Alan Glass

More Than One Path to Vista

I started my career in financial services consulting. After that, I joined a family office, where I met with and interviewed hundreds of hedge fund managers a year. That experience made me realize that I wanted to move into a role where I would be making individual investment decisions, so I decided to go to business school and into investment banking, which led me to private equity.

Now, after working at Vista for several years, I’ve learned that there are more paths to a career at Vista than you might think. We talk a lot about diversity of thought and experience and the value these bring to the organization. But it’s not just talk — we all have unique perspectives and backgrounds that contribute to the firm’s success.

A Single Focus With Big Impact

What attracted me to Vista was the focus on enterprise software. Vista sits at such an interesting place: we focus solely on software companies, which gives us expertise on software business models, operations and due diligence – but we’re also able to be generalists, because enterprise software exists across in virtually every industry. As an investor, being a specialist has benefits because it enables you to have deeper, specialized knowledge; however, being a generalist also has its benefits because you effectively have a larger hunting ground to look for opportunities. Being able to reap the benefits of both is very compelling.

Beyond that, Vista’s scale drives significant impact globally. Because our companies span so many different industries, our reach is magnified. It’s inspiring to know our companies play a meaningful and critical role for their customers, from government organizations to large enterprises to small businesses.

Aiming High Through Continued Learning

Over my career, I’ve learned that attitude and proactivity are the two most critical things to bring to your job. And that’s especially true for working and succeeding at Vista. No one comes to a job knowing everything and having all the skills necessary to get them from A to B. But showing a willingness and excitement to learn what you don’t know goes a long way. As does taking a team-first attitude, reflecting thoughtfulness, care and a desire to contribute.

I also can’t overemphasize the importance of having strong mentors throughout your career. Vista’s commitment to fostering mentorship throughout the organization sets it apart from other firms. I attribute much of my success to managers and teammates who have invested in me and believed in my potential. When you bring your best self to Vista, your value and potential will be recognized and invested in.