David Bard

David Bard
  • Senior Fellow & Lecturer

Contact Information

  • office Address:

    2300 Steinberg-Dietrich Hall
    3620 Locust Walk
    Philadelphia, PA 19104

Overview

  • Education
    • MBA, Wharton, 2011
    • MPhil in Economics, University of Cambridge, 2004
    • BSE in Economics, Wharton, 2002
    • BAS in Systems Engineering, Penn Engineering, 2002
  • Academic Positions Held
    • Wharton, 2015 – Present
  • Other Current Positions
    • Partner, The Halifax Group, 2018 – Present
    • Advisor, The Brydon Group, 2022 – Present
  • Other Former Employment
    • American Securities, 2015 – 2018
    • Bain Capital, Private Equity, 2006 – 2015
    • McKinsey & Company, 2004 – 2006
    • Internships with the Council of Economic Advisors and the U.S. Treasury
Continue Reading

Teaching

  • FNCE 884: Advanced Topics in Private Equity: Anatomy of a Deal
  • FNCE 888: Advanced Topics in Private Equity: Advanced Topics in Private Equity:  Funding, Sourcing, and Creating Value
  • PVEQ2362: Private Equity: Investing and Creating Value
  • FNCE 8010: Advanced Topics in Private Equity

All Courses

  • FNCE8010 - Advanced Topics in PE

    The goal of this course is to put students in the seat of a private equity professional working on an investment from start to finish. Students will learn about the substance, process and mechanics of private equity investing, through the lens of the investment professional. The class will conduct a semester long case study, taking a specific transaction from the management presentation stage, to various modules in the deal process including: business diligence, industry diligence, accounting diligence, legal diligence, financial modeling, financing, valuation, negotiating the stock purchase agreement, and culminating in an investment committee presentation and recommendation. Working in teams, students will be required to build an integrated financial model to value the business, negotiate the key terms of the transaction agreements, and put together an investment committee presentation, defending their investment thesis and valuation. The class will also include several noteworthy guest speakers from the private equity industry and several smaller case studies to reinforce key topics.

Awards and Honors

2017: Wharton MBA Excellence in Teaching Award

2018: Wharton Teaching Excellence Award

2020: Wharton Teaching Excellence Aware

    Knowledge at Wharton

    Brené Brown on Values, Vulnerability, and Playing to Win

    At a recent Authors@Wharton event, Adam Grant spoke with award-winning researcher Brené Brown about her new book, 'Strong Ground.'Read More

    Knowledge @ Wharton - 12/22/2025
    Data-First Leadership in the Age of AI

    In this Nano Tool for Leaders, Sajjad Jaffer, co-founder of Two Six Capital, offers tips on how to translate data into business value.Read More

    Knowledge @ Wharton - 12/22/2025
    Adopting AI: Starting Small While Thinking Big

    In a recent episode of the 'Where AI Works' podcast, Wharton’s Peter Cappelli spoke with Jabil’s Vivian Sun about how her company became an early adopter of AI technology.Read More

    Knowledge @ Wharton - 12/22/2025