🎥 Brookfield's Anuj Ranjan - "own the boring that makes exciting possible": AGM Live at SuperReturn

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We sat down with Brookfield Private Equity CEO Anuj Ranjan. We were live from Berlin, which becomes the “capital of private capital” in June as private equity industry leaders make the annual pilgrimage to the city for one of the marquee private equity conferences, SuperReturn Berlin. With Prosek Partners and former Bloomberg TV journalist Deirdre Bolton as my producer, along with her team, we took over a Tiny Space cabin to hold big conversations with some of the industry’s leading alternative asset managers. Brookfield has a rich legacy as an asset owner and operator of some of the “businesses that drive the global economy.” Brookfield is a firm where skin in the game (~25% of every fund includes an investment from Brookfield’s balance sheet) meets scale and synergies across its investment platform. Now, they are looking to own what’s next. What will the next era of private equity require? A different approach, according to Brookfield Private Equity CEO Anuj Ranjan. The conversation that Anuj and I had in the Tiny Space cabin covered big themes. Brookfield is investing in the megatrends that are driving the world’s economy across its platform, from digitalization to decarbonization to deglobalization. The firm’s focus on industrials in its private equity business makes it well equipped to invest in essential companies, as Brookfield aptly describes their investment focus as “own[ing] the boring that makes the exciting possible.” Anuj and I had a fascinating conversation about the current state of private equity and what it will take to drive value in a new era for the industry where “12 is the new 5.” We covered: Brookfield’s history as an owner-operator. How the firm’s long-term perspective informs its investments in and ownership of private equity-backed companies. Anuj’s experience investing in India was an exercise in patience and how it’s informed his investment career. Why today is the era of “roll up your sleeves private equity.” How Brookfield is approaching value creation in industrial companies. Where Brookfield believes they can leverage AI to create post-deal operational value creation. Why Brookfield partnered with OpenAI to create DeployCo in order to scale enterprise AI deployment. Where we are in the adoption curve of physical AI and robotics. Bio Anuj Ranjan is Chief Executive Officer of Brookfield’s Private Equity Group and Brookfield Business Corporation. In this role, Mr. Ranjan is responsible for the investments, operations, and expansion of the Private Equity business, in addition to managing Brookfield’s external strategic partnerships. He is a member of Brookfield’s Executive Committee. Mr. Ranjan joined Brookfield in 2006 and has held various positions within the company and its affiliates. He established and previously led Brookfield’s India and Middle East operations. Mr. Ranjan holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Ivey Business School at Western University and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Alberta. Thanks, Anuj, for sharing your wisdom, expertise, and passion about private markets and how to create value through operating companies better. Show Notes 00:00 Introduction 00:23 Meet Anjun Ranjan 02:02 Brookfield Goes Global 02:07 First Private Equity Fund 02:20 Moving Around the World 02:26 Building in India and MENA 02:39 Emerging Markets Lessons 02:45 Industrial Investing in Growth 03:14 Deal Frenzy in India 03:38 Why the Bubble Burst 03:42 Five Years of Patience 03:48 Learning via Portfolio Entry 03:54 First Big India Buys 04:12 Scaling the India Playbook 04:14 Proving Institutional Control 04:32 India Results at Scale 04:46 Exporting the Model 04:53 From Regions to Global PE 05:03 Growing Through Headwinds 05:31 Roll Up Your Sleeves Private Equity 05:40 Operational Value Creation 05:48 Brookfield Platform DNA 06:18 Balance Sheet Advantage 06:30 Long-Term Investing Culture 06:50 Rewarded for Waiting 07:18 Middle East Long Game 07:57 Testing Tech on Balance Sheet 08:15 Owning What’s Next 08:26 AI Needs Land and Power 09:57 Platform Collaboration Culture 10:38 Cross-Platform Underwriting 12:23 Westinghouse Nuclear Bet 13:57 Energy Transition Tailwinds 14:13 Why Carve Outs Are Hard 14:33 People Make the Carve Out 15:50 Picking the Right Divisions 17:07 Transformational Underwriting 17:42 Pricing Power Playbook 19:03 From Five to Twelve Returns 20:17 Carve Outs Create Alpha 21:25 AI for Industrial Efficiency 22:13 Data Before AI 23:34 Predictive Maintenance Example 24:57 Physical AI and Robotics 26:26 Digitizing the Factory Floor 26:52 When Robotics Clicks 28:06 DeployCo with OpenAI 28:34 From Innovation to Execution 29:31 Best AI Investment Angle 29:38 Buying Boring Businesses 30:32 Building the Right Team 31:21 Hiring Tech Leaders 31:53 Blockbuster vs Netflix 32:38 Closing Reflections Join over 16,800 Substack subscribers & followers and 44,000 LinkedIn and podcast followers who are thought leaders and executives from top private markets firms and wealth management like Blackstone, Apollo, Ares, KKR, EQT, Carlyle, Blue Owl, CVC, TPG, Brookfield, Vista, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, BlackRock, Fidelity, iCapital, Franklin Templeton, Nuveen, Hg, Permira, Stonepeak, Hamilton Lane, StepStone, Partners Group, General Atlantic, Hightower, Focus Financial, Corient, Cerity Partners, and more. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit altgoesmainstream.substack.com