Hyde Park Angels Appoints Private Equity Veteran Sam Guren as New Managing Director
Hyde Park Angels (HPA), a Chicago-based angel investment network, today named Sam Guren as its Managing Director to continue to advance the angel network’s efforts in support of early stage investing and start-up companies in the Midwest. Sam Guren is a venture capital and private equity veteran with over thirty years of investment experience. Former managing director Ira Weiss, clinical professor of accounting at the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, will continue to be actively involved through his new role as the faculty director for HPA.
“We are delighted to welcome Sam Guren to Hyde Park Angels. His extensive experience cultivating early stage companies and managing venture and private equity funds, along with his vast Midwest network, will build on the momentum we’ve generated,” Weiss said.
Guren’s private equity career started in 1975 and has spanned multiple economic and investment cycles. He has invested in early stage, growth, and buyout opportunities across various industries. He began his career with Continental Illinois Venture Corporation (CIVC), and during his tenure the firm’s investments ranged from Apple Computer to Yoplait to Kohlberg, Kravis & Roberts.
Guren is the cofounder and manager of William Blair Venture Partners (WBVP), where he grew the business to six professionals and three separate funds. He was also the manager of the Baird Capital Funds I and II. In recognition of Guren’s contributions to building the venture capital industry in the Midwest, he was awarded the 2007 Stanley C. Golder Medal last year by the Illinois Venture Capital Association.
“I am very excited to join the Hyde Park Angels. HPA has built a terrific platform for investing in venture capital, evidenced by the quality of the angel organization and the investments made to date. Further, the affiliation with the Chicago GSB Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and its resources is a real advantage,” said Guren.
Hyde Park Angels (HPA) is a Chicago-based angel investment network, which invests in seed and early-stage companies, primarily in the Midwest, across a wide variety of industry sectors. HPA’s members include current and former corporate executives, entrepreneurs, and venture capitalists who offer domain expertise, strategic advice and coaching to HPA’s portfolio companies.
HPA’s investments include Shuffle Tech, which manufactures and sells a fully automatic playing card shuffler; UICO, which develops and manufactures innovative custom user-interface solutions for the appliance, medical, and industrial markets; and most recently, GradeBeam, a communication network used by thousands of contractors throughout the U.S. to facilitate communication and the exchange of critical information in the early stages of construction projects. HPA was founded by alums of the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business Executive MBA program in 2007, and is affiliated with the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.
“We are looking forward to having Sam as HPA’s new Managing Director. He shares our vision and believes that HPA can become the force for entrepreneurship in the Midwest, and one of its leading economic incubators,” said HPA co-founder, Jeff Carter.