Advent is a global private equity organization, with subsidiaries and affiliated entities
operating from offices on four continents. Advent exercises discretionary authority in
providing advisory services to its clients, which are private limited partnerships or other
entities (“Funds”) primarily within three investment programs (which are referred to in this
Brochure as the “Investment Programs”): the Global Private Equity Program, which invests
primarily in Europe and North America; the Advent Tech Program, which invests in
technology businesses primarily in Europe and North America; and the Latin American
Program, which invests primarily in Latin America. The Funds make investments in
securities of growth oriented privately held companies and, to a limited extent, also invest in
early-stage companies and publicly held companies.
Advent has been in business since 1984.
A.AdvisoryServices
SourcingInvestments
Providing services in the private equity business requires a significant amount of time and
resources dedicated to identifying companies that may offer securities suitable for
investment by the Funds, a process often referred to as “deal sourcing.” Advent has a well-
established process for deal sourcing that has been developed based on years of experience.
Deals are sourced in a number of different ways, including business and professional
contacts, investment banks, accounting firms, other private equity firms, cold calls and trade
publications. Advent also has a network of operating partners, industry and deal advisors
and certain other third-party consultants who are available in a contractual advisory
capacity to assist with deal sourcing. Business proposals are also submitted directly to
Advent from companies looking for capital. To source deals, Advent’s investment
professionals receive and screen business plans, visit companies, meet with entrepreneurs
and management teams, attend trade shows and conferences, research industries and
technologies, review publications and engage in many other related activities.
DueDiligenceandEvaluationofInvestments
Potential investment opportunities are subjected to a rigorous due diligence process by
Advent’s investment staff. Advent’s network of operating partners, industry advisors and
deal advisors, as well as operations advisors (collectively, “Independent Advisors”), may also
assist in conducting due diligence. Due diligence procedures typically include financial and
market analysis, research on the business sector and region, reference checks on
management and evaluating markets for product offerings. Before an investment is made, it
is evaluated by Advent for suitability and must be approved by the investment committee
for the relevant Investment Program. This evaluation includes research on the company, its
market and competition, a detailed financial and exit analysis, deal structuring, a review of
management and employees, environmental studies where appropriate and other technical
analysis. Determining and negotiating the financial structure of these investments is a
significant component of the value added by Advent for the Funds as it impacts the financial
returns on the investment. Investments can be structured as majority or minority equity
positions, growth buy-outs, traditional leveraged buyouts, mezzanine financings,
recapitalizations or acquisitions.
OngoingManagementofInvestments
Throughout the life of a Fund’s investment in a company, Advent is committed to building
the company into a successful business. Advent and its representatives generally take an
active role on behalf of the Funds, which are typically represented on the boards of directors
of the companies in which they invest. Advent’s approach often involves working
extensively with portfolio company management to accelerate growth and create value
through operational improvements, strategic repositioning and market expansion,
domestically and internationally. Some of Advent’s investment professionals have operating
or strategic consulting backgrounds. In addition to the role of Advent’s investment
professionals, Advent may provide companies in which its Funds invest with management
or operating personnel or other management or consulting services (“Business Services”)
and access to its Portfolio Support Group, which can provide operational support to
management in their development and execution of their business plans. The Portfolio
Support Group is an in-house Advent team of professionals with operational experience that
bring tools and temporary resources to help drive operating improvements at portfolio
companies. To complement Advent’s in-house capabilities, Independent Advisors may also
work to support the growth of businesses in which the Funds invest. Operating partners are
senior industry executives, typically former CEOs, who work with Advent on a consulting
basis in specific sectors to find attractive investment opportunities, conduct due diligence
and create and drive value creation plans for portfolio companies often as portfolio company
executives or active board members. Operations advisors are functional experts who work
with portfolio companies to enable growth in areas such as IT, HR and finance. Other
Independent Advisors are also senior industry executives but are typically engaged as
consultants on more of an ad hoc, shorter-term basis. Advent’s involvement with portfolio
companies through its investment professionals, Portfolio Support Group, and third-party
Independent Advisors allows it to:
Build a board of directors that has strong operational expertise, from outsiders as
well as Advent partners, and governs actively;
Develop detailed strategic and operating plans and track progress against milestones,
while providing the important, but more traditional, financial input;
Enhance, upgrade or change a management team
when appropriate; and
Manage or drive projects on behalf of the portfolio company such as entering new
markets or executing an acquisition or exit program.
Additionally, Advent believes that international reach and outlook are critical to success in a
global marketplace. Many of Advent’s investments take advantage of cross-border
opportunities. Advent’s international platform enables it to help a company in areas such as
addressing new markets, channel development, offshore manufacturing, business alliances,
technology and product sourcing, and cross-border acquisitions and divestitures. It also
enhances Advent’s ability to identify trends from outside a company’s country of origin that
may create new opportunities to generate value, even for a single-country business.
OperatingPartnersandOtherIndependentAdvisors
Advent’s operating partners and other Independent Advisors (who are not partners or
employees of Advent or its affiliates but rather consultants engaged by Advent, the Funds or
their portfolios companies to provide advisory and other services from time to time) are
often involved in both pre-and post-investment activities relating to portfolio companies.
For potential portfolio investments they may assist in finding investment opportunities,
conducting due diligence, validating the operational improvement potential, evaluating
portfolio company management and providing additional assistance through their industry
contacts. After a portfolio investment is made, Independent Advisors often work closely with
management of the portfolio company to provide industry expertise and experience and to
implement the value-creation plan constructed for the business. In addition, Independent
Advisors may provide functional expertise to portfolio companies to drive certain
transformative initiatives. It is also common for Independent Advisors to be hired by a
portfolio company in a senior executive capacity or to serve on the portfolio company’s
board of directors after the investment is made.
The source of payment to Independent Advisors (which can include per diem, incentive
compensation tied to the performance of a Fund and retainer as well as investment and/or
exit success fees) depends on the services being provided. For example, if an Independent
Advisor provides general industry or other non-portfolio company specific information to
Advent, Advent pays any associated costs. If an Independent Advisor provides services
specific to a current or prospective portfolio company of a Fund, the Fund pays its pro rata
share of those costs, as provided in the Fund’s organizational documents. In many cases
when an Independent Advisor is involved in the investment in a portfolio company, it is
expected that he or she will be retained by the portfolio company in a management role if
the investment is made by a Fund. If an Independent Advisor is elected or appointed to, or
hired for, an executive, board or other position with a portfolio company (such as Chairman
or CEO), the portfolio company pays any related compensation directly to the Independent
Advisor just as it would to any other person holding such position. An Independent Advisor
may also participate in the portfolio company’s applicable management stock or option
plans. Because Independent Advisors are not Advent employees, cash or stock compensation
paid to them by prospective or current portfolio companies is not offset against the
management fees paid to Advent by the Funds that invest in those portfolio companies. In
addition, certain Independent Advisors are permitted to invest in Advent-managed co-
investment funds on a no-fee basis (refer to Item 5 of this Brochure) or alongside the Funds
in one or more portfolio companies.
ExitingInvestments
Depending on the investment focus or strategy of a Fund, Advent will typically seek to exit
an investment within three to five years after the initial investment, although the actual exit
timeline may be shorter or longer. Throughout the life of the investment, the exit strategy is
always a priority. The exit strategy can vary for different companies and markets and may
involve managing toward an IPO, a trade sale of the company, or the sale of a Fund’s stake in
the company to another party, be it another financial investor or a strategic investor. Advent
can assist the portfolio company in completing its initial public offering on a US or
international stock exchange, or if the exit will be through a private sale, work with the
management team to identify the right buyer and negotiate suitable terms. Advent builds
businesses for continued success beyond its investment period and the exit process is part
of that mandate.
B.InvestmentCriteriaoftheFunds
The Funds in each Investment Program have specific investment criteria as well as
investment restrictions and guidelines. In connection with investing in a new Fund,
investors in that Fund may request that it have specific investment limitations or restrictions
that are designed to address legal, tax, investment or other objectives. Examples of these
types of restrictions include prohibitions on investing in companies engaged in certain
activities or a limitation on how much capital may be invested in a single company. Refer to
Item 8 of this Brochure for a description of the general investment strategies followed by
Advent’s different Investment Programs.
C.AssetsUnderManagement
As of December 31, 2023, Advent managed $86,970,336,521 of client assets on a
discretionary basis. Advent does not manage client assets on a non-discretionary basis.
Advent's assets under management as of December 31, 2023 includes the uncalled capital
commitments of the Funds and is calculated for those Funds that have capital commitments
or investments denominated in a currency other than U.S. dollars based on the applicable
exchange rate on December 31, 2023.