Mark Bisso

Entrée to the industry: Before joining Och-Ziff, worked at ArcLight Capital Partners; principal for private equity firm with more than $10 billion of investments across energy value chain. Previously, associate in investment banking group at Deutsche Bank Securities, where he focused on all phases of high yield, bank debt, equity offering and financial advisory related to upstream and oilfield services transactions.

Keeping active: Wary of “the risk of stagnation in investment teams,” and strives to cultivate team mentality that “encourages ownership of all aspects of the investment process from all team members,” as well as “being persistent, but also self-critical and making hard decisions when required.”

Acceleration: Finds that “the experience you gain working in investment banking and private equity occurs in dog years,” enabling young professionals to acquire a significant amount of experience early on in their careers. This phenomenon has held true, as he first joined a firm “close to its inception, which amplified this dynamic” and allowed him “to be on the front lines during a high growth period for both raising capital and executing new investments.”

Ripple effects: Applauds the industry for the “depth and diversity of entrepreneurs in the space” and their propensity for innovation, which leads to “greater, positive implications for many facets of both the domestic and international economies.”

Greater than its parts: Takes a differentiated approach to acquisitions in the Midland and Delaware basins by seeking to “capitalize on inefficiencies related to smaller assets that may not offer immediate scale to hyper-aggressive buyers associated with larger assets.” By assembling “smaller assets from the ground up, we’re better situated to create significant positions at compelling entry prices that can potentially generate premium valuations at exit.”

Continuum: Works to “ensure investments are well-positioned, even in a challenging environment” in order to “provide optionality and the ability to influence outcomes through a broad range of scenarios.”