James Woods, Management Consultant in San Francisco, CA, United States
James is available for hire
Hire James

James Woods

Bio

James is a seasoned investor and financial executive focused on direct investments and capital formation. Marshalling sharp strategic insights, deep investment experience, and relevant networks, he helps companies and investors build scalable platforms and has earned a reputation as a creative, positive-sum dealmaker with expertise across investment origination, deal execution, stakeholder management, capital formation, and strategic leadership.

Career Highlights

Managing Director
BayLink Capital
Senior Research Analyst and Assistant Portfolio Manager
Driehaus Capital Management

Case Studies

Expertise

  • Capital Raising
  • Corporate Strategy
  • Deal Flow Origination
  • Due Diligence
  • Equity Research
  • Industry Analysis
  • Investment Thesis Formation
  • Private Equity

Work Experience

Managing Director

2020 - PRESENT
BayLink Capital
  • Managed an origination process leveraging boutique intermediaries, opportunistic off-process leads, and targeted thematic outreach, which collectively yielded over 250 qualified opportunities and three successful LOIs over the past year.
  • Participated in closing BayLink's investment in Veltris by way of contemporaneous acquisition of two companies for which we secured roughly $100 million in equity commitments to fund both the initial close and allow for add-on M&A.
  • Headed industry research and thesis formation to underpin investment diligence as well as thematic sourcing efforts.
  • Structured and negotiated M&A transactions, coordinating advisor workstreams as well as equity and debt financing.
  • Coordinated fundraising efforts for direct investments, leveraging a network of over 250 capital sources, spanning private credit providers, GP co-investors, institutional LPs, and family offices.
  • Maintained relationships with key external stakeholders, including capital sources, corporate executives, sell- and buy-side intermediaries, law firms, strategy consultants, accounting firms, and other 3rd-party diligence providers.
Focus areas: Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Fundraising, Private Equity, Deal Flow Origination, Investment Analysis, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Cost Modeling, M&A Modeling, Fractional CFO, Organizational Structure, Resource Planning & Analysis, Strategy, Business Strategy, Buy-side, Valuation, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Financial Analysis, Investment Thesis, Team Leadership, Business Development, Sales, B2B Sales, Sales Effectiveness, Accounting, Finance, Go-to-market (GTM) Strategies, SaaS, Family Office Management, Family Office COO, Executive Consulting, Fundraising Consultant, Fundraising Strategy, Pitch Decks, Franchises, Budgeting, Operations Improvement, Strategic Planning, Investor Presentations, Three-statement Modeling, Asset Management, Macroeconomics, Investments, M&A Strategy, Search Fund, Search Fund Expert, Competitor Analysis & Profiling, Due Diligence, Financial Modeling, CFO, M&A (Sell-side), Technology, Financial Reporting, Market Research, Investor Relations Consultant, Investment Funds, Leveraged Buyout (LBO), Microsoft Excel, Value Proposition Design, Business Plan Consulting, Analysis, Forecasting, Modeling, Spreadsheets, Financial Presentations, Presentation Development, Pitch Presentations, Board Presentations, B2B, Storytelling, Financial Forecasting, Healthcare, Investor Relations, Corporate Governance, Corporate Legal, Corporate Finance, M&A Due Diligence (Financial), Pitch Deck Consultant, Rollup, Deal Sourcing, Cash Flow, Acquisition Analysis, Company Analysis, Data Collection, Investment Research, Profitability Analysis, Organizational Strategy, Growth Capital Raising, Capital Markets

Venture Partner (Fractional)

2017 - PRESENT
NextGen Venture Partners
  • Advised the firm's investment committee and participated in direct co-investment opportunities in early-stage venture opportunities.
  • Referred early-stage growth companies seeking to raise capital to the firm for consideration as prospective venture investments.
  • Developed a wide network of active founders, executives, and investors in the early-stage startup ecosystem.
Focus areas: Early-stage Venture Capital, Investments, Due Diligence, Financial Modeling, CFO, Technology, Market Research, Investment Funds, Venture Capital, Value Proposition Design, Business Plan Consulting, Analysis, Financial Presentations, Pitch Presentations, Board Presentations, B2B, Early-stage Startups, Storytelling, Corporate Governance, Corporate Finance, Pitch Deck Consultant, Deal Sourcing, Company Analysis, Data Collection, Investment Research, Organizational Strategy, Growth Capital Raising, Capital Markets

Senior Research Analyst and Assistant Portfolio Manager

2015 - 2020
Driehaus Capital Management
  • Covered materials, energy, industrials, and utilities equities for a top-decile growth strategy within a $10+ billion assets under management (AUM) investment advisor.
  • Managed the complete lifecycle of investments with a high degree of accountability for portfolio performance attribution.
  • Identified and evaluated investment opportunities and industries with exploitable mispricing of market expectations value via detailed bottom-up fundamental analysis, as well as a deep understanding of market and industry trends.
  • Maintained relationships with executives, intermediaries, and experts to source investment ideas and actionable insights.
  • Coordinated across internal teams to align perspectives on global macro, geopolitical risk, and commodity strategy.
Focus areas: Equity Research, Portfolio Management, Financial Risk Management, Emerging Markets, Commodity Markets, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Equity Research Analysis, Strategy, Business Strategy, Buy-side, Valuation, Financial Analysis, Investment Thesis, Robotics, Semiconductors, Team Leadership, Business Development, Sales, B2B Sales, Accounting, Finance, SaaS, Pitch Decks, Franchises, Budgeting, Three-statement Modeling, Asset Management, Macroeconomics, Investments, Trading, Competitor Analysis & Profiling, Option Pricing, Stock Market, Due Diligence, Financial Modeling, Technology, Market Research, Energy, Investor Relations, Investment Funds, Microsoft Excel, Analysis, Forecasting, Modeling, Spreadsheets, Financial Presentations, Presentation Development, Pitch Presentations, Storytelling, Financial Data, Financial Forecasting, Healthcare, Corporate Governance, Corporate Finance, Pitch Deck Consultant, Cash Flow, Company Analysis, Data Collection, Investment Research, Profitability Analysis, Organizational Strategy, Growth Capital Raising, Capital Markets

Investment Analyst

2013 - 2015
International Finance
  • Evaluated and monitored investments for an emerging market private equity and credit firm with over $8 billion in AUM.
  • Performed detailed due diligence on prospective investments and presented key findings and analysis to the investment committee.
  • Conducted regular monitoring and quarterly valuation of portfolio holdings, maintaining regular communication with management teams and co-investors as well as external advisors.
Focus areas: Emerging Markets, Growth Equity, Investment Analysis, Corporate Finance, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Cost Modeling, M&A Modeling, Fractional CFO, Strategy, Business Strategy, Buy-side, Valuation, Financial Analysis, Investment Thesis, Accounting, Finance, Pitch Decks, Budgeting, Three-statement Modeling, Asset Management, Macroeconomics, Investments, M&A Strategy, Competitor Analysis & Profiling, Due Diligence, Financial Modeling, CFO, Technology, Financial Reporting, Market Research, Energy, Investment Funds, Microsoft Excel, Analysis, Forecasting, Modeling, Spreadsheets, Financial Presentations, Presentation Development, Pitch Presentations, Board Presentations, Storytelling, Financial Data, Capital Expenditure Planning, Financial Forecasting, Corporate Governance, M&A Due Diligence (Financial), Pitch Deck Consultant, Cash Flow, Acquisition Analysis, Company Analysis, Data Collection, Investment Research, Profitability Analysis, Growth Capital Raising, Capital Markets

Senior Equity Research Associate

2010 - 2013
FBR & Co (Acquired by B. Riley Financial)
  • Supported the launch of transportation and logistics coverage at FBR, initiating coverage of over 20 companies across surface transportation, 3rd-party logistics, maritime, and equipment leasing over a year.
  • Built and maintained detailed financial models to analyze and forecast issuers' financial performance under coverage.
  • Supported the equity capital markets team in raising capital for companies within our coverage.
Focus areas: Equity Research, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Equity Research Analysis, Strategy, Business Strategy, Valuation, Financial Analysis, Investment Thesis, Sales, Accounting, Finance, Pitch Decks, Investor Presentations, Three-statement Modeling, Macroeconomics, Investments, Competitor Analysis & Profiling, Option Pricing, Stock Market, Due Diligence, Financial Modeling, Market Research, Energy, Investor Relations, Investment Funds, Microsoft Excel, Analysis, Forecasting, Modeling, Spreadsheets, Financial Presentations, Presentation Development, Pitch Presentations, Financial Data, Financial Forecasting, Corporate Finance, Pitch Deck Consultant, Cash Flow, Company Analysis, Data Collection, Investment Research, Profitability Analysis, Growth Capital Raising, Capital Markets

Education

2009 - 2010

Master's Degree in Finance

Vanderbilt University, Owen Graduate School of Management - Nashville, TN, USA

2005 - 2009

Bachelor's Degree in Anthropology

University of Florida - Gainesville, FL, USA

Skills

Finance

Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Equity Research, Corporate Finance, Financial Modeling, Accounting, Fundraising, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Equity Research Analysis, Valuation, Investment Thesis, Three-statement Modeling, CFO, Market Research, Rollup, Cash Flow, Profitability Analysis, Due Diligence, Capital Raising, Private Equity, M&A (Buy-side), M&A Modeling, M&A (Sell-side), Forecasting, Growth Equity, Budgeting, Financial Reporting, Financial Management, Capital Expenditure Planning, Growth Capital Raising

Output Software

Microsoft Excel

Industry Expertise

Asset Management, Macroeconomics, Energy, Healthcare, Semiconductors, Franchises, Technology, Venture Capital, Early-stage Startups, Capital Markets

Data & Analysis Software

Financial Data

Other

Microsoft Office, Industry Analysis, Corporate Strategy, Investment Thesis Formation, Financials, Fractional CFO, Resource Planning & Analysis, Strategy, Business Strategy, Buy-side, Financial Analysis, Finance, Business Planning, Family Office Management, Executive Consulting, Fundraising Consultant, Fundraising Strategy, Pitch Decks, Investor Presentations, Investments, Investment Funds, Spreadsheets, Financial Presentations, Presentation Development, Pitch Presentations, Board Presentations, Storytelling, Financial Forecasting, Deal Sourcing, Company Analysis, Investment Research, Deal Flow Origination, CRM Systems, Emerging Markets, Portfolio Management, Organizational Structure, Business Development, Go-to-market (GTM) Strategies, Startups, SaaS, Strategic Planning, Trading, M&A Strategy, Competitor Analysis & Profiling, Stock Market, Investor Relations, Leveraged Buyout (LBO), Value Proposition Design, Business Plan Consulting, Analysis, B2B, Corporate Governance, Corporate Legal, M&A Due Diligence (Financial), Pitch Deck Consultant, Acquisition Analysis, Data Collection, Organizational Strategy, Stakeholder Management, Deal Execution, Research & Critical Thinking, Investment Analysis, Gmail, Slack, Dropbox, Financial Risk Management, Commodity Markets, Negotiation, Cost Modeling, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Robotics, Team Leadership, Sales, B2B Sales, Sales Effectiveness, Family Office COO, Operations Improvement, Search Fund, Search Fund Expert, Option Pricing, Early-stage Venture Capital, Interim CFO, Investor Reporting, Integration, Investor Relations Consultant, Modeling, Consolidation

Collaboration That Works

How to Work with Toptal

Toptal matches you directly with global industry experts from our network in hours—not weeks or months.

1

Share your needs

Discuss your requirements and refine your scope in a call with a Toptal domain expert.
2

Choose your talent

Get a short list of expertly matched talent within 24 hours to review, interview, and choose from.
3

Start your risk-free talent trial

Work with your chosen talent on a trial basis for up to two weeks. Pay only if you decide to hire them.

Top talent is in high demand.

Start hiring