Jon Glidden is the CIO of Delta Air Lines, where he oversees the company’s $16 billion pension fund. Jon joined Delta in 2011, when the plan had $7.5 billion in assets, a $13 billion underfunded liability, and the highest actuarial expected rate of return (9%) of any company in the S&P 500. Despite funded status that threatened the solvency of the company thirteen years ago, investment performance combined with corporate contributions that offset plan payouts have improved Delta’s funding status from 42% to 102% today, creating the largest corporate pension turnaround in history. Our conversation discusses Jon’s independent thinking and innovative approach that led to his incredible feat. We start with his Naval and investment background and then cover the four forces that drive his investment philosophy - portable alpha, private equity, portfolio construction, and governance - and the implementation of each.   Take Capital Allocators Audience Engagement Survey Learn More Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Access Transcript with Premium Membership

On episode eight of season three of Private Equity Deals, Chris and Rob Michalik discuss Kinderhook Industries’ investment in Ironclad Environmental Services.   Chris and Rob are twin brothers and co-founders of Kinderhook, a twenty-year-old private equity firm that manages $5 billion specializing in middle-market businesses across healthcare services, environmental services, and automotive/light manufacturing.   Ironclad Environmental Services is a leading provider of logistics-based solutions focused on the containment of industrial waste. It has 50 branches and a fleet of 29,000 specialized rental assets that store, separate, and transport liquid and solid industrial waste.   Our conversation covers Kinderhook’s identification, due diligence, and negotiation of the deal. We discuss a significant early add-on acquisition, progress-to-date, and the future of Ironclad.   Learn More   Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Access Transcript with Premium Membership