---
id: "quote-utzschneider-pe-success"
type: "quote"
source_timestamps: ["§ What Success Looks Like"]
tags: ["exit-strategy", "clarity"]
related: ["entity-lisa-utzschneider", "prereq-pe-hold-period"]
speaker: "Lisa Utzschneider"
speakers: ["Lisa Utzschneider"]
sources: ["tail2"]
sourceVaultSlug: "hbr-seg-tail2"
originDay: 2
articleStem: "hbr-tail-120-corporate-to-pe-ceo"
sourceUrl: "https://hbr.org/2026/07/making-the-leap-from-corporate-leader-to-pe-backed-ceo"
sourceTitle: "Making the Leap from Corporate Leader to PE-Backed CEO"
---
# Utzschneider on the Nature of PE Success

> "In PE, success depends on the return, the working hypothesis, and the exit expectations. It's a transaction, and clarity on your role is what builds trust, empowers teams, enables speed, and creates value."

— [[entity-lisa-utzschneider|Lisa Utzschneider]], CEO of [[entity-integral-ad-science|Integral Ad Science]]

Reframes PE leadership around [[prereq-pe-hold-period|the return, the working hypothesis, and exit expectations]] — clarity as the engine of trust, speed, and value.