the egis team
Deep experience with long track record
ROBERT CHEFITZ
Founder & Managing Partner
Founder Robert Chefitz has over 40 years of venture capital and private equity experience. His career of active investing has shaped the skills and relationships that allowed him to launch Egis Capital Partners in 2008. Over the course of three Egis Funds, Robert has led the investments and/or served on the board of companies such as Alarm.com, ACRE, Brivo, ButterflyMX, FreightWatch, Stealth, and WorldAware.
Robert developed the concept that investments can be analyzed through a technology lens of: Sensors Communicating Information for Analysis and Response (“Egis Technology Lens”). Through this lens, Robert believes the future of investment opportunities is more exciting than ever. Robert’s priority is the limited partners working to deliver the best returns from a unique portfolio of private capital investments in the security and protection industries.
Robert launched his career in Chicago at Golder Thoma Cressey, a predecessor to GTCR, where he gained experience working on venture investments and some of the most successful industry roll-ups in the private capital industry. Robert then joined Apax Partners in New York and served as a general partner of several funds at Apax Partners over a 15-year career. While at Apax where he led late-stage venture and buyout investments,
Robert gained experience in the security industry as the chairman of Protection One, the largest roll-up of residential security companies in the United States. Robert also chaired the acquisition of Casi Rusco, the second largest access control company in the U.S. Robert then co-founded the NJTC Venture Fund, a top decile venture fund for its vintage year.
ANNIE LAN
Partner
Annie Lan is a Partner at Egis Capital Partners. With 15 years of experience in finance and investing, she began her career at UBS AG and joined Egis in 2017. Responsible for the origination, execution, and management of investments, along with Egis founder Robert Chefitz, Annie is involved in all aspects of Egis portfolio companies, from growth strategy, corporate development, financing, management recruiting, and governance. She currently serves on the boards of Shields and Sensera. Annie has originated and led the evaluation of numerous companies in the security industry from video, access, identity, IoT analytics/AI, property and construction technology, supply chain, risk management, and public safety. Annie brings her energy and creativity and has been instrumental in enhancing the value of the portfolio as well as the management of Egis.
CHRISTINA GRAZIANO
Chief Administrative Officer / Partner
Christina Graziano is the Chief Administrative Officer and Partner at Egis Capital Partners and has worked with Robert Chefitz since 2006. She has over 19 years of private equity and venture capital fund management experience focused on finance and business operations, administration, and compliance. She is responsible for overseeing a range of activities from budgeting, fund administration, firm policies and procedures, legal and IT. Christina began her career at Egis by assisting with the creation and formation of the Egis funds and has since taken on various functions of the Firm, of which working directly with Limited Partners she finds to be the most enjoyable.
Tommy Persinski
Associate
Tommy Persinski is an Associate at Egis Capital Partners, where he supports the investment team in deal origination, evaluation, and execution. Tommy plays an active role in supporting portfolio companies in their ongoing efforts to raise growth capital. Prior to joining Egis in 2022, Tommy was an investment analyst at Rosecliff Ventures, a New York City-based venture capital firm focused on early- to growth-stage companies. Passionate about the convergence of emerging technologies and the opportunities it unlocks, Tommy is excited to contribute to Egis’ role in the ever-evolving investment landscape.
Egis Industry Advisory Board
Jeremy Kroll
Chairman
CEO and Co-founder,
K2 Integrity
Chairman
Jeremy M. Kroll
CEO and Co-founder, K2 Integrity
Former Board member, KBRA
Former Managing Director, Kroll
Jeremy M. Kroll is the Chair of the Egis Industry Advisory Board, which actively engages with the Egis team to add value to the Egis portfolio, from sourcing opportunities, expanding the Egis network to expanding Egis portfolio companies’ development.
As CEO and co-founder of K2 Integrity, Jeremy is responsible for charting the firm’s strategy, including its client services approach. He serves as a trusted advisor to business owners, boards of directors, and C-suite executives. He advises clients on investment, risk, and reputational concerns, including strategic investments, complex disputes, crisis management, political and regulatory risks, jurisdictional issues, and the changing risks and benefits of new technologies.
He is also active in the investment community, with a focus on emerging and growth companies that stand at the intersection of technology and security. He sits on numerous advisory boards for investment funds focused on artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, risk management, fintech, big data, and cloud computing.
Jeremy is co-founder of Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA), an established force among ratings agencies that launched in response to the excesses of the Global Financial Crisis. He is a member of the advisory board of BlueVoyant, a cyber intelligence services firm K2 Integrity helped to establish. He and K2 Integrity are members and Jeremy is a David Rockefeller Fellowship alumnus of The Partnership for New York City.
Before co-founding K2 Integrity, Jeremy spent 11 years in senior leadership positions at Kroll, a global corporate investigations and risk consulting professional services firm.
JOHN MACK
Co-Head, Security and Safety Investment Banking,
Raymond James
Egis Industry Advisory Board
John Mack
Co-Head, Security and Safety Investment Banking, Raymond James
Former Co-Head, Security M&A, Imperial Capital
Former CEO, Protection One
John Mack is the Co-head of the Security & Safety sector at Raymond James Diversified Industrials Investment Banking team. Prior to joining Raymond James, he was at Imperial Capital where he was the co-head of investment banking and head of the Security sector investment banking practice. Previously, he founded and served as CEO of USBX, a boutique advisory firm specializing in the Security & Safety space, and as CEO of Protection One. He has nearly 35 years of industry experience and is based in Los Angeles, California.
Maureen Ehrenberg
Executive Managing Director, SIREAS
Egis Industry Advisory Board
Maureen Ehrenberg
Executive Managing Director, SIREAS
Former President, Global Facility Management, JLL
Former Global Director, Facilities Management, CBRE
Maureen Ehrenberg, FRICS, CRE, LAI, is Executive Managing Director, Strategic Growth and Solution Development at SIREAS Inc.. Prior to SIREAS, she was a Senior Vide-President at RICS, part of the Presidential Team, alongside the President Elect and President, focusing on shaping the institution's strategic direction, upholding professional standards, and fostering global engagement. Maureen is an internationally recognized real estate industry business leader. With more than 25 years of experience, she has deep expertise in providing companies with global real estate advice and services. She was named a 2021 Woman of Influence as a CRE Consultant/Advisor by GlobeSt.com. Before joining RICS, she has held global executive roles with WeWork, JLL, CBRE, Grubb & Ellis Company, Lesson and Blue Skyre.
Joe Grillo
Former CEO, Founder
ACRE
Egis Industry Advisory Board
Joe Grillo
Former CEO, Founder, ACRE
Former President, Global Technology Division, Assa Abloy
Former CEO/COO, HID
Joseph Grillo is CEO, ACRE LLC, and Managing Director, Vanderbilt International GmbH. A 30-year veteran of the electronic security and identification industries, he has a track record of successfully growing, restructuring and acquiring businesses. Joe began his career in the 1980s, and he has worked with a long list of successful companies including HID, Assa Abloy, and now Vanderbilt International. From 2001 to 2007 Joe was promoted several times at Assa Abloy, eventually running its $750M Global Technology Division which included HID, the Hospitality business and Besam Automatic Doors; he retired from the company in 2007. He served as President and Board Member of the Security Industry Association (SIA) from 1998-2007.
Lee Odess
CEO, The Access
Control Collective
Egis Industry Advisory Board
Lee Odess
CEO, The Access Control Collective
Member Board of Directors, Security Industry Association
Former Sales and Marketing executive at Brivo, Allegion, Unikey, Latch
Lee Odess is a recognized leader in access control and smart lock technology, with over 20 years of experience founding and scaling security businesses. Lee is currently CEO of The Access Control Collective (TACC), a portfolio of media brands shaping the future of physical security. He is also a member of the board of directors of the Security Industry Association. Previously, Lee founded Group337 and created Inside Access Control, building platforms that challenged conventional thinking and advanced innovation in the space. He continues to influence the industry as a trusted advisor and frequent speaker on emerging trends and technologies.
BERNARD BAILEY
Former CEO,
Authentix
Egis Industry Advisory Board
Bernard Bailey
Former CEO, Authentix
Former Chairman, Analogic
Former Global Executive, IBM
Dr. Bernard Bailey serves as President of Paraquis Solutions, LLC, a strategy and governance consulting organization. He previously served as the President of the Committee for Economic Development (CED), a nonprofit, nonpartisan, business-led public policy organization that delivers well-researched analysis and reasoned solutions to our nation’s most critical issues. Prior to joining CED in 2018, he served as Chairman and CEO of Authentix Corporation, a global authentication solutions company. Bernard previously served as CEO at Viisage Technology, Inc. – a leading provider of advanced technology identity management solutions. Dr. Bailey has served as director to nine publicly traded companies and several privately held companies. He currently serves as Chairman of the Board at Authentix and is a lead independent director at Argo Group Holdings, Inc.
ALPER CETINGOK
Co-Head, Security and Safety
Investment Banking,
Raymond James
Egis Industry Advisory Board
Alper Cetingok
Co-Head, Security and Safety Investment Banking, Raymond James
Former Head, Security and Defense M&A, Morgan Keegan
Alper Cetingok is the head of the Security & Safety sector and head of Diversified Industrials at Raymond James. Prior to joining Raymond James, Alper spent approximately 15 years at Morgan Keegan, where he founded and led the firm’s Security & Defense Group. Alper was also a member of the Morgan Keegan’s Investment Banking Management Committee and Chairman of its Transaction Committee. In 2013, Alper was recognized by The M&A Advisor as a 40 Under 40 Dealmaker award recipient. He is also a member of the Advisory Board for the Earlybird Digital East Fund, an investment vehicle focused on funding early and growth stage companies in Turkey and Eastern Europe.