James Pfeifer
Founder and Conference Chair
HEC Paris Search Fund Club Advisory Board
James Pfeifer is the founder of ETA Without Borders and an HEC Paris MBA candidate focused on entrepreneurship through acquisition, lower-middle-market investing and long-term business ownership. He is a co-founder of Vexilla Advisory and works with EMSCO Partners on sourcing, evaluating and developing acquisition opportunities across European SMEs. Drawing on prior experience in technology-enabled transformation and strategic advisory, James created ETA Without Borders to connect the investors, operators, searchers and institutions shaping Europe’s next generation of ownership.
Mahek Mowar
EXECUTIVE Director
HEC Paris Search Fund Club Co-President
Mahek Mowar is an HEC Paris MBA candidate with experience spanning SME M&A, investing, artificial intelligence and financial services. She works with EMSCO Partners on acquisition opportunities and brings previous experience from JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs. Mahek is particularly interested in how disciplined investment, technology and operational leadership can help established businesses navigate succession and growth. As Co-President of the HEC Paris Search Fund Club, she is helping develop the next generation of acquisition entrepreneurs and strengthen HEC’s connection to the wider ETA ecosystem.
Alfredo Ariosto Acosta
Content coordinator
HEC Paris Search Fund Club Advisory Board
Alfredo Ariosto Acosta is an HEC Paris MBA candidate and Excellence Scholarship recipient with a background in M&A and real estate and infrastructure private equity. Through his investment experience and involvement with the HEC Paris Search Fund Club, he has developed an international perspective on transaction analysis, capital allocation and long-term asset ownership. Alfredo’s interests lie at the intersection of private markets and entrepreneurial acquisition, with a particular focus on how patient capital and capable operators can create enduring value.
Noémie Rideau
operations coordinator
HEC Paris Search Fund Club Co-President
Noémie Rideau is an HEC Paris MBA candidate and growth leader with experience across B2B SaaS, climate technology and strategic market development. Before HEC, she held growth and marketing roles at Vizcab, helping translate sophisticated building-carbon technology into commercial adoption. As a member of the HEC Paris Search Fund Club leadership team, Noémie brings an operator’s perspective to ETA: how acquired businesses sharpen their positioning, enter new markets and build repeatable engines for growth after the transaction closes.