March 9th, 2026
WSJ Pro Private Equity Women to Watch – Rising Star Dealmakers
Caroline Sohr’s work as a young banking analyst at Goldman Sachs sparked her interest in pursuing a career in private equity after getting a glimpse into private-equity dealmaking from some of the bank’s clients.
“I saw what was happening with the private-equity clients that I was working with and thought the questions they were trying to answer day in and day out…were just super interesting,” Sohr said.
In 2018, she joined Hellman & Friedman in the firm’s San Francisco office and returned to the firm in 2022 after earning her Master of Business Administration at Stanford University. Sohr has played a key role in the firm’s investments across consumer sectors and was involved with deals that included European discount retailer Action, which required her to temporarily relocate from San Francisco to London, according to the firm.
In 2024, she also helped lead Hellman & Friedman’s first investment in the music space with the acquisition of Global Music Rights, which manages public performance licensing for songwriters, composers and music publishers.
Sohr advises professionals contemplating a career in private equity to really try to understand not just the investment approach, but also the culture of the firms they want to join.
“These firms are relatively small organizations and can have different cultures,” she said. “Understanding the nuances of different firms and finding a firm where your personal investment philosophy and the firm’s investment philosophy are aligned is important.”
Note: WSJ Pro Private Equity Women to Watch granted on March 9, 2026. By Laura Kreutzer.