MPE Partners Announces Two Senior Team Promotions


Cleveland, OH and Boston, MA – MPE Partners (“MPE” or “Morgenthaler Private Equity”), a Cleveland- and Boston-based private equity firm, is pleased to announce the promotions of Christine Smoragiewicz to Partner and Nick Stender to Principal. Both Christine and Nick are based in MPE’s Boston office. These promotions augment MPE’s existing leadership team of Peter Taft, Karen Tuleta, Joe Machado, Matt Yohe, Graham Schena, and Constantine Elefter.

MPE Partner, Peter Taft said, “We are excited to recognize the important contributions that Christine and Nick have made to our firm and in support of our portfolio companies and limited partners. We greatly appreciate their work and congratulate them on these well-deserved promotions.” MPE Partner, Matt Yohe added, “It has been a pleasure to work alongside Christine and Nick, and we look forward to their continued growth and success in their new and expanded roles.”

Since joining the team in 2021, Christine has served as the firm’s Chief Financial Officer and Chief Compliance Officer (“CFO and CCO”) and has successfully transitioned MPE’s finance and compliance operations from a shared services model to the firm’s first dedicated in-house team. As a Partner, she will retain the CFO and CCO titles and continue to oversee the finance, compliance, and administrative functions of the firm. Christine also serves as a member of the firm’s ESG sub-committee. Prior to MPE, Christine served 14 years as CFO and CCO at Intervale Capital (now Amberjack Capital Partners) and previously, as Controller at J.W. Childs Associates (now Prospect Hill Growth Partners). She began her career in the Boston office of PricewaterhouseCoopers. Christine has a B.S. in Business Administration with honors from Georgetown University.

Nick rejoined MPE as a Vice President in 2020 after attending business school, having previously served at MPE as an MBA intern in 2018 and a consultant in 2019. Nick currently holds board seats at DecoArt, Garmat USA, and Teel Plastics. He previously served as a director of 80/20 and Plastic Components, Inc. Prior to business school, Nick served as an Associate at Apax Partners and began his career as an Investment Banking Analyst at Deutsche Bank. He holds a B.B.A. in Finance and Accounting with Distinction from the University of Wisconsin and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

About MPE Partners
MPE Partners (“MPE” or “Morgenthaler Private Equity”) seeks to be the preferred partner for entrepreneur- and family-owned companies. Based in Cleveland, OH, and Boston, MA, MPE invests in profitable, lower middle market companies with transaction values up to $250 million. MPE has two primary target investment areas: high-value manufacturing and commercial & industrial services. For more information, please visit www.mpepartners.com.

Media Contact:
Matt Yohe
myohe*AT*mpepartners.com