Harry Turner –

VCJ Fact Sheet for Harry Turner

Born: Visalia, California

Education: B.S., M.S. in Electrical Engineering, M.B.A. in 1968 all from Stanford University.

Career Path: After financial positions at two tech companies, Turner joined Stanford University’s small endowment management staff in 1974. He joined a team working with the vice president of finance to develop a multi-asset investment strategy. In 1989, he began a term as the university’s interim treasurer, making proposals to reorganize the investment organization. As a result of those proposals, he got the call in 1991 to co-found the Stanford Management Co. and develop its professional private equity team. In October 2000, he resigned from Stanford, briefly helping develop an investment strategy for Legacy Venture Capital, a fund-of-funds organized to donate its proceeds to charity. In 2001, he became a partner in the predecessor organization to Park Street Capital.

Other affiliations: In 1992, Turner joined a struggling Peninsula Habitat for Humanity chapter and charged it with a strategic vision to grow its construction rate from one home per year to 10. The chapter has since completed 80 homes and hired a permanent executive director.

Personal: The fourth-generation Californian is married with two daughters.

Greatest Accomplishment: In the mid-1980s, he helped pioneer venture capital as an appropriate asset class for institutional investors. During his tenure at Stanford Management Co., the endowment grew from $3 billion to $9 billion, including $3 billion contributed by his private equity projects.

Biggest Mistake: Not recognizing several outstanding investment opportunities.

Did You Know? He enjoys ballroom dancing with his wife and attending costume parties with historical themes. In April, he put the two together when he and his wife attended a ball in San Francisco in honor of a courtesan from “Gone With the Wind.”

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