Executive Summary
This report evaluates the strategic pathways for DeepSignal to intercept private equity firms and independent sponsors evaluating data platforms (Grata, SourceScrub, PitchBook, Inven) ahead of Q1-Q2 2026 contract renewals. Based on the available intelligence, the findings are as follows:
- Critical Intelligence Gap on Contract Telemetry: Current evidence provides zero visibility into specific firm-level AUMs, exact software contract expiration dates, current platform spend, or specific active evaluation windows for Q1-Q2 2026.
- Target Account Identification: Trivest Partners is the only explicitly identified private equity firm in the current intelligence dataset, though the broader target market spans business services, consumer, healthcare, industrial, and technology sectors.
- Decision-Maker Blind Spots: Specific COOs, Operations Partners, and Heads of Origination at target firms are not currently identified; however, executive-level entry is possible via identified general partners.
- Primary Introduction Pathways: The Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) network serves as the most viable proxy for warm introductions. Key leverage points include David Gershman (former ACG Global Board Chair) and Jonathan Zucker (ACG LA Committee).
- Event-Driven Interception Timeline: Pipeline generation for the March 19, 2026, AI Demo Day must be reverse-engineered using the ACG LA PE/IB Roundtable (June 2025) and DealMAX (April 2026) as primary staging and closing environments.
1. Target PE Firms and Platform Renewal Landscape (Q1-Q2 2026)
The primary directive is to identify PE firms and independent sponsors ($200M–$2B AUM) with impending contract events (renewals, price increases, expirations) for incumbent data platforms such as Grata, SourceScrub, PitchBook, or Inven between January 1 and April 30, 2026.
Current Data Limitations: The provided intelligence yields no specific telemetry on competitor software contracts, pricing architectures, or exact renewal dates. No specific firms within the $200M–$2B AUM tranche are explicitly categorized as having impending 2026 software renewals.
However, the intelligence does identify Trivest Partners as a known private equity entity [4], operating out of Coral Gables, FL [4]. Furthermore, the broader acquisition target pool for DeepSignal's interception strategy should map to funds heavily focused on middle-market deal origination. High-density environments for these targets include funds with industry focuses in Business Services, Consumer, Healthcare, Industrial, and Technology/Software [8]. These sectors align directly with the attendee profile of major ACG deal origination events [8].
2. Key Decision-Makers at Target Firms
Successfully intercepting a data platform renewal requires multithreading across a firm's operational and origination leadership. The request targets COOs, Operations Partners, and Heads of Origination.
Current Data Limitations: The provided intelligence does not contain the names or contact details for specific COOs, Operations Partners, or Heads of Origination at target funds evaluating alternatives.
The sole identified executive within a target PE firm is David Gershman. Gershman currently serves as Partner and General Counsel at Trivest Partners [4], a position he has held continuously since May 2002 [6]. While a General Counsel is not typically the primary economic buyer for deal origination software like SourceScrub or Grata, a Partner with over two decades of tenure at a single firm possesses the internal political capital to force a POC evaluation onto the Operations or Origination team's agenda.
3. Warm Introduction Pathways & The ACG Interception Strategy
To execute a 2-to-4-week POC timed before a firm's renewal decision deadline and the March 19, 2026, ACG Middle-Market AI Demo Day, DeepSignal must leverage heavily connected nodes within the middle-market ecosystem. The intelligence specifically points to the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) network as the primary vehicle for these warm introductions.
Pathway A: Jonathan Zucker and the Regional ACG LA Network
Jonathan Zucker of Intrepid is a seated member of the ACG Los Angeles Private Equity & Investment Banker (PE/IB) Roundtable Committee [1]. He serves alongside the Committee Chair, Tuan Hoang from Crowe [7].
Leveraging Zucker provides direct proximity to a highly concentrated pool of target buyers. The ACG LA PE/IB Roundtable DealSource event is strictly capped at over 250 PE/IB and M&A dealmakers [9]. This event takes place on June 4-5, 2025, at The Regent Santa Monica [3].
Strategic Application: Because the DeepSignal POC interception window targets Q1 2026, the June 2025 event must be used as the top-of-funnel pipeline builder. DeepSignal can leverage Zucker's committee position [1] to identify which of the 250+ attending dealmakers [9] are complaining about incumbent platform price increases, subsequently slotting them into targeted Q4 2025 outreach for a Q1 2026 POC.
Pathway B: David Gershman and National ACG Leverage
Beyond his role at Trivest, David Gershman represents the highest-value macro-networking node in the dataset. Until May 2023, Gershman served as the Chair of the Global Board at the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) [2].
This global leadership role indicates a vast, national rolodex of middle-market PE Partners and Managing Directors. Gershman's network can be activated not just for intros into Trivest's own operational leadership [4], but as a referral mechanism to other funds nationwide.
Strategic Application: Gershman's residual influence as the former Global Board Chair [2] should be activated to secure high-priority meetings leading into ACG's premier national event, DealMAX 2026. DealMAX is scheduled for April 27-29, 2026, in Las Vegas, drawing over 3,200 dealmakers and executives [5]. Because DealMAX falls slightly after the March 19 AI Demo Day, introductions facilitated by Gershman should be executed in January/February 2026, using the March Demo Day as the mid-funnel conversion event, and DealMAX 2026 [5] as the physical venue for final contract signatures on displaced Grata/SourceScrub accounts.
Pathway Comparison Table
| Leverage Node | Current Affiliation | ACG Role | Primary Value Proposition | Optimal Interception Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jonathan Zucker | Intrepid | ACG LA PE/IB Roundtable Committee [1] | Regional access; direct connection to 250+ LA-based dealmakers [9]. | ACG LA PE/IB Roundtable (June 4-5, 2025) [3] |
| David Gershman | Trivest Partners [4] | Former Chair, ACG Global Board [2] | National tier-1 access; 20+ year PE tenure [6]; institutional influence. | ACG DealMAX (April 27-29, 2026) [5] |
| Sasha Bernier | Unknown | Unknown | No data available in provided intelligence. | N/A |
| Janet Welch | Unknown | Unknown | No data available in provided intelligence. | N/A |
4. Limitations / Open Questions
This report operates under severe evidentiary constraints. To execute the highly specific go-to-market motion requested, DeepSignal research teams must urgently source telemetry to close the following intelligence gaps:
- Software Contract Telemetry: There is zero data on which specific firms hold contracts with Grata, SourceScrub, PitchBook, or Inven, let alone exact renewal dates, current platform costs, or pending price-increase notices.
- Firm AUM & Profiles: The intelligence does not identify specific independent sponsors or PE funds within the requested $200M–$2B AUM target range (Trivest Partners' AUM is not provided).
- Target Personas: No specific Chief Operating Officers, Operations Partners, or Heads of Origination are identified in the evidence base.
- Missing Connectors: No evidence was provided regarding Sasha Bernier (Cheltenham Investments) or Janet Welch (Trove), rendering them unusable as warm-intro pathways in this analysis.
Sources
[1] ACG Los Angeles | 2025 Private Equity & Investment Banker Roundtable DealSource — https://www.acg.org/los-angeles/events/acg-los-angeles-2025-private-equity-investment-banker-roundtable-dealsource · professional [2] FinalScout - Find anyone's professional email address — https://finalscout.com/people/david_gershman · general [3] ACG Los Angeles | 2025 Private Equity & Investment Banker Roundtable DealSource — https://www.acg.org/los-angeles/events/acg-los-angeles-2025-private-equity-investment-banker-roundtable-dealsource · professional [4] FinalScout - Find anyone's professional email address — https://finalscout.com/people/david_gershman · general [5] ACG Los Angeles | 2025 Private Equity & Investment Banker Roundtable DealSource — https://www.acg.org/los-angeles/events/acg-los-angeles-2025-private-equity-investment-banker-roundtable-dealsource · professional [6] FinalScout - Find anyone's professional email address — https://finalscout.com/people/david_gershman · general [7] ACG Los Angeles | 2025 Private Equity & Investment Banker Roundtable DealSource — https://www.acg.org/los-angeles/events/acg-los-angeles-2025-private-equity-investment-banker-roundtable-dealsource · professional [8] ACG Los Angeles | 2025 Private Equity & Investment Banker Roundtable DealSource — https://www.acg.org/los-angeles/events/acg-los-angeles-2025-private-equity-investment-banker-roundtable-dealsource · professional [9] ACG Los Angeles | 2025 Private Equity & Investment Banker Roundtable DealSource — https://www.acg.org/los-angeles/events/acg-los-angeles-2025-private-equity-investment-banker-roundtable-dealsource · professional
Source Quality Summary Evidence draws on 6 professional publications and 3 general web sources.