Standard Chartered Bank has appointed Charles Alexander the regional head of origination and client coverage, North East Asia. Charles joins Standard Chartered Bank from Lehman Brothers, where he was head of Asia corporate finance.
Adrian Beecroft will retire from Apax Partners Worldwide in September. Adrian is a senior managing partner and member of the global executive committee and the investment, approval, and exit committees.
Albert Cheng, executive vice president, digital media, of the Disney-ABC Television Group was named to the AlwaysOn Hollywood IT List. The list highlights top entertainment executives and dealmakers who understand the growing impact of information technology on the entertainment and media economies.
Third Avenue Management, an investment advisor to institutional and private clients, has brought Steven Chua on board as a research analyst. Steven will focus on finding distressed and special-situation investments for Third Avenue's alternative investment vehicles. He was previously an associate in the leveraged-finance group at Goldman Sachs.
George David of United Technologies has ended his 14-year tenure as CEO but will continue to serve as chairman.
The board of directors of Thomson has appointed François de Carbonnel chairman. François joined the board in April 2007 and is currently head of the group's audit committee. Formerly president of GE Capital and Citigroup, he is a consultant and corporate finance advisor in Europe and the United States. He is also on the board of PagesJaunes and Quilvest.
Jacques de Chateauvieux has been appointed chairman of AXA's supervisory board. Jacques has been a member of the board of AXA, a global leader in financial protection, since 2005.
The Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX) has appointed Ahmed Fahour a board director. Ahmed is the chief executive officer, Australia, of the National Australia Bank Group and a principal board director of National Australia Bank Limited.
Kate Gilliatt has joined the social-networking technology company Conenza as director of strategic account services. Kate will be opening the company’s U.S. East Coast office and will focus on client service, consulting, and business development.
Michael Grindfors has been named vice chairman of AlixPartners.
Elsevier, a leading publisher of scientific, technical, and medical information, has named Michael Hansen CEO. Michael is the former CEO of Harcourt Assessment and previously worked for Bertelsmann as executive vice president of operational excellence.
Cognizant Technology Solutions has named Matt Havens director of Europe for Cognizant Business Consulting. Matt will be based in the company’s London office.
Surgical Care Affiliates has named Andrew Hayek president and chief executive officer. Andrew most recently served as president of VillageHealth, an insurance and care management company owned by DaVita, an independent provider of kidney dialysis services.
Cenkos Securities has appointed Jeffrey Hewitt to the board as an independent nonexecutive director. Jeffrey was group finance director of Electrocomponents from 1996 to 2005 and deputy chairman from 2000 to 2005. He was also appointed chairman of the Cenkos audit committee.
Jeffrey Immelt of General Electric was highlighted as one of the “World’s Best CEOs” by Barron’s. “Simply put, GE is better now than it was under Jack Welch,” the article said. “Immelt has overhauled the company, selling plastics, insurance, and other slow-growth businesses while buying higher-growth companies with total sales of $80 billion, including medical imaging and cable TV.”
Gearworks, a leading provider of location-based mobile business applications, has added Keith Kostuch to its board of directors. Keith served as senior vice president of strategic planning at Alltel, the largest U.S. wireless network, until February 2008.
Singer and songwriter John Legend spoke before the U.S. Committee on House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies. John testified in favor of an appropriation of $176 million for the National Endowment for the Arts, highlighting how he had benefited from the arts and why he feels federal attention to this area can benefit others.
DSG international, an electrical retailer, has appointed Patrick Macdonald chief operating officer. Patrick will be charged with driving improvements across the group's international operating model, and his responsibilities will include major change and process-enhancement programs, information systems, and the supply chain. He was previously CEO of John Menzies.
Quintiles Transnational has announced the appointment of Adrian McKemey as head of Quintiles Consulting's product-development and commercialization practice. Adrian’s work will focus on business transformation, portfolio management, risk partnering, scenario planning, and outsourcing strategies.
Kip Meek was featured in the Guardian in an article focusing on “a silent army of unassuming folk who play an almost invisible role in the development of the media.” Kip was a cofounder of one of the first and most respected media consultancies, Spectrum Strategy Consultants (now Spectrum Value Partners), in 1993. “Perhaps more influential than most,” the article stated, “he has been involved in some of the most important decisions of recent years.”
Evan Merberg has joined Mayer Brown as chief operating officer. He was formerly chief financial officer and chief administrative officer at Citi Home Equity.
PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi was named to Time magazine's 2008 list of the world's 100 most influential people. The magazine described her as a "world class leader" and highlighted her sharp strategic mind, tremendous market insight, and humanitarian contributions.
Prime Restaurants Royalty Income Fund has appointed Kenneth Purdy to the board of directors of its subsidiary PRC Trademarks. Kenneth is a seasoned senior executive with an extensive background in the strategic-consulting, real estate, and capital markets businesses.
M. Edward Sellers, chairman and CEO of BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, has been elected president of the University of South Carolina's University Associates for 2008–2009.
Private-equity firm TowerBrook Capital Partners has named John Sinik a managing director in its London office. John most recently served as the global head of leveraged finance and head of European private-equity coverage at UBS, where he was also a member of the investment-banking global management committee.
Baloise Holding has named Martin Strobel its new chief executive. Martin currently runs the insurer's Swiss unit and will take the CEO post January 1, 2009.
China Cablecom, a joint-venture provider of cable television services in China, has named Pierre Suhandinata chairman and chief executive officer. Pierre previously cofounded and served as chairman and chief executive officer of Access China, a global provider of mobile-content-delivery and access technologies for information appliances.
Momenta Pharmaceuticals, a biotechnology company specializing in the characterization and engineering of complex drugs, has named James Sulat to its board of directors. James is the chief financial officer of Memory Pharmaceuticals and has served on its board since May 2005.
Valentin von Massow has been named nonexecutive chairman of ADAS Group, a leading agricultural and environmental service firm in the United Kingdom. He has also been appointed nonexecutive chairman of Solarlite GmbH, a venture-backed startup in solar-thermal energy generation, and a member of the board of trustees of WWF-UK. These are in addition to several other nonexecutive directorships he holds in Germany and India in the area of energy and environment.
