On the move, 2.22.2016

PRIVATE EQUITY FIRMS

Antares Capital appointed Melina Higgins as independent board chairman. Higgins spent nearly 20 years with Goldman Sachs before retiring in 2010 as partner and managing director of the firm. Mark Furlong and Diane Nordin were also elected to the Antares Midco Inc board of directors. Furlong most recently served as president and CEO of BMO Harris Bank, and Nordin is a retired partner of Wellington Management Company.

Black Diamond Capital Management hired Todd Arden as senior managing director and co-chief credit officer. Arden joins the firm from CCMP Capital, where he worked as chief investment officer for Octagon Credit Opportunities. He will be based in Greenwich, Connecticut.

Cerberus Capital Management LP said Jose Luis Marín has joined the firm as chairman of the firm’s renewable energy investments business. Marín was previously CEO of Endesa Diversificación and president and CEO of Endesa Red.

Charlesbank Capital Partners hired Stephanie Paré Sullivan as general counsel and chief administrative officer. Sullivan joins the firm from THL Credit, where she was a managing director and general counsel. She succeeds Tami Nason.

Dominus Capital has named Kent Farmer as an operating advisor. Farmer is the former president and CEO of Spectrum Lubricants.

Frazier Healthcare Partners, a healthcare investment firm, hired Anthony Draye as an executive partner on its growth buyout team. Draye has worked in healthcare IT for 10 years, most recently serving as director of TridentUSA Health Services.

Lovell Minnick Partners has made several new additions to its team. It hired Benjamin Kaplan and Steven Korff as a vice president and associate, respectively, in its Los Angeles office and Greg Dutov as an associate in its Philadelphia office.

Marc Lipschultz, the head of energy investments at KKR & Co is leaving to start a credit fund, the private equity firm announced to its fund investors.

New Mountain Capital hired Teddy Kaplan as a managing director. Kaplan will head New Mountain’s efforts to add net lease real estate to the firm’s existing range of credit and yield offerings. Previously Kaplan was a managing director in the net lease real estate group of Angelo, Gordon & Co.

Strattam Capital has named Ray Villareal as an operating partner. Previously, Villareal was vice president of the Americas and general manager of global services at LifeSize, a division of Logitech.

PORTFOLIO COMPANIES

Applied Acoustics International (AAI), which is owned by Angeles Equity Partners, has named Larry Hagood as CEO. Previously, Hagood was chief operating officer at Autoneum North America. Based in Chicago Heights, Illinois, AAI is a provider of noise, vibration and harshness solutions for the North American automotive sector.

Avista Pharma Solutions, which is backed by Ampersand Capital Partners, has named Eric Setzer as chief financial officer. Previously, Setzer was executive director of finance at INC Research. Avista Pharma is a contract testing, development and manufacturing company.

Connor Industries Inc named Joseph McCormick as its CEO. McCormick previously led the operations of several divisions of Sensus, including as president of Die Cast Holdings. Connor’s acting CEO Kurien Jacob has become chairman of the board. Connor is a portfolio company of The Argentum Group.

Ghostery, a portfolio company of Warburg Pincus, said it named Jim Weber its CFO. Prior to Ghostery, Weber was CFO of iLevel Solutions.

Houghton International Inc said it has named Kevin Smith senior vice president of Houghton International and president of Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and Global Automotive and Aerospace. Before joining Houghton, Smith was chief executive officer of EMEA for Arysta Lifescience. Houghton is a portfolio company of AEA Investors.

Cormac Whelan has joined Mercator Solutions as CEO, a portfolio company of Warburg Pincus.

Modere, a portfolio company of Z Capital Partners, appointed Josh Kirschbaum as chief operations officer and Brad Christensen as chief information officer. Kirschbaum was previously COO at Gilchrist & Soames, and Christensen previously worked at FamilySearch.org and Novell. Modere is a Utah-based social retailer focused on wellness.

PCX Aerostructures, a provider of structural assemblies for rotorcraft and fixed-wing aircraft, has named Jeff Frisby to its board of directors. PCX Aerostructures’ backers include RFE Investment Partners and 24/6 Capital Partners.

David Lee, CEO of PECO Pallet, will leave his post in 2016. A successor has not yet been named. Lee joined the company in 2005. Based in Irvington, New York, PECO is a pallet rental company owned by Pritzker Group.

Pretium Packaging, a provider of custom rigid plastic packaging solutions, has named Paul Kayser as president and CEO. Previously, Kayser was group president Nypro Packaging. Pretium, based in Chesterfield, Missouri, is a portfolio company of Genstar Capital.

SERVICE PROVIDERS

Strategy consulting firm Ameri100 of Princeton, New Jersey, has named Edward O’Donnell as chief financial officer. O’Donnell is a former CFO of Carlyle Capital Group.

Arma Partners has hired Ron Pillar as a partner. In his new role, Pillar will run the firm’s New York’s operations. Previously, Pillar was the founder and head of Pillar Capital Advisors, an M&A advisory firm.

Blue Ridge Partners hired Moti Shahani as a managing director and Vincent Schuller tot Peursum as a principal in the firm’s London office. Shahani was previously a London-based independent consultant. Schuller tot Peursum previously founded and led Deloitte’s commercial due diligence practice in the Middle East and North Africa region.

Law firm Choate, Hall & Stewart hired three private equity attorneys from Locke Lord LLC’s private equity and venture capital group. Stephen O. Meredith, Sarah N.A. Camougis and Christopher W. Nelson joined Choate’s private equity group as partners.

Investment banking firm D.A. Davidson & Co has appointed Jeff Cleveland as managing director for its consumer and retail sector. Cleveland was a founding member of Harris Williams & Co.’s Minneapolis office.

Forestar Group Inc has appointed Richard D. Squires of Lennox Capital Partners and Ashton Hudson of Rock Creek Capital to serve as directors of the company. Kathleen Brown and Charles W. Matthews have resigned from the board.

Law firm Greenberg Traurig hired Raymond F. Bogenrief as a shareholder in its corporate and securities practice. Bogenrief joins the firm’s Chicago office from Vedder Price.

Law firm Vinson & Elkins hired Paul Dunbar as a partner in the firm’s London office. Dunbar, whose practice focuses on private equity and special situations funds, was previously a partner at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft.

PROMOTIONS

The Gores Group promoted Jennifer Kwon Chou to managing director. Chou joined Gores in 2010 as vice president and most recently was head of investor relations for the firm.

Harbert Management Corp (HMC) has promoted John W. McCullough from senior vice president to executive vice president. Prior to joining HMC, McCullough was a partner at law firm Balch & Bingham LLP.

Private investment firm Saban Capital Group promoted Fred Gluckman to executive vice president. Gluckman will continue to serve as the firm’s chief financial officer. Los Angeles-based specializes in the media and entertainment industries.

Signal Hill promoted David J. Dolan III and Matthew J. Fiore to managing directors. Also, the M&A advisor named Michael J. Kremen and Nigel B. Tse as directors, and promoted Nishant Malhotra and Arun Thathachari to director and vice president, respectively.

Vestar Capital Partners promoted four staffers. Winston Song is now a principal, while Nikhil Bhat, Matt Dubbioso and Alex Kerr have been promoted to vice president.

VMG Partners promoted Angad Hira, Jonathan Marshall and Carle Stenmark to vice president. Hira joined VMG in 2010, while Marshall and Stenmark came on board in 2012.

Windjammer Capital Investors promoted Daniel Lee and Ryan Pertz to vice president. Lee, who works in Windjammer’s Waltham, Massachusetts, office, joined the firm in 2010 from Summer Street Capital. Pertz joined the firm’s Newport Beach, California, office in 2013 after serving as an associate at HM Capital.