Karen Derr Gilbert is partner and chief operating officer at FTV Capital, a leading global growth equity investment firm. Since joining FTV in 1999, she has played a central role in driving the firm’s strategic growth and operational excellence. Karen chairs the firm’s Management, Exit, and ESG Committees, and serves as a voting member of the Investment Committee. She has been instrumental in capital formation efforts that have raised over $9 billion since 2013, and she oversees investor relations, marketing, business development and technology operations. Karen has been recognized by Forbes’ 50 Over 50 – Money and GrowthCap’s Top Women Leaders in Growth Investing.
Prior to FTV Capital, Karen held leadership roles at Wells Fargo Bank, Merrill Lynch and Shearson Lehman Brothers. She holds an MBA from Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management and a BA in Economics from UCLA.
Karen is deeply committed to community and philanthropic service. She currently mentors and sponsors a medical student in Kenya through the Global Giveback Circle, and she is active in the International Women’s Forum and Private Equity Women’s Investor Network. She previously served for over a decade on the board of the Girl Scouts of Northern California, including as board secretary and chair of the People Committee. A longtime advocate for education, she has also held numerous volunteer leadership positions supporting local schools and nonprofits in her Orinda, CA community.
