Essex Woodlands Healthcare Partners

Marty Sutter co-founded EW Healthcare Partners (originally Essex Woodlands) and serves as Chairman of the Investment Committees of Funds 1, 2 and 3. He has been involved with more than 30 EW portfolio companies and holds a B.S. from Louisiana State University and an M.B.A. from the University of Houston.

Petri Vainio joined Essex Woodlands as Managing Director in 2004 and chairs the firm's Executive Committee. He has three decades of experience investing in healthcare companies, having invested in and sat on the boards of more than 20 pharmaceutical and medical device businesses. Before EW, he spent 12 years as a General Partner at Sierra Ventures, where he led the firm's healthcare investment practice. He holds M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Helsinki and an M.B.A. from Stanford University.

Fredrik Thorell is a Senior Principal at Essex Woodlands Healthcare, which he joined in August 2017. He previously worked as an Associate on the Principal Investments team at Novo Holdings A/S, executing life science investments across Europe and the US, and began his career as an Investment Banking Analyst at J.P. Morgan in London. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and a Master's in Intellectual Capital Management, both from the University of Gothenburg.

Jennifer Reiss joined EW Healthcare in 2022 as a Vice President. She previously worked as an investment banking analyst in Barclays' Global Healthcare group, covering pharma, biotech, and services deals across M&A, debt, and equity financing, and earlier interned at Carlson Capital. She holds a B.A. in Economics with a minor in Mathematics from the University of Pennsylvania.

Ryan Conway is a Principal at Essex Woodlands, which he joined in 2021. Before EW, he worked at Copley Equity Partners, a family office focused on lower middle-market growth equity and buyout investments, and at Crestview Partners, where he covered the energy, industrials, media, and financial services sectors. He started his career in investment banking at Goldman Sachs and holds an M.B.A. from Stanford University and a B.A. in Economics from Amherst College.

Bob White is an Operating Partner at Essex Woodlands Healthcare Partners, where he supports the firm's medical device investment practice. He previously served as President and CEO of Entellus Medical and of TYRX, Inc. (acquired by Medtronic in 2014), and earlier held executive roles at Medtronic including President of Physio Control and President of Kyphon. He holds a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Missouri-Rolla and an MBA from Cornell University.

Bryan Morton is an Operating Partner at Essex Woodlands Healthcare Partners, which he joined in 2017 after a decade serving as CEO and Chairman of two EW portfolio companies. He has founded five specialty pharmaceutical companies, including EUSA Pharma (sold to Jazz Pharmaceuticals and later re-established before being acquired by Recordati), Zeneus Pharma, Izana Bio, and Akaza Bio, and previously held senior executive roles at Merck & Co and Bristol Myers Squibb. He holds an MBA from Durham University and a BS in Pharmacology from Aberdeen University, and was awarded a CBE in 2016.

Guido Neels joined Essex Woodlands (EW) in 2006 and became an Operating Partner in 2013, helping build and lead the firm's medical device investment practice. Before EW, he was Chief Operating Officer of Guidant Corporation, overseeing its four operating units, and earlier held general management, sales, and marketing roles at Eli Lilly & Company in the U.S. and Europe. He holds a Business Engineering degree from the University of Leuven in Belgium and an M.B.A. from Stanford University.

Brooks Andrews is a Managing Director at Essex Woodlands (EW), which he joined in 2013 and where he became Managing Director in 2021, focusing on healthcare growth equity investments. Before EW, he worked at FFL Partners on healthcare services investments including IT, dental, practice management, and urgent care, and earlier at Barclays Capital in investment banking covering communications and media. He holds B.B.A. and M.A. degrees from the University of Georgia and an M.B.A. from Stanford University.

Greg Hill is the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Compliance Officer at EW Healthcare Partners, which he joined in 2023. He previously held CFO/CCO roles at a real-asset focused private equity firm and at Revelstoke Capital Partners, and worked at Saybrook Capital and the Baupost Group. He started his career in public accounting at PriceWaterhouseCoopers, auditing hedge funds and private equity funds, and is a Certified Public Accountant with a B.B.A. from Saint Joseph's University.

Prem Chockalingam is an Associate at EW Healthcare, which he joined in 2023. He previously worked as an analyst at Cain Brothers, focusing on M&A and strategic and financial advisory for healthcare services companies. He holds an M.S. in Finance from Vanderbilt University and a B.S. in Biochemistry from Furman University.

Ron Eastman joined Essex Woodlands (EW) in 2006 and was a Managing Director across multiple funds before becoming a Senior Advisor in 2021. He has decades of experience building healthcare businesses, beginning at American Cyanamid Company and later serving as CEO of Geron and leading Rinat Neuroscience, a Genentech spinout acquired by Pfizer in 2006. He holds a B.A. from Williams College and an M.B.A. from Columbia University.

Scott Barry is COO at Essex Woodlands Healthcare Partners, where he has led and served on the boards of several growth equity portfolio companies. Before joining the firm, he was Global Head of Pharma M&A and Collaborations at Novartis Pharma AG, and earlier held roles at Century Capital Associates and KPMG. He holds a B.A. from Wesleyan University and an M.B.A. from New York University.