NEW YORK, November 20, 2006 – Sentinel Capital Partners today announced the appointment of Matthew C. Harrison as operating partner of the firm, which increases to 15 the number of Sentinel’s investment professionals.
Mr. Harrison most recently served as an operating partner at Hampshire Equity Partners, a private equity firm specializing in mid-market buyouts. He worked with Hampshire’s portfolio companies in a variety of roles including interim CEO, chairman of the board, and outside director.
Previously, Mr. Harrison spent eight years as an interim executive and corporate turnaround specialist. His assignments included court-appointed trustee, corporate restructuring officer, and CEO in a variety of industries. From 1990 to 1991, Mr. Harrison spent two years as a Managing Director at Buccino & Associates, Inc., a national turnaround management firm.
From 1986 to 1990, Mr. Harrison served as COO and court-appointed trustee of Wedtech Corporation, a Department of Defense contractor. In this role, while overseeing the bankruptcy proceedings of the company, he assisted federal and local government agencies to investigate and prosecute criminal cases against two U.S. congressmen and former management who had defrauded the company.
Before joining Wedtech, Mr. Harrison spent 20 years as an officer in the U.S. Army. Most recently, he held the rank of lieutenant colonel. During his 20 years in the military, Colonel Harrison served in a variety of assignments including senior intelligence officer on the Army General Staff in the Pentagon, and on the staff of the Supreme Headquarters of Allied Powers in Europe. He also completed two tours of duty in Vietnam, for which he was awarded the Silver Star, five Bronze Stars, and two Purple Hearts.
Mr. Harrison holds an MA in International Relations from The American University, a Certificate in Special Studies from the Harvard Business School, and a BS from the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Sentinel Capital Partners specializes in buying and building smaller middle- market companies in the United States and Canada in partnership with management. Sentinel targets consumer products, food and restaurants, franchising, manufacturing, and service businesses. Sentinel invests in management buyouts, recapitalizations, corporate divestitures and going-private transactions of established businesses with operating profit of between $5 million and $25 million.