Stephanie Hogue
Throughout Stephanie Hogue’s 15-year career in investment banking and asset management, she has been on a mission to make a positive impact. Recognized with the One Deal of the Year Award in 2009 and as a nominee again in 2017, followed by a nomination for Top Ten Global Female Investment Bankers in 2019, it is clear she is a leader determined to make this happen. Stephanie has worked in Brazil, India, and throughout the U.S. as part of large, world-class organizations, from traditional investment banks to global M&A advisory teams. In 2019, she found the perfect fit as CIO with Bombe Asset Management in Cincinnati, Ohio, an alternative asset manager focused on optimizing transportation infrastructure—a specialization near and dear to Stephanie’s heart. With assets across the U.S., Bombe believes that well-run, efficient transportation infrastructure can create, build, and sustain ecosystems, both micro and broadly within a community. In 2020, she became managing partner, working side by side with co-MP, Manuel Chavez III. Within this role, Stephanie oversees investment strategies and manages deal processes, teams, and integration strategy for assets and companies acquired, while working with Manuel to examine strategies based on current environment and changes within the industry.
Stephanie’s natural talent as both a leader and a financial mind showed themselves early, as did her determination to use both to make meaningful change. While pursuing her MBA at University of Rochester, she served as co-editor of the school paper, VP of consulting and finance clubs, and co-chair of the All-Finance Conference. After graduating, she was elected to the MBA’s advisory board as chair of the International Committee. In 2016, she was named head of her national team for recruiting, learning, and development and served as the group partner diversity champion for the same team until 2020. She recently participated in Leadership Cincinnati, Class 44—a premier leadership development program presented by First Financial Bank and also sits on the board of trustees of PMC, the public television network in Southwest Ohio. Stephanie was member of the NYC Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce’s Finance and Capital Markets Committee. Stephanie met with The Top 100 Magazine to share more about her work, the importance of diversity, and how she and Bombe Asset Management are helping both communities and their investors thrive.
The company’s name has an interesting origin. Where does “Bombe” come from?
For me, Bombe emphasizes both the firm’s insight into the wide-reaching implications of infrastructure and the complexities of this sector. The Bombe was used by the allies in World War II to break enemy codes—the Enigma. At Bombe, we view the levers driving assets as a code and by solving that code, we unlock that value both for our investors and the ecosystems that those assets serve.
What drew you to specialize in infrastructure as an asset class?
I love the scale of infrastructure, its ability to support economic growth, and its role as a catalyst for change. I was drawn to this sector because it’s definable, and I can see the impact it has on communities and local economies. For example, a parking facility can be viewed as a place to park cars or as a place that facilitates the movement of people. In the latter instance, that asset creates movement, driving or maintaining investment in that region, which builds its own ecosystem. With the proliferation of commerce and places to socialize, these communities thrive, as do the investors.
How does your global experience in traditional banking, private equity, and M&A benefit Bombe investors?
I think the diverse experiences from doing transactions internationally gave me a wide lens and insights across M&A and capital markets structuring, ideas for transactions, and different focus points. For example, ESG considerations vary between Europe and the U.S., so having that exposure overseas means that I can bring that lens to our transactions in the United States. I think it works particularly well within Bombe, given my partner’s 25 years of real estate and parking operational experience. As a result, we bring investors an uncommon breadth and depth of financial and operational experience that is extraordinarily complementary.
You place great emphasis on diversity and team building. How do these elements work together to best serve investors?
This is important to me, personally, as well as to our investors. I ran diversity and recruiting initiatives for one of my prior teams nationally and know that it needs sponsorship at a senior level to fully realize its impact. Research shows that diverse boards and executive teams outperform the market and provide better and sustainable returns for investors. It is critical to build a culture that supports diversity - in thought, gender, background, etc. - so that people feel comfortable and want to stay and contribute to the team. It also makes for a better transaction structure and ongoing strategy. I heard an analogy that has stayed with me: “Diversity in a company is being asked to the dance. Inclusion in a company is being asked TO dance.” If people feel they’ve been hired but not included, you defeat the purpose of diversity. But if you ensure that everyone is dancing together, amazing things tend to happen.
You are clearly driven by the philosophy that the finance industry can serve as a far-reaching catalyst for positive change. Tell us about this and some of the work that you’ve done in pursuit of this mission.
I believe that true accomplishment needs to be definable and measurable and serve others in some way, thus hopefully creating a legacy. Investment banking and private equity allow for these objectives, and as financial leaders, we can act as stewards to improve communities, as we are doing at Bombe. I’ve been involved with community organizations throughout my life. When I moved to Mumbai in 2011, I joined the American Women’s Club and was elected as the VP of finance within months. AWC is an expat social non-profit that financially supports an Asian-based grassroots organization serving the women and children of Mumbai’s slums. Soon after I joined, I co-chaired their first-ever fundraiser engaging multi-national corporations, raising a substantial amount of money to develop a health center that provides nutrition and vaccinations for mothers and children. As a mother, focusing on this vulnerable group is incredibly important to me. While that was a highlight and growth point for me, I am the most excited I have been in my career about what we are building at Bombe. While young in lifecycle, the firm has a strong partnership, a best-in-class team, a strong network of relationships, supportive investors, and a vision statement of solving for the greater good. I am confident that this will be the most fun I’ve had yet.
Contact:
Stephanie Hogue
Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer
Bombe Asset Management
Website: https://bombeltd.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanie-hogue-93b158
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