Waud Capital Partners Appoints Chad Birckelbaw as Operating Partner

CHICAGO, November 7, 2022 – Waud Capital Partners (“WCP”), a growth-oriented, middle-market private equity firm, announced the appointment of Chad Birckelbaw as an operating partner, effective immediately. In this role, Mr. Birckelbaw will work with WCP’s software and technology investment team to support both existing and new platform investments primarily across the knowledge technology sector, a space in which WCP has deep expertise through its current investments in HSI, Career Certified (f/k/a The CE Shop), and Lifelong Learner. Mr. Birckelbaw’s appointment demonstrates WCP’s continued commitment to investing in business models that combine content, technology, and domain expertise in sectors including human capital, compliance, education, and information services.

Mr. Birckelbaw brings more than 30 years of operating experience across multiple sectors with a strong track record of growth. He currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of HSI, a WCP portfolio company that provides comprehensive safety, compliance, employee development, and training software. He has served as the CEO of HSI since 2016, leading a period of rapid growth and transformation for the business. Since partnering with WCP in 2019, Mr. Birckelbaw has led the business through rapid organic and inorganic growth, filling key software and content solution gaps, expanding internationally, increasing scale, and driving a transformational change in the Company’s financial profile. Mr. Birckelbaw will continue to serve in his role as CEO of HSI.

Prior to HSI, Mr. Birckelbaw served as the President and CEO of FairPay Solutions, a workers’ compensation cost containment and payment integrity specialist. He started his career at State Farm Insurance where he held various management roles. Mr. Birckelbaw also currently serves on the board of Career Certified (f/k/a The CE Shop), a WCP portfolio company which provides compliance-mandated digital career education solutions.

“I’m excited about the opportunity to continue my partnership with WCP seeking to build exceptional companies,” said Mr. Birckelbaw. “Through HSI, I’ve seen firsthand the power of WCP’s executive centric approach and dedicated ecosystem resources.  It’s a differentiated strategy amongst private equity, and I’m excited to apply that model to support other companies across the knowledge technology sector.”

“We are thrilled to have Chad as an operating partner at Waud Capital,” said Rich Roggeveen, Principal at WCP. “The knowledge technology sector is an ever-evolving market. Partnerships with proven operators like Chad allow us to pursue differentiated avenues to create transformational growth at our current and future portfolio companies.”

“The partnership with Chad is another example of WCP’s commitment to its disciplined process of identifying and partnering with leading executives in attractive software and technology niches," said Justin DuPere, Partner at WCP. “We appreciate all of the contributions Chad has made to date and could not be happier to continue working together to build great companies.”