Cover Story
The capital for success
How Neal Aronson overcomes challenges at Roark Capital to build a strong company
By Kristy J. O’Hara
Smart Business Atlanta | November 2009
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Neal Aronson admires Howard Roark more than anyone. Maybe you’ve heard of him, and maybe you haven’t, because Roark is the protagonist in Ayn Rand’s book, “The Fountainhead.”
“He always stuck with his convictions, even when it was against conventional wisdom, and he always did what he genuinely believed was right and stuck to those convictions and had the discipline and fortitude to stick with it even when it put him at odds with the popular people or the latest trends,” Aronson says.
The result of doing these things? In the end, Roark got all of the accolades and successes that one could hope for in life, but Aronson also learned a lesson from reading the tale of Roark.
“It wasn’t a linear path to success,” he says. “There’s plenty of bumps in the road, but he felt good about himself because he never sold out and always stuck to what he believed in. I guess it’s not just the result, but the journey is relevant — how you get there.”
That’s something that has stayed with Aronson, and he founded his private equity firm, Roark Capital Group, naming it after his fictional hero. Since then, he has grown the firm to have $1.5 billion in capital and 13 brands under management, which collectively bring in $2.9 billion in systemwide revenue.
Through it all, he’s learned a lot, and some of the key lessons that Aronson has absorbed in his career are knowing what he can control, empowering his people and effectively addressing mistakes.
