S3 Episode 5: José E. Feliciano, Capitalizing on Success to Serve Others
In This Episode
For José E. Feliciano, success starts with failure.
Prior to co-founding prominent private equity firm Clearlake Capital in 2006, Feliciano persevered through failures that forced him to innovate rather than recede into the background. Today, as a powerful investor in Silicon Valley, he sees his story reflected in countless technology start-ups. Businesses where failure is celebrated—because out of challenge often comes invention.
Feliciano has experienced enormous growth with Clearlake, and he’s paid that success forward by founding the philanthropic Supercharged initiative and claiming a seat on the board of trustees for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Latino.
He believes that his career story isn’t unique—that regardless of his recent stake in the English Premier League soccer team Chelsea FC, he’s not on a path that’s invisible to others in the Latino business community. It’s a bold statement, but for Feliciano, as Latinos continue to grow into the new majority, so too will their access to capital and notoriety.
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About Our Guest
José E. Feliciano is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Clearlake Capital Group, L.P., a private investment firm founded in 2006. In addition to his investing responsibilities, Mr. Feliciano is responsible for the day-today management of the firm. With a sector-focused approach, the firm seeks to partner with world-class management teams by providing patient, long-term capital to dynamic businesses that can benefit from Clearlake’s operational improvement approach, O.P.S.® The firm’s core target sectors are technology, industrials, and consumer. Clearlake has over $72 billion of assets under management and its senior investment principals have led or co-led over 300 investments.
Prior to co-founding Clearlake, Mr. Feliciano was a Partner and member of the investment committee at Tennenbaum Capital Partners, a senior executive at govWorks, Inc., and started his career in investment banking in the Mergers & Acquisitions and Corporate Finance Groups at Goldman, Sachs & Co.
Mr. Feliciano currently serves on the Board of Directors of several Clearlake portfolio companies. He co-founded the SUPERCHARGED Initiative, a philanthropic grantmaking and impact investment organization, in 2014. The Initiative invests in both nonprofits and for-profit ventures that are compatible with its goal to make a lasting impact across four key priorities: Education, Entrepreneurship, Equal Opportunity and Empowerment. In addition, Mr. Feliciano serves on the board of directors of the Robert Toigo Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to fostering the career advancement and increased leadership of underrepresented talent, and Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, a foundation that works to support individuals, alliances, and organizations dedicated to improving human rights around the world. He is also a trustee of Stanford University and the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Latino.
Mr. Feliciano graduated with High Honors from Princeton University, where he received a B.S. in Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering. He received his M.B.A. from the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University.
Linkedin: Jose Feliciano
