From Executive Biz Magazine
Executive Spotlight with Warren Martin

Interview with Warren Martin conducted by JD Kathuria.

ExecBiz: Tell us how Claris Capital got started.

Warren Martin: Brian Keane and I teamed up with Charlie Thomas in the summer of 2002 to build a middle market investment bank to meet the needs of our local business community. Brian had extensive Wall Street M&A experience. Charlie had started and grown Net2000 to a very large public telecom company and I had spent 20+ years in a financial advisory role at PWC. We immediately applied for and became a registered broker-dealer with NASD. We focused on sell side representation, valuations, fairness opinions and other M&A advisory needs, generally in technology driven businesses. One of our first big successes was getting hired in early 2003 by Getronics NV, a $5bil revenue public company headquartered in the Netherlands to sell their preferred holdings in DigitalNet. In April 2004, Paul Stern joined us as our fourth partner and Chairman. Paul was coming off a very successful career in running big public companies and co-founding two large local private equity firms. We followed a successful 2003 with a number of sellside and other client engagement successes during 2004-2005. One of those was our being hired by PEPCO to sell their 50% interest in Starpower, a local internet provider with a footprint in the Metro DC community. In February 2005, Charlie was offered an outstanding opportunity to become CEO of Razorsight. For Charlie, it was a perfect opportunity to run another up and coming telecom business. When he left in early 2005, Paul, Brian, and I continued on. We ended 2005 having sold 5 companies during that year. Then in January 2006, Brian, who was a former Smith Barney investment banker on Wall Street, was contacted by Citigroup to run investment banking at Citigroup Capital Strategies, a middle market investment bank under the Citigroup umbrella. For Brian, it was a great opportunity to redefine a national M&A practice. It was then that Paul and I decided that we all had had a good run at Claris, and decided it was time to move on and do some other things. In the mean time, I had been a member of the Board of Advisors of Morgan Franklin since early 2005. I was very knowledgeable of how well the company was doing, what their core competencies were and what services they provide. Also, a number of senior management at MorganFranklin were former PWC professionals that had worked with me while I was a partner at PWC. With a good understanding of their business and a very good chemistry of knowing many of their senior management team, I joined them as Executive Vice President.

EB: Can you describe what MorganFranklin does?

WM: We are a rapidly growing provider of financial advisory, business consulting, and technology solution services. We have very strong credentials with commercial and government clients. Our financial advisory practice provides critical accounting and financial reporting support including Sarbanes readiness and compliance as well as internal audit and assistance with regulatory reporting and compliance. We frequently augment internal and other external professional service teams in highly complex and mission critical financial reporting situations. Our business consulting practice provides project management expertise in business processes, IT Strategy, data management and business intelligence. Our technology solutions practice includes wireless and converged solutions, infrastructure services, continuity of operations and mobile/transportable solutions.

EB: What happened to Claris clients?

WM: We had several client engagements coming into 2006. We basically sold that book of business to Brian and to Citigroup Capital Strategies. Brian and his new team are in fact executing the engagements that we had in place.

EB: What would you say is the achievement you are most proud of at Claris?

WM: Brian, Charlie and I came together with a vision to create a very reputable middle market investment bank. In a very short amount of time, we were able to become a registered Broker/Dealer with NASD and successfully executed a number of very significant transactions for marquee clients. We had a great time doing it.

EB: Of all that you are involved in now to help grow MorganFranklin, what is the one business lesson that you've learned over the last couple of years?

WM: A consistent attribute of being successful in growing a business or helping a company continue down a path of growth and success is always play to your strength, deliver what you commit to deliver and take very good care of your people. It sounds rather apple pie-ish, but it's always about the basics. Create the right work environment for your people to deliver great work. When that is working properly, most of the rest of the equation will fall into place.

EB: What is something that most people don't know about you?

WM: I've always been a huge Green Bay Packer fan back to when Vince Lombardi coached. His success is directly linked to his philosophy toward executing the basics and discipline.