Carling O'Brien is a seasoned investment professional, currently serving as a partner at Emerald Lake Capital Management LP. With a flexible approach to investing in capital efficient businesses, Emerald Lake seeks out sustainable competitive advantages, secular growth trends, and controllable levers to generate returns. Carling is heavily involved in all aspects of building the firm, from evaluating and executing investments, to hiring staff, capital raising, and portfolio management.

Prior to founding Emerald Lake, Carling was a member of the Ares Management Private Equity Group, where she was involved in numerous transaction processes and portfolio companies. She has also served as an investment banker at Barclays Capital, consulting on leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations, and IPOs, and was part of the US Private Equity investment team at Investcorp International.

Carling holds a B.S.E. in Operations Research & Financial Engineering from Princeton University, and an MBA with distinction from London Business School.

In addition to her professional endeavors, Carling is passionate about giving back to the community. She serves on the YP Board of Breakthrough New York, a non-profit enrichment program for low-income middle school youth.