Kevin McAllister founded Access Holdings in 2013 to establish an investment firm focused on the pursuit of buying businesses we want to own versus those simply for sale. That purposeful build and buy philosophy has guided Access’s high-quality, research-driven investments and, subsequently, creating a concentrated portfolio of essential service-based businesses across North America.

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As founder and managing partner, Kevin oversees all firm activities, including executing its value creation strategy that aims to partner, scale, and innovate with portfolio companies to build enduring businesses.

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Since its inception as an independent sponsor, Kevin and the senior team have scaled and guided Access’s rapid growth to a firm that manages over $2.8 billion in AUM. Access’s inaugural fund raised $340M, exceeding its target by 36%, and remains one of the largest inaugural closed-end funds raised by a mid-Atlantic private equity firm. Headquartered in Baltimore, MD has grown to over 40 employees and operates a concentrated portfolio of 8 investments.

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Kevin has more than 20 years of private equity experience. Before founding Access Holdings, Kevin worked at American Capital Strategies and leading business consultancies, where he held prominent roles in opportunity origination, execution, negotiation, and portfolio company management. Kevin received his MBA in Finance from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, where he studied under private equity expert Steve Kaplan, and has a BA in Economics from Dickinson College.

Josh Finifter joined Access Holdings in 2020 and is a Managing Director on the Investment Team. As a member of the Investment Team, Josh supports the firm’s thesis development, origination, execution, and portfolio management activities. Josh also chairs Access’s internship program and culture committee.

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Josh has spent 10 years in various investing and related financial services roles. Prior to joining Access Holdings, Josh was a Senior Associate at Corridor Capital where he focused on diligence, financing and execution of new investments and providing support to its portfolio companies and management partners. Prior to that, Josh spent several years in investment banking and transaction advisory and audit services at Raymond James and PricewaterhouseCoopers, respectively. Josh holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Management from the University of Maryland College Park, where he graduated with honors.

Steve Chang joined Access Holdings in 2019 as a partner. Heavily involved in all aspects of the investment process as a member of Access’s senior leadership team, Steve works on thesis generation, deal origination, target due diligence, and more.

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While overseeing the firm’s value creation programs and resources, Steve is also directly involved in shaping critical growth strategies and value creation programs with portfolio companies. He is currently a Board Member and Strategic Advisor to RizePoint, an audit management platform.

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Steven has more than 30 years of experience in private equity and management consulting.

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Before joining Access Holdings, Steve held leadership and development roles at LLR Partners, Adventeer Advisors, Prophet Brand Strategy, among others. Steve received his MBA in Business Administration from the University of Chicago and has a BA in Business Administration from the University of Notre Dame.

Tod Eskra is President of American Student Transportation Partners (ASTP), where he leads strategic growth, operational transformation, and financial performance across the organization. A seasoned executive, Tod brings over 25 years of leadership experience in transportation, facilities management, SaaS, and fleet services.

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He has held senior roles at HES Facilities Management, Transportation Services Co., and Enterprise Fleet Management, where he consistently delivered top-line growth, operational excellence, and cultural transformation. Tod also scaled a pioneering fleet management business and led successful M&A integrations and vendor partnerships in the student transportation sector.

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Tod holds a B.S. in Accountancy from the University of Missouri-Columbia and is known for his ability to build high-performing teams, drive innovation in change-resistant industries, and deliver measurable results through strategic vision and hands-on leadership.

Luke Stuby is Director of Alternative Transportation at American Student Transportation Partners (ASTP), where he leads strategic initiatives to expand and innovate non-traditional school transportation solutions. He previously served as Chief of Staff at ASTP, helping guide company-wide transformation and growth efforts.

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Before joining ASTP, Luke spent nearly eight years at PwC, where he was a Manager in the Pricing and Profitability practice. He advised clients across industries such as software, pharma distribution, telecommunications, and technology, with expertise in pricing strategy, org design, and operational transformation.

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Luke began his career in finance and consulting through roles at Mercer, Johnson & Johnson’s McNeil Nutritionals, and the Nittany Lion Fund. He holds a degree in Finance and Economics from Penn State’s Schreyer Honors College and studied Applied Economics at Maastricht University.

Ryan Janiga is a Business Development Supervisor at American Student Transportation Partners (ASTP), where he leads outreach and relationship-building initiatives to support company growth. Since joining ASTP in 2023, he has advanced from Business Development Representative to his current leadership role.

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Ryan brings prior experience in financial services and business development through roles at Supporting Strategies, Kingsview Partners, and Criterion Management LLC. He holds certifications in SalesOS and MarketingOS, and is known for his strengths in account management, teamwork, and leadership.

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He earned his B.A. in Business Administration and Management from Gettysburg College.

Nick Tierno is Director of Corporate Development at American Student Transportation Partners (ASTP), where he leads finance and M&A initiatives to support strategic growth. He brings over a decade of experience in corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, and strategic advisory roles across various sectors.

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Prior to ASTP, Nick held the same position at Portfolio and has a strong background in financial analysis and modeling. He holds an MBA in Quantitative Finance from Drexel University’s LeBow College of Business and a bachelor’s degree from Dickinson College.

Cam Johnson is a strategic finance leader with over 15 years of experience guiding growth, M&A, and financial transformation across diverse industries. He currently serves as Vice President of FP&A at American Student Transportation Partners (ASTP), where he leads budgeting, treasury, and data automation efforts to drive operational efficiency and expansion.

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Cam has held finance leadership roles at Radius Global Infrastructure, Turn5, Aramark, and American Express. He has managed global FP&A teams, led the evaluation of $14B+ in strategic deals, and developed financial strategies for multi-billion-dollar revenue streams. His work includes launching new business models, optimizing capital budgets, and driving expense reduction through data-driven initiatives.

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Cam holds an MBA from Vanderbilt University and a BBA in Finance from The George Washington University. He is known for developing high-performing teams and aligning finance functions with business strategy.

Steve Chang joined Access Holdings in 2019 as a partner. Heavily involved in all aspects of the investment process as a member of Access’s senior leadership team, Steve works on thesis generation, deal origination, target due diligence, and more.

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While overseeing the firm’s value creation programs and resources, Steve is also directly involved in shaping critical growth strategies and value creation programs with portfolio companies. He is currently a Board Member and Strategic Advisor to RizePoint, an audit management platform.

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Steven has more than 30 years of experience in private equity and management consulting.

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Before joining Access Holdings, Steve held leadership and development roles at LLR Partners, Adventeer Advisors, Prophet Brand Strategy, among others. Steve received his MBA in Business Administration from the University of Chicago and has a BA in Business Administration from the University of Notre Dame.

Nik Kapauan joined Access Holdings in 2022 as a Managing Director on the Value Creation team. As a member of the team, Nik supports the firm’s thesis development, origination, execution, and portfolio management activities. He also leads Access’ efforts to build distinctive digital and analytics capabilities to drive investment decisions and value creation initiatives.

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Prior to joining Access Holdings, Nik was an Associate Partner at McKinsey & Company, helping clients around the world achieve breakout growth by building, acquiring, and scaling innovative new businesses. Nik has an MBA from Columbia Business School and a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering from the University of Waterloo.

Sean joined Access Holdings in 2018 and is a Chief of Staff on the Value Creation Team. As a member of the Value Creation Team, Sean supports origination, execution, and portfolio support activities. She is currently responsible for managing and supporting Access Holdings’ ESG Program, portfolio finance functions, and strategic planning.

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Sean has more than 5 years of private equity and investment banking experience. Prior to joining Access Holdings, Sean was an Analyst at Stifel Financial Corp., where she primarily supported M&A transactions within the building products and education industries. Sean received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Johns Hopkins University.

Matt Treuth is a private equity professional focused on financial excellence and value creation within portfolio companies. He currently serves as a Principal at Access Holdings, following leadership roles as CFO at Aspen Standard Wealth and Operating Executive at Alpine Investors.

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Previously, Matt spent nearly six years at PwC, where he led large-scale finance transformation projects in the pharmaceutical sector and restructured intercompany and transfer pricing functions for major technology and life sciences firms. He began his career in transfer pricing at BDO USA.

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Matt holds an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and a BA in Economics from Kenyon College. He is a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and fluent in Chinese.

Ellen Kirk joined Access Holdings in 2021 and is a Manager on the Value Creation Team. As a member of the Value Creation Team, Ellen Kirk uses digital lead generation strategies to assist portfolio companies with add-on M&A opportunities or contract wins to accelerate overall volume of deals to meet strategic and financial goals.

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Before joining Access Holdings, Ellen Kirk worked as a Senior Associate Program Lead for Customer Value Partners (CVP), responsible for quality and delivery for several Medicare Hospital Quality Reporting value-based purchasing programs.

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Ellen Kirk graduated from the College of William & Mary with a Bachelors in Public Policy.

David joined Access Holdings in 2024 and is a Senior Vice President on the Investment Team. As a member of the Investment Team, David supports the firm’s thesis development, origination, execution, and portfolio management activities. David is responsible for developing growth marketing capabilities and driving initiatives within consumer service portfolio companies and at Access.

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David brings more than 15 years of investing and operating experience to Access. Most recently, he was a Partner at Firelight Capital Partners, a consumer-focused private equity firm in New York City, where he led deal execution and built a value creation strategy around digital acceleration. He previously founded, scaled and sold Brickwork, an omnichannel enablement SaaS company, and began his career in marketing and strategy for global consumer brands.

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David received his MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and AB from Harvard University.

Jeff Ellis is the Chief People Officer at ASTP, bringing over two decades of leadership across transportation, environmental services, healthcare, and utilities. His expertise spans HR, safety, risk management, operations, and talent development.

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Jeff began his career in environmental compliance before advising high-risk industries as a Senior Consultant at XL Capital Ltd. He then moved into student transportation, leading HR and safety at Student Transportation of America and later at TransCare, where he drove employee engagement and process improvements. He also held HR leadership roles at Exelon Corp. in power generation and utilities.

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At ASTP, Jeff focuses on elevating the role of school transportation professionals, championing workforce development and safety culture. He holds a BS in Environmental Sciences from Wesley College and an MBA from Georgian Court University. He is SPHR-certified and a member of the Society for Human Resource Management.

Ashley B. Marshall is the Head of Growth & Innovation at Playfly Sports, where she leads the company’s Transformation Management Office, Growth & Innovation function, and Marketing & Creative Agency. Her role spans integrated marketing, public relations, insights, and creative strategy, all aimed at accelerating company-wide growth and operational transformation. She also spearheads new business incubation efforts to expand Playfly’s market footprint.

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Ashley brings over a decade of experience in media and entertainment. Before Playfly, she held senior roles at Comcast, including Senior Director of New Media, where she led complex programming negotiations, managed content budgets, and developed strategies for digital and subscription video services. She also oversaw digital solutions and OTT platforms in her previous role as SVP of Playfly Tech & Digital.

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Ashley began her career in the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. She holds dual degrees—a BA and BFA—from the University of Michigan, with concentrations in Political Science, Graphic Design, and Photography

As the Director of Talent at Oasis Marinas, Paul leads all talent acquisition, training, and development efforts to build and sustain a talent pipeline capable of keeping pace with the tremendous company growth. With over 14 years of experience in the hospitality industry, he has a proven track record of creating and delivering innovative and effective learning and development programs that enhance the performance and potential of our associates and managers.

Kate joined Access Holdings in 2024 as Vice President of Human Resources and Compliance. As a member of the Operations Team, Kate manages the firm’s human resources processes and corporate compliance matters. In her role, she leads strategic HR initiatives focused on employee satisfaction and retention, performance review, professional development, and career growth opportunities, with the goal of streamlining processes and enhancing engagement across the organization. Kate also focuses on regulatory requirements and best practices in private equity to ensure the firm’s ongoing compliance in day-to-day operations.

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Prior to joining Access Holdings, Kate was the General Counsel and Senior Vice President of Human Resources for Sylvan Learning, where she was responsible for legal strategy and risk management, contract negotiation, litigation oversight, corporate governance, and compliance with franchise and labor regulations, as well as all aspects of HR and organizational culture development within the organization. Kate received her JD from University of Maryland School of Law and her BA in Economics from Wake Forest University.

Kim is a trusted advisor to CEOs, boards, and private equity investors, guiding leadership and talent strategies across startups and Fortune 500 companies. She specializes in CEO assessment, leadership development, culture scaling, and organizational transformation.

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Kim built her career at ghSMART and the Boston Consulting Group. At ghSMART, she co-led the renowned CEO Genome Project™, featured on the cover of Harvard Business Review, and co-authored the bestseller The CEO Next Door (Crown Publishing, 2018). At BCG, she was a senior principal and expert in corporate strategy and change management.

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She has advised clients across technology, consumer goods, financial services, industrials, and nonprofits, helping leaders drive growth, improve performance, and build high-impact cultures.

Nik Kapauan joined Access Holdings in 2022 as a Managing Director on the Value Creation team. As a member of the team, Nik supports the firm’s thesis development, origination, execution, and portfolio management activities. He also leads Access’ efforts to build distinctive digital and analytics capabilities to drive investment decisions and value creation initiatives.

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Prior to joining Access Holdings, Nik was an Associate Partner at McKinsey & Company, helping clients around the world achieve breakout growth by building, acquiring, and scaling innovative new businesses. Nik has an MBA from Columbia Business School and a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering from the University of Waterloo.

Matt Johl joined Access Holdings in 2021 and is the Managing Director and Chief Data Officer on the Value Creation Team. As a member of the Value Creation Team, Matt helps collect, manage, and analyze data helping the team to make better informed decisions. He is responsible for overseeing and managing the development of Pulse which helps provide a more holistic view of a Portfolio Company’s Operations.

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Matt has more than 10 years of experience in operations and data management. Prior to joining Access Holdings Matt was the Director of Payment Processing at YourCause, where he built the processing division from scratch. He oversaw the processing team helping them facilitate charitable donations from corporations to charities all over the world. He was also responsible for managing all the reporting for both internal and external clients. Matt received his Bachelors in Marketing from the University of Arizona Eller College of Management.

Matt Johl joined Access Holdings in 2021 and is the Managing Director and Chief Data Officer on the Value Creation Team. As a member of the Value Creation Team, Matt helps collect, manage, and analyze data helping the team to make better informed decisions. He is responsible for overseeing and managing the development of Pulse which helps provide a more holistic view of a Portfolio Company’s Operations.

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Matt has more than 10 years of experience in operations and data management. Prior to joining Access Holdings Matt was the Director of Payment Processing at YourCause, where he built the processing division from scratch. He oversaw the processing team helping them facilitate charitable donations from corporations to charities all over the world. He was also responsible for managing all the reporting for both internal and external clients. Matt received his Bachelors in Marketing from the University of Arizona Eller College of Management.

Svet joined Access Holdings in 2023 and is a Principal on the Investment Team. As a member of the Investment Team, Svet supports the firm’s debt capital markets activity by partnering with the deal teams to develop financing strategies that synchronize with each investment thesis. Svet is responsible for driving the financing process and optimizing debt capital raising activity across the portfolio.

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Prior to joining Access Holdings, Svet was a Vice President in the leveraged finance group at RBC Capital Markets, where he focused on originating, structuring and executing broadly syndicated loans and high yield bonds for financial sponsors and corporate clients. Svet received his MBA in Business Administration from Georgetown University and BA in Economics from the University of Michigan.

Robert Eckstein is the Director of Strategy at Playfly Sports, where he leads initiatives to drive business growth and operational excellence. Before joining Playfly, he consulted with Borealis Ventures. Robert also brings experience from private equity, having served as a Senior Associate at Juggernaut Capital Partners and supporting strategy and M&A at 3STEP Sports. He began his career in investment banking at Lincoln International.

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Robert holds an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth and a BS in Accounting and Business Administration from Washington and Lee University

James Marrero is the Director and Head of Media Finance at Playfly Sports, where he leads financial strategy and planning for the company’s media division. He previously served as Director of FP&A at Playfly, supporting business growth through data-driven forecasting and analysis.

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Before joining Playfly, James held FP&A leadership roles at Nerd Street, where he advanced from Senior Analyst to Manager, and at Destination Maternity, where he managed budgeting and forecasting for retail operations. He began his finance career with internships at Siemens and Financial Software Systems.

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James holds a Bachelor’s degree in Finance from the University of Pittsburgh and has studied Italian at Italiaidea. He brings strong expertise in financial modeling, forecasting, and performance management.

Matt Treuth is a private equity professional focused on financial excellence and value creation within portfolio companies. He currently serves as a Principal at Access Holdings, following leadership roles as CFO at Aspen Standard Wealth and Operating Executive at Alpine Investors.

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Previously, Matt spent nearly six years at PwC, where he led large-scale finance transformation projects in the pharmaceutical sector and restructured intercompany and transfer pricing functions for major technology and life sciences firms. He began his career in transfer pricing at BDO USA.

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Matt holds an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and a BA in Economics from Kenyon College. He is a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and fluent in Chinese.

Kevin McAllister founded Access Holdings in 2013 to establish an investment firm focused on the pursuit of buying businesses we want to own versus those simply for sale. That purposeful build and buy philosophy has guided Access’s high-quality, research-driven investments and, subsequently, creating a concentrated portfolio of essential service-based businesses across North America.

‍

As founder and managing partner, Kevin oversees all firm activities, including executing its value creation strategy that aims to partner, scale, and innovate with portfolio companies to build enduring businesses.

‍

Since its inception as an independent sponsor, Kevin and the senior team have scaled and guided Access’s rapid growth to a firm that manages over $2.8 billion in AUM. Access’s inaugural fund raised $340M, exceeding its target by 36%, and remains one of the largest inaugural closed-end funds raised by a mid-Atlantic private equity firm. Headquartered in Baltimore, MD has grown to over 40 employees and operates a concentrated portfolio of 8 investments.

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Kevin has more than 20 years of private equity experience. Before founding Access Holdings, Kevin worked at American Capital Strategies and leading business consultancies, where he held prominent roles in opportunity origination, execution, negotiation, and portfolio company management. Kevin received his MBA in Finance from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, where he studied under private equity expert Steve Kaplan, and has a BA in Economics from Dickinson College.