Today we’d like to introduce you to Nick Foreste.
Hi Nick, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I’m an Atlanta-area native, having grown up in Roswell where I still live today with my wife, Heidi, and four kids. I did not travel far for college, choosing to attend UGA for business school. Through a few internship opportunities, including shadowing a few local sports agents, I grew to love the art of closing deals and pursued that path for a legal career. After graduating from Vanderbilt Law School, I joined the mergers and acquisitions group at a large international firm’s Atlanta office.
While at my first firm, I launched a small technology startup that I ran with a great friend at night and on the weekends. Through that experience, I caught the “tech bug” and decided that I needed to be in tech and supporting entrepreneurs, and in 2014, I joined Morris, Manning & Martin, LLP (MMM) to do exactly that.
Since joining MMM, I’ve had the opportunity to work with some incredible founders building transformational businesses in Atlanta and throughout the country. I view myself as an extension of each founder’s team and enjoy the personal and professional relationships that my approach to the practice has fostered. I focus on supporting growth-focused founders and private equity/venture capital funds by providing strategic and practical advice to navigate the fast-paced technology landscape. I help clients through venture and growth equity fundraising rounds, acquisitions, and exits.
I am also actively involved in the technology community, serving as an Advisor to the Atlanta Tech Village (America’s 4th largest tech hub), a member of the Venture Atlanta Selection Committee, and as a board member of the Atlanta Technology Angels.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Time is my biggest challenge – which I’m sure just about everyone can sympathize with. Trying to find a “balance” between being a great husband and father, staying physically and spiritually fit, and making each client feel that they are the most important interaction of my day is essentially impossible, but I’m giving it my best shot!
I’ve found that having a few “non-negotiables” each day, such as exercising every morning and tucking my kids in every night, has helped to anchor me through some incredibly busy times. The work from home movement accelerated by the pandemic has also helped me to find balance, replacing commute time a couple of days a week with time made for family dinners and coaching kids’ sports teams.
Another key element to overcoming the obstacle of limited time is building out a team that you (and your clients) can trust. That is easier said than done, as recruiting and retention in our current environment is tough. At MMM, we’ve become much more proactive in our recruiting efforts, leveraging the connections of our current team to recruit and attract new candidates, even in locations outside of where we have current offices. So far, the approach has been successful, and I’m looking forward to continuing to see the team expand.
Contact Info:
- Email: nforeste@mmmlaw.com
- Website: https://www.mmmlaw.com/people/nick-foreste/
