Compass Advisory Partners, LLC
401 Wood Street
Suite 707
Pittsburgh, PA 15222
(412) 697-2631
COMPASS PROFESSIONALS
When a Company is faced with an operational or financial crisis, experience counts. COMPASS' team of Senior Executives are prepared to respond quickly to high-pressure situations, providing an immediate impact. Our focus is on defining and implementing a strategy that is in the best interest of all stakeholders of the Company.
Larry Powers is a crisis management executive with over twenty years of financial and senior management experience, including company reorganization, debt restructuring, operations and marketing. He has been a successful turnaround consultant for almost fifteen years, in numerous industries ranging from metals to banking and transportation.
Before becoming a certified turnaround professional, Mr. Powers served as President, COO, and CFO of Trimarchi, Inc. a computer mass-storage, manufacturing company from 1990-1991, where he increased sales volume by 45% and turned the company's loss of $770,000 into a profit of $80,000 in one year. While restructuring the engineering and operating departments into productive units.
Prior to his tenure at Trimarchi, he was President and CEO of Glenshaw Glass Company. As President, Larry boosted the sales volume of glass container manufacturing from $41 million to $56 million, successfully reestablishing the company's quality image.
From 1985-1988, Larry was Vice President, Treasurer, COO and CFO of Astrotech International Corporation where he developed and implemented the restructuring plan for an electronics subsidiary and negotiated the long term debt refinancing and eventual sale of Astrotech's largest subsidiary.
At General Refractories, Mr. Powers served as Vice President and Controller, participating in the reorganization of a $90 million division and $400 million corporation. Mr. Powers also served as CFO and acting President of a $200 million division.
Larry's initial experience included positions at Rockwell International, Consolidated Natural Gas Company and U.S. Steel, where he held various analyst positions. Mr. Powers is a Certified Turnaround Professional and one of the original members of the Turnaround Management Association. He has a B.A. in Mathematics from Duquesne University.
Nick Arrington has eighteen years of experience in corporate finance and mortgage banking, with an emphasis in the debt and equity structuring of leveraged buyouts and refinancing. He has experience in financial analysis, credit underwriting and private placement offerings for debt placement and merger and acquistion engagements.
A turnaround consultant since 1989, Mr Arrington has completed transactions in the M&A and corporate finance area for numerous clients. His industry experience spans manufacturing, transportation and natural resouces. Nick is also very active in supporting non-profit and government organizations dedicated to economic development and job retention in Western Pennsylvania.
Before consulting, Mr Arrington managed a sales territory for Westinghouse Credit Corporation. His duties included new business development in the commercial lending division's fixed asset group. Prior to that , he managed the Pittsburgh office for Borg-Warner Commercial Finance, where he was responsible for lending to middle-market borrowers. The portfolio included real estate and asset based lending transactions. Mr. Arrington worked with high-risk borrowers that had the ability to fully secure the borrowing relationship. Several of these relationships provided Mr. Arrington with excellent experience in loan workout and liquidation, both in and out of bankruptcy.
For the past 24 years, Jim Battaglia has been providing management consulting services and interim COO engagements for middle-market operating companies throughout the United States and abroad. His duties have ranged from operational assessments and due diligence services to the direct implementation of improvement programs for manufacturing and wholesale distribution companies.
Jim is the founder and President of Resource Management, Inc. and has provided the above services both on a direct basis as well as through turnaround advisory firms, banks and private equity groups. Jim's strength is in his and his team's ability to effectuate positive change to an operational/distribution environment while meeting the needs of stakeholders at interest. Engagements have included: Swiss Colony, Moog, Inc., Durr Industries, Erie Forge and Weston Foods.
WARREN P. BIEGER
Mr. Bieger has extensive executive experience. He is experienced in the design, development and mangement of comprehensive corporate accounting, budgeting, financial reporting, financial modeling, tax and MIS systems. Warren has been consistently successful at linking accounting with general operations to provide hands-on financial leadership for strategic planning, marketing, purchasing, inventory, production and distribution. He has in-depth experience across all core business functions from manufacturing to HR to sales and marketing.
Prior to consulting, Warren server as Controller, VP and CFO, and then President and CEO of Citisteel USA Inc. from 1991-2004. While at Citisteel, Mr. Bieger introduced a series of improvements that stregthened productivity, product quality and customer satisfaction. Product rejects were reduced from 4.3% to 0.7% under Warren's tenure. Citisteel was recognized as number one in customer service for three consecutive years. He realigned the marketing plan and refocused manufacturing operations to produce products that resulted in a shift from commodity to end user customers. Citisteel established strong market presence in the bridge and rail car fabrication industries. End-user customers increased from 30% to 70% of the production. The result was higher selling prices of $50/net ton.
While at Citisteel, Mr. Bieger also served as a Bankruptcy Trustee from 1993-98. He was responsible for the management and sale of 22 properties along with liquidation of inventory and equipment.
Before Citisteel, Warren was Plant Controller, Accounting Manager and VP & Controller of General Refractories from 1974-1991. While at General Refractories, he facilitated several successful turnarounds within the company, introduced standardized financial and accounting processes and enhanced bottom-line performance.
John Beighel has provided consulting and accounting services to a variety of companies, including start-up and troubled companies and debtors in possession since 1983. He has served clients of all sizes, and in a variety of industries including manufacturing, engineering, computer services, printing and food service. Their product lines have included steel mill equipment, railroad products, consumer products, men's apparel, air freight forwarding and industrial gases.
In cases under Chapter 7 or 11 of the U. S. Bankruptcy Code, Mr. Beighel has performed the following services, in addition to those services noted above:
Prepared Schedules of Assets and Liabilities, Statement of Financial Affairs, Monthly Operating Reports and other filings required by the U. S. Bankruptcy Court and the U. S. Trustee;
Worked with counsel to the debtor and creditor constituencies to develop and implement plans of reorganization;
Worked with counsel to pursue and resolve litigation filed both by and against the company;
Managed and resolved claims filed by creditors and others in the bankruptcy case;
Oversaw the liquidation of assets in Chapter 7 cases; and
Made distributions to creditors under the terms of the applicable plan of reorganization or of liquidation.
Mike has over 30 years of progressive accounting and financial experience in various manufacturing environments. Mike's experience includes financial forecasting, budget preparation and cash management. He also has very strong analytical skills, having designed and worked with a number of different cost accounting and information systems to identify product cost, determine pricing strategies and develop information for decision making purposes.
Mike most recently served as Chief Financial Officer for Edgewater Steel, Ltd. where he worked closely with secured lenders, creditors and customers to bring the distressed company through bankruptcy proceedings.
Mike has a B.S. in Accounting from Penn State, an MBA from The University of Pittsburgh and is a member of Financial Executives International.
Mr. Jorgensen is a senior management executive with extensive general management leadership experience in large manufacturing companies as well as entrepreneurial and mid-sized environments. He brings strong, competent and experienced leadership and direction to troubled companies, with a proven track record of successful hands-on enterprise management.
His industry experience prior to consulting engagements include serving as President of a fully-integrated aluminum manufacturer, Vice President operations of a fully-integrated steel producer, and a number of senior operational and finance assignments with Ford Motor Company, as well as several successful entrepreneurial ventures.
Prior to joining Compass, Mr. Jorgensen was a Case Director of Glass and Associates of New York and Canton, Ohio, with responsibilities for a variety of operational turnarounds and restructuring/management assignments.
Mr. Jorgensen’s successful consulting experience includes serving in interim management functions such as CEO, CRO, and COO in a variety of companies and industries, as well as serving as senior advisor/Board member for a number of troubled companies, providing important input to business strategy, divestiture, product-line profitability and market position and cost improvements. Some specific engagements include interim CEO of a Canadian Bar Mill where he relaunched the facility from bankruptcy; interim CEO of a Texas-based holding company achieving significant operating improvements with underperforming forging companies and the subsequent sale of companies; and interim COO of a Colorado based multi-company contract manufacturer.
Mr. Jorgensen, born in Copenhagen Denmark, graduated from Dartmouth College where he earned an MBA from the Amos Tuck School of Business and a B.S. in Economics. He is a Certified Turnaround Professional and a member of the Pittsburgh Chapter of the Turnaround Management Association.
THOMAS J. KUEHL II
Following two years of public accounting, with what was then Coopers & Lybrand, Tom has served as controller and CFO for several manufacturing companies. From its founding in 1985 through and into 2008, Tom was the CFO and a shareholder of St. George Crystal, Ltd., the only domestic manufacturer of lead crystal products for the tabletop, lighting, and gift markets. Tom has extensive experience in budgeting, cash flow management, credit and collections, treasury management, standard cost accounting, lender and vendor relations. His St. George Crystal experience included many bank and public loan financings, as well as private equity placements and shareholders rights offerings. Tom has experience with both Special Asset/Work-out bank lending situations and has worked with a Receiver in the liquidation of St. George Crystal. In his first assignment with Compass, Tom is providing financial forecasting and several financial support functions in a turnaround project for an industry foam packaging manufacturer.
Tom has a B.S. in Accounting and Business Administration from Grove City College, and earned both CPA and CMA certifications. Tom is an avid birder and serves as vice-president and director of the Pennsylvania Ornithological Society.
PATRICK J. MARX
Patrick Marx is a seasoned financial and operations manager with 15 years of financial, operations, technical, and international experience with mid-size and start-up organizations, both public and private.
Patrick's extensive education and background has enabled him to attain a variety of achievements including; CFO for a chemical manufacturer, co-founder of a printing company in Romania and acting as General Manager, and leading a team that developed a complex financial analysis system, self-assessment tool and process to audit firms.
Mr. Marx has a B.S. in Finance from the University of Virginia, McIntire School of Commerce and a B.S. in Electrical Engineering/Business from the Georgia Institute of Technology. He also earned an MS in Management Information Systems from the University of Virginia and an MS in Accounting from Binghamton University.
Published papers: Entrepreneurship, Privatization in Eastern Europe and Financial Payment Systems in the US.
Honors: IBM Watson Scholar; Georgia Tech Presidential Scholar; STAR Student in County.
Languages: German, Romanian - socially conversant; Spanish - basic conversation; Italian, French - light reading.
Melvin P. Parsons
Mel is a seasoned executive whose 26 years experience in the areas of operations and/or distribution can significantly help enhance company value with their owners, shareholders, customers and employees. Prior to joining Compass, Mel was Vice President of Operations for St. George Crystal, a $25 million crystal manufacturer/marketer. This position included responsibility for all of the company's manufacturing and support resources including purchasing, inventory, quality assurance, mold manufacturing, crystal manufacturing, planning, customer service and distribution, information services, and human resources.
Mr. Parsons helped the company achieve several noted accomplishments, under his leadership: reorganization of the planning and distribution policies and practices to achieve targeted customer service level increases and improvements; the company's on-time delivery rate grew from under 80% to over 96%; implemented an energy management program to achieve a 15% reduction in energy costs; developed and managed the company's first customer service department. Mel was also responsible for the creation and implementation of a structured problem solving manual and process that helped department heads analyze business and operational practices to identify and eliminate process constraints, develop success metrics, and improve internal and external customer service. Mel is a graduate of Towson State University, Towson, Maryland.
JACK TEITZ, CPA
Jack is an experienced turn-around executive who specializes in providing hands-on financial oversight and day-to-day management support to a variety of entities including coal, metals and metals-related manufacturing/distribution companies. He has completed successful debt refinancing projects and financial restructuring projects along with acquisitions and divestitures of assets and operating units. He has a wide range of experience including direct involvement in negotiations with lenders and trade creditors, implementation of new purchasing initiatives to reduce key cost drivers, negotiations of new collective bargaining agreements and sourcing of new debt and equity. He also has had hands-on responsibility for business planning, treasury, cash management, and financial reporting functions and has negotiated a variety of DIP financing arrangements. During his thirty-plus years as a business professional, Jack has worked effectively with boards of directors, senior management teams, lenders, and investors to evaluate refinancing and restructuring options for companies in PA, OH, WV, KY, IN and MI.
Jack’s has completed recent restructuring projects for various metals and coal companies, including, Buffalo Coal Company, Ormet Corporation, Sturgis Iron & Metal, James River Coal, Anker Coal, Acutus-Gladwin (AG Industries), Haskell Office Furniture, Turner Steel Corporation and WorldClass Processing, Inc.
Jack is a Certified Public Accountant. He received his Bachelor of Science Degree from Georgetown University and his M.B.A. from the University of Pittsburgh.
TERRY E. SCELFO
Ms. Scelfo is Director of Corporate Relations. She has joined the team to help raise the company's visibility, as well as managing the daily business-to-business relations. Ms. Scelfo is responsible for coordinating promotional opportunities and is active handling all of Compass' upcoming events.
Terry has over 30 years of administrative and accounting experience. She has spent the majority of her career in Pittsburgh's Downtown Business District making numerous contacts. From 1972 through 1982 she held various, progressive positions in the accounting department of Harbison Walker Refractories. This led to an offer to join the International Division, Dresser Industries, as Assistant to the Vice President of Industrial Minerals, as well as Assistant to the Group President of Harbison. Ms. Scelfo was responsible for the compilation and distribution of all quarterly and annual reports and departmental budgets, and approved corporate in-house capital expenditures. She also led a team that designed and prepared the company's first accounting manual and oversaw its implementation and compliance.
Prior to joining Compass, Terry provided ten years of executive support to a Pittsburgh-based turnaround firm. Assistance and activities included client management, travel, scheduling, event planning, accounting and other administrative services.
