In August 2008, private equity firm CCMP Capital Advisors hired veteran chief executive and turnaround specialist Greg Brenneman as chairman.
CCMP, which spun out from JP Morgan Partners in 2006, opened an office in Houston for the former chief executive of Burger King and Quiznos near his home in The Woodlands, a suburb of Houston.
The firm, which had been bolstering its operational bench, also drafted in former Kraft Foods and Philip Morris executive John Bowlin and former Triad Hospitals chief James Shelton.
Brenneman's hiring was one of the first ripples in a flood of recent moves by chiefs of corporate America to private equity firms. This year alone, at least 13 former industry luminaries have switched to buyout houses, mostly on the operations side or as senior advisers.
SWITCHING SIDESCEOs who have joined private equity firms this year:
Moved to | Moved from | |
Robert Nardelli | Cerberus | Chrysler |
Richard Zannino | CCMP Capital Advisors | Dow Jones |
Ken Thompson | Aquiline Capital | Wachovia |
Partners | ||
Paul Pressler | Clayton Dubilier | Gap |
& Rice | ||
Kai-uwe Ricke | Delta Partners | Talkline |
fredrik Arp | Candover | Volvo |
Keith Jones | Permira | Morley fund Mgmt |
Bruce Chizen | Permira | Adobe Systems |
Henry Silverman | Apollo | Realogy |
francis Lunger | Linden | Millipore |
Marcel Rohner | Exigen Capital | UBS |