Human Capital in Private Equity: When True Value Creation Depends on People + Technology

For years, the private equity (PE) sector was defined by a finance-driven model: identifying the right opportunity, structuring the deal with precision, and executing operational efficiencies to accelerate returns. While still relevant, this approach alone is no longer enough to compete in an increasingly complex and volatile global market.

In our experience supporting mid-market companies and PE-backed organizations, one pattern stands out: the real synergies happen when technology and people work together. Talent becomes a critical lever, especially at the leadership level, where communication and alignment play a decisive role. C-level executives need to cascade the transformation across teams, anticipating concerns and creating trust. This requires clear messaging, structured adoption strategies, and investments in training for C-levels and managers so that employees see modernization not as a threat but as an opportunity — to work more efficiently, learn new skills, and remain competitive in a changing market. True value creation happens when technology adoption is paired with leadership that guides people through the transition, keeping focus on execution while building engagement.

According to Deloitte’s Beyond the Term Sheet report, the most successful PE firms recognize that real value is not generated solely on spreadsheets, it’s generated by people. Yet, this remains an underleveraged area: only 35% of surveyed firms have a structured talent strategy throughout the investment cycle (Deloitte, 2023).

This highlights the need to focus on three critical areas: talent, leadership and culture, and the integration of technology.

Talent as a competitive advantage

Firms that integrate talent early in the deal process are more likely to protect internal rates of return (IRR) and achieve their value creation goals (Deloitte, Beyond the Term Sheet, 2023).

This insight is reflected in the field. Teams that place talent at the center execute more resilient and sustainable transformations. When a PE firm engages us for tech due diligence, one of the first aspects we assess is team structure and expertise. We evaluate roles, delivery practices, and execution speed because even the best technology loses value without a strong team behind it.

We worked with a company in the legal sector where the challenge was to modernize a legacy system while keeping day-to-day operations running smoothly. The opportunity was to streamline processes, reduce operational tasks, and enable teams to focus on higher-value activities. The real success factor was the adoption strategy. Together with the C-level team, we designed a structured approach to communication and training, helping employees understand the benefits of modernization. By putting people at the center, and considering their concerns, we were able to design communication and training strategies that better prepared teams to handle more complex processes efficiently, accelerate delivery, and unlock operational capacity, ensuring the transformation delivered measurable business outcomes.

As Deloitte notes, talent remains one of the most underutilized levers for generating returns in private equity, even as the traditional model has shifted from financial engineering toward portfolio company value creation (Deloitte, Women in Private Funds, 2024).

Leadership and culture: The intangibles that define success

Leadership in digital transformation processes is decisive. Driving adoption, sustaining momentum, and ensuring that teams embrace change requires more than technical skills, it requires leaders capable of aligning vision with execution.

Corporate culture is equally decisive. It drives team engagement, trust, and retention, making it a central component of any value creation plan. 

We see this in post-M&A integrations: technology alone doesn’t transform an organization unless it aligns with its culture. At a company in Logistics / industrial operations, we worked side by side with the CEO to introduce new technology into the internal talent base, ensuring that the adoption process was both cultural and operational. 

In short: value creation happens when technology strategy aligns with the way people think, work, and interact.

From CFO to CTO/CIO: The new strategic partners

Technology leadership drives valuation in private equity—not in the abstract, but in the day-to-day decisions about platforms, integrations, and adoption. In post-acquisition scenarios, while the CFO remains the guardian of numbers and strategy, other roles, especially CTOs and CIOs, become critical in executing the investment thesis and driving operational and technological change. For PE firms, this means expanding the conversation beyond finance to the leaders who actually move the digital levers.

In one engagement with a company in AgTech / precision agriculture, we worked on implementing more modern technology practices and agile methodologies, generating significant improvements in organizational prioritization, task management, and operational efficiency.

In another project with a company in Healthcare / benefits management, we focused on redesigning internal processes to improve operational efficiency, taking a holistic view of the entire operation and its various stakeholders: we engaged team members across all levels, including frontline roles, to ensure efficiency improvements impacted all processes.

In a project with a company in AnimalTech / veterinary services, leadership was receptive to guidance on adopting modern technology and best practices. This early adoption by leadership helped ensure a smooth transition across the organization, maintaining active listening to employee concerns and enabling the creation of effective training materials that addressed these challenges.

These examples demonstrate that in today’s deals, the CTO and CIO are not just support roles—they are strategic partners. When their vision aligns with the investment thesis, technology stops being a cost center and becomes a true value creation engine, empowering portfolio companies to execute their strategies effectively and sustainably.

Integrating talent, leadership, and technology in the value strategy

Sustainable value creation in private equity requires a holistic approach: each lever—talent, leadership and culture, and technology—must be addressed in a coordinated way, aligned with the investment thesis and the company’s culture.

Talent: Talent should be evaluated from due diligence and continuously developed throughout the investment cycle. Supporting people with empathy is as important as training them in new tools, ensuring they are operationally and emotionally prepared for transitions that drive efficiency and growth.

Leadership and culture: Leadership and corporate culture are key to embedding change. Leaders must align vision with execution, communicate effectively, and foster trust and engagement, while culture must support adoption and reinforce desired behaviors.

Technology as enabler: Technology is only as valuable as the people and processes it supports. From tech due diligence to post-M&A integrations and system modernization, systems should be designed to empower teams, accelerate adoption, and ultimately impact valuation.

True value creation is holistic

In private equity, the advantage no longer lies in financial sophistication alone, it lies in the ability to empower people. Deloitte data confirms that firms investing in talent, leadership, and culture outperform their peers in growth and profitability.

The question is not whether human capital matters, but how to strategically integrate it into the value creation plan. The answer lies in connecting talent, leadership, and technology in a coordinated way, ensuring growth is not only possible but sustainable.

In an increasingly demanding market, this vision is what sets industry leaders apart.

Ready to turn your human talent into a competitive advantage? Connect with our team to explore tailored strategies that align talent, leadership, and technology with your value creation goals.