Company Leaders
, joined us in May 1998,
and has served as a director of Alliance Data since June 2009. From May 2000 until March 2009, Mr. Heffernan served as an executive vice president and chief financial officer of Alliance Data and, prior to that, he was responsible for mergers and acquisitions for Alliance Data. Before joining us, he served as vice president, mergers and acquisitions, for First Data Corporation from October 1994 to May 1998. Prior to that, he served as vice president, mergers and acquisitions for Citicorp from July 1990 to October 1994, and prior to that he served in corporate finance at Credit Suisse First Boston from June 1986 until July 1990. Mr. Heffernan was a director and chair of the audit committee of VALOR Communications Group, Inc. from 2005 until its merger into Windstream Corporation in 2006. Mr. Heffernan holds a Bachelor’s degree from Wesleyan University and an MBA from Columbia Business School.
, joined us in December 2009 from having served as the senior vice president and chief financial officer of Builders Firstsource, Inc. since 1999. Prior to that, he served as vice president, finance and treasury, for the retail operations of Pier 1 Imports, Inc. from 1994 to 1999. He also served as executive vice president and chief financial officer of Conquest Industries from 1992 to 1994. Mr. Horn holds a Bachelor’s degree in business administration from Abilene Christian University, an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin and is a Certified Public Accountant in the state of Texas.
, joined our wholly-owned subsidiary, Epsilon, in June 1996. Mr. Kennedy has served as chief operating officer for Epsilon since October 2001 and, prior to becoming president of Epsilon in January 2009, he held various senior management and executive positions within Epsilon. Prior to that, Mr. Kennedy held management positions with Capstead Mortgage Corporation from June 1990 to August 1994. Mr. Kennedy holds a Bachelor’s degree from Wheaton College and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
, joined our wholly-owned subsidiary, LoyaltyOne, Inc., in November 1992 and assumed his current position in 2006. Mr. Pearson has served as president for the AIR MILES® Reward Program since January 1999 and prior to becoming president, he held various senior management and executive positions within the AIR MILES Reward Program. Mr. Pearson held management positions with Alias Research Inc. from June 1991 until October 1992. Prior to that, he worked in brand marketing at Quaker Oats Company of Canada from July 1988 until June 1991. Mr. Pearson holds a BScH degree and an MBA from Queen’s University.
, joined us in May 1998. Before joining us, he served as a director and chief operating officer of Forman Mills, Inc. from November 1996 to February 1998. Prior to that, he served as executive vice president and chief financial officer of Charming Shoppes, Inc. from November 1981 to January 1996. Mr. Szeftel holds Bachelor’s and graduate degrees from the University of Cape Town and was certified as a Certified Public Accountant in the State of Pennsylvania and as a Chartered Accountant in South Africa.
, joined us in September 2001. He is responsible for legal, internal audit, compliance, corporate administration, human resources, and corporate marketing and communications. Before joining us, he served as a partner at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, where he practiced law since October 1990. Mr. Utay holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas and a J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law.