ACG head Varroney resigns from trade group

Daniel Varroney has quietly resigned as president and CEO of the Association for Corporate Growth, a Palatine, Ill.-based trade group about two-and-a-half years after he joined.

ACG represents more than 11,000 mid-market corporations, private equity firms, finance firms and professional services organizations worldwide.

The move was first disclosed in a letter to members earlier this month, and was said to be “by mutual consent.” In his place, ACG has named CFO Bradley Hughes as interim president, and is interviewing internally and externally for a full-time replacement. Early last week, the organization’s website already listed the change in management.

“Under Dan’s leadership, ACG experienced significant growth and brand awareness, put into place the business model and professional infrastructure needed for future success, helped restore financial stability, and brought increased visibility to ACG, which helped recruit new members, speakers and sponsors, as well as achieve record attendance at InterGrowth,” said ACG Chairman Paul Stewart, who confirmed Varroney’s departure. “We thank Dan for his tireless efforts, strong work ethic and significant achievements, and we wish him the best in his new ventures.”

Varroney is currently seeking lobbyist work in Washington, D.C., PE Week has learned. Thomson Financial (publisher of PE Week) and ACG regularly produce the ACG/Thomson DealMakers Survey, in which members are polled to asses the current M&A environment.

The trade group was founded in 1954, and spent its first 51 years run by an association management firm. In 2005, however, steep membership growth prompted the board to search for a full-time president and CEO, which is when Varroney came on board as the organization’s first CEO.

He previously had been with the National Association of Manufacturers as senior vice president of both the Field and National divisions, where he led the group’s lobbying efforts in Washington, D.C. Before that, Varroney was a reporter and newscaster for a number of New Jersey radio stations and was a staff correspondent for several New Jersey newspapers.