HGGC announces promotions

HGGC said March 26 that it promoted the following executives to partner: Les Brown, John Block, Steven Leistner, Harv Barenz and Lance Taylor.  The Palo Alto, California buyout shop said it elevated other executives including Kurt Krieger to chief legal officer.

PRESS RELEASE

HGGC Promotes Ten, Hires Five Following Strategic Investment

Five Elevated to Partnership Group

PALO ALTO, Calif.—March 26, 2019—HGGC, a leading technology-focused private equity firm, today announced several promotions and new hires in the wake of receiving a strategic investment from Dyal Capital Partners. These moves recognize contributions from current team members and enhance talent across the firm as it continues to build its portfolio and execute its successful ‘Advantaged Investing’ strategy.

“Steve Young and I are excited to have five team members join us in the partnership group of HGGC,” said Rich Lawson, Chairman, CEO and co-founder of the firm. “Les, John, Steven, Harv and Lance have taken strong leadership roles within our firm to drive the success of our model of true partnership among our portfolio companies, our global investors and our team.”

The HGGC team members promoted to Partner include:

Les Brown joined HGGC in 2007 and serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors for HGGC’s Fund III investment in Nutraceutical International Corporation. He was previously a member of the Board of Directors for HGGC’s Fund II investment in Dynata, and the exited investments in Serena Software and hybris Software.

John Block joined HGGC in 2010 and is active in the firm’s Fund III investment in Mi9 and HelpSystems, Fund II investments in Aventri, Davies Group, Integrity, FPX and Pearl, as well as Fund I investment in Innovative and MyWebGrocer. He previously was involved with the firm’s exited investments in Citadel, Hollander and hybris Software.

Steven Leistner joined HGGC in 2009 and is active in the firm’s Fund III investments in Nutraceutical International Corporation and Denodo, Fund II investments in Selligent and Dynata, as well as Fund I investment in iQor. He previously was involved with the firm’s exited investments in Serena Software, Power Holdings, MaMa Rosa’s and Sunquest Information Systems. 

Harv Barenz joined HGGC in 2008 and leads HGGC’s business development efforts globally and focuses primarily on sourcing new platform investments and assisting portfolio companies with add-on acquisitions. Harv is also responsible for developing and managing the firm’s intermediary relationships and plays an integral role in the HGGC ecosystem.

Lance Taylor joined HGGC in 2014 and serves as the Chief Financial Officer of HGGC overseeing the Firm’s finance and accounting operations. Prior to joining HGGC, Lance was Managing Director, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Compliance Officer at Calera Capital.

“Rich and I are incredibly proud of the talented team here at HGGC,” said Steve Young, President and co-founder of HGGC. “Not only are these professionals smart and hard-working, they also continue to learn and grow to the benefit of our firm, our portfolio companies and our investors. We are happy to recognize their contributions, and to welcome five new additions to the team.”

Kurt Krieger joined HGGC in 2008 and has been promoted from General Counsel to Chief Legal Officer.  Kurt serves as the Corporate Secretary of the firm’s portfolio holding companies and fund entities. He also serves as a member of the Board of Directors of HGGC’s affiliated private foundation. In addition, he serves or has served on the boards of various HGGC portfolio companies.

Jay Tabu joined HGGC in 2010 and has been promoted from Vice President to Principal.  Prior to joining HGGC, Jay was the Manager of Information Technology at Mayfield Fund, a venture capital firm in Menlo Park, California.

Chris Schulze joined HGGC in 2016 and has been promoted from Senior Associate to Vice President.  Prior to HGGC, Chris was an Engagement Manager at McKinsey & Company, where he advised clients primarily in the technology, consumer and retails sectors.

Peter Cozzi joined HGGC in 2017 and has been promoted from Associate to Senior Associate.  Prior to joining HGGC, Peter was an Investment Banking Analyst at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where he focused on leveraged buyouts, mergers and acquisitions and debt offerings.

Neha Vaidya joined HGGC in 2017 and has been promoted from Associate to Senior Associate.  Prior to joining HGGC, Neha was an Investment Banking Analyst at Evercore, where she worked on mergers and acquisitions, activism defense and IPOs.

New additions to HGGC include:

Greg Caltabiano and Lindsay Sparks join HGGC as Executive Directors who will work directly in support of HGGC’s portfolio companies.

Lindsay Sparks is a seasoned Senior Executive who has extensive experience building and running a diverse set of businesses. As a former Officer of Microsoft Corporation and a multi-time founder and CEO, Lindsay has extensive experience scaling and guiding businesses to industry leading returns. Lindsay also sits on a number of boards and provides strategic guidance to large investment firms and selected companies.

Greg Caltabiano has deep knowledge of the technology ecosystem and over 30 years of operating experience in the US, China, Japan, Korea, and Europe. Previously, he was President and CEO of Teknovus, which was acquired by Broadcom, President and CEO of ACCO, and President and COO of SOMA Networks. Greg holds an MBA from Stanford University and a BS in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Princeton University, where he graduated with highest honors and Phi Beta Kappa.

Mo Gulamhusein, Vice President, joins following his graduation from Harvard’s MBA program and a 2018 summer internship at HGGC. Prior to business school, he spent 3 years in the direct private equity group of Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and 2 years in investment banking at CIBC World Markets. Gulamhusein graduated from Queen’s University with a Bachelor of Commerce degree.

Holland Reynolds, Investment Associate, joins from Cambridge Associates where she worked as an investment analyst and investment associate focused on U.S. Private Equity. Reynolds earned Bachelor’s Degrees in Spanish and Art History from Colgate University.

Chandni Shah, Fund Accountant in the Operations Team, joins from CITCO Fund Services where she held the same position. Prior to Citco, she was a Fund Analyst at Northern Trust. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the University of Illinois At Chicago.

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About HGGC

HGGC is a leading middle-market private equity firm focused on technology investments with $4.3 billion in cumulative capital commitments. Based in Palo Alto, Calif., HGGC is distinguished by its “Advantaged Investing” approach that enables the firm to source and acquire scalable businesses at attractive multiples through partnerships with management teams, founders and sponsors who reinvest alongside HGGC, creating a strong alignment of interests. Over its history, HGGC has completed more than 120 platform investments, add-on acquisitions, recapitalizations and liquidity events with an aggregate transaction value of nearly $20 billion. More information is available at www.hggc.com.