The Org Chart Is Dead: Private Equity Taps Social Science for an Edge

MIAMI, FL – January 13, 2026 – In a move that signals a significant shift in private equity strategy, Miami-based Civaris Capital Management has appointed Ronald S. Burt, a towering figure in the field of sociology, as an Operating Partner. The appointment moves the arcane world of social network theory from the university classroom directly into the high-stakes environment of investment management, betting that the true value of a company lies not on its organizational chart, but in the invisible web of relationships that dictates how work actually gets done.

Professor Burt, currently a Distinguished Professor at Bocconi University and an emeritus professor at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, is no ordinary academic. He is the intellectual architect of the "structural holes" concept, a foundational theory that has reshaped how academics and executives understand influence, innovation, and advantage. The theory posits that individuals and groups who bridge the gaps—or "structural holes"—between disconnected clusters of people gain a powerful competitive edge by accessing diverse information and controlling its flow. Now, Civaris is betting it can translate this academic insight into tangible investment returns.

Beyond the Formal Hierarchy

For decades, Burt's research has shown that the most effective managers and the most innovative ideas often emerge from individuals who act as brokers across an organization's social fabric. By connecting otherwise isolated teams, departments, or divisions, these individuals are exposed to a richer, less redundant stream of information, enabling them to see new combinations and solutions that others miss. His work has demonstrated a direct link between an individual's network position and their success, including higher compensation and better performance reviews.

In his new role, Burt will apply this lens to Civaris’s portfolio companies. The firm’s strategy moves past the rigid, formal lines of a traditional org chart to map the "informal organization"—the complex matrix of communication, influence, and trust that forms organically within any business. This involves diagnosing how information really flows, where it gets trapped in silos, which individuals are crucial connectors, and where coordination breaks down.

"All services businesses are ultimately human-capital businesses, and outcomes are driven by organizing people effectively," said Jordan Earnheardt, Managing Partner of Civaris, in the announcement. "Ron's work gives us an evidence-based way to look past the org chart and understand how organizations really function—where integration is working, where information gets trapped, and why certain teams consistently outperform others."

The goal is to use this deep understanding of internal social dynamics to help management teams design more agile, efficient, and scalable organizations. By identifying and remedying structural inefficiencies and information bottlenecks, Civaris aims to accelerate growth and improve execution quality in the businesses it acquires.

A New Playbook for Value Creation

The appointment arrives as the private equity industry is undergoing a profound identity crisis. With high asset prices and fierce competition compressing returns, the old playbook of financial leverage and simple operational cost-cutting is no longer sufficient. Consequently, firms are increasingly turning their attention to human capital as a critical, and often underexploited, lever for value creation.

The role of the "Human Capital Operating Partner" has evolved from a peripheral HR function to a strategic linchpin in deal success. These partners are tasked with assessing leadership teams, building high-performance cultures, and ensuring that portfolio companies have the right talent to execute on ambitious growth plans. Yet, many firms still grapple with how to systematically measure and improve this "soft" side of the business. Industry analyses point to a "cognitive dissonance," where a majority of PE firms acknowledge human capital's importance, but less than half systematically evaluate it during due diligence.

Civaris's move to embed a world-class sociologist into its core operations represents a hyper-specialized and data-driven evolution of this trend. It pushes beyond standard leadership assessments and cultural surveys to a more scientific methodology known as Organizational Network Analysis (ONA). ONA uses data from emails, calendars, and surveys to create visual maps of how people interact, revealing the hidden influencers, collaborators, and isolated groups that shape company performance.

This approach is particularly suited for Civaris’s focus on "human-capital-intensive" businesses in the lower-middle market—asset-light service companies where talent is the primary engine of growth and the main asset on the balance sheet. In sectors like professional services or outsourced business functions, the ability to coordinate expertise and foster innovation is paramount, making the structure of the informal network a decisive factor in success or failure.

From Theory to Tangible Returns

While the concept of analyzing social networks may sound abstract, its impact is increasingly quantifiable. Case studies from large corporations that have deployed ONA demonstrate significant, measurable improvements across key business metrics. Research shows that optimizing these informal networks can increase project completion speeds by over 25% and boost employee engagement by 30%.

Furthermore, analysis of network data has revealed that teams with suboptimal communication structures spend nearly a quarter more time in meetings and are bogged down by higher email volume without a corresponding increase in output. By identifying and fixing these patterns, companies have achieved a return on investment from ONA initiatives ranging from 200-400% within the first year. The analysis can also serve as an early warning system for talent flight, as studies have shown that employee turnover often clusters in poorly connected or isolated parts of an organization's network.

For Civaris, this means Burt's work will be applied at every stage of the investment lifecycle. During diligence, network analysis can help identify hidden risks or untapped potential within a target company's culture. Post-acquisition, it provides a clear roadmap for integrating teams, breaking down silos, and positioning key leaders to drive change effectively.

"The performance of organizations depends as much on how people are connected as on who they are," stated Professor Burt. "Civaris is taking a disciplined, practical approach to applying network research in real operating contexts, and I look forward to working with their teams and portfolio companies to translate these ideas into measurable improvements in coordination, leadership effectiveness, and execution."

By formalizing the study of informal connections, Civaris is making an explicit bet that social capital is not just a sociological curiosity but a definable, measurable, and ultimately manageable asset. This effort to merge academic rigor with operational discipline may set a new standard for how investors build and scale the businesses of the future, proving that the most valuable connections aren't always the ones drawn in boxes and lines on a chart.