Ken Jones is the founder and chairman of Keyhole Partners, a diversified family office with global investments across real estate, private equity, private credit, venture capital, and other opportunistic sectors throughout North America. He is also the founder and former CEO & managing partner of Third Lake Capital and Third Lake Partners, global investment firms focused on capital deployment and investment management for families who own and operate some of the world’s largest privately held companies. During his tenure, he led the firm’s strategy and growth, co-chaired its investment committee, served on numerous portfolio company boards, and held fund advisory roles with leading investment firms such as Goldman Sachs, KKR, Argand Partners and others.
Mr. Jones also co-founded Third Lake Development, a national commercial real estate owner and developer specializing in multifamily, single-family rental, self-storage, office, industrial, and senior living properties across the Southeast. In 2016, he founded Fairbourne Properties, a Chicago-based commercial real estate investment and management firm with more than $2 billion in assets under management and approximately ten million square feet of properties nationwide, where he continues to serve as an executive advisor. Earlier in his career, he was the executive vice president and senior managing director of CEA Group, a private equity and investment banking firm specializing in technology, media, telecommunications, and real estate.
Prior to his private sector career, Mr. Jones spent nearly a decade in legal, government, and management roles in Washington, D.C. He served as chief counsel and deputy chief of staff to former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott and the Senate Rules and Administration Committee, where he oversaw legislative agencies including the U.S. Capitol Police, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Library of Congress. He also worked on national security and intelligence matters and helped implement continuity planning processes for the federal government following the September 11 terrorist attacks.
Earlier, he practiced law in Washington, D.C., focusing on public policy, constitutional law, corporate finance, and campaign finance matters, and served in several leadership roles supporting presidential nominating conventions and inaugurations. His clients included POTUS, Fortune 500 companies and various federal officials. His work centered on public policy, campaign finance, and Congressional ethics in addition to constitutional law and corporate finance. He has also served in senior leadership roles to six successive Presidential Nominating Conventions and two U.S. Presidential Inaugurations. In 2012, Mr. Jones was appointed President and CEO of the Republican National Convention where he was responsible for day-to-day executive management of all host committee responsibilities for the convention including raising more than $100 million in public and private contributions.
Mr. Jones is also the chairman of the investment committee for the State of Florida’s pension fund. He is active in numerous philanthropic and civic organizations, including the Florida Council of 100 and Moffitt Cancer Center, and previously served on the executive committee of the Tampa Bay Super Bowl LV Host Committee. Mr. Jones graduated with honors from Florida State University and earned his law degree from the University of Florida, where he served as president of the University of Florida Bar Association.