asurion

Since co-founding Asurion in 1994, the company has grown from 40 to 10,000 employees becoming the world’s largest provider of technology protection services, partnering with the world’s top companies and brands and serving over 200 million customers. Previously, Kevin was chairman and president of investment firm Mill River Corporation and worked in mergers and acquisitions for Salomon Brothers. Kevin and his Asurion cofounder received the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2001. Kevin is a faculty member at the Stanford Graduate School of Business where he teaches entrepreneurship courses in the MBA program, from which he graduated in 1992. He is also a member of the school's advisory council and has served on its management board. Kevin received a bachelor`s degree in mechanical engineering from McGill University. He serves on the board of directors for ResponseLink, a provider of medical alert systems and the board of trustees for the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).

With nearly 25 years of telecommunications, technology and leadership experience, Steve is responsible for the formulation and execution of NEWAsurion’s global strategy, as well as the overall operations of the company. Prior to joining NEWAsurion, Steve spent nearly 20 years with Bain & Company, most recently serving as Worldwide Managing Director (CEO) from 2005 to 2012. Previous roles include leading Bain’s San Francisco and Palo Alto offices. He joined Bain in 1993 from a Silicon Valley strategy consulting firm he co-founded in 1989. Earlier, Steve was a principal at Knowledge Edge Inc. where he gained extensive experience working with leading high technology companies. In addition to continuing to serve as a member of Asurion’ s board of directors, Steve serves on the Board of The Bridgespan Group, an independent, non-profit providing leading edge advisory services to foundations and non-profit organizations and on the board of Charles Schwab. He also serves on the Advisory Committee for the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Steve received a Bachelor of Arts in economics and history with honors from the University of California at Berkeley and earned an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he is a regular guest lecturer.

Bret serves as the Chairman of Asurion overseeing the growth and success of Asurion’s strategies and business operations. He brings more than thirty years of proven leadership, business management and consulting experience to Asurion’s executive team. Bret’s prior business experience includes CEO, COO and General Manager positions at companies such as Excite@Home, Kendara, Risk Management Solutions and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He also worked at McKinsey & Company, consulting to Fortune 500 companies on strategic, operational and organizational issues. Bret graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a Bachelor of Science in engineering and earned an MBA from the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University. He serves as an officer of the Board of Directors for CTIA - The Wireless Association. He sits on the Board of Directors of Stanford Hospital and Clinics, as well as serves on the Stanford Business School Management Board.

With more than twenty years in the telecom industry, Cindy leads the company's sales and channel operations with a focus on growing its presence across the Americas. Prior to joining Asurion, Cindy held several executive positions with Alcatel-Lucent including President of the Americas Region, President of Lucent Technologies' Network Solutions Group, President Mobility Solutions Group and Chief Operating Officer of the Lucent's Wireless Networks Group. She began her career in 1988 at AT&T Network Systems where she held a variety of management positions in marketing, product management and project management. Cindy serves on the board of Crown Castle International Corporation and holds a bachelor's degree in Business Administration from The American University.

As CEO of Asurion Europe, Andrew leads the organizations growth and expansion. Prior to assuming this role, Andrew served for two years as Asurion’s Chief Marketing Officer building a world class marketing strategy, research, marketing communications and product development team. Andrew’s background includes significant operations and strategic expertise. He has partnered with industry leaders such as Apple, Google, Verizon, AT&T, SK Telecom, Orange, GM/Onstar and Sprint Nextel among others. He formerly served as President of CSMG ADVENTIS, a leading provider of strategy consulting services focused on the communications, computing and media industries. In addition, he served as Communications Practice Leader for the global management consulting firm, A. T. Kearney, and was a consultant with the LEK Partnership in London. Andrew has served on the Board of Directors for Geoworks, and Board of Advisors for Japan’s NTT DoCoMo. He received an undergraduate degree from the University of Bristol (UK) and earned a master’s degree in Management Studies from the University of Oxford, School of Business Administration (UK).

With more than fifteen years of technology and leadership experience, Tony and his team are responsible for the development, planning, commercialization and management of Asurion’s products and the associated customer experience. Tony joined Asurion in 2003 with responsibility for executing Asurion's acquisition strategy. Subsequently, he led Asurion’s 3,500 employee Customer Care operation. Tony also led the successful integration of supply chain operations following Asurion’s merger with an industry leader. Prior to joining Asurion, Tony spent almost a decade with Hewlett-Packard where he held a variety of operations and marketing roles, including worldwide product management for the company’s Intel server line. He also built the product marketing function for two software startups in Silicon Valley. Tony earned a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering and an MBA from Stanford University where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar.

Jim is responsible for leading Asurion's supply chain management operations. Prior to this role, Jim led the program management teams for Asurion’s handset insurance, warranty management, roadside assistance businesses. Before joining Asurion in 2002, Jim worked at DigitalThink, McKinsey and Co. and served in the US Navy as a Nuclear Submarine Officer. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Physics from the United States Naval Academy, as well as Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Philosophy from Cambridge University and an MBA from Stanford University.

In his role as Chief Financial Officer, Mark has broad responsibility for all aspects of Asurion’s financial strategy and operations. He has nearly 30 years of financial management experience, including nearly 15 years as Chief Financial Officer. Mark’s career spans many well-known Fortune 100 and NASDAQ 100 companies, such as Expedia, AT&T Wireless and AirTouch Communications where he held senior leadership roles. Mark has spent most of his career in wireless telecommunications and has been instrumental in growing, scaling and expanding early stage companies into large global enterprises generating billions in annual revenues. He began his career as a manager at Price Waterhouse. Mark received degrees in accounting and management from the University of Utah.

Peter Hirschmann currently serves as CEO-Asia Pacific and is responsible for all facets of Asurion’s Asian operations. Prior to joining Asurion, he served as Managing Partner of Bain & Company’s Hong Kong office. Peter led Bain’s Asia Technology practice, building a go-to-market strategy for a $30 billion dollar technology company which doubled local office revenue to $23 million, and led the largest software merger in history by creating an integrated company with combined annual sales of $6 billion. He has also worked with J.P. Morgan Securities and China Direct Investment Management. Peter holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in International Politics & Economics from Middlebury College, and a Masters of Management Degree from J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University. He is fluent in Mandarin Chinese.

Chuck is responsible for NEWAsurion`s global Legal, Regulatory, and Underwriting operations, US Business Development, as well as Operations in Europe and Latin America. Prior to this position, Chuck served as President of lock\line, a leader in specialty consumer protection products, which merged with Asurion in January 2006. With almost 25 years of insurance industry experience, Chuck began his career with Kemper Insurance in Chicago, after receiving his Bachelor of Science degree in Business from Eastern Illinois University. He subsequently worked for Lockton Companies, Inc. in Kansas City, the nation’s largest independent insurance broker, developing and marketing insurance programs for some of the nation`s largest companies. Chuck founded and served as President of lock\line, a startup within Lockton Companies, Inc., where he grew the company into a leading provider of protection programs for wireless and other consumer services companies. He continued to serve as President through its acquisition by DST Systems, Inc. He is an active supporter of animal welfare in Kansas City including his role as Chairman of Great Plains SPCA (www.greatplainsspca.org).

Since his start with Asurion in 2005, Sean has developed a comprehensive Global Operations Center of Excellence that encompasses all facets of Asurion’s Customer Facing Operations. Sean is currently responsible for leading NEWAsurion’s Global Supply Chain, which consists of six facilities across five countries; Asurion’s Customer Care Operation’s, which includes six North American Customer Call Centers; and NEWAsurion’s Program Management teams. Sean has more than 25 years of experience in Strategic Planning and Procurement, Manufacturing, Inventory Management, Logistics and Customer Experience Transformation. Prior to joining Asurion, he was Group Vice President: Strategic Procurement/Consumer Demand Chain for Albertson’s, a national grocery chain. Sean was instrumental in centralizing all procurement, processes, and tools that generated significant savings. Prior to his work for Albertson’s, Sean held key leadership positions with Dell and Mercedes-Benz. While with Dell for more than six years, Sean led the enhancement of the organization’s global supply chain process. This included demand forecasting, procurement and management of 300 suppliers and the support of five global manufacturing facilities. In addition, he developed strategies and tools, which optimized inventory levels to record lows for the company and the industry. A U.S. Navy Veteran, Sean has an MBA from the University of Baltimore and a BA from the University of Maryland.

Colleen oversees the operations for Asurion’s seven North American customer care centers. With over twenty-eight years of experience in global telecommunications, with leadership roles in customer care, sales, and manufacturing, she most recently served as President, WorldWide Customer Service, for AT&T. Recognized as one of the nation’s top customer care leaders, she has led both global and domestic business operations and has achieved success in managing many start-ups and business transformation strategies. The cornerstone in all these achievements was establishing an outstanding track record of enhancing the end-to-end customer experience by focusing on development of high performance teams, commitment to employee satisfaction, and teamwork. Colleen holds an undergraduate degree from Emory University and an MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Sue spearheads the expansion of Asurion’s portfolio of products and services in new markets as well as with new clients. She also plays an integral role in introducing new products to existing clients, while further building upon our client relationships. She brings with her more than 20 years of experience in transforming organizations through creative strategies and achieving exceptional results. In her most recent role as Chief Customer & Operations Officer with T-Mobile, Sue’s leadership was recognized in Wireless Week for positively changing the face of the customer experience in the Wireless Industry. Sue led T-Mobile from “worst to first” in Customer Service Satisfaction in just 18 months, according to J.D. Power & Associates. Under Sue’s leadership, T-Mobile won 7 consecutive J.D. Power awards for the Best Customer Service in Wireless. As COO, Sue focused on the customer experience in the retail channel, and drove customer and revenue growth. She was again recognized with 2 consecutive J.D. Power awards for the Best Customer Experience in Retail. Also during Sue’s tenure, T-Mobile was recognized by Business Week as one of the top 25 Customer Service Champions. Sue has also launched successful customer service initiatives with retail giant, Wal-Mart.

Gus Puryear began service as Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Asurion in April 2010. Prior to joining Asurion, Puryear served for more than nine years as general counsel for CCA, a NYSE-listed company based in Nashville. Puryear previously worked in a variety of political and legislative roles in Washington, D.C., including working with the Vice President of the United States and serving as counsel to both a U.S. Senator and the U.S. Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs’ Special Investigation into illegal and improper fundraising during the 1996 federal elections. Before his work in Washington, Puryear was in the private practice of law in Nashville after serving as a law clerk to the Honorable Rhesa H. Barksdale of the U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit. Puryear earned his law degree with honors from the University of North Carolina and received a B.A. with highest honors from Emory University. Puryear also serves as a Director of NBT Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiary, Nashville Bank & Trust Co. He is active in the Nashville community and serves on numerous charitable boards, and also currently serves on the Board of Visitors of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Gerald is a long serving member of the Asurion management team who brings a wealth of business, entrepreneurial and financial leadership skills to his role. Gerald leads Asurion’s strategic planning, with a focus on global growth. Gerald first joined Asurion's management team as Chief Financial Officer in 1999 and has helped Asurion achieve rapid growth since that time. Prior to joining Asurion, Gerald helped a variety of clients, from Fortune 500 firms to early stage start-ups, execute their strategic and financial plans as an investment banker with Goldman, Sachs & Co. in San Francisco, Hong Kong and New York. Gerald has also worked for Hambrecht and Quist, LLC, and Toronto Dominion Capital. He holds a bachelor's degree in commerce with honors from Queen’s University in Canada and an MBA from the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University, where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar. Gerald is on the Board of Trustees at University School of Nashville and serves on the Board of Directors of Copayment Solutions, Carillon Assisted Living and QMC Telecom.

Rodney leads Asurion’s team charged with developing new and growing client relationships. His primary responsibilities include business development and strategic partnerships. Prior to joining Asurion, Rodney was Director of Marketing and Vice President/Sales for Southwestern Bell Wireless. He has been a panelist at numerous wireless industry seminars and has spent his entire career marketing subscription-oriented products, including work at Time Warner and The Disney Channel. Rodney is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He currently serves on the City of Dallas Parks and Recreation Board and is prior Chairman of the City of Dallas Library Board.

Barry is responsible for Asurion’s expanding IT portfolio of support and services, including Business and Enterprise Architecture, Project Portfolio Management (PPM), Application Development, Front and Back Office Operations, and Asurion’s Mobile Applications (AMA) business. Barry began his career as an industrial engineer interning with American Airlines, where he was focused on business process optimization and staffing algorithms for most aspects of airport operations. He later joined Sabre as a software developer, supporting agency and hotel reservation products before moving to the company’s Travelocity division, as a lead software developer. During his tenure at Travelocity, Barry was instrumental in the creation of the online agency’s site functionality and was ultimately named Chief Technology Officer, responsible for all decisions about the site’s technical direction and architecture. Barry was later named CIO of Sabre, where was responsible for Sabre’s technology organization supporting its Software-as-a-Service businesses in agency distribution, airline products and reservation services, and hospitality services. Barry earned a bachelor of science in industrial engineering from Oklahoma State University and an MBA from Southern Methodist University.

Vijay Velamoor serves as Senior Vice President of Human Resources. He is responsible for the formulation and implementation of Human Capital strategies and programs and positioning the people resources of Asurion as a competitive advantage. The Human Capital strategies and initiatives encompass all aspects of the Employee Life Cycle - talent acquisition, development, reward, retention and the engendering of Asurion`s core values in the organization. With more than 25 years of experience both in the US and internationally, at companies such as AT&T Wireless, Nextel, Airtouch/Vodafone, Harrah`s, and Xerox, Vijay has a proven track record in building world class HR organizations and practices. Vijay has a Master`s degree in Human Resources from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Bombay, India.

Since co-founding Asurion in 1994, the company has grown from 40 to 10,000 employees becoming the world’s largest provider of technology protection services, partnering with the world’s top companies and brands and serving over 200 million customers. Previously, Kevin was chairman and president of investment firm Mill River Corporation and worked in mergers and acquisitions for Salomon Brothers. Kevin and his Asurion cofounder received the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2001. Kevin is a faculty member at the Stanford Graduate School of Business where he teaches entrepreneurship courses in the MBA program, from which he graduated in 1992. He is also a member of the school's advisory council and has served on its management board. Kevin received a bachelor`s degree in mechanical engineering from McGill University. He serves on the board of directors for ResponseLink, a provider of medical alert systems and the board of trustees for the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).

With nearly 25 years of telecommunications, technology and leadership experience, Steve is responsible for the formulation and execution of NEWAsurion’s global strategy, as well as the overall operations of the company. Prior to joining NEWAsurion, Steve spent nearly 20 years with Bain & Company, most recently serving as Worldwide Managing Director (CEO and Chairman of the Board) from 2005 to 2012. Previous roles include leading Bain’s San Francisco and Palo Alto offices. He joined Bain in 1993 from a Silicon Valley strategy consulting firm he co-founded in 1989. Earlier, Steve was a principal at Knowledge Edge Inc. where he gained extensive experience working with leading high technology companies. In addition to continuing to serve as a member of Asurion’ s board of directors, Steve serves on the Board of The Bridgespan Group, an independent, non-profit providing leading edge advisory services to foundations and non-profit organizations and on the board of Charles Schwab. He also serves on the Advisory Committee for the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Steve received a Bachelor of Arts in economics and history with honors from the University of California at Berkeley and earned an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he is a regular guest lecturer.

Bret serves as the Chairman of Asurion overseeing the growth and success of Asurion’s strategies and business operations. He brings more than thirty years of proven leadership, business management and consulting experience to Asurion’s executive team. Bret’s prior business experience includes CEO, COO and General Manager positions at companies such as Excite@Home, Kendara, Risk Management Solutions and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He also worked at McKinsey & Company, consulting to Fortune 500 companies on strategic, operational and organizational issues. Bret graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a Bachelor of Science in engineering and earned an MBA from the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University. He serves as an officer of the Board of Directors for CTIA - The Wireless Association. He sits on the Board of Directors of Stanford Hospital and Clinics, as well as serves on the Stanford Business School Management Board.

Mr. Baumbaugh has been involved in the wireless industry since 1989. He was Executive Vice President - Finance, Strategy and Development of VoiceStream Wireless (now T-Mobile U.S.) from inception through its 2001 sale to Deutsche Telekom. Previously, he served as Senior Vice President - Corporate Development of VoiceStream and Western Wireless. Mr. Baumbaugh is currently active investing in early stage technology companies and currently serves on the boards of AngelPoints, Frengo and ResponseLink.

Mr. Clark is a General Partner at Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, a New York private investment firm, which manages over $16 billion in its various funds where he focuses on investments in the Information and Business Services sector. He is currently a board member of USIS, Paycom, Aptuit, SHPS and SAVVIS. Prior to joining WCAS, he was a General Partner at Saunders, Karp & Megrue, a private equity firm. Previously, Mr. Clark worked in the Corporate Finance Group at Deutsche Banc Alex Brown and in the Merchant Banking Department at Morgan Stanley. He graduated with a bachelor's degree from Princeton University and an M.B.A. from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business.

Mr. De Nicola is a Partner and member of the Management Committee of Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, a New York private investment firm, which manages over $16 billion in its various funds. The firm specializes its investment activities in the information/business services industry and the healthcare industry. Mr. de Nicola joined Welsh, Carson in 1994, and has been involved with some of the firm's most successful and profitable investments. He serves on the board of directors for a number of the firm's private and public companies, including Centennial Communications, Titan Outdoor, Local Insight Media, OHL Logistics, and Transfirst. Previously, he was director of Alliance Data, Windstream Communications, and MedE America, and he served as Chairman of the Board for Valor Communications and Dex Media. Prior to joining WCAS, Mr. de Nicola worked in the private equity group at William Blair & Company and the mergers and acquisitions department of Goldman, Sachs & Co. Mr. de Nicola earned his BA degree from DePauw University, where he graduated summa cum laude with an economics major and a minor in computational math. Mr. de Nicola also earned an M.B.A. with distinction from Harvard Business School.

Mr. Fasano is Vice President and Head of Principal Investing for CPP Investment Board. Prior to joining CPPIB in 2004, he worked in the Investment Banking practices of Merrill Lynch & Co. and RBC Capital Markets and was a Commissioned Officer in the Canadian Armed Forces. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree from the Royal Military College of Canada and an International Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. He also currently serves on the boards of IMS Health, KCI, LHP Hospital Group and AWAS Aviation Capital.

Mr. Grissom is a Managing Director at Madison Dearborn Partners (MDP), a Chicago-based private equity firm. Prior to joining MDP, Mr. Grissom was with Bain Capital, Inc. in private equity, McKinsey & Company, Inc., and Goldman, Sachs & Co. Mr. Grissom concentrates on investments in the communications sector and currently serves on the boards of directors of Cbeyond Communications, Inc, Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation, Intelsat Holdings Ltd., and the Childrens' Inner City Educational Fund. Mr. Grissom earned his A.B degree from Amherst College and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

Mr. Grousbeck is currently a Consulting Professor of Management at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business, and cohead of the school's Center for Entrepreneurial Studies. Mr. Grousbeck co-founded Continental Cablevision (later Media One) in 1963 and went on to serve as that company's President from 1964 to 1980 and Chairman of the Board from 1980 to 1985. From 1981 to 1985, Mr. Grousbeck was a lecturer at Harvard University's Graduate School of Business Administration. In addition to his professorial duties, Mr. Grousbeck coauthored the textbook New Business Ventures and the Entrepreneur. Mr. Grousbeck has served on numerous for-profit and not-for-profit boards, and he is a principal owner of the Boston Celtics where he is a Managing Partner. Mr. Grousbeck holds an M.B.A. from Harvard University, and Bachelor of Arts and Doctor of Humane Letters (Hon.) degrees from Amherst College.

Mr. Hadley joined Berkshire Partners in 1998 and became a Managing Director of Berkshire in 2006. Prior to joining Berkshire, Mr. Hadley worked as a consultant in the LBO Practice Group at Bain & Co. He also worked in the consumer products industry consulting to General Mills, ConAgra and Borden Foods in the area of marketing and new product development. Mr. Hadley became a Managing Director of Berkshire in 2006. He received a B.S. from University of Wisconsin and an M.B.A. from The Wharton School.

Mr. Jones began his career over 20 years ago in private equity. He worked at Bain & Co. and in the Investment Banking Division of Morgan Stanley & Co. before joining Berkshire Partners in 1993. Mr. Jones became a Managing Director of Berkshire in 2000 and has been a director of a number of companies in consumer products, retailing, manufacturing and business services. Mr. Jones earned a B.A. from Dartmouth College and an M.B.A. from Stanford University's Graduate School of Business.

Mr. Kelly is an Advisory Director at Berkshire Partners, where he joined in 2010. He was most recently Executive Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors of Crown Castle International Corporation (NYSE: CCI). Prior to his appointment as Executive Vice-Chairman, Mr. Kelly served as President and Chief Executive Officer of CCI from August 2001 to July 2008. Previously he served as President and Chief Operating Officer of CCI. Mr. Kelly joined CCI in July 1998 and was named President and COO of Crown Communication, Inc. in December of that year. From January 1990 to July 1998, he was the President and Chief Operating Officer of Atlantic Cellular Company L.P. From December 1995 to July 1998, Mr. Kelly was also President and Chief Operating Officer of Hawaiian Wireless, Inc., an affiliate of Atlantic Cellular. He serves as a Director of CCI and NEW Asurion Corporation and as the Non-Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors of FiberTower Corporation (NASDAQ: FTWR). Mr. Kelly earned a B.S. from Purdue University.

Mr. Perry is a co-founder and managing director of Madison Dearborn Partners. Prior to co-founding MDP in 1993, Mr. Perry was with First Chicago Venture Capital for eight years. He has a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago. Mr. Perry oversees MDP's investing efforts in the communications industry. He was responsible for MDP's early investments in the wireless industry, including Nextel and Nextel Partners, Omnipoint, which was subsequently merged with Voicestream and acquired by Deutsche Telecom, and Clearnet Communications, a PCS provider in Canada that was acquired by Telus. MDP's most recent investment was in MetroPCS where Mr. Perry serves on the board of directors. Mr. Perry also serves on the boards of directors of Cbeyond Communications, Sorenson Communications, and Univision Communications.

Mr. Post is the president and chief executive officer of the CUNA Mutual Group, based in Madison, WI. . The company is the leading provider of insurance and financial services to credit unions and their members worldwide. Prior to joining CUNA Mutual, Mr. Post was president and chief executive officer of Fireman's Fund Insurance Company – a position he held for more than three years before resigning in 2004. As CEO, he led an impressive financial turnaround in the company, improved underwriting results by more than $1 billion annually, and repositioned the company to market leadership in five business segments. In his 10 years with Fireman's Fund, Mr. Post also served as the company's chief financial officer and chief actuary.A native of Omaha, Nebraska, Mr. Post grew up in the Midwest and received his bachelor's degree in business administration, majoring in actuarial science, from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. He has more than 20 years of insurance industry experience. He is a fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society and a member of the American Academy of Actuaries.

Mr. Salem is a Co-Founder and Senior Managing Director of Providence Equity Partners based in their Providence office. Mr. Salem is currently a director of Asurion and Education Management Corp. Mr. Salem established Providence's London office in 1999 and returned to the Providence office in 2001. He continues to be involved in all international activity. Before joining Providence, Mr. Salem worked for Morgan Stanley in corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions. Prior to this, Mr. Salem spent four years with Prudential Investment Corporation, an affiliate of Prudential Insurance, where his responsibilities included private placement financings, leveraged buyout transactions and establishing Prudential's European investment office. Mr. Salem received an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and a B.A. from Brown University. Mr. Salem is currently Chairman of Year Up Rhode Island and a Trustee of St. John's High School.

Mr. Schaufeld is Chairman of N.E.W. Customer Services Companies, Inc. (NEW). Mr. Schaufeld founded NEW in 1983 while attending law school. His vision, innovation, and penchant for superior customer service have helped NEW develop a blue-chip client list of industry leaders in retailing, financial services, and manufacturing. Mr. Schaufeld takes an active role in the company's day-to-day operations. He continues to set strategic goals for the company and seek ways to expand NEW 's products and services. He also oversees the company's state-of-the-art customer service operations, which have accelerated its growing reputation. In 1998, Ernst & Young named Mr. Schaufeld as its Entrepreneur of the Year in the Washington, D.C. Service Industry category. Mr. Schaufeld is a founding member and the former president of the Service Contract Industry Council (SCIC), the national association for service contract providers, a member of the Young Presidents' Organization in Washington, D.C., a member of the Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce, and sits on a number of corporate and philanthropic boards. Mr. Schaufeld holds a degree from Lehigh University.

Mr. Wilde is a Managing Director of Providence Equity Partners based in our Providence office. Mr. Wilde is currently a director of Asurion, Decision Resources, Education Management Corp., Kerasotes Theatres, Medical Media Holdings, Pluris and Survey Sampling International and is chairman of Study Island and The Vendome Group. Prior to joining Providence in 2002, Mr. Wilde was a General Partner at BCI Partners, where he began his career in private equity in 1992. While at BCI, he was involved in many of BCI's investment activities in traditional media, education and marketing services. Prior to BCI, Mr. Wilde worked at LaSalle Partners in the acquisitions group. Mr. Wilde received an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and a B.A. from Colorado College.