Prior to founding Kern Whelan, Jay spent over a decade building a successful track record in private equity investing as Managing Director of Reynolds, DeWitt & Co. in Cincinnati, where he led all acquisitions and venture financings. Among Reynolds, DeWitt’s more notable holdings are the St. Louis Cardinals, acquired in 1996 from Anheuser Busch by a group led by Bill DeWitt, Co-Chairman of Reynolds, DeWitt, and Reynolds Plantation, a 10,000 acre golfing community and resort developed by Mercer Reynolds, also Co-Chairman. During his time sourcing, structuring and financing investment transactions while at Reynolds, DeWitt, Jay served as Chairman of the Board of Tech Lighting from 1998 to 2004 and led the firm’s equity investment in and purchase of this Chicago based manufacturer of architectural lighting systems. The Tech sale provided a net return of over twenty times invested capital. Jay’s early stage investment in Provider Synergies, a pharmaceutical services business sold in early 2006, led to a net return of over twenty five times invested capital. Prior to joining Reynolds, DeWitt in1997, Jay was with McKinsey & Company as a management consultant to manufacturing and financial services firms.

Jay serves on the boards of numerous portfolio companies, among them, AAA Pallet Co., a manufacturer and distributor of pallets; Cohera Medical, a medical device start-up; Dixon Midland, a $50 million fund for leveraged acquisitions; Pro Service Hawaii, a $140 million professional employment organization; Arcadia Communications, a developer of and owner of cellular communications towers; and Tab Products, an $88 million manufacturer of document management systems. Jay is also a member of the Industry Trade Advisory Committee on Services and Financial Industries, which is administered jointly by the US Department of Commerce and the US Trade Representative.

Among Jay’s many charitable involvements in Cincinnati, he served as a Trustee of the Cincinnati Symphony, the Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center, The Taft Museum, and the Visiting Nurse Association. Jay looks forward to becoming more involved in charitable work in the San Francisco area.

Jay received a JD and MBA from the University of Chicago and his BA from Princeton University. He lives with his wife and three young children in Marin. Jay enjoys many outdoor sports, classical music and fine arts.