Lateral Investment Management

Name

Lateral Investment Management

Legal name

Lateral Investment Management, LLC

Website

https://lateralim.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private Equity Growth Buyout Investing

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394), All Other Financial Investment Activities (52399)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Business Services (B2B) Growth Equity (FSANACAD)

Keywords

• Growth buyout investing
• Private equity management
• Founder-led partnerships
• Middle market investments
• Operational value creation

Headquarters

HQ city

San Mateo

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Growth Buyout Investment Management: Lateral operates as a growth buyout firm, providing capital and hands-on operational expertise to established founder-led businesses. Revenue is generated through private equity investment management, including traditional management fees and carried interest on fund returns.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Lateral Investment Management is a growth buyout private equity firm that invests capital and provides hands-on operational expertise to established, bootstrapped, founder-led businesses at critical inflection points. The firm targets companies with $10-250MM revenue and $1-30MM EBITDA across B2B Software, Managed Solutions, Tech-Enabled Services, and Industrial Technology, executing services-to-software transformations, AI-native transitions, and strategic M&A as active partners with founders.

Product overview

Lateral Investment Management is a private equity firm (growth buyout firm) that does not offer a unified product platform. The company partners with founder-led businesses at inflection points, providing capital and operational expertise. The firm's portfolio consists of portfolio company investments across B2B technology, industrial technology, managed solutions, and technology-enabled services. The portfolio companies operate as independent businesses including: Morae Global (legal technology platform), FirstClose (fintech mortgage solutions), Benchmark Builders (construction services), and Restoration Forest Products (sustainable forestry). The firm has also built Morae Global through strategic acquisitions of Adaptive Solutions, Exigent Group, Gimmal, and Phoenix Business Solutions, creating a comprehensive legal technology solutions platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Growth Buyout Investment Management Services Capital and hands-on operational expertise delivered to established, bootstrapped, founder-led businesses at critical inflection points, targeting companies with $10-250MM revenue and $1-30MM EBITDA across B2B Software, Managed Solutions, Tech-Enabled Services, and Industrial Technology. The service includes services-to-software transformation support, AI-native transition enablement, and strategic M&A execution for founders, packaged for institutional limited partners.

Quantifiable outcome

• Richard de Silva co-founded IronPlanet, which sold to Ritchie Brothers (NYSE:RBA) for nearly $800 million

Named customers4 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Bill PriemercoreOthers · 1 April 2025Bill Priemer joined as an Operating Partner in April 2025. He served as President and CEO of Hyland Software from 2013 to 2024, growing it into a global market leader with 4,000 employees, 14,000 customers, and over $1 billion in annual revenue. He brings deep expertise in enterprise software and technology-enabled services.
• Dan WarmenhovencoreOthers · 1 April 2025Dan Warmenhoven joined as an Operating Partner in April 2025. He is the former Chairman and CEO of NetApp, leading the company through an IPO and transforming it into a multi-billion dollar data infrastructure company. He currently serves as director of Bechtel Group and has previously served on boards of Cohesity, Palo Alto Networks, and Aruba Networks.
• Klaus BesiercoreOthers · 1 April 2025Klaus Besier joined as an Operating Partner in April 2025. He served as President and CEO of SAP Americas & ANZ, growing revenues from $50 million to $1 billion. He led multiple enterprise software organizations through successful IPOs and acquisitions, including Firepond (IPO in 2000), Neoware ($300M acquisition by HP), and RES Software.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Accel-KKR: Accel-KKR is a tech-focused middle-market private equity firm investing in software and tech-enabled services. Comparable target profile and growth-buyout orientation.
• Great Hill Partners: Great Hill is a Boston-based growth equity firm investing in mid-market software, digital media, and tech-enabled services. Mark Midle previously worked at Great Hill. Comparable target profile, check size, and operating-partner engagement model.
• Comvest Partners: Comvest Partners is a middle-market private investment firm. Lisa Harrow-Chodock joined Lateral from Comvest. Comparable lower-middle-market focus and operating-partner model.
• Summit Partners: Summit is a growth equity firm investing across technology, healthcare, and growth services. Jerome Fulton joined Lateral from Summit's enterprise software practice. Comparable on stage, sector, and founder-friendly orientation.
• K1 Investment Management: K1 is a growth equity firm focused on lower-middle-market enterprise software and tech-enabled services companies, with several Lateral alumni (Phuong Ninh, Kyle Hutchinson). Directly comparable on target company profile, check size, and operating-partner value-add model.
• White Oak Global Advisors: White Oak is a middle-market alternative asset manager focused on direct lending and private equity. David Lin and Stuart Barden joined Lateral from White Oak/White Oak Merchant Partners. Comparable lower-middle-market focus.
• TA Associates: TA Associates is a Boston-based growth equity firm focused on technology, financial services, and healthcare. Comparable investment size, sector focus (vertical SaaS and tech-enabled services), and growth-equity model.

Broad incumbents

• Bain Capital: Bain Capital is a global private investment firm with a large growth equity and tech buyout franchise. Mark Midle's prior tenure and the firm's broad sector coverage make Bain Capital a relevant incumbent comparable.
• Goldman Sachs Growth Equity: Goldman Sachs Growth Equity is the growth equity arm of Goldman Sachs. Mark Midle joined Lateral from Goldman Sachs Growth Equity after leading enterprise software and tech-enabled services investments. Comparable sector focus with much larger capital base.
• Insight Partners: Insight Partners is a large software-focused growth equity firm. While typically larger checks than Lateral's target, it competes for many of the same founder-led B2B software and tech-enabled services assets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/2684104
• Xx.com/lateralim

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles29 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments12 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lateral Investment Management