Leadership

Karin D. O’Connor

Karin D. O’Connor is founder of Perimeter Advisors, an advisory firm that assists owners of promising mid-market companies with planning and execution of value enhancement strategies. She brings over twenty years of experience in growth company strategy and private equity/venture capital investing, and has been recognized for her high energy level, tenacious follow-through, and ability to quickly establish rapport with entrepreneurs.

Since beginning her career at Continental Bank in the 1980’s, Ms. O’Connor has invested in and advised entrepreneurs in a variety of industries that includes financial services, business services, technology distribution, health care, and manufacturing. She has invested at all levels of the capital structure—from senior debt to mezzanine, venture leasing, and equity—and in companies ranging from early stage to mature.

A regular speaker on issues related to growth-company financing, Ms. O’Connor has taken leadership roles in many professional organizations. Current or past Board service includes the Kellogg Alumni Council, ACG Chicago (Association for Corporate Growth), the Venture Club of Indiana, the Chicago Finance Exchange, the Business Women’s Network, and the Financial Women’s Association of Hong Kong. She also writes the popular quarterly newsletter, Online Insight.

Ms. O’Connor received her BA in Finance from the University of Illinois, where she graduated magna cum laude and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. She also studied European history and civilization at Salzburg College, Salzburg, Austria. She earned her MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, where she was an F.C. Austin Scholar and was elected to Beta Gamma Sigma. She received a CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) charter in 2007.

A native of Carbondale, Illinois, Ms. O’Connor is married with a young daughter and makes her home on Chicago’s near north side. She is an enthusiastic amateur chef and has studied cooking in New Orleans, Austria, India, and Hong Kong.

William L. Stafford

William L. Stafford joined Perimeter Advisors in 2010 and brings over thirty years of experience in growth company sales, marketing, and operations, as well as private equity investing. His practice focus is on assisting owners of promising mid-market companies with planning and execution of value enhancement strategies, and his creativity, insight, leadership, and bottom-line results orientation make him effective in a wide variety of industries and settings.

Since beginning his career at Baxter Laboratories in the late 1970’s, Mr. Stafford has held increasingly responsible marketing, sales, and operational positions within GE Medical Systems (now GE Healthcare), Marquette Electronics (now part of GE Healthcare), and Merge Technologies culminating in leadership of Merge’s OEM and International operations and Merge’s emergence as a public company via IPO. Most recently, Mr. Stafford has concentrated on “giving back”, first serving as Vice President and CFO of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and then through angel investing and leadership of early stage medical ventures.

Current or past Board service includes PianoArts, Inc., the Harvard Business School Club of Wisconsin, and two early stage ventures, Neurognostics, Inc. and CRS Medical Diagnostics, Inc.

Mr. Stafford received his BA in Economics from Yale University. He then entered the US Navy serving both afloat and ashore over the course of four years and achieving the rank of Lieutenant. He later earned his MBA from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Business Administration.

A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Mr. Stafford is married with two grown children and two grandchildren and makes his home in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He is active as an Elder in the Presbyterian Church (USA) and serves on the local Alumni Schools Committee of his alma mater.