The Small Business Investor Alliance announced its 2014 Northeast Private Equity Conference being held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City. This year’s conference, scheduled for January 22, will provide attendees with important information to kick off the new investing year, including the release of important market data from the National Center for the Middle Market.

The 2014 Northeast Private Equity Conference draws hundreds of senior executives from private equity sponsors, institutional investors, intermediaries, and investment banks.

Speakers at this year’s event include: Dr. Anil Makhija, academic director for the National Center for the Middle Market (NCMM); Walter Beinecke, partner, Brook Venture Partners; Brett Palmer, president of SBIA; Entrepreneur and Twisted Sister rock band guitarist Jay Jay French; and, Javier Saade, associate administrator for the Office of Investment and Innovation at the U.S. Small Business Administration.

“Our annual Northeast Private Equity Conference serves as the best networking event to start the New Year. SBIA events are the nexus for senior professionals of the lower middle market’s leading general partners, limited partners and investment bankers to come together in our nation’s financial capital. With a focus on GPs and LPs, senior professionals freely network and share knowledge on the most important issues shaping their capital raising and investment activities in the most crucial market segment for our economy,” said Brett Palmer, president of the SBIA.

Chaired by Brook Venture Partners’ Walter Beinecke, the conference features a session in which Dr. Makhija of the National Center for the Middle Market will unveil the latest of new lower middle market data from the NCMM’s quarterly Middle Market Indicator. Makhija will provide an update on the state of the lower middle market based on its exclusive Middle Market Indicator survey of 1,000 middle market executives. The Middle Market Indicator provides a bellwether on this market segment, contrasting the performance of lower middle market businesses to larger companies, as well as the employment, revenue outlook and growth prospects for the nation’s largest swathe of businesses.

“We’re excited to kick off one of our most important annual events as we look forward to being the primary venue for lower middle market deal flow and fundraising,” said Charles McCusker, chairman of SBIA’s board of governors and managing partner of Patriot Capital.

Jay Jay French, entrepreneur, founder and guitarist of the world famous rock band Twisted Sister, will present on his experiences as an entrepreneur and rock star in his session titled “Twisted Business.” French will discuss the business of music management and share lessons learned on working with successful management teams.

Brett Palmer, president of the SBIA, will provide an analysis and outlook on how Washington will affect private equity investing in 2014.

The event will be capped off with a cocktail reception for “Finding Deals and Building Networks.”