Greenwich Harbor Partners Fills Board Positions for Thrive Scholars Chicago
June 5, 2023 – Greenwich Harbor Partners has assisted in the recruitment of Jared Banner, Teedra Bernard, Sedhu Krishnamurthy, and Talvis Love as new members of the board of directors at Thrive Scholars Chicago. “We are excited to welcome our new board members – each with diverse expertise and experiences from various sectors–to join our effort to strengthen opportunities toward economic mobility for high-achieving students of color in Chicago,” said Kylia Kummer, executive director of the non-profit. Mr. Banner is vice president, player development for the Chicago Cubs and has 15 years of experience in baseball operations. He started out as a fellow in the Boston Red Sox’s baseball operations department and rose to the rank of VP of player personnel, overseeing international professional scouting. After receiving three World Series rings with Boston, he worked for his hometown team, the New York Mets, for two years in player development before joining the Cubs.
Ms. Bernard is senior vice president, chief talent and diversity officer at TransUnion, responsible for all global talent and diversity functions across the associate lifecycle. She previously served as the credit reporting group’s VP of HR for global technology. Prior to that, Ms. Bernard held a series of HR leadership roles at Hewlett Packard, including head of HR for the HPE Pointnext Global Client Services organization. Her diverse industry experience includes operations, sales, retail, investment banking, and pharmaceuticals.
Mr. Krishnamurthy is a business and technology executive with over 10 years at Microsoft, where he currently leads the data and artificial intelligence business for U.S. retail and consumer goods. Prior to that, Mr. Krishnamurthy served in technical leadership roles at Innovex Technology, Insuresoft, and Allstate Insurance.
Mr. Love is senior vice president and chief information officer for Baxter International Inc. He joined Baxter in 2020 from Cardinal Health’s Pharmaceuticals, where he was CIO responsible for overall IT service delivery. Previously, Mr. Love held the positions of SVP, E-commerce, governance execution, enterprise architecture, and chief information security officer of Cardinal Health. His career has also included several executive and management positions within TD Bank Group, Ford Motor Co., Oracle Corp., and Quaker Oats Co.
Related: Greenwich Harbor Partners Recruits Five Board Members for Teach for America Jacksonville
Thrive Scholars’ mission is to help high-achieving students of color from low-income communities get into and graduate from top colleges equipped to achieve their full career potential. Through Thrive programming, scholars receive six years of robust academic support to help their scholars excel in rigorous academic environments. Thrive provides support to overcome financial and social barriers to higher education, and connects scholars to internships, mentors, and corporations to build professional and social networks.
Veteran Recruiters
Greenwich Harbor Partners’ principals, Carrie and Ted Pryor, have worked in the industry as general managers and investors and have direct professional experience with the types of issues that face their clients. The firm’s client roster includes IBM Cloud Services, Media General, Marlin Equity Partners, DIRECTV, SpinMedia, ReelzChannel TV, and Keurig Green Mountain, among others.
Greenwich Harbor Partners Fills Seven Board Positions for Teach for America Twin Cities
Greenwich Harbor Partners recently placed seven new members of the board of advisors for Teach for America Twin Cities. The new members are: Javier Alacron, senior vice president finance in agriculture at CHS Inc.; Nina Goodheart, SVP and president, structural heart and aortic operating unit at Medtronic; Joanne Knight, VP of finance in the agricultural supply chain enterprise at Cargill; Andrew Miller, COO at the Minnesota Vikings; Joseph Oppong, consulting partner at EY; Monica Schwarm, partner at BCG; and Sherry Smith, retired CFO and EVP at Supervalu.
Ms. Pryor has over 20 years of senior executive search experience. She has recruited board directors, CEOs and their direct reports, as well as partners for private equity firms. In addition to holding a board seat with the New York Pops, she serves as an advisory board member for Constellation Ventures. A veteran of the internet space since the early ’90s, she has deep experience in digital media, entertainment, and private equity.
Mr. Pryor focuses on senior-level assignments for general management, sales, marketing, and digital transformation. He specializes in recruiting executives using his four years as CFO and CEO of a venture-backed start-up, 10 years at General Electric Capital, and 20 years in international finance and investment banking. Mr. Pryor has served on public, private, and non-profit boards, and chaired the audit committee for the NBA’s Boston Celtics. In executive recruiting, he has focused on business services, digital marketing, E-commerce, ad sales, place-based advertising, communications, and customer service for growth companies and large national brands.
Filling Board Positions
Greenwich Harbor Partners recently assisted in the recruitment of Michael Adams, Nanette Cocero, and Sali Osman as new members of the board of directors at IDEA Public Schools in Weslaco, TX. Mr. Adams has served more than 30 years in the legal profession. Currently a partner with Decuir, Clark & Adams in Baton Rouge, LA, he has served as a senior-level manager and chief operating and policy officer with private, governmental regulatory, and non-profit entities.
Dr. Cocero recently retired as global president of Pfizer Vaccines, where she oversaw an international business responsible for the development and delivery of innovative vaccines that address serious and life-threatening conditions. Ms. Osman served until 2022 as chief security officer for the International Monetary Fund.
Related: U.S. Boards Seen as Slowly Evolving
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media