Leadership

christopher bryan

MANAGING PARTNER

Chris formed Highland in 2016 with the premise that there was a significant amount of value creation opportunities in the lower middle market. Chris’ career has spanned private equity as well as corporate restructuring and operational roles, giving him a differentiated background as both an investor and an operator. He has spent a number of years in several C-Suite roles in industries such as value-added distribution, logistics, healthcare services, and business services, all of which serve as areas of focus in Highland’s investment strategy. Chris serves on the HAC Investment Committee and has sits and has sat on the Board of Encore Textiles, Emerald Linen Service, Valudor Products, and Cagney Logistics.

Prior to founding Highland, Chris spent several years at Alvarez & Marsal in the Private Equity & Corporate Restructuring Groups, as well as Wynnchurch Capital. Chris started his career at First Chicago Bank in the Capital Markets Group. Chris received his B.A. from Michigan State University.

Bill Edmonds

HIGHLAND OPERATING PARTNER

Bill is an Operating Partner with HAC and is responsible for operational diligence and post-execution strategy development and implementation. Bill provides a wealth of operating experience to assist in formulating and proving out investment theses in our lower middle market opportunities. He also serves as a valuable partner to our Management Teams and Executive Operating resources. Bill has over 20 years of experience leading Distribution & Manufacturing businesses. Bill worked with Mr. Bryan at Alvarez & Marsal as an Operating Partner and led operations at Neebo Inc, a college book administration & managed service business providing campus bookstore oversight and services to 100’s of campus across the country.

Paul kuiper

HIGHLAND OPERATING PARTNER

Paul has spent over 17 years in the HVAC industry driving value and performance across several facets including residential and commercial. He is a demonstrated executive who is a firm believer in marketing, training and culture. Highland has known Paul for 3 years and he joined in 2019 as an Operating Partner specializing in this field. He has spent time leading organizations such as Four Seasons Heating & Cooling in Chicago, Wolff Mechanical in Phoenix, We Care Plumbing, Heating & Air in Murrieta CA, Cooper Heating & Cooling in Denver

AlBERTO MACHADO

HIGHLAND OPERATING PARTNER

Alberto has over 25 years of private equity and operations leadership experience. He has held key leadership roles in organizations such as Nexeo Solutions and Momentive Performance Materials. He currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Valudor Products where he drives overall operations, strategy and sales.