Travis Hughes

Managing Partner & Founder

Travis Hughes is a Managing Partner and the Founder of Hughes & Company. Travis focuses on firm strategy, deal origination, investment evaluation and portfolio management.

Travis has been an active private equity investor for 20 years with a majority of his investing career focused on healthcare. Prior to Hughes & Company, he was an investment professional with JMI Equity, where he focused on healthcare information technology and services. He began his investing career with Wind Point Partners and Madrona Venture Group.

Travis holds an MBA from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University, and a Bachelor of Business Administration, with majors in Finance & Economics and Computer Applications, from the University of Notre Dame.

  • Current Boards: Azara, Encoda

  • Previous Boards: Aldera, Aperture, LifeLoop, Navicure*, TC3 Health*

James Denny, Jr.

Managing Partner

Jim Denny is a Managing Partner at Hughes & Company with a focus on deal origination, investment evaluation and portfolio management. Jim has worked with Travis Hughes for a dozen years and became actively involved in the Firm in 2016.

Jim has over twenty-five years of leadership experience in the healthcare technology industry. Jim was the Founder, President and CEO of Navicure from January 2001 through December 2017. Navicure was acquired by Bain Capital and subsequently became Waystar. Jim served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Waystar (merger of Navicure and Zirmed) for two years thereafter. Before that, he held a variety of senior management positions with NDCHealth’s Provider Healthcare Transaction Group, where he was responsible for a business unit that supported 30,000 healthcare providers and processed more than 70 million transactions annually.

Jim graduated from St. Lawrence University with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature. He holds an MBA from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School with a concentration in Finance and Marketing.

  • Current Boards: Encoda, Valer, Ingenious Med*, Office Practicum*, Purple Cloud Technologies*

  • Previous Boards: Aperture, Radix Health*, Waystar*

James Denny, Jr.

Managing Partner

Jim Denny is a Managing Partner at Hughes & Company with a focus on deal origination, investment evaluation and portfolio management. Jim has worked with Travis Hughes for a dozen years and became actively involved in the Firm in 2016.

Jim has over twenty-five years of leadership experience in the healthcare technology industry. Jim was the Founder, President and CEO of Navicure from January 2001 through December 2017. Navicure was acquired by Bain Capital and subsequently became Waystar. Jim served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Waystar (merger of Navicure and Zirmed) for two years thereafter. Before that, he held a variety of senior management positions with NDCHealth’s Provider Healthcare Transaction Group, where he was responsible for a business unit that supported 30,000 healthcare providers and processed more than 70 million transactions annually.

Jim graduated from St. Lawrence University with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature. He holds an MBA from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School with a concentration in Finance and Marketing.

  • Current Boards: Encoda, Valer, Ingenious Med*, Office Practicum*, Purple Cloud Technologies*

  • Previous Boards: Aperture, Radix Health*, Waystar*

Naile Kovuk

MANAGING PARTNER

Naile Kovuk is a Managing Partner at Hughes & Company with a focus on deal origination, execution, evaluation and portfolio management. She also oversees associate recruiting and helps manage the Firm’s technology infrastructure. Naile serves on the Board of iN2L.

Naile joined Hughes & Company in 2015 and has over thirteen years of experience in software, healthcare and investing. Previously, Naile was a senior trader at DRW Trading Group where she managed a portfolio of fixed income and foreign exchange products. She started her career as a software engineer at Trading Technologies.

Naile holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics and a Bachelor of Engineering in Computer Science from Northwestern University.

  • Current Boards: Azara, Encoda, LifeLoop

Mark Regal

Partner & Chief Operating Officer

Mark Regal is a Partner and the Chief Operating Officer of Hughes & Company. Mark is responsible for administration, finance, operations, compliance and investor relations of the Firm. He has worked with Travis Hughes for nearly a decade. 

Mark most recently served as a Senior Vice President at a Chicago-based single family office. Previously, Mark was a founder and Managing Partner of Mililu, LLC, a global investment and consulting firm that provides solutions to the private equity and venture capital fund portfolios of institutional investors and family offices. Prior to that, Mark spent ten years as a Partner at Credit Suisse’s Customized Fund Investment Group and its predecessor firms, where he designed and constructed customized private equity and venture capital fund portfolios. 

Mark earned a Bachelor of Science in Economics and an MBA, both from the University of Minnesota. He is also a CFA charterholder.

Mark Regal

Partner & Chief Operating Officer

Mark Regal is a Partner and the Chief Operating Officer of Hughes & Company. Mark is responsible for administration, finance, operations, compliance and investor relations of the Firm. He has worked with Travis Hughes for nearly a decade. 

Mark most recently served as a Senior Vice President at a Chicago-based single family office. Previously, Mark was a founder and Managing Partner of Mililu, LLC, a global investment and consulting firm that provides solutions to the private equity and venture capital fund portfolios of institutional investors and family offices. Prior to that, Mark spent ten years as a Partner at Credit Suisse’s Customized Fund Investment Group and its predecessor firms, where he designed and constructed customized private equity and venture capital fund portfolios. 

Mark earned a Bachelor of Science in Economics and an MBA, both from the University of Minnesota. He is also a CFA charterholder.

Ken Manning

Managing Partner

Ken Manning is a Managing Partner at Hughes & Company with a focus on deal origination, investment evaluation and portfolio management. Ken formally joined Hughes & Company in early 2020. 

Ken was the Co-Founder and COO of Curaspan Health Group, a SaaS healthcare technology company, from 1999 until it was acquired by Cardinal Health in 2016. Ken led the integration project to merge Curaspan and RightCare Solutions into a consolidated and re-positioned Navihealth. Before Curaspan, Ken was a management consultant with Deloitte & CSC Index for eight years.

Ken holds an MBA from the Fuqua School of Business and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Duke University.

  • Current Boards: Azara, Halo Communications*, The Owens Group International*

  • Previous Boards: Patientco*, Radix Health*

Matthew Simas

Managing Partner

Matt Simas is a Managing Partner at Hughes & Company with a focus on deal origination, investment evaluation and portfolio management. Matt has worked with Travis Hughes since 2012, and became actively involved in the Firm in 2015.

Matt has over 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry with extensive expertise in healthcare technology and services and in the pharmacy benefits management industry. Matt was Founder, Chairman and CEO of MedInitiatives, Inc., a provider of business intelligence technology and data analytics, which was acquired by IMS Health (now IQVIA – NYSE: IQV) in 2007. Following IMS Health, Matt also served as Operating Partner and Investment Committee Member for SilverStream Capital, LLC, a San Diego, CA based private investment firm focused on growth equity and buyouts in the software, healthcare technology, and healthcare services sectors.

Matt completed the executive education program at Stanford University Graduate School of Business and received a Bachelor of Arts in organizational communication from California State University Sacramento.

  • Current Boards: HDI, Truveris*

  • Previous Boards: Aldera, Aperture, MedInitiatives*, Magellan Health*, MedImpact Healthcare Systems*, Alliance Health*, BusinessOne Technologies*

Matthew Simas

Managing Partner

Matt Simas is a Managing Partner at Hughes & Company with a focus on deal origination, investment evaluation and portfolio management. Matt has worked with Travis Hughes since 2012, and became actively involved in the Firm in 2015.

Matt has over 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry with extensive expertise in healthcare technology and services and in the pharmacy benefits management industry. Matt was Founder, Chairman and CEO of MedInitiatives, Inc., a provider of business intelligence technology and data analytics, which was acquired by IMS Health (now IQVIA – NYSE: IQV) in 2007. Following IMS Health, Matt also served as Operating Partner and Investment Committee Member for SilverStream Capital, LLC, a San Diego, CA based private investment firm focused on growth equity and buyouts in the software, healthcare technology, and healthcare services sectors.

Matt completed the executive education program at Stanford University Graduate School of Business and received a Bachelor of Arts in organizational communication from California State University Sacramento.

  • Current Boards: HDI, Truveris*

  • Previous Boards: Aldera, Aperture, MedInitiatives*, Magellan Health*, MedImpact Healthcare Systems*, Alliance Health*, BusinessOne Technologies*

Rytas Vygantas

Partner

Rytas Vygantas is a Partner at Hughes & Company with a focus on deal origination, execution, evaluation and portfolio management. Rytas helps manage the Firm’s capital markets relationships and leads portfolio operations, including strategy, corporate development, and finance. Rytas serves as an observer to the Board of Aperture Health.

Rytas joined Hughes & Company in 2012 and has over 15 years of investing, healthcare and transaction experience working with growth stage, middle market and multi-billion dollar companies. Prior to Hughes & Company, Rytas was an associate at Apjohn Ventures, a life science venture capital firm. Previously, Rytas worked as an investment associate for a family office, and as an investment banking analyst at JPMorgan in Chicago, focusing on originating and executing transactions for capital markets clients.

Rytas holds an MBA with honors from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan with an emphasis in Finance and Strategy, and a Bachelor of Arts with a double major in Finance and Economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

  • Current Boards: HDI

  • Previous Boards: Aldera, Aperture

Anthony Luchetta

Principal

Anthony Luchetta is a Principal at Hughes & Company with a focus on deal origination and investment evaluation. He is responsible for managing the firm’s intermediary relationships as well as leading its proactive sourcing and business development efforts. Anthony joined Hughes & Company in 2021 and has over 14 years of private markets investing experience.

Most recently, Anthony was a Director at ShoreBridge Capital Partners where he was an investment committee member and head of deal origination for ShoreBridge’s private equity strategy. Prior to that, he was a Principal at Ocean Avenue Capital Partners where he was responsible for sourcing, evaluating, and monitoring direct equity investments in partnership with leading independent sponsors. He began his career at Wilshire Associates, a global investment management firm, serving as a member of the investment team in the Private Markets Group.

Anthony received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Notre Dame.

Anthony Luchetta

Principal

Anthony Luchetta is a Principal at Hughes & Company with a focus on deal origination and investment evaluation. He is responsible for managing the firm’s intermediary relationships as well as leading its proactive sourcing and business development efforts. Anthony joined Hughes & Company in 2021 and has over 14 years of private markets investing experience.

Most recently, Anthony was a Director at ShoreBridge Capital Partners where he was an investment committee member and head of deal origination for ShoreBridge’s private equity strategy. Prior to that, he was a Principal at Ocean Avenue Capital Partners where he was responsible for sourcing, evaluating, and monitoring direct equity investments in partnership with leading independent sponsors. He began his career at Wilshire Associates, a global investment management firm, serving as a member of the investment team in the Private Markets Group.

Anthony received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Notre Dame.

Chip Locke

Vice president

Chip Locke is a Vice President at Hughes & Company with a focus on deal execution, evaluation, and portfolio management. He joined Hughes & Company in 2020 after working in healthcare software and services for five years.

Chip began his career as a team leader at Epic, the world’s leading provider of electronic health record systems. There, he worked on interoperability and data conversions as a developer and project manager. After Epic, he joined a medical imaging startup, where he designed and built a proprietary patient scheduling and radiology information system. Chip met the Hughes & Company team while working as a technology consultant with iN2L.

Chip holds a Master of Science in Computer Science from the University of Chicago, and a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science from DePauw University.

  • Current Boards: Azara†, Encoda†, Valer†, HDI†

(*Not a Hughes & Company Portfolio Company)   (†Board Observer)