Michael Jacobs, Board of Advisors

Michael Jacobs, is the founder and CEO of Jacobs Capital, LLC, a Research Triangle Park-based investment banking firm that provides merger and acquisition and business valuation services to middle-market companies.

He has managed investment banking departments for several large organizations and served as director of corporate finance at the U.S. Treasury Department from 1989-91, where he was responsible for national policy in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, corporate governance and certain banking matters.

Michael is the author of “Short-Term America” (Harvard Business School Press, 1991), which was named one of the 10 best business books of the year. He later published “Break the Wall Street Rule: Outperform the Stock Market by Investing as an Owner” (Addison Wesley, 1993). He has written articles on corporate finance and corporate governance published by Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Nikkei Business, Directors and Boards and CFO, among others. He has appeared as a featured guest on CNBC’s “Smart Money,” CNN and PBS.

The nation’s largest institutional investor, California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS), named him as one of seven individuals who made the greatest contribution to corporate governance reform.

Michael is Chairman of the Board of Cortical Metrics, and a director and chair of the audit committee of Biscuitville. Professor Jacobs also serves on the boards of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Triangle, Carolina Ballet and Sovereign’s Capital.

He received his MBA from Harvard Business School and his undergraduate business degree from UNC Kenan-Flagler.