Contributor Biographies
Bill Achtmeyer EY Global Leader, EY-Parthenon, Ernst & Young LLP Parthenon Founder +1 617 478 4600 Bill Achtmeyer has guided Parthenon’s vision since its founding in 1991. In 2014, Parthenon merged with EY, and Bill continues to lead the EY-Parthenon team in EY Transaction Advisory Services. Bill has worked in management consulting for more than 35 years, advising CEOs on the strategic direction of their corporations. He is a recognized authority on corporate and business unit strategy, and in mergers and acquisitions. Subin Baral Partner, Ernst & Young LLP +1 212 773 1022 Subin Baral has more than 10 years of experience serving life science companies in planning and executing transactions— acquisitions, carve-outs, and IPOs—from start-up through successful public company status in the United States and Australia. He provides buy-side and sell-side support for corporate and private equity clients, especially in evaluating investment opportunities and advising on large global carve-outs. Subin’s experience spans many subsectors of the life sciences industry, including medical technology devices, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, health care information technology, and contract manufacturing organizations. Harsha Basnayake EY Asia-Pacific Managing Partner Transaction Advisory Services +65 6309 6741 Harsha Basnayake has more than 20 years of experience across Asia in advising clients on complex cross-border transactions, private and public sector capital decisions, and building services for EY throughout the Asia-Pacific region. His primary focus is in valuation, financial modeling, mergers and acquisitions, and restructuring. He helped to redefine EY’s Transaction Advisory Services presence in the Asia-Pacific region, beginning in Singapore. Prior to that, Harsha led Valuation and Business Modeling services in the Far East markets and was a member of EY’s first Global Valuation and Business Modeling Steering Committee. He continues to be a practicing valuation professional for litigation disputes in international arbitrations and civil proceedings. Harsha holds a number of professional affiliations and is the current Chairman of the Council of the Institute of Valuers and Appraisers of Singapore. Sven Braun Principal, Ernst & Young LLP +1 415 373 2637 Sven Braun works with large corporate and private equity clients to improve supply chains and operations. He focuses on freeing up cash from operations through improved working capital management, reduced costs, and increased service quality. He is responsible for delivering client services and leads EY’s digital working capital innovation group for North America. Sven has led complex engagements focused on strategy, supply chain optimization, working capital management, and transactions. Sven has more than 15 years of experience in both industry and consulting across the globe, and he has worked across a broad spectrum of sectors, including high tech, IT, automotive, pharmaceuticals, and industrial goods. K.C. Brechnitz EY Global Head, Debt Capital Markets Advisory Senior Managing Director, Ernst & Young Capital Advisors, LLC +1 704 335 4211 K.C. Brechnitz leads the organization’s debt capital markets efforts globally. He provides independent advice on raising and restructuring capital. K.C. has 20 years of experience in debt capital markets, including leveraged finance, high-yield capital markets, restructuring advisory, and loan syndications. His track record includes extensive work in PE-sponsored leveraged buyouts and complex acquisition financings. His sector experience is in gaming, consumer and retail, business services, and general industrial. Since starting the Debt Capital Markets Advisory practice within Ernst & Young Capital Advisors, LLC in 2010, K.C. has personally worked on more than US$30 billion in capital transactions. Daniel Burkly Senior Manager, Ernst & Young LLP +1 312 879 2575 Daniel Burkly serves as a transaction leader for several large multinationals, consulting on strategy, valuation, due diligence, and integration. Dan applies his technical background in corporate finance and valuation to advise clients on the financial implications of their strategic decisions. He has performed thousands of financial analyses and valuations of businesses, equity interests, debt instruments, and various assets and liabilities for transaction planning, corporate planning, tax planning and reporting, and financial reporting purposes. Dan’s clients include Fortune 500 companies in life sciences, diversified industrial products, and consumer products industries. He has spoken and written on corporate finance topics, including share repurchases and valuation techniques. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst charter holder and has served as a grader for CFA Level III exams. William Casey EY Americas Vice Chair, Transaction Advisory Services Ernst & Young, LLP +1 212 773 0058 William Casey has 35 years of experience advising clients on capital strategy, mergers and acquisitions, spinoffs, IPOs, and securities offerings. As EY’s TAS leader in the Americas and in prior roles as its Deputy Leader and Chief Operating Officer, he has overseen a doubling of the practice, to nearly 5,000 professionals in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Central and South America. William has led some of EY’s largest client engagements in industries including automotive, beverages, telecommunications, fintech, and professional services. He has advised on cross-border transactions for multinational corporations and leading private equity firms in both the US and Latin America. William is a Certified Public Accountant, fluent in English, Spanish, and Portuguese, and a competitive triathlete. Glenn Engler EY Americas Digital Strategy Leader, EY-Parthenon, Ernst & Young LLP +1 617 478 7095 Glenn Engler focuses primarily on growth strategy, marketing strategy, brand development, and new business innovation in several industries, including technology, media, telecommunications, retail, and automotive. In addition, Glenn leads the digital practices for EY-Parthenon globally, and leads digital strategy for Transaction Advisory Services in the Americas. Prior to joining EY-Parthenon, Glenn spent more than 25 years in the strategy consulting, marketing communications, digital marketing, customer relationship management, and social media areas. Donald Featherstone EY EMEIA Restructuring Leader +44 (0) 207 951 9554 Donald Featherstone leads EY’s EMEIA Restructuring services. He has more than 25 years of experience in corporate turnarounds, large-scale financial restructurings, interim management, and board mandates. He has been appointed as an interim executive in numerous engagements across a variety of industries. Don has assisted public and private companies with complex capital structure reshaping, stakeholder negotiations, and the execution of operational turnaround programs. He has worked extensively on cross-border restructuring engagements in the European Union and United States, and in emerging markets in South America, the Middle East, and Africa. Shyam Gidumal Activist Advisory Leader Northeast Region Retail & Consumer Products Leader, Ernst & Young LLP +1 212 773 3414 Shyam Gidumal leads EY’s work around activist investors. Over the past 30 years, Shyam has been a principal investor, buy-side and sell-side advisor, board member, strategic/operational consultant, chief restructuring officer, and president and CEO across multiple large-cap and mid-cap companies. Prior to joining EY, Shyam was a partner and Member of the Board of the Boston Consulting Group, a senior managing director of AlixPartners, founder of Strategic Turnarounds & Investment Corp., and a General Partner with Stonington Partners. Shyam has worked extensively in France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Singapore, and the UK. Jeffrey R. Greene Leader, Corporate Development Leadership Network +1 917 443 5049 Jeffrey R. Greene leads EY’s Corporate Development Leadership Network—an invitation-only, permanent roundtable of the heads of M&A, strategy, and inorganic growth for 40 of the largest companies in North America. His previous roles include Global Vice Chair-Corporate Finance and EY Global Transactions Leader for the Life Sciences Sector. With more than three decades of transaction experience, he counsels senior executives on the corporate finance implications of their strategic and operating decisions. Jeff provides valuation advice in divestments, acquisitions, financings, and restructurings. He is also a recognized expert witness in federal, district, bankruptcy, and tax courts on valuation, fairness, and solvency matters. Jeff has spoken, written, and been quoted on life sciences industry developments, as well as the Capital Agenda, including M&A, portfolio management, valuation, solvency, and performance measurement. Paul Hammes EY Global Divestiture Advisory Services Leader EY Global Transaction Diligence Leader +1 312 879 3741 Paul Hammes serves private equity and corporate clients on the buy and sell sides. For the past 12 years he has provided dedicated divestment advice to Fortune 100, 500, and 1000 companies, as well as to numerous privately held and PE-backed companies. Paul’s industry experience includes more than 300 transactions across manufacturing, chemicals, plastics, wholesale/distribution, consumer products, trucking, education, aerospace and defense, and life sciences. Paul is a certified public accountant with more than 28 years of business experience. Julie Hood EY Global Deputy Vice Chair, Transaction Advisory Services EY Global Limited + 44 (0) 20 7980 0327 Julie Hood, with her team across 90 countries, works to solve the most pressing business challenges, helping companies better manage their capital across five connected solutions of strategy, corporate finance, buying and integrating, selling and separating, and reshaping results. In her time at EY, Julie has advised clients across a broad range of industries, establishing a deep level of operational transactional understanding of organizations in Asia, Europe, and the Americas. Before EY, Julie worked in the higher education sector and ran her own design consulting and construction business. Steve Krouskos EY Global Vice Chair, Transaction Advisory Services EY Global Limited +44 (0) 20 7980 0189 Steve Krouskos has more than 25 years of experience in M&A, advising corporate and private equity clients on multibillion-dollar, cross-border transactions. Steve chairs the TAS Global Executive, and is a member of the EY Global Board. He is responsible for driving growth and investment priorities for Transaction Advisory Services and delivering exceptional client service around the world. He played a pivotal role in the successful EY-Parthenon combination. He is also the senior advisory partner to several global EY accounts. Steve has served clients across a wide range of industries spanning consumer products and retail, industrial products, life sciences, transportation and logistics, technology, communications, professional services, and franchising. Erica Lawee EY Global Development Leader, Transaction Tax +44 (0) 20 7980 0430 Erica Lawee works to develop and implement a cohesive growth strategy for the global Transaction Tax practices. She also focuses on private equity markets, working closely with EY’s PE tax leadership and clients to formulate and execute strategy and enable growth in PE accounts. Erica oversees the global coordination of EY’s tax director conferences for the fund sector. Erica advises on both buy-side and sell-side tax due diligence, as well as on tax-efficient holding and financing structures for cross-border M&A transactions. Steve Payne EY Americas Deputy Vice Chair, Transaction Advisory Services EY Global Leader, Operational Transaction Services +1 212 773 0562 Steve Payne has held several roles in his nine years at EY, including Americas Capital Transformation Leader, Northeast TAS Regional Leader, and Americas Working Capital Leader. At EY and throughout his career, Steve has led many large global working capital improvement programs for private equity houses and Fortune 50 clients, including large global pharmaceutical companies. Prior to joining EY, Steve was the President of REL Consultancy, a division of the Hackett Group, a public consulting firm. Steve has held positions at HarperCollins and ML Aviation. Tony Qui EY Global Innovation and Digital Leader, Transaction Advisory Services
+44 (0) 20 7951 5820 Tony Qui heads EY teams comprising more than 1,500 transaction professionals. His experience spans a wide range of sectors, including consumer products, energy, pharmaceuticals, telecoms, media, oil and gas, mining, and financial services. Tony has led more than 200 transactions involving information technology due diligence, digital strategy, IT cost-reduction assessments, buy-side, vendor, carve-outs, contract exits, postmerger integration, and operational restructuring. He has more than 15 years of experience in leading major change programs. Brian Salsberg EY Americas M&A Integration Leader EY Global Buy and Integrate Leader +1 212 773 3462 Brian Salsberg is responsible for leading and enhancing EY’s capabilities and intellectual capital around mergers, acquisitions, and joint venture integration. He spent 13 years at McKinsey & Company, where he led dozens of strategy-, growth-, and transaction-related engagements as part of the New York, Tokyo, and Singapore offices. Brian was previously Senior Vice President of Global Strategy at Avon Products, Inc., where he reported to the CEO and was a member of the Executive Committee. His leadership responsibilities included corporate and business development, as well as global digital. Brian began his career as a transaction attorney at a top five global M&A law firm, Cravath, Swaine & Moore. Sharath Sharma EY Americas Capital Transformation Leader, Ernst & Young LLP +1 212 773 6190 Sharath Sharma has served as a journey partner to CEOs and CFOs on many significant transactions. He advises his clients on strategy and operations matters and helps them to manage acquisitions, divestments, and joint ventures throughout the transaction life cycle. He focuses on providing desired deal outcomes. His experience in supply chain strategy, enterprise cost reduction, organization design, and governance enables him to serve as a trusted advisor to executives in the strategy, finance, and operations domains. Sharath has worked in the industrial products, life sciences, and consumer products sectors. He has served client needs in Mexico, Canada, Brazil, Spain, the United Kingdom, Germany, India, China, and Singapore. John Trustman Executive Director, EY-Parthenon, Ernst & Young LLP +1 617 478 4399 John Trustman leads the development and deployment of EY’s proprietary framework, the Full Potential Paradigm, within the EY-Parthenon strategy team. John’s 40-year career as a strategy consultant, executive, and entrepreneur spans numerous industries, with a concentration in health care, financial services, and technology. John holds patents in a range of disciplines from brainwave analysis and movement disorder diagnosis to natural language processing and large-scale transaction processing. Aayush Tulsyan Senior Manager, Ernst & Young LLP +1 312 879 2965 Aayush Tulsyan’s transaction work focuses on sell-side due diligence, operational separation, and post-close stabilization. He has advised on multiple complex cross-border transactions across Europe, Asia, and South America. Aayush has experience in finance process improvement, enterprise cost reduction, operating model design, and driver-based planning projects in the life sciences, aerospace and defense, consumer products, and heavy equipment manufacturing sectors. Giri Varadarajan Accounts and Pursuits Leader, Transaction Advisory Services, Ernst & Young LLP +1 312 879 3259 Giri Varadarajan, has over the past 15 years, advised C-suite executives and private equity clients in driving operating margin and capital efficiency improvements. He helps multinational firms in consumer goods, health care, industrial products, and process industries take advantage of strategic and operational opportunities. His significant transactions work focuses on complex integrations and carve-outs. Giri’s experience also includes developing and supporting the implementation of value-creation programs focused on enterprise cost reduction, supply-chain transformations, outsourcing/offshoring, pricing, and portfolio optimization. He has led global engagements with clients in Mexico, Canada, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Romania, Hungary, India, China, and Australia. Bridget Walsh EY Global Transaction Tax Leader, EY Global Limited +44 (0) 20 7951 4176 Bridget Walsh has almost 20 years of experience in tax, many of which have been spent advising private equity houses, other fund investors, and corporations on tax aspects of acquisitions and divestments. Bridget has successfully held a number of senior leadership roles in the EY UK&I region, including Head of Private Equity, China Trade Route Leader, and Head of Transaction Tax. She is also the lead relationship partner for some of the organization’s largest PE fund clients. Bridget has significant experience in working with corporations, banks, and PE houses to structure transactions and manage the tax aspects of transactions, including funding, valuation, modeling, and sale and purchase review. Andrew Wollaston EY Global Restructuring Advisory Leader EY Global Private Equity Leader +44 (0) 20 7951 9944 Andrew Wollaston has more than 25 years of experience in advising stakeholders of underperforming businesses and of assisting in the recovery of ailing companies. He has led a wide variety of assignments in most industry sectors and geographies. Andrew now principally executes financial advisor mandates for corporations and stakeholders in debt restructurings and refinancings. He also takes on chief restructuring officer roles, and has advised on and helped to implement operational turnarounds and distressed M&A services. Jeff Wray Consumer Products Leader, EY-Parthenon, Ernst & Young LLP +1 215 448 4099 Jeff Wray has more than 20 years of experience in developing strategy and driving large-scale operational change, primarily in consumer products categories. His deal track record includes small-scale growth, corporate venture capital, large-scale divestments, and M&A. Jeff has worked with businesses in Asia, the Middle East, North America, and Latin America.
