley School of Business with a major in Finance
Dennis is currently interning at Periscope Equity, a private equity firm based in Chicago that invests in the tech-enabled services sector

San Francisco Trek || West Coast Alumni Relations

Claire Dennis is a PEG co-chair primarily responsible for planning the San Francisco PE Trek and assisting with West Coast alumni networking and relations
Before Booth, Claire was a Senior Associate at Altamont Capital Partners, a middle-market investment firm, where she focused on transactions in the financial services and consumer sectors
Claire graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in Political Science from Amherst College, where she also competed on the volleyball team
She participated in the winter section of the PE lab with Benford Capital Partners in Chicago, and will be a summer intern at Roark Capital Group in Atlanta, focused on investing in franchise businesses