Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Series: International Women's Day: Accelerate Action

Johanna Barr joined Advent in 2007 and is a Managing Director and Global Head of Limited Partner Services (LPS) in London. She leads the LPS Group and is primarily focused on fundraising and investor relations activities in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific. Johanna is a member of Advent’s Global Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. She also serves as a Director of the British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (BVCA) Council, and previously chaired the BVCA’s Investor Relations Advisory Group between 2018 and 2023.

Prior to joining Advent, Johanna worked for four years in the M&A and Corporate Broking departments of Deutsche Bank in both the London and Frankfurt offices. She advised clients across sectors on a variety of transactions, including international public and private mergers and acquisitions, flotations, and secondary equity offerings. Johanna received a BSc (First Class Hons) in Business Administration from the University of Bath, School of Management. As part of her degree, she studied at the McIntire School of Commerce at the University of Virginia

Jameela Raymond is Chief Operating Officer at the 10,000 Interns Foundation, a non-profit that provides internships to underrepresented students and graduates in the UK. Jameela leads on building a sustainable and resilient organisation capable of driving long-term change for Black talent throughout the UK.

Helen is a Partner in Pantheon’s European Investment Team, based in London, and co-manages Pantheon International Plc (LSE: PIN), Pantheon’s FTSE 250 listed Investment Trust. Helen joined

Pantheon in 2004 from Russell Investments in Paris where she was Managing Director with overall responsibility for private equity in Europe. Prior to joining Russell in 1999, Helen spent five years as Director, European Private Equity with the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec in Montréal.  Bilingual in French and English, Helen started her private equity career in 1989 as a senior investment manager at the Business Development Bank of Canada.   

With over 35 years of experience in the private equity industry, Helen is a frequent commentator and speaker at industry events and conferences. She has also lectured on a pro-bono basis at London Business School, the Cambridge Judge Business School and the Saïd Business School (Oxford). Helen is a past Chair and Council member of the British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (BVCA) and has also served on the Board and LP Council of Invest Europe.

A strong proponent of diversity in the financial services sector, Helen is a co-founder of Level 20, a non-profit making organisation that has been set up to encourage women to succeed in the private equity industry. Since 2020, Helen has been a Trustee, a member of the Board of Governors, and of the Assets (Investment) Committee of the Church Commissioners for England, one of the world’s largest charitable endowments and a leading responsible investor. Helen was awarded an MBE in the New Year Honours List 2025 for Voluntary Service and Services to Gender Equality in Business.

Helen holds a BA and an MA in Engineering from the University of Cambridge and was awarded an MBA with great distinction from the University of Western Ontario in Canada. She was elected an Associate of Newnham College, Cambridge in 2019.