Daniel A. | Leland

Daniel A.

5.0

(6)

Admissions Committee at Chicago Booth

Hiring Manager at Salt Creek Capital

Available tomorrow at 6:30 PM UTC

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Available tomorrow at 6:30 PM UTC

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About Daniel

Hi, I’m Daniel — born and raised in Australia, moved to the U.S. to chase two dreams: professional tennis and a career in investing. (Spoiler: the tennis dream didn’t end at Wimbledon, but I did play Division 1 college tennis and gave the pro tour a real shot — so I know what it means to grind for something that feels out of reach.) Post-tennis, I went from working at high-growth silicon valley startups to leading deals in private equity: running diligence, working with founders, and sitting on boards. Eventually, I decided to double down on the investing path and applied to business school. I got into Booth, Wharton, Kellogg, Haas, Columbia, and NYU — without a perfect GMAT, without an MBB name on my resume, and without a squeaky-clean story. What I did have was a clear sense of who I was and a story that actually made sense once I stepped back and told it right. I coach students for business school, doctorate programs, elite industry jobs, and career advice. If you want to work on something not on this list, let me know - happy to offer a steep discount to expand my expertise!

Why do I coach?

Because I know what it feels like to be the underdog in a hyper-polished admissions world — and I’ve seen firsthand how life-changing the other side can be. I didn’t have a 760 GMAT. I didn’t work at McKinsey. I was a former pro athlete turned startup guy turned private equity investor who wasn’t sure if any of it would “make sense” on an MBA application. But I figured out how to tell my story effectively, and that really made an impact. Since then, I’ve helped dozens of others do the same - from traditional finance folks to first-gen students to career-switchers with non-linear paths. And honestly, nothing beats the feeling of getting that “I got in!” text after someone put in the work and bet on themselves. I coach because I want people to feel ownership of their story, not shame that it doesn’t look like everyone else’s. I’ll push you to be sharp, strategic, and real. I won’t waste your time. And I’ll always show up for you - because I know how big this can be, and I don’t take that lightly.

Work Experience

Private Equity Investor

Salt Creek Capital

June 2022 - Present

Hiring Manager

Salt Creek Capital is a San Francisco Bay Area private equity firm acquiring profitable small to mid-sized businesses across the U.S. in partnership with talented operating executives. As operationally-focused investors, we seek to leverage our experience as entrepreneurs, CEOs and board members to support management teams in disciplined and focused execution and to identify growth and value creating opportunities.

Senior Manager, Corporate Development & Strategy

Bolthouse Farms

September 2019 - June 2022

Hiring Manager

Plant based food company, powered through technology and innovation.

Strategic Finance

TuneIn

August 2018 - September 2019

TuneIn empowers people to hear exactly what they love the moment they want it, and discover a universe of audio, all in one place. We combine the power of audio, design, and technology to bring together live sports, up-to-the-minute news, curated music, millions of podcasts, and over 120,000 streaming radio stations.

Business Development & Biz Ops

Copper CRM

September 2017 - August 2018

Copper is the #1 CRM for companies using Google that teams actually love to use. Copper is exclusively recommended by Google to over 5M customers and is the fastest growing CRM company in the world. Backed by $105M from Norwest Venture Partners, GV (formerly Google Ventures), True Ventures, Next World Capital, Storm Ventures, Industry Ventures and others.

Strategic Finance

Juicero

July 2016 - October 2017

Pre-IPO Startup. We created the first counter-top cold-pressed juicing system, which makes raw, organic juice at the touch of a button. There's no mess, prep, or cleanup. We do all the work by delivering pre-washed organic produce packs that work with the Juicero juice press.