Our Leadership

Board of managers

Adam Cohn

Board of Managers - Co-Chairman

Prior to Co-Founding Stone Canyon, from 2000 to 2014 Mr. Cohn was a Partner at Knowledge Universe (“KU”) where he was responsible for investments, financings and business development for KU and its portfolio companies. Prior to that, Mr. Cohn was with J.H. Whitney &Co. where he was responsible for providing mezzanine financing to middle market companies and also with BT Alex Brown (and later Deutsche Bank) in New York where he advised private equity groups on leveraged buyout transactions. Mr. Cohn is also a member of the Board of Governors at Cedars Sinai Hospital and sits on its Investment Committee and serves on the Board of Trustees of Brentwood School in Los Angeles. Mr. Cohn holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business from Skidmore College and an MBA from Columbia University.

Francois Dufresne

Board of Managers

François Dufresne joined Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments) as a Senior Director, Private Equity in 2016. From 2013 to 2015, he was Vice President Corporate Development and Chief Financial Officer at Ovivo Inc., a Montréal-based company listed on the TSX that designs and delivers conventional to highly technological water treatment solutions for the industrial and municipal markets around the world. From 2002 to 2013, Mr. Dufresne was a Partner at EY in Canada. From 1997 to 2002, he was Vice-President Corporate Development at Telesystem International Wireless Inc., a Montréal-based company listed on NASDAQ that operated wireless voice and data networks in several countries around the world. Prior to that, until 1997, Mr. Dufresne spent 11 years at Arthur Andersen in Canada, the last four years as a Partner. Mr. Dufresne currently serves as a member of the board of directors of Fives SAS, a Paris-based industrial engineering group that designs and supplies machines, process equipment and production lines for various industries. He also serves as a director of Northwest Fiber, LLC (“Ziply Fiber”), a broadband internet provider over a fiber to the home network in the Pacific Northwest, based in Kirkland. Finally, he serves as a director of TeamHealth, Inc., a leading physician practice in the U.S., based in Knoxville, that offers emergency medicine, hospital medicine and others through more than 15,000 affiliated healthcare professionals. He holds a law degree (LL.B.) from Université Laval and a master’s degree in taxation (M.Fisc.) from Université de Sherbrooke.

James H. Fordyce

Board of Managers - Co-Chairman

James H. Fordyce is Co-Chairman of the Board and Co-Chief Executive Officer of Stone Canyon Industries Holdings Inc. Mr. Fordyce co-founded Stone Canyon Industries Holdings Inc. in 2019, and its predecessor company in 2014. Before founding Stone Canyon Industries Holdings, Inc., Mr. Fordyce was a senior member of J.H. Whitney Capital Partners for 18 years. Prior to joining J.H. Whitney Capital Partners, he held a variety of positions at Heller Financial and Chemical Bank. He is Chairman of the board of Mauser Packaging Solutions, Inc., a privately held company. Mr. Fordyce has helped build Mauser Packaging Solutions into one of the world’s largest rigid packaging companies with revenues over $4 billion. He was the past lead director of the board of Directors of AECOM and a member of the board of Directors of Herbalife Nutrition Ltd. and Tupperware Brands Corporation. Mr. Fordyce was Chairman of the Board of Saint John’s Health Center, a Los Angeles based Hospital. He is a director of the Unit Scholarship Fund, honoring those special operations soldiers who selflessly serve our nation and Chairman of the Board of Fallen Blue Heroes, supporting families of police officers killed in the line of duty. He is a member of the Business Executives for National Security and the Economic Club of New York. Mr. Fordyce received a B.A. from Lake Forest College and an M.B.A from Fordham University.

KEVIN KOKKO

Board of Managers

Kevin Kokko is the Head of Business Development & Investors Relations and Co-Head of Private Equity for Mubadala Capital, where he is also a member of the Mubadala Capital Investment Committee. He joined the organization in 2008. Mr. Kokko has a background in investment banking with Citigroup in Toronto and London and has previously worked for the Office of Tony Blair initially in one of Mr. Blair’s charities, Africa Governance Initiative, and subsequently in Mr. Blair’s commercial business, Tony Blair Associates, where he was a Director of Advisory and Principal Strategies. Mr. Kokko graduated from the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario with an Honors in Business Administration degree.

Michelle Lung

Board of Managers

Michelle Lung joined Ontario Teachers’ in 2014 and is a member of the Private Capital Global Funds team. She has been involved in the origination, evaluation, execution and post-investment monitoring and management of numerous fund investments. Previously, Michelle worked at PwC in both their Consulting & Deals and Audit groups. Michelle is a CPA and CBV charter holder and received a BBA degree from the University of Toronto.

Dr. Richard merkin

Board of Managers

Richard Merkin founded Heritage in 1979. Heritage was the first global risk medical group in the United States. Heritage comprises 50 medical groups, 15 urgent care centers, home health agencies, surgery-centers,and hospice care. Dr. Merkin’s innovations and research endeavors in an ever-changing healthcare environment has led to the formation of multiple public and private companies. He has been recognized by Health Leaders Media as one of the top 20 healthcare leaders in the nation, and "Fast Company Magazine" named Heritage as one of the most innovative global healthcare companies for 2012. Seeking cutting edge solutions to achieve healthier outcomes, Dr. Merkin created the $3 million Heritage Health Prize Competition,challenging entrants to create an algorithm that will predict avoidable hospitalizations The competition had 39,000 entries from 41 countries. Dr. Merkin and Heritage Provider Network also sponsor the Heritage Healthcare Innovation Awards that recognize and honor extraordinary healthcare innovations. Dr. Merkin is on the Board of Trustees at the California Institute of Technology and the Board of Overseers at the Keck School of Medicine, and the cofounder of Faster Cures. He recently developed a six country drug development program supporting the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. He has established foundations, initiatives, professorships and the Merkin Institute for Transformative Technologies in Healthcare at the Broad Institute at Harvard and MIT (stem cell research), UCLA (Nanosystem Institute and Neural Regeneration), Johns Hopkins Brain Science Institute, the Brookings Institution (Reform and Clinical Leadership for Healthcare reform), the City of Hope (Gene Therapy and Immunology), Beijing's Tsinghua University, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, University of California San Francisco, Harvard University Medical School and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

tony minella

Board of Managers

Tony Minella is Co-founder and President of Eldridge. Previously, Mr. Minella was Chief Investment Officer of Security Benefit. Prior to joining Security Benefit, he was Co-head of the Corporate Credit Group at Guggenheim Investments where he co-chaired their Investment Committee. Mr. Minella currently serves on the board of, or is actively involved with, various Eldridge businesses. He is also a member of the US Olympic & Paralympic Foundation Trustee Council. Mr. Minella received his A.B. in Economics from Bowdoin College.

Richard sandler

Board of Managers

Richard Sandler is a partner in the law offices of Maron & Sandler, specializing in business restructurings and acquisitions, securities transactions and real estate. A veteran investor, he has overseen partnership investments in securities, business transactions and various commercial and industrial real estate projects. He serves on the board of directors of a number of for profit companies that invest in real estate and in different types of securities. Mr. Sandler also serves on a number of non profit boards including the Jewish Federations of North America, the Jewish Federation Council of Greater Los Angeles, and the Milken Community Schools, all of which he previously chaired, as well as the Milken Family Foundation,, the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the Milken Institute. Mr. Sandler holds a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Berkeley and a J.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles Law School.

david syriani

Board of Managers

David Syriani is a Managing Director and Head of Private Equity Directs, at The Olayan Group, focusing on investments in North and South America. He joined the Group in 2012, and previously was as an Associate Partner for McKinsey & Company from 2004 to 2011 in London. He has also worked at the Boeing Company in Seattle, and at Credit Suisse in London and New York. In addition to serving on the Company Board, Mr. Syriani also serves on the boards of directors of Andean Tower Partners, Accurus Aerospace Corporation and AIM Aerospace Inc. Mr. Syriani holds a Masters in Aeronautical Engineering from Imperial College London, and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Stone Canyon
leadersHIP

Adam Cohn

Co-Chairman and Co-CEO

Prior to co-founding Stone Canyon Industries, Mr. Cohn was a Partner at Knowledge Universe ("KU") where he was responsible for investments, financings and business development for KU and its portfolio companies. Prior to that, Mr. Cohn was with J.H. Whitney & Co. and also with BT Alex Brown (and later Deutsche Bank) in New York where he worked in the Financial Sponsors Group. Mr. Cohn holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business from Skidmore College and a MBA from Columbia University.

James H. Fordyce

Co-Chairman and Co-CEO

Mr. Fordyce co-founded Stone Canyon Industries Holdings, Inc. in 2019, and its predecessor company in 2014, with a mission to create a global industrial holding company focused on acquiring and building market leading industrial companies with its current verticals in rail, industrial salt, and consumer ice.

He is Chairman of the board of Mauser Packaging Solutions, Inc., a privately held company. Mauser Packaging Solutions is one of the world’s largest industrial rigid packaging companies.

Before founding Stone Canyon Industries Holdings, Inc., Mr. Fordyce was a senior member of J.H. Whitney Capital Partners for 18 years. Prior to joining J.H. Whitney Capital Partners, he held a variety of positions at Heller Financial and Chemical Bank.

Mr. Fordyce is a member of the board of Directors of Tupperware Brands Corporation where he sits on the Audit and Compensation Committee. He was the past lead director of the board of Directors of AECOM and a member of the board of Directors of Herbalife Nutrition Ltd.

Mr. Fordyce is Chairman of the Board of Saint John’s Health Center, a Los Angeles based Hospital. He is a director of the Unit Scholarship Fund, honoring those special operations soldiers who selflessly serve our nation and a trustee of Saint John’s Health Center Foundation.

He is a member of the Business Executives for National Security and the Economic Club of New York.

Mr. Fordyce received a B.A. from Lake Forest College and an M.B.A from Fordham University.

Michael neumann

President

Prior to Stone Canyon Industries, from 2002-2015, Mr. Neumann was a Partner at Knowledge Universe where he was responsible for managing the firm’s control investments across various industries from inception through exit and was Chairman of the Board of the firm’s U.S. education holding company. Prior to that, Mr. Neumann worked with TCW/Crescent Mezzanine in Los Angeles and BT Alex Brown (and later Deutsche Bank) in New York where he advised private equity groups on leveraged buyout transactions. Mr. Neumann sits on the board of several private companies and non-profit organizations. Mr. Neumann holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Notre Dame.

MICHAEL C. SALVATOR

Chief Operating Officer

Prior to Stone Canyon Industries, Mr. Salvator held several senior positions, including Senior Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer at J.H. Whitney Capital Partners., where he was responsible for the oversight of the firm’s accounting, compliance, finance and investor relation functions. Additionally, Mr. Salvator was a member of the firm’s Investment Committee and served on the Board of Directors of several companies within the business services, consumer products, and specialty manufacturing industries. Mr. Salvator serves on the Board of the GPC Foundation and previously served on the City of Norwalk, CT Pension Board. He is a graduate of the University of Rhode Island, B.S. and a Certified Public Accountant (inactive).

Mark A. Weinberger

Senior Advisor

Mark has experience leading a global business, working at the highest levels of government and as an entrepreneur. Mark has a track record of driving transformative change in the public and private sectors during periods of unprecedented disruption.

Mark was the Global Chairman and CEO of EY, a leading global professional services organization with 284,000 people, operating in more than 150 countries. Mark led the organization through a purpose-fueled transformation centered on EY’s purpose of building a better working world.
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Mark’s government experience includes serving as Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Treasury (Tax Policy) in the George W. Bush Administration. Mark was also appointed by President Clinton to serve on the Social Security Administration Advisory Board. He served as a member of President Trump’s former Strategic and Policy Forum and as a member of President Obama’s Infrastructure Task Force. He also worked in the U.S. Senate.

Mark played an active role in the World Economic Forum (WEF), as a member of its International Business Council and as a Global Agenda Steward for Economic Progress. He co-chaired the Russia Foreign Investment Advisory Council (FIAC) with Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and served as Chairman of the International Business Leaders Advisory Council (IBLAC) to the Mayor of Shanghai.

He is on the Board of Directors of Johnson & Johnson and MetLife. Mark serves as a Senior Advisor to Teneo, as well as a Strategic Advisor to the Board of FCLTGlobal, which focuses on long-term investing and corporate governance. Mark is on the CEO Advisory Council of JUST Capital. He sits on the Board of Directors of the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), is a Senior Advisor to CECP and is a member of the Aspen Economic Strategy Group.

Mark also sits on the Board of Trustees for the United States Council for International Business (USCIB), the Greater Washington Partnership and The Concord Coalition. He is member of the Board of Trustees for Emory University and Case Western Reserve University.

Mark has a BA from Emory University, an MBA and JD from Case Western Reserve University and an LLM in Taxation from Georgetown University Law Center. He has an honorary doctorate from the Kogod School of Business at American University.

Andrew K. hirsch

General Counsel

Prior to Stone Canyon Industries, Mr. Hirsch worked at the law firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, where he practiced in the firm’s corporate group advising on mergers and acquisitions, capital market transactions and general corporate matters. Prior to that, Mr. Hirsch was with Ernst & Young LLP where he worked in the firm’s audit practice. Mr. Hirsch serves on the Board of Mental Health Advocacy Services and the Corporations Committee of the California Bar Association. He holds a JD from the University of Southern California and a B.S. from the University of Arizona.

sascha kaeser

Senior Vice President

Prior to Stone Canyon Industries, Mr. Kaeser was a Vice President at Knowledge Universe where he participated in the execution of leveraged buyouts, mergers and acquisitions and debt and equity financings across various industries both domestically and internationally. He graduated from the University of Western Ontario with an Honors Business Administration degree from the Richard Ivey School of Business.

shawn malleck

Senior Vice President

Prior to Stone Canyon Industries, Mr. Malleck was a Vice President at Knowledge Universe where he participated in the execution of leveraged buyouts, mergers and acquisitions and debt and equity financings across various industries both domestically and internationally. Mr. Malleck graduated with Distinction from the University of Western Ontario with an Honors Business Administration degree from the Richard Ivey School of Business.

michael gardner

Vice President

Prior to Stone Canyon Industries, Mr. Gardner was an associate in Houlihan Lokey’s Financial Restructuring Group where he helped structure in-court and out-of-court restructuring transactions. Prior to joining Houlihan Lokey, Mr. Gardner facilitated the launch of a high-yield bond strategy at Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management, where he served as a junior portfolio manager and credit analyst. Mr. Gardner holds a MBA with high honors from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a B.A. in Economics from The University of Texas at Austin.

Kyle Henderson

Vice President

Prior to Stone Canyon Industries, Mr. Henderson was an Investment Banking Analyst at Guggenheim Partners where he participated in the execution of leveraged buyouts, mergers and acquisitions, activist defense campaigns, and debt and equity financings in the consumer & retail industry both domestically and internationally. Mr. Henderson graduated from the University of Southern California with Business Administration and Accounting degrees from the Marshall School of Business and the Leventhal School of Accounting.

Dustin Ross

Vice President

Prior to Stone Canyon Industries, Mr. Ross was an Investment Banking Analyst at Macquarie Capital where he participated in the execution of leveraged buyouts and mergers and acquisitions in the industrials sector both domestically and internationally. Mr. Ross holds a B.A. in Economics from Yale University.

STONE CANYON
ADVISORY BOARD

DIANA CANTOR

Advisory Board Member

Diana Cantor is a Partner and a member of the Investment Committee and the Board of Managers of Alternative Asset Management, LLC. Previously, Ms. Cantor was a Managing Director of New York Private Bank & Trust and served as the founding Executive Director of the state agency that administers Virginia’s Section 529 college savings plans. She also held the position of VP at Goldman, Sachs & Co. in New York, serving as Chief Administrator of the firm’s leveraged buyout and internal investment funds and merchant banking/principal investment operations. Ms. Cantor serves as a director on numerous company boards. She is a CPA and holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Florida, a MBA from the University of Miami, and a JD from New York University.

AMBASSADOR HENRY A. CRUMPTON

Advisory Board Member

Ambassador Henry A. Crumpton is the founder and CEO of Crumpton Group (CG) LLC, an international research/advisory and business development firm. Established in 2008, CG serves the Fortune 500 leadership and the global business elite. He is also the CEO of Crumpton Ventures, with investments in telecommunications, cyber-security, training/education, and robotics with an emphasis on unmanned aerial systems. Ambassador Crumpton is the CEO of Aardwolf Creative LLC, a TV/film production company, including a joint venture with STX Entertainment. He served as an independent director of Argan Inc. (NYSE: AGX) for eight years. He was on the advisory boards of AECOM, DC Capital Partners, and The Coca Cola Company. A 24-year veteran of the CIA’s Clandestine Service, he operated in the foreign field, including tours as Chief of Station, for most of his career. From 2003-2005 he was the Chief of the CIA’s National Resource Division, responsible for all Clandestine Service operations in the United States. In 2005 President George W. Bush appointed him the U.S. Coordinator for Counterterrorism. Ambassador Crumpton is the author of the New York Times bestseller, The Art of Intelligence. A graduate of the University of New Mexico and Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, he is a member of the Council of Foreign Relations and the OSS Society.

ROBERT L. EDWARDS

Advisory Board Member

Robert L. Edwards is the former President and CEO of Albertsons/Safeway. He previously held several other executive-level positions with Safeway Inc., including President, CEO, CFO, and EVP. Prior to joining Safeway, Mr. Edwards served as a senior executive at Maxtor Corporation, Imation Corporation and Santa Fe Pacific Corporation. He serves as a Director of KKR Financial Holdings, LLC and of Blackhawk Network Holdings, Inc., a subsidiary of Safeway Inc. Mr. Edwards holds a MBA and a B.S. in Accounting from Brigham Young University.

JON FELTHEIMER

Advisory Board Member

Jon Feltheimer is the CEO of Lionsgate Entertainment, a position that he has held since 2000. During his tenure, the Company has evolved into a next generation global content leader noted for its innovation. Lionsgate’s market capitalization has grown from $80 million in 2000 to more than $5 billion today, and its revenue has increased more than 20 times over. Mr. Feltheimer has also held leadership positions at Sony Pictures Entertainment and New World Entertainment and has been responsible for tens of thousands of hours of television programming and hundreds of films, including the global blockbuster Hunger Games franchise and multiple Academy Award winners La La Land, Crash, Monster’s Ball and Precious.

DR. RAY R. IRANI

Advisory Board Member

Dr. Ray R. Irani is the Chairman and CEO of Ray Investments, LLC, a privately held investment company. Prior to the formation of Ray Investments, LLC, Dr. Irani served as Executive Chairman of Occidental Petroleum Corporation. Dr. Irani is a member of The Conference Board and The Council on Foreign Relations. Dr. Irani is a Life Trustee of the University of Southern California and a Trustee Emeritus of the American University of Beirut. Dr. Irani holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from the American University of Beirut and a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from the University of Southern California.

KENNETH M. SIMriL

Advisory Board Member

Ken Simril is President and Chief Executive Officer of Fleischmann’s Ingredients, a leading manufacturer of liquid, natural specialty ingredients based in Los Angeles, California. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Petroleum Engineering from the University of Southern California Viterbi School of Engineering and MBA from Harvard Business School. Mr. Simril has an established record of successful venture development, with a career that spans multinationals, start-ups and private-equity backed ventures. His domestic and international experience includes technology, manufacturing and financial services companies. He has more than 20 years of experience as a senior-level executive in planning, building and leading startup ventures, including billion dollar initiatives with various multi-national corporations such as Exxon Mobil and Level 3 Communications. Mr. Simril is proud to have served on the California Legislative Blue Ribbon Commission on Autism, the Board of the Los Angeles City Employee’s Retirement System (LACERS) and as a former Board of Investments Trustee for the $50 billion Los Angeles County Employee’s Retirement Association (LACERA). He currently serves as an independent director for Capital Research and Management Company’s Growth funds, a $250 billion series of investment portfolios designed to provide long-term growth of capital and income. In addition, Mr. Simril is a member of the USC Board of Councilors at the Viterbi School of Engineering and actively engaged in the mentoring of students pursuing careers in engineering, private equity and venture capital.

DOUGLAS W. STOTLAR

Advisory Board Member

Douglas W. Stotlar was President and CEO of Con-way Inc. (NYSE:CNW) until October 2015, when the company was acquired by XPO Logistics. He previously served as President and CEO of Con-Way Transportation Services, Inc. and also directed the company’s non-asset-based business units. Mr. Stotlar has held executive positions at the American Trucking Associations (ATA), American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI), Transportation Research Board (TRB) and The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. He currently serves on the board of directors for AECOM, Reliance Steel and Aluminum Co., and LSC Communications Inc. Mr. Stotlar earned his bachelor’s degree in transportation and logistics from The Ohio State University.

B. KEVIN TURNER

Advisory Board Member

Kevin Turner is currently the CEO and President of CoreScientific an innovative AI and Blockchain infrastructure and hosting company based in Bellevue WA. Kevin is the former Chief Operating Officer of Microsoft, the worldwide leader in software, services, devices and solutions, a position he held from September 2005 to July 2016. While COO, Mr. Turner led the company’s global sales, marketing and services organization of 55,000+ employees in more than 190 countries. Focused on achieving a strong track record of results, execution excellence and improved efficiency, he drove the customer satisfaction scores to the highest in company history. Prior to joining Microsoft, Mr. Turner spent nearly 20 years at Wal-Mart Stores, where he rose through the ranks to become the youngest corporate officer in Wal-Mart’s history, at the age of 29. From 2000 to 2002, he was the Chief Information Officer, Wal-Mart Stores, and on his last assignment he served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of SAM'S CLUB, a $57 billion division of Wal-Mart Stores. With more than 30 years of business experience, he started Forward Progress Ventures LLC in 2017, focusing on strategic Private Equity and Venture Capital work and investing. He currently serves as the Vice Chairman of the Board and Senior Advisor to the CEO, Albertsons Companies, one of the largest food and drug retailers in the United States, as well as Chair of the Technology committee and Finance committee for Nordstrom Inc. Mr. Turner holds a B.S. in Management from East Central University and became a Distinguished Alumnus in 2003.

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