On the move, 1.8.2018 – Ares Management names new CEO

PRIVATE EQUITY FIRMS

Accelerator Corp, a life science investment and management firm, named Kendall Mohler chief development officer and Ian Howes chief financial officer. Mohler had been senior vice president of research at Juno Therapeutics while Howes was CFO of Heart Metabolics.

Bain Capital: Harvard Management’s real estate team of about 20 professionals agreed to spin out and join Bain Capital Real Estate, the firm’s newly formed real estate investment group. Dan Cummings, head of real estate with Harvard, will lead the team.

Blackstone Group hired seasoned dealmaker Atsuhiko Sakamoto from Bain Capital to build a corporate buyout team in Japan in a bid to broaden its focus beyond property deals in the country.

Carlyle Group: Matthew Savino joined as a managing director and head of U.S. capital markets with the global capital markets team. Savino was previously a managing director and global head of alternatives at BlackRock. Inoki Suarez joined Carlyle as a managing director for the private credit group within its global credit platform. Suarez was previously co-head of general industries at Varagon Capital Partners. He was a member of Varagon’s initial launch team in 2014.

Freeman Spogli named Betty Sheets a senior adviser. Sheets previously invested in and managed IBM’s private equity partnerships.

PWP Growth Equity hired Daniel H. Leever as an operating partner. Leever previously was CEO of Platform Specialty Products.

Trivest Partners hired Lily Tapia as a director. Tapia had been chief development officer at Laser Spine Institute. Her background includes 17 years at Merrill Lynch.

Varsity Healthcare Partners, a healthcare services-focused private equity firm, appointed Ronald D. Geraty an operating partner. He had been CEO of a number of private-equity-owned healthcare-services companies, including Alere.

Waterfall Asset Management hired Gene Weil and John Nelligan to launch and oversee a new PE platform that will operate under the name Waterfall Milestone. Weil was co-head of Houlihan Lokey‘s financial institutions group while Nelligan was a managing director.

PORTFOLIO COMPANIES

Banker’s Toolbox, backed by Accel-KKR, named Max Thoene chief operating officer. He is former COO at Fathom Global Water Management. Based in Austin, Banker’s Toolbox helps organizations manage risk and streamline compliance.

Coveris named Jakob A. Mosser CEO. Mosser succeeds Interim CEO Dimitri Panayotopoulos, who continues as chairman. Coveris is a portfolio company of Sun Capital Partners.

Orchid Underwriters Agency, the Vero Beach, Florida, specialty underwriter of catastrophic coastal insurance, named Andrew Cyran chief underwriting officer.  Cyran previously was executive vice president at Alliant Specialty. Orchid Underwriters is backed by Gryphon Investors.

Preston Hollow Capital: The Dallas specialty finance company named Glenwood Hill to its legal group and Joe James and Elizabeth Leak to the credit and tax groups, respectively. Preston Hollow’s backers include Stone Point Capital and HarbourVest Partners.

Ribbon Communications, a provider of cloud communications, named Franklin W. Hobbs president and CEO. He succeeds Ray Dolan, who resigned. Since 2004, Hobbs served as adviser to One Equity Partners.

SERVICE PROVIDERS

Cognizant, a professional-services company, named Joseph M. Velli to the board. Velli was a senior executive vice president at BNY Mellon and is a senior adviser to Lovell Minnick Partners.

Gluskin Sheff, the Toronto wealth manager, named Alkarim Jiwa and Leanne Caravaggio to its equity team. Jiwa joins from BMO Financial Group and Caravaggio from 1832 Asset Management.

Insperity Inc, a provider of human-resources and business-performance solutions, named Randall Mehl to the board. Mehl is a former managing director and partner at Baird Capital.

Lincoln International: The mid-market investment bank added Roger Knight to its technology, media and telecom group in New York. Knight had been director in the technology group at KeyBanc Capital Markets.

Pavilion Advisory Group, an investment consulting and advisory firm, hired Darren Headley. He’d been U.S. head of transitions at Willis Towers Watson‘s OCIO investment team.

William Blair added a team covering aerospace, defense and government services to its staff. The team will work from a new office in Charlotte, North Carolina, and is led by Managing Director Gordie Vap. Included in the new sector team will be Vice Presidents Andrew Kugajevsky and Josh Ollek.

PROMOTIONS

ABODA, recently acquired by Westbridge Capital’s alternative accommodation brand Reside Worldwide, promoted Robyn Joliat to executive vice president. Joliat joined ABODA in 2015 as vice president of global client services and new-market development. ABODA is the Seattle provider of housing solutions.

Ares Management: Michael J. Arougheti, co-founder and president, was named CEO, succeeding Tony Ressler, who continues as executive chairman. Ressler, an Ares co-founder, will focus on major client marketing, corporate strategy and brand building. Michael McFerran, currently CFO, was named chief operating officer. Ryan Berry, head of Ares’s strategy and relationship management group, was appointed chief marketing and strategy officer.

Arsenal Capital Partners promoted Gene Gorbach, Roy Seroussi and Brian Orkin to investment partner. Arsenal also promoted Yoonmo Yang to vice president. Gorbach and Seroussi joined Arsenal in 2008, Orkin came on board in 2010 and Yang joined in 2016.

Clayton, Dubilier & Rice promoted Eric Rouzier to partner. Rouzier first joined CD&R in 2005. Prior to joining the firm, he worked at JP Morgan.

Constellation Advisors promoted Paul Mattessich to partner. Mattessich joined the firm in 2014.

General Atlantic promoted Wai Hoong Fock and Paul Stamas to managing director and Pierre Samec to operating partner. The growth-equity firm promoted Luis Cervantes, Christian Figge, David George, Anna Golynskaya, Shaw Joseph and Melis Kahya to principal.

Northern Pacific Group, the Wayzata, Minnesota, private equity firm, promoted Corey M. Campbell to chief financial officer. Campbell previously worked at Valspar Corp and Lurie LLP.

Orion Energy Partners promoted Ethan Shoemaker and Chris Leary to managing director and Inés Tovo and Tim Mister to vice president.

Palladium Equity Partners promoted Luis Zaldivar and Caleb Clark to senior managing director and managing director, respectively. The firm also hired Chris Allen as principal. Zaldivar joined Palladium in 2004 and Clark joined in 2014. Allen joins the firm from Arlon Capital Partners.

Partners Capital promoted David Shushan and Toby Joll to partner from managing director. Shushan joined the firm in 2008 from McKinsey & Co while Joll has been with Partners Capital for seven years.

Pelican Energy Partners promoted John O’Brien to managing director. O’Brien first joined Pelican in 2013 as a senior associate.