CIG - Key Persons
Andy Snyder is currently CEO of Cambridge Information Group, a family-owned investment firm and Chairman of Clarivate (CLVT), a global leader in providing solutions to accelerate the lifecycle of innovation. Andy has built and managed the CIG portfolio since 2003 which today has a primary focus on education, technology and information services companies. Andy is also a minority investor in his beloved, Washington Commanders football team.
From 2003 to 2021 Andy was responsible for building ProQuest from a legacy company of 190 employees to one of the leading providers of information and software solutions to the global academic and research community with nearly 3000 professionals. CIG sold ProQuest to Clarivate (CLVT) in December 2021.
Prior to joining CIG, Andy spent seven years at the Goldman Sachs Group where he focused on traditional media, technology and services investing for the firm's private equity fund. Andy also spent one year as the Assistant to the Chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs.
Andy graduated cum laude from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and earned a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, where he graduated magna cum laude. In addition to Clarivate (CLVT), Andy currently serves on the NewYork-Presbyterian Board of Trustees and, the Board of Advisors of Penn Libraries. He formerly served on the Board of Shining Hope for Communities (SHOFCO), Blucora, Inc. (BCOR), and The Browning School. He and his wife Molly live in New York City with their two children.
Harry Wu joined CIG in January 2023 as an Associate on the investment team. Harry is responsible for supporting the evaluation of new investment opportunities as well as assisting with the oversight of CIG's current portfolio companies.
Previously, Harry was an analyst at Houlihan Lokey in their Financial and Valuation Advisory group, where he worked on M&A transactions in the healthcare space. Prior to working at Houlihan Lokey, Harry started his career as an Associate with KPMG.
Harry attended the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin and earned both a B.S. and M.S. in Accounting. Harry currently resides in New York City.
Jill is responsible for CIG press releases and communications. She also directs special projects for CIG and serves on the Board of Directors. Prior to joining CIG, she was an associate attorney at Shulman, Rogers, Gandal, Pordy & Ecker, until 1993. Jill became Associate General Counsel at CIG in 1994 where she was at the forefront of CSA's Internet-based platform. Her core product, Environmental Routenet, was one of the first products to transition data from CSA's paper products to the World Wide Web.
Outside of her work activities Jill has been active in providing pro bono work for CASA (National Court Appointed Special Advocate Association), a program that uses volunteers to speak for the best interests of abused and neglected children in court and numerous charitable activities in the Washington DC metro area.
Jill graduated from George Washington University Law School in 1992 and holds a B.A. in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania. Jill and her husband Rob live in Miami, Florida and have three children.
Job Titles:
- General Counsel
- Senior Vice President
Larisa Avner Trainor joined CIG in April 2005 and has served as its General Counsel since 2010. Larisa is responsible for all legal aspects of mergers and acquisitions, all financing and investor relationships, tax planning and corporate compliance. She also works on a variety of corporate matters, including executive compensation issues, and serves as the Secretary of all CIG portfolio companies.
Larisa previously worked at E*TRADE Financial Corporation in their in-house legal group and was a member of the corporate group at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP, where she specialized in transactional and securities law matters, including mergers and acquisitions, private investment funds, investment management, and corporate governance.
Larisa received her J.D., with honors, from The George Washington University Law School and her B.S. in Accounting from the State University of New York at Albany. She was a Certified Public Accountant (inactive) in New York State. Larisa is a member of the bars of the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Larisa and her husband Sean live in Bethesda, Maryland, with their three daughters.
Matt is responsible for all financial, accounting, and treasury operations for CIG. In addition, he is responsible for tax compliance, financial planning, and transaction support for CIG, BrandEd, and B2R, as well as CIG's other investments.
Previously, Matt worked as the Family Office Controller at 40 North Management, where he was responsible for financial and accounting operations and transaction support for the 40 North Family Office and related investment entities. Prior to working at 40 North Management, Matt served as VP, Finance at CIG from 2010 to 2016. Matt started his career at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, where he held the position of Manager in Transaction Services, Financial Due Diligence.
Matt holds a B.S. in Accountancy from American University and is a licensed CPA in the State of New York. He is a member of the AICPA.
Matt resides in Maplewood, New Jersey, with his wife, Meredith, and their two daughters.
Job Titles:
- CEO of CIG Education Group
- CEO, CIG Education Group / Operating Partner, CIG
Michael Chung is the CEO of CIG Education Group, a division of CIG, which currently consists of BrandEd Holdings (BrandEd) and Bach To Rock. He is also an Operating Partner with CIG. He founded BrandEd in 2016, which includes The School of The New York Times, Sotheby's Institute of Art, City Football Leadership Institute and Condé Nast College of Fashion and Design. During his tenure at CIG, he served as the interim CEO and Board member at Navtech, an aviation software business, and led the turnaround of the company which was acquired in 2016 by Airbus. He also served on the Board of Directors at ProQuest from 2008 to 2013.
Michael came to CIG from Barr Associates, Inc. (Barr), the largest independent manufacturer of advanced optical filters, where he served as Chief Operating Officer. Barr was a client of Michael during his tenure at Goldman Sachs. Michael successfully led the execution of the turnaround of Barr from near bankruptcy to a profitable and growing company and subsequently helped execute the sale of Barr to Materion Corporation.
Prior to joining Barr, Michael spent seven years at Goldman Sachs, most recently as Vice President in the Mergers and Acquisitions Department focusing on the communications technology sector. Over his tenure at Goldman Sachs, Michael worked on numerous M&A and private equity investment transactions across a wide range of industries including information services, telecommunications, high technology, biotech and energy.
Michael was born in Korea and from the age of 9, grew up in Manila, Philippines. After graduating from the International School of Manila, Michael enrolled in the Management and Technology Dual Bachelor's Degree Program at the University of Pennsylvania where he earned a B.S. in Economics from The Wharton School and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the School of Engineering. Michael holds an MBA from Harvard Business School. He currently serves on the Board of Directors at the Korean American Community Foundation and Advancement for Rural Kids, a nonprofit focused on addressing the hunger crisis in The Philippines. Michael and his wife Hannah live in New York City with their two sons.
Job Titles:
- Investments With Principal
- Managing Director, Head of Private Investments
Pankaj Sharma is responsible for CIG's Private Investments with principal focus on sourcing and underwriting direct, co-investment, and secondary investment opportunities.
Prior to joining CIG in 2009, Pankaj held various roles at Bear Stearns, Bank of New York Mellon, and CSFB. He has over two decades of leadership experience in acquisitions, strategic planning, and business investments.
Pankaj is a CFA charter holder and serves as a Board member for two CIG portfolio companies. He has an MBA from Columbia Business School and a degree in Chemical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in New Delhi, India.
Pankaj and his wife Ruchika live in New Jersey with their two children.
Patty joined CIG in January 2004 after supporting Andy Snyder for over three years in the Merchant Banking Division of Goldman Sachs.
While Patty is primarily responsible for assisting Andy, she also helps the entire CIG senior leadership team and oversees daily operations of the NY office.
Patty earned a Bachelor of Science from Dominican College of Blauvelt and lives in Rockland County, NY with her husband Al and three children.
Bob Snyder co-founded CIG in 1971. Bob is responsible for the strategic direction and overall management of its operating companies and joint ventures.
Bob served as owner and chairman of National Standards Association from 1976-1993. National Standards is now part of Information Handling Services, Incorporated. From 1977-1987, he was owner and chairman of Disclosure Incorporated, which is now part of Thomson Financial Corporation.
Bob is a civic leader and currently serves as a member of the Smithsonian Institution Libraries Advisory Board. He also serves on the board of the Washington Hospital Center Foundation, the National Theater in Washington DC, and the Board of Ambassadors for Johns Hopkins Project Restore. He formerly served as Co-Chairman of the National Council for the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian. Bob is also a former Member of the Board of Governors of The National Aquarium in Baltimore and a former Associate Trustee of the Library Board of Overseers at the University of Pennsylvania.
Bob holds a B.S. in Accounting from Babson College and a J.D. from Brooklyn Law School. He is a member of the bars of the State of New York and the District of Columbia. He and his wife Judy live in Palm Beach, Florida. They have two children and five grandchildren.
Job Titles:
- Director, Investment Management
Su is responsible for supporting existing portfolio businesses, strategic project management and evaluating new investment opportunities for CIG.
Su joined CIG in 2022, having previously worked at ProQuest LLP, where she was VP Strategic Projects, responsible for leading strategic projects supporting the executive leadership team. Prior to this, Su was Chief of Staff at Research Research Ltd., with responsibility for Finance, HR and Operations, along with supporting the CEO and Head Office projects. She led the sale of Research Research to ProQuest and the subsequent integration of the company into ProQuest.
Su has worked in publishing, healthcare technology and consumer goods sectors with finance, strategy, operations and product management experience. Su has led numerous strategic initiatives and transaction support work in her prior roles. She holds a Natural Sciences BA (Hons) degree from the University of Cambridge.
Su lives in London with her partner, Ian.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Human Resources
Tracina joined CIG in April 2007. She was appointed Senior Director, Human Resources in January 2022, after previously serving as Director, Benefits, and Human Resources Manager. Tracina is responsible for all HR and benefits operations for CIG. She is responsible for developing, implementing, and managing HR policies and procedures along with the health and welfare benefit programs and retirement plans for CIG and its participating companies, which includes compliance oversight.
Tracina previously worked at Century Pool Management, Inc. where she spent eight years, four as the Human Resources Manager. She was responsible for Global & US recruitment along with designing, implementing, and managing all benefit programs.
Tracina attended Bowie State University. She is a member of the International Association for Human Resource Information Management and Society for Human Resource Management. Tracina and her husband Ray reside in Maryland and they have a son.