About Preston Leahy.
Most operating improvements are evaluated within functions. The most valuable ones often exist between them.
Over the past decade, I've worked across enterprise sales, commercial operations, venture-backed software, and private equity partnerships, giving me a broad perspective on how businesses create value throughout the investment lifecycle.
My career includes experience with organizations backed by institutional investors, including Vista Equity Partners-backed Salesloft, venture-backed Scratchpad, and private equity-backed media businesses. Today, I lead Private Equity Partnerships for Paylocity, partnering with sponsors, Operating Partners, CFOs, CEOs, and portfolio leadership teams on initiatives that improve free cash flow, EBITDA, scalability, and enterprise value.
Working across the front office and the administrative operating infrastructure has shaped how I evaluate businesses. Revenue growth, labor economics, payroll tax strategy, finance operations, systems integration, and organizational execution are often analyzed independently, even though they influence the same financial outcomes.
The Portfolio Value Creation Institute was created to research those overlooked intersections. Its focus is simple: identify operating levers that improve enterprise value by uncovering opportunities that fall between functions, between initiatives, and ultimately between owners.
Preston Leahy
