Hanover Investors, a special situations specialist, is appointing John Woodard as a Senior Partner.
Woodard has spent more than 25 years in the private equity industry in positions spanning Credit Suisse First Boston, Wesray Capital Corporation, The Blackstone Group and Vestar Capital Partners, where he led the Industrial practice, served on the investment committee and spent three years in Japan running Asian operations.
He joins the firm with immediate effect as part of the leadership team as well as having a key role in the Hanover Active Equity Fund II (HAEF II) and future successor funds. The HAEF strategy deploys proprietary, data-led research to identify complex stakeholder situations and under-researched businesses with excellent value potential for a control investor.
While Woodard is moving into an executive role, he has been on the firm’s investment committee for a number of years and is the Chairman of Escher and ClearStar, two of Hanover’s portfolio companies.
Matthew Peacock, Founder and Chairman of Hanover Investors, says: “I have known John for more than 30 years, through both working and investing together. He is a first-class operator and his arrival adds to our bench strength as we continue to deliver superior returns for our investors. It is another signal of our intent to develop and grow our investment capabilities.”
Woodard has significant international experience and has also served on boards including Duff & Phelps, Solo Cup, Hampshire Chemical, and Argo-Tech.
Woodard says: “I know Hanover Investors very well, having worked closely with Matthew and the team over the years. It has both world class talent and an investment approach which is relentlessly focused on unlocking value and catalysing growth. I am delighted to be joining at this juncture in the firm’s trajectory.”
