Jones Partners Thought Leadership Series - Paul Hobby

About Paul Hobby

Paul Hobby is a founding partner of Genesis Park, a Houston-based private equity firm and lead investor in Alpheus Communications. Mr. Hobby grew up in traditional media businesses, working in and around radio, newspaper and television operations. In 1994, Mr. Hobby conceived and executed a strategy for integrating station operations through improved information technology. That company, Columbine JDS Systems, Inc., became, through internal software development and acquisitions, the largest provider of media software and services in the world. Mr. Hobby sold that company in late 1997 to a NYSE listed company. Until February 2006, Mr. Hobby was non-executive Chairman of CapRock Services, Inc. the largest satellite telecommunications provider serving the global energy business. He currently serves on the boards of publicly traded companies including, Eagle Global Logistics, Inc., Stewart Title and Amegy Bank of Texas. Mr. Hobby is a graduate of the University of Virginia and the University of Texas School of Law, where he has served as an adjunct faculty member and been honored as an Outstanding Young Alumnus.

Alpheus Communications is a joint venture between Genesis Park, LP, a regional Houston-based private equity firm and El Paso Corporation, a Fortune 500 energy company. Alpheus provides long-haul telecommunications transport services in metro markets across Texas. In addition to offering a broadband backbone network that travels fromWichita Falls to the Rio Grande Valley, the company also offers gigabit Ethernet, metro transport, managed wavelength, co-location services, and point-to-point private line services. Alpheus' services target telecom carriers and enterprise customers in the banking, energy, health care, IT, and legal sectors.

Cliff Atherton Lecturer in Management, Jones Graduate School of Business Managing Director, GulfStar Group

  

About Cliff Atherton

Cliff has over 25 years of experience in corporate finance and investment banking. He joined GulfStar in 1995 and since that time has completed numerous corporate finance assignments for business owners.  Most of his transactions have involved the sale or recapitalization of private companies.  Cliff has a generalist investment banking background and significant recent experience representing upstream and downstream energy service and alternative energy companies.  Most of Cliff’s  clients are entrepreneur- or family-owned businesses

Prior to joining GulfStar, he was a Managing Director of McKenna & Company (1992-1995),  President of Emprise Consulting Group, Inc. (1990-1992), and an independent consultant (1978-1990). Cliff has served on the faculty of Rice University's Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Administration since 1980 (full-time from 1980-1987).  He was also an Adjunct Professor of Finance at the University of Houston from 1993-1997.  He founded and served as program director for Rice's Forum for Closely Held Businesses in the mid-1990s. Cliff earned a B.A. from Rice University and Ph.D. and M.B.A. degrees from The University of Texas.