Kenneth A. Hersh (born 1963) is an American businessman and financier. He is the former chairman and CEO of NGP Energy Capital Management (NGP), a
private equity firm
A private equity firm is an investment management company that provides financial backing and makes investments in the private equity of startup or operating companies through a variety of loosely affiliated investment strategies including leve ...
based in Texas. He is the CEO of the
George W. Bush Presidential Center
The George W. Bush Presidential Center, which opened on April 25, 2013, is a complex that includes former United States President George W. Bush's presidential library and museum, the George W. Bush Policy Institute, and the offices of the Geor ...
in Dallas.
Energy Transfer Partners
Energy Transfer LP is an American company engaged in natural gas and propane pipeline transport. It is organized under Delaware state laws and headquartered in Dallas, Texas. It was founded in 1995 by Ray Davis and Kelcy Warren, who remains Cha ...
The Dallas Morning News
''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885 by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ''Galvesto ...
'', October 19, 2010. Accessed October 22, 2011. The
Carlyle Group
The Carlyle Group is a multinational private equity, alternative asset management and financial services corporation based in the United States with $376 billion of assets under management. It specializes in private equity, real assets, and pri ...
acquired a $424 million stake in NGP Energy Capital and appointed Hersh as a senior advisor.
Hersh is currently a member of the
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank
A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, mi ...
and the
World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...
, and is also on the boards of the
National Association for Urban Debate Leagues
The National Association for Urban Debate Leagues (NAUDL) is a Chicago-based non-profit organization that prepares low income students of color to succeed in college and in their future careers by organizing and supporting competitive debate teams ...
(NAUDL) and the George W. Bush Foundation. On May 31, 2016, he was appointed CEO and president of the
George W. Bush Presidential Center
The George W. Bush Presidential Center, which opened on April 25, 2013, is a complex that includes former United States President George W. Bush's presidential library and museum, the George W. Bush Policy Institute, and the offices of the Geor ...
. In 2017, Hersh made a $35 million investment in the
esports
Esports, short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, individually or as teams. Although orga ...
company
Envy Gaming
Envy Gaming, Inc was a collective esports and gaming company. It was originally founded in 2007 by Tosh "Stainville" Mcgruder and Skyler "Foreplayy" Johnson as a ''Call of Duty'' esports team known as Team EnVyUs. Envy Gaming, LLC was formed in ...
and became chairman of the board at the company.
Early life and education
Kenneth "Ken" Hersh was born in 1963 in
Dallas, Texas
Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...
, where he spent his childhood. In 1969, Hersh attended the
St. Mark's School of Texas
The St. Mark's School of Texas is a nonsectarian preparatory day school for boys in grades 1–12 in Dallas, Texas, United States, accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Southwest.
History
St. Mark's traces its origins to the T ...
for both his primary and secondary education. He graduated from St. Mark's in 1981. Hersh subsequently attended
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...
in
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
. He then attended
Stanford University Graduate School of Business
The Stanford Graduate School of Business (also known as Stanford GSB) is the graduate business school of Stanford University, a private research university in Stanford, California. For several years it has been the most selective business sc ...
, where he graduated with an
MBA
A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...
in
business administration
Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...
in 1989, with designation as an Arjay Miller Scholar.
Career
Hersh joined
Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley is an American multinational investment management and financial services company headquartered at 1585 Broadway in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. With offices in more than 41 countries and more than 75,000 employees, the fir ...
’s investment banking division in 1985, where he worked with an energy group.
Richard Rainwater
Richard Edward Rainwater (June 15, 1944 – September 27, 2015) was an American investor and philanthropist. With an estimated net worth of $3 billion, he ranked 211th on the Forbes 400 in 2015.
His investing style was described as "analytically ...
offered him a position as a manager for Natural Gas Partners, a newly formed private equity fund in 1988. Along with Rainwater and Gamble Baldwin, Hersh and David Albin co-founded the
private equity fund
A private equity fund (abbreviated as PE fund) is a collective investment scheme used for making investments in various equity (and to a lesser extent debt) securities according to one of the investment strategies associated with private equity ...
Natural Gas Partners (NGP) in November 1988, as an energy fund focused on the oil and gas industries. By the early 1990s the firm had established a pattern of funding entrepreneurs and helping startup companies undergo mergers and acquisitions.
Hersh was appointed the chief investment officer at Rainwater Inc. in 1994. By March 2005, the NGP platform managed $1.6 billion in funds and had invested approximately $1.3 billion in around 70 private energy companies in North America. It had also structured and negotiated transactions totaling around $10 billion. Energy Transfer Partners proved to be one of Hersh's more notable investments, as the company netted NGP a nearly 3,000% return on investment over the course of five years.
Barclays Capital
Barclays () is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services.
Barclays traces ...
, an arm of
Barclays Bank
Barclays () is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services.
Barclays traces ...
, purchased a 40% stake in NGP Energy Capital Management's stock in October 2006 in what the ''
Financial Times
The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
'' reported was "believed to be among the largest ever
take
A take is a single continuous recorded performance. The term is used in film and music to denote and track the stages of production.
Film
In cinematography, a take refers to each filmed "version" of a particular shot or "setup". Takes of each s ...
taken in a private equity firm by an outside investor." At the time, NGP managed about $3.5 billion. By 2012, NGP had $12.1 billion under management, with around 75% of NGP's business involved in the acquisition and exploitation of gas and oil properties. In December 2012, through Barclays Natural Resource Investments, the
Carlyle Group
The Carlyle Group is a multinational private equity, alternative asset management and financial services corporation based in the United States with $376 billion of assets under management. It specializes in private equity, real assets, and pri ...
acquired a $424 million stake in NGP Energy Capital. In 2012, Hersh was appointed a senior advisor to The Carlyle Group, and was given the role of assisting in the "execution of the firm’s natural resources investment strategies."
Hersh served as NGP's CEO until 2015, at which point he took on the role of chairman instead. He also continued sitting on the NGP investment committees. NGP Energy Capital Management remains an energy affiliate of
The Carlyle Group
The Carlyle Group is a multinational private equity, alternative asset management and financial services corporation based in the United States with $376 billion of assets under management. It specializes in private equity, real assets, and pri ...
, and May 2016, Hersh was currently deputy chief investment officer for energy and natural resources and serves as senior advisor for its natural resources division. On May 31, 2016, the George W. Bush Foundation appointed Hersh as the new CEO and president of the
George W. Bush Presidential Center
The George W. Bush Presidential Center, which opened on April 25, 2013, is a complex that includes former United States President George W. Bush's presidential library and museum, the George W. Bush Policy Institute, and the offices of the Geor ...
Southern Methodist University
, mottoeng = "The truth will make you free"
, established =
, type = Private research university
, accreditation = SACS
, academic_affiliations =
, religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church
, president = R. Gerald Turner
, prov ...
campus in Dallas. Hersh was also appointed to the board of the George W. Bush Foundation.
In August 2017, Hersh made an investment of $35 million in the American esports company,
Envy Gaming
Envy Gaming, Inc was a collective esports and gaming company. It was originally founded in 2007 by Tosh "Stainville" Mcgruder and Skyler "Foreplayy" Johnson as a ''Call of Duty'' esports team known as Team EnVyUs. Envy Gaming, LLC was formed in ...
, through his firm Hersh Interactive Group. Following this significant investment from the Dallas-based investor, Envy Gaming moved its headquarters from
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
, to Dallas. Envy Gaming owns a number of esports teams, including
Team Envy
Team Envy was an American esports franchise based in Dallas, Texas, owned by Envy Gaming. Founded in 2007 as a professional ''Call of Duty'' team under the moniker Team EnVyUs, they fielded rosters in ''Counter-Strike, FIFA (video game series), ...
,
Dallas Fuel
Dallas Fuel is an American professional ''Overwatch'' team based in Dallas, Texas. The Fuel compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the league's West region.
Founded in 2017, Dallas Fuel is one of the league's twelve founding team ...
, and
Dallas Empire
OpTic Texas (formerly the Dallas Empire) is an American professional Call of Duty League (CDL) esports team based in Dallas, Texas. OpTic Texas is owned by OpTic Gaming. Dallas was announced as one of the first five cities to host a CDL team.
H ...
. Following the investment, Hersh became chairman of the board of Envy Gaming.
Global Adaptation Institute
In 2010, Hersh founded the Global Adaptation Institute, a non-profit based in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
He served as chairman until January 2013. Hersh serves on the advisory board of the Notre Dame Global Adaptation Index (ND-GAIN).
See also
*
List of entrepreneurs
This is a list of entrepreneurs'' by century. An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative. This list includes notable entrepreneurs.
<18th-century entrepreneurs
*
*
Notable alumni of St. Mark's School of Texas
The St. Mark's School of Texas is a sectarian, nonsectarian University-preparatory school, preparatory day school for boys in grades 1–12 in Dallas, Dallas, Texas, United States, accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Southwest ...
The Carlyle Group
The Carlyle Group is a multinational private equity, alternative asset management and financial services corporation based in the United States with $376 billion of assets under management. It specializes in private equity, real assets, and pri ...