Richard W. LeBer Managing Director

Roger W. Franklin Managing Director

Richard W. LeBer is a Managing Director and co-founder of Forge Capital, LLC, and has been a senior business executive and community leader for more than fifteen years. Richard also serves as Chairman of AlumiCool LLC, a portfolio company. He previously served as President of National Linen Service, and Executive Vice President of its parent, National Service Industries, Inc., a NYSE traded company that was taken private in a leveraged transaction in June 2003. Richard helped lead NSI and NLS through the going private transaction and the prior spin-off of Acuity Brands, while creating and executing a new strategy for NLS focused on growth and operational excellence.

Prior to National Linen Service, Richard served as President of Equibase Company, where he implemented a new growth strategy. He previously served as a consultant at McKinsey & Company, where he served clients in several industries with a major focus in mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, restructuring, strategy, and operational improvement.

Richard holds an MBA degree from Harvard Business School and a mathematics degree from the University of Waterloo. He is a member of the Association for Corporate Growth and serves on the Board of Directors for the Atlanta Community Food Bank and the Georgia Shakespeare Festival.

Roger W. Franklin is a Managing Director and co-founder of Forge Capital, LLC, and has been a senior business executive and community leader in Atlanta for more than fifteen years. Roger also serves as Vice-Chairman of AlumiCool LLC, a portfolio company. He previously served as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for National Linen Service, a division of National Service Industries, Inc., a NYSE traded company that was taken private in a leveraged transaction in June 2003. Prior to National Linen Service, he served in senior financial positions with Allied Automotive Group as Vice President & Controller, Simmons Company as Vice President - Finance, Treasurer and Assistant Secretary, and as an audit and tax manager with Price Waterhouse (predecessor to PricewaterhouseCoopers) serving a variety of clients in the mining, foundry, manufacturing, wood and paper product, banking, real estate, law firm, brokerage firm, cable television system, and consumer services industries.

Roger has managed strategic, financial and transactional matters for both private and public companies with revenues ranging from under $300 million to over $900 million. He participated in five leveraged transactions (four different private equity firms and a leveraged ESOP transaction) with enterprise values ranging from over $100 million to over $500 million and participated in two public debt offerings totaling $250 million and three bank syndications totaling $575 million.

Roger holds an Accounting degree from the University of Alabama where he graduated magna cum laude. He is a member of the AICPA, Alabama Society of CPA’s and Georgia Society of CPA’s.  He is a member of Financial Executives International where he served as past President of the Atlanta chapter and he is active in the Association for Corporate Growth. He is active in his local church where he serves in various leadership positions.