PE Roundtable Dinner Series - Invitation Only - November 2020

Lauren De Paola, Partner, Head of Communications and Sustainability, joined Darien Group in 2020. In her role, she leads brand identity, content and messaging strategy, website development, video production, and ESG advisory projects.

For over 16 years, Lauren has served the alternative investment industry, with experience around marketing, communications, investor relations, and sustainability.  Through much of her career, Lauren was the Director of Communications for First Reserve, a leading global private equity firm exclusively focused on energy.  In addition, she spent time as a Senior Advisor on ESG, advising public and private capital managers on Responsible Investment practices and policies. 

Lauren holds a B.A. in English and American Literature and Language from Harvard University.

Charlie Ittner founded Darien Group in 2015 to establish a new class of branding and communications services specialized for the alternative investment management industry. He has grown the firm to a team of over 20 professionals through work for over 100 clients, a roster that includes many household names in private equity and real estate. 

Charlie is responsible for management of the company and its employees, including strategic direction and business development, as well as leading select brand identity engagements.

Charlie began his career at Platinum Equity, where he led the firm’s brand and marketing program. He also served as Director of Investor Relations for bkm Capital Partners. He holds an MBA from UCLA Anderson School of Management and a BA in English Literature from Pomona College.

Mark Wiskup is recognized as an international leader for communication strategy and presentation coaching for the private equity industry. His global practice is 100% devoted to private equity and investment banking clients.

A variety of international funds hire Mark yearly to develop content and to coach speakers for annual investor conferences.  He has worked on hundreds of private equity coaching assignments globally for a lot of middle-market funds, including 180 exit coaching processes.

Mark is a lifelong professional communicator, starting his post-college years as an award-winning television business reporter and anchor in Colorado, Florida, Minnesota and Arkansas.

He holds a B.A. in Political Science from UCLA and an M.S.J. in Broadcast Journalism from Northwestern University.

Mark’s three books on communication have been published in five different languages.