Bruce Jones                 Matthew Bristow
Managing Director        Managing Director

Connie Tommerup       Patrick Graham

Bruce Jones, CTP - Managing Director
Bruce is a Certified Turnaround Professional. He has led countless restructuring, turnaround, distressed divestiture and M&A projects over the last 30 years for midsized companies.

Bruce has been Owner, President, CEO, CFO and COO in multiple manufacturing, distribution, retail and automotive companies.  He has represented buyers of hundreds of midsize companies and knows the deal from a buyer’s perspective.

Bruce bought his first business right after graduating high school.  In the thirty years since, and even during college and graduate school, he has been involved in buying and selling companies.

Bruce has served most industries, including manufacturing, energy, automotive, banking, technology, distribution, agriculture, food, retail, consumer goods and service industries.  During one five-year period, he completed ninety acquisitions as head of the acquisitions team for a national automotive parts supplier.

Bruce earned an MBA from Southern Methodist University. He is a CPA and holds a Bachelor of Science in accounting.  Bruce also holds a Six Sigma Black Belt designation. Bruce is a registered investment banking agent with Burch & Company, Inc., member FINRA/SiPC.

Prior to founding ClearRidge with Matthew, Bruce was the Managing Principal of the JHS Group, an M&A and Restructuring firm that he founded with one of Oklahoma’s largest professional services and accounting firms.  The JHS Group earned distinction in Texas, Oklahoma and Colorado serving business owners, corporations, bankers, attorneys, and private equity investors.

Most evenings you will find Bruce running on the River Trail, but he’s really a mountain guy at heart. Whenever he gets the chance, he’ll be driving and hiking with his wife in Colorado in his restored 1973 Ford Bronco.  He’s a sports enthusiast (Go Bears) and an avid story teller, but in the office he’s limited to two stories a day.   Email Bruce.

Matthew Bristow - Managing Director
Matthew is a Certified Merger and Acquisition Advisor. He co-founded ClearRidge with Bruce and has a range of banking experience from his career in London, England.

Prior to moving to the US, Matthew co-founded the derivatives trading division of a boutique investment bank in London, which he led for many years.  The division was recognized as an industry-leader in leveraged trading in the UK. 

Matthew’s last deal in England was with his wife, Lindsey, a Tulsa girl, who wanted to move back home.

Business ventures took him from his Native England to Paris, France where he was engaged in economic research and strategy creation for Group Bull, the premier European software and server supplier.

Matthew earned a Double Honors Degree in Management Economics and French from the University of Leeds, England.  He is an active member of First Presbyterian Church in Tulsa, a member of Rotary Club of Tulsa and is also a member of the development committee for Habitat for Humanity. Matthew is a registered investment banking agent with Burch & Company, Inc., member FINRA/SiPC.

At ClearRidge, Matthew leads analysis, strategy and business development. He manages ClearRidge relationships with clients, lenders, banks, equity groups, business owners, attorneys and accountants. Matthew also writes a weekly column on Corporate Finance for the Journal Record, Oklahoma's statewide daily business newspaper.

Matthew enjoys running, cycling, motor racing and golf.  He represented Great Britain in three Sailing World Championships in the 5o5 class, competed in the UK National University slalom ski championships (snow) for the University of Leeds and was captain of the rowing team in high school. Originally from London, England, Matthew has also lived in Paris, France and Africa for four years.   Email Matthew.

Patrick Graham - Senior Associate

Patrick has spent many years working in finance and investment banking in the US and Europe.

Prior to joining ClearRidge, Patrick worked for Trigon Group, a European investment banking boutique headquartered in Warsaw, Poland.  While working for Trigon, Patrick specialized in Mergers & Acquisitions across Europe, working in the UK, Germany, Italy, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, Czech Republic and Slovakia.  In addition to his M&A experience, Patrick brings strength in financial modeling and valuation.

Before completing his MBA and moving to Poland, Patrick worked in Corporate Finance with Level 3 Communications (formerly Wiltel Communications) in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  At Level 3 Patrick was responsible for the budgeting, forecasting and variance analysis for a multitude of business units and product lines.  He also played a key role in the post acquisition integration of the finance organization.

Shortly before joining Wiltel, Patrick also spent time in Oklahoma City at OGE Energy Resources working on the trading floor, but it wasn’t long before he returned to Tulsa to be with his now wife, Whitney, a Tulsa native.

Patrick was born and raised in Oklahoma.  He earned his MBA from Oklahoma State University and his Bachelor’s from The University of Oklahoma, double-majoring in Finance and Management Information Systems.  He excelled at both universities and now enjoys the challenge of following two rival sports programs.

Patrick’s breadth of experience plays an integral role in communicating all the options that may be available to our clients whether buying or selling their company, raising capital or restructuring their debt and ultimately helping them to achieve their goals.

Outside of the office, Patrick enjoys spending time with his wife, baby daughter, family and friends.  On the weekends you can probably find him on the golf course, shooting hoops or playing soccer.   Email Patrick.

Connie Tommerup, CPA, CFE - Outsourced Accounting Services

Connie has a wide range of financial and accounting expertise.

Through Internal Controls Specialists PLLC, Connie’s primary role is analyzing our clients’ financial systems, processes and internal controls. Connie mainly works on ClearRidge’s corporate finance, restructuring and due diligence projects.

Connie previously worked in the consulting area of the largest Colorado-based accounting and business advisory firm, Ehrhardt Keefe Steiner and Hottman PC (EKS&H). At EKS&H, Connie worked on financial analysis of acquisitions, due diligence  engagements, internal control assessments and conducted SAS 99 interviews for the firm’s audit group

In 2007, Connie received the EKS&H Outstanding Client Service Award based on her SAS 99 audit interviews.  In addition to her extensive public accounting experience, Connie was previously the controller of the Texas Cattle Feeders Association for 12 years.

Connie has expertise in Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, documenting and evaluating the internal controls of a client’s financial reporting function.

Connie earned an MBA from West Texas A&M and holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the University of Northern Colorado.

She is a Certified Public Accountant in Oklahoma, Texas and Colorado and is a Certified Fraud Examiner.

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