Michael Cole, Madison Dearborn Partners (2009)

40 UNDER 40: 2009
Tired of bad news? We are, too. So we asked this year's 40 Under 40 honorees to tell us something anything good. And they delivered, with tales of triumph over adversity, inspiration drawn from family and friends, good advice from mentors and lessons learned in this historic economic downturn. Read Michael Cole's profile below.

After Michael Eisner left Disney Corp., he could have teamed up with anyone to do a deal. He chose Madison Dearborn Partners, where he struck up a relationship with Michael Cole, who is 30 years his junior.
Mr. Eisner says he never regretted it, especially after his plan to buy Topps Co. turned into a bidding war. Mr. Cole never lost his nerve.
"He's very smart and understands deals," Mr. Eisner says. "He didn't fall for the macho, emotional, 'gotta win' scenario of overpaying."
Mr. Cole learned that lesson in one of his first deals with Madison Dearborn, investing in XM Satellite Radio. He held his ground then and endured a roller-coaster ride before getting out with nearly four times what the firm invested. Since then, he's played key roles in investments in Italian mobile-network operator Weather S.A., Spanish-language broadcaster Univision Communications Inc. and Dallas-based wireless company Metro PCS. All of his portfolio companies are expected to show operating profit growth this year, a rarity in this economy.
He has stood out since joining Madison Dearborn 12 years ago as a junior analyst from New York, one of a half-dozen cities where he lived while growing up as the son of an executive who ran HMOs on both coasts.
"Usually we send analysts off to business school, for an MBA, then we try to hire one or two back," says Jim Perry, a Madison Dearborn co-founder who oversees telecom and media deals. "Michael was encouraged to stay. There are a lot of bright people in this business, but Michael's very investment-savvy."
He's learned a thing or two from Mr. Eisner. When the Topps deal was headed to a vote, Mr. Eisner reached out to some institutional investors that are driven purely by technical analysis. "These are black-box places. They don't even have people to answer the phones," Mr. Cole says. "Michael didn't stop. He found them and got their votes. I learned the value of personal interaction in any deal and not looking at it purely as a financial interest."

John Pletz

SOMETHING GOOD: "We're starting to see some bond deals and bank-debt deals getting done. What hasn't been getting done yet are (highly speculative) debt deals. Within the next six months, I can see a deal like that getting done."

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