WSJ Pro Private Equity
By Ted Bunker
Mark Taber, managing partner at Great Hill Partners, shares his thoughts on the past year and reflects on the challenges and opportunities he sees in 2021
As part of our annual year-end coverage, WSJ Pro asks members of the private-equity community to share their thoughts on the past year and reflect on challenges and opportunities they see in 2021. Mark Taber is a managing partner at Boston-based growth-equity firm Great Hill Partners. Responses have been edited for clarity.
Mark Taber, Managing Partner, Great Hill Partners
What are you most looking forward to in 2021?
Meeting people in person again when it’s safe to do so. While we continued to meet virtually during the pandemic, one of the highlights of my job is the more casual interactions with health-care executives—having lunch, hearing about their families, how they got to this point—all things that are harder to do with six people on a videoconference.
What was the most valuable lesson you learned from this past year?
The incredible resiliency of our teams and their clients. With multiple businesses that were deemed essential services to support front-line health-care workers, we witnessed our teams pivoting on a dime to keep their services and supplies flowing, while keeping their employees safe. It felt like watching a game being played at NFL speed with teams forced to draw up new plays real time in the dirt in the huddle.
How do you see the landscape of the industry changing in the year ahead?
As we see life return to ‘normal’ after the pandemic, the core prepandemic challenges in health care will remain—the need to lower costs, improve patient outcomes, and enhance access and the patient experience. We will also see an acceleration in the delivery of care outside of institutional settings—virtually or delivered to the home and supported by technology that enables a greater focus on quality patient care.
