Daily Archives: November 20, 2012

It will be interesting to see whether there’s a chief operating officer in the Filner leadership structure, a la Jay Goldstone, the current COO.

Filner tried to woo Walt Ekard, the retiring chief administrative officer at San Diego County, for that role. But it didn’t work out.

As Ekard said at his retirement party Thursday, politicians matter less than who they decide to hire.

• Stay tuned. As we noted this week, Filner’s got an extremely short time period to make a major transition. Something that the framers of our newest charter admit they never really thought through.

Most other cities with strong-mayor forms of government give new mayors much more time to make the transition, as they are taking over executive leadership of massive organizations.

What That Toy Scam Lawsuit Won’t Fix

This week, City Attorney Jan Goldsmith and District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis announced they’d won a settlement from a toy company that deceptively marketed a Disney Princess jewelry-making kit to young girls.

Our Sara Libby applauds the move in a new column, but notes that the toy has another problem — one only the market can fix — that we can do better by our young girls by not force-feeding them princess garb: “The whole episode is also a chance to teach girls that the real world means working hard and being discerning with your money, even if it doesn’t always work out.”

Vargas Hits D.C. With K-Street Fundraiser

Politico called out Filner’s replacement in Congress, Juan Vargas, Friday. Seems not even a month after his election, Vargas is hitting up the lobbyists on K Street for a fundraiser.

Friday, San Diego’s other new congressman, Scott Peters, finally got the concession call from Rep. Brian Bilbray. Peters’ lead kept widening and Bilbray finally decided it wasn’t going to change.

We explained what was taking so long as the registrar counted ballots.

What We Learned This Week

• Voice of San Diego reporter Lisa Halverstadt went on KPBS TV and radio Friday to discuss her explainer of the stench wafting out of the La Jolla Cove that is driving La Jolla merchants and some residents crazy.

Full disclosure, Halverstadt had to turn on the empathy engine because she has a crucial disability that is interesting when covering a story like this: The woman can’t smell.

As Halverstadt explained, the bluffs were previously roped off, which kept visitors from disturbing the fowl.

But this allowed cormorants, gulls and their guano to gather and now the odor is driving away folks who might otherwise dine in nearby restaurants or recreate. Councilwoman Sherri Lightner and others are pleading for help but unable to figure out how to navigate the environmental protections that prohibit them from just washing it off.

• San Diego, finally free from another tense election season, has found out that it will need to host a special election to replace Council President Tony Young. He let it be known he was on his way to a much more lucrative job running the local Red Cross.

• One of the guys who might replace Young, Barry Pollard, had one of our Top 5 comments of the week this week. No, he did not confirm or deny that he’s running. KPBS says he’s thinking about it, though.

• I got a ton of response from my attempt to briefly explain the huge water deal the San Diego County Water Authority is marching toward. It may agree to buy many many years’ worth of desalinated water from a private company. I’d like to pull together some follow-ups. What’s your take?

• Remember when that cynical political consultant got offended by a supposedly cynical political consultant?

• On June 30, in City Heights, gunmen unloaded 40 rounds and killed 18-year-old Rickquese McCoy. It was a startling burst of violence during a year when homicides are on the uptick. And it has spurred the neighborhood into action. Megan Burks explained how.

• Southwestern College’s journalism students have always gotten attention nationwide and they just received the prestigious Pacemaker Award by the Associated Collegiate Press. Congrats, folks.

Response to Prop. 37 Diss

Jed Sundwall got loads of responses to his take on Proposition 37, why he didn’t vote for it and why propositions are a waste in general. We pulled one of the most thoughtful, from Debby Zygielbaum, out as a full letter.

Quick Hits

• The city has chosen a bike-sharing contractor, which leaders say will not cost the city anything but the space they take up.

Andrew Donohue looked into this last month.

Quote of the Week

“My guess would be that it’s disgusting and it’s bothersome and it might even burn the eyes but it’s probably not exerting adverse health risks.”

— Rick Gersberg, a microbiologist, discussing the stench wafting out of La Jolla Cove

Peter Liguori, a former top executive at News Corp. and Discovery Communications, is expected to be named as the new chief executive of Tribune Co., parent of the Los Angeles Times and KTLA-TV Los Angeles, after the company emerges from bankruptcy, a person familiar with the matter said.

An official announcement of Liguori’s hiring is not expected until after Tribune emerges from bankruptcy and formally names a new board of directors. A big step in that direction occurred Friday when the Federal Communications Commission approved a transfer of the Tribune broadcast licenses to Oaktree Capital Management; Angelo, Gordon & Co.; and JPMorgan Chase & Co., the soon-to-be owners of the media conglomerate.

Liguori would succeed Eddy Hartenstein as chief executive. A spokesman for Tribune Co. declined to comment.

Besides the Los Angeles Times and KTLA, Tribune owns 22 other television stations, including valuable outlets in New York, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.; other newspapers in the Tribune portfolio include the Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun and Orlando Sentinel. The TV stations are considered the most valuable part of the company. The company has been in bankruptcy for almost four years.

Liguori, 52, is currently an advisor to the private equity firm Carlyle Group. Before that, he spent much of his career in television programming and marketing – including serving as chief operating officer of the cable programming giant Discovery Communications. He has also held senior programming positions at News Corp.’s Fox Broadcasting and FX networks. Liguori, who got his start in advertising, is also on the board of Yahoo.

While Liguori has a strong background in programming and marketing, he has little direct experience in the day-to-day operations of newspapers and television stations, which are Tribune’s primary assets. The company also has a stake in the Food Network cable channel.

Liguori will face myriad challenges reshaping Tribune and its traditional media properties for the digital age. He will also have to balance the agendas of three owners who may have differing priorities with regards to running the company and exit strategies.

There is already speculation that the new owners of Tribune will look to sell the newspapers. The buyer most often mentioned is Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. Murdoch has long had an interest in the Los Angeles Times and would like to buy both The Times and the Chicago Tribune, according to people familiar with Murdoch’s plans. The two newspapers would complement News Corp.’s current holdings, which include the Wall Street Journal and New York Post.

Oaktree and Angelo, Gordon bought up the distressed company’s debt while JPMorgan was the lead lender for the leveraged buyout in 2007 that installed Chicago real estate magnate Sam Zell as the head of the company. But within a year, the ad market collapsed and Tribune found itself in Chapter 11 proceedings unable to meet its debt obligations. Oaktree will be the largest shareholder in Tribune, with about 20% of the equity. Both Angelo, Gordon and JPMorgan have about a 10% stake.

Andy Gundlach, who owns 18 Anytime Fitness clubs in the Madison area, started his professional career at Pizza Hut. That appears to prove that someone who loves pizza can still be fit.

“I worked at Pizza Hut for 13 years,” Gundlach said. “I couldn’t do that without having a passion for pizza. I eat fairly healthy the majority of the time, but I love to go out to eat on the weekend, eat some good food, and have a glass a wine or a couple of beers. Living a healthy life doesn’t mean depriving yourself of things you enjoy.”

Most of the time, that just leads to short-term success, he said.

Q: Did you get into fitness because you loved working out or because it was a good business opportunity?

A: Both. My passion and main hobby in life has been health and fitness since I was 18 years old, so I began my search of businesses to get into around the fitness industry. Once I started researching the potential growth rate and the business model, I got even more excited. It is true what they say — do what you love first, and the opportunities will come.

Q: How did you get into the business of fitness?

A: I worked at Pizza Hut of Southern Wisconsin for 13 years, working my way up to director of operations, so I learned from a great organization how to run a business, specifically a franchise.

I began to get the itch to branch out on my own, and naturally started looking towards the fitness industry, as I wanted to do something that I was passionate about.

One day in 2005, I was driving through Belvidere, Ill., and I drove by an Anytime Fitness, and I had remembered seeing it online as a growing franchise company.

I stopped and walked in, and my jaw hit the floor. The club was beautiful and loaded with great equipment. I knew right then and there that Anytime Fitness was going to be huge, so I made a call to the company that same day.

About a year later, I opened the first club in southern Wisconsin, and only the sixth in the state. Now there are over 40 clubs in southern Wisconsin, and over 100 in the state.

Q: How did you come to own so many?

A: When I bought into the franchise, I originally only purchased one territory. As soon as I opened my doors to my first club, other people started inquiring about how to get into the franchise.

Also, nationally, in 2006 and 2007, Anytime Fitness began exploding worldwide.

I knew that if I wanted to grow locally, I had to make a move, so I purchased the rights to the rest of Dane County and planned to open eight more clubs. My staff helped me do it about two years faster than I originally planned.

Once those clubs were open and we had a great team in place, we started to look outside of Dane County for territories that were close by so we could easily manage them and provide more opportunities for growth for our staff.

To this day, all 18 of my clubs, including two currently under construction in Mount Horeb and Sauk Prairie, are within 45 minutes of Madison.

Q: Is there ever a day when you personally just don’t want to get out of bed and work out?

A: Of course. But there has never been a day in my life when I made myself work out and regretted it. I always feel great once I get done with a workout. I also have a great personal trainer, Isaiah Southward, who is an excellent trainer and motivator. A great book I recommend anybody read, especially people who don’t enjoy working out or don’t always feel motivated, is called “Working Out Sucks” by Chuck Runyon, the founder of Anytime Fitness.

Q: Has the economy been a downer for your business? Or does it make people feel better about their economic woes when they exercise?

A: I believe it has actually helped my business for a number of reasons. On a pure economic level, chances are you have an Anytime Fitness club within just a few minutes of where you live, saving people gas and drive time. Our model also does not offer swimming pools, day care, basketball, and the like, so we can charge less than larger health clubs. And on a personal level, working out is one of the best stress relievers you can do.

Q: What best prepared you for running fitness operations?

A: The 13 years I spent at Pizza Hut of Southern Wisconsin was by far the No. 1 aspect that helped prepare me to run my own business. Jim Williams, chief operating officer of Pizza Hut of Southern Wisconsin, still is my mentor to this day. He taught me that your main focus always needs to be on your customer and your employees. I have mirrored my operations and training programs after what I learned there.

Q: What do you do for fun?

A: Besides working out, I love to travel. I have begun seeing more of the world the past couple years, and I am hooked.

Q: Has the business changed a lot since you started acquiring fitness clubs?

A: It is getting much more competitive with different concepts opening up all the time, and although it makes the business end more difficult, I believe it is actually a good thing. Working out is an individual thing, and the more options people have, the healthier our area is going to become. Each person needs to find what is right for them.

The following is an excerpt from a report compiled by Michael Pachter of Wedbush Securities.

Zynga (NASDAQ:ZNGA) once again announced several management changes.  The company’s executive suite is quite different from the one that comprised its management team when it went public late last year.  While we were exceedingly critical of the departure of former COO John Schappert in July, our views are more positive on the latest round of changes.  With the exception of the departure of CFO David Wehner (who we believe was a capable executive, notwithstanding several guidance missteps), we think that the majority of the new appointments strengthen the company’s management team.

Chief Financial Officer David Wehner resigned to take a senior finance position at Facebook (NASDAQ:FB), and several other executives were appointed to more senior positions. Zynga announced that Mark Vranesh, Chief Accounting Officer, would take Mr. Wehner’s position as CFO. Mr. Vranesh was CFO of Zynga from 2008 – 2010, and previously held senior financial positions at Fortinet and Support.com. Additionally, David Ko was promoted to Chief Operations Officer from his previous role as Chief Mobile Officer. In this role, Mr. Ko will oversee strategy planning, international, infrastructure, and operations. Barry Cottle was promoted to Chief Revenue Officer from his previous role as Executive Vice President, Business and Corporate Development. In his new role, Mr. Cottle will continue to oversee corporate and business development, and has the added responsibility of overseeing distribution, strategic partnerships, advertising sales and operations, publishing, and real money gaming. Finally, Steven Chiang has been promoted to President of Games from his previous role as Executive Vice President of Games. In his new role, Mr. Chiang will oversee all games and new IP development on both web and mobile platforms.

In our Q3:12 review note for Zynga, we listed key recent departures from the company. These departures include (with former positions at Zynga in parentheses): Erik Bethke (General Manager of Mafia Wars 2), Brian Birtwistle (Vice President, Marketing), Ya-Bing Chu (Vice President of Mobile), Jeff Karp (Chief Marketing and Revenue Officer), Allan Leinwand (Chief Technology Officer – Infrastructure), Bill Mooney (Studio Vice President at Zynga Game Network), Alan  Patmore (Studio General Manager of CityVille), Nils Puhlmann (Chief Security Officer), John Schappert (Chief Operating Officer and Director), Jeremy Strauser (Studio General Manager of Zynga Elite Slots  and Zynga Bingo), Laurence Toney (General Manager of Zynga Poker), and Mike Verdu (Chief Creative Officer).

Along with its announcement, Zynga reaffirmed its prior guidance. Zynga reaffirmed FY:12 guidance for bookings of $1.09 – 1.1 billion, adjusted EBITDA of $152 – 162 million, and non-GAAP EPS of $0.02 – 0.03.

We believe that Mr. Vranesh is a capable CFO, and believe that the promotions of Messrs. Ko, Cottle and Chiang strengthen a management team that, quite frankly, was in need of reinforcement.  Zynga has had serious credibility issues with investors, and although we respected Mr. Wehner, he had a tough uphill battle to restore investor confidence.  We are hopeful that Mr. Vranesh will communicate clearly and frequently, and we are confident in the other three executives’ abilities.  All are accomplished video game industry veterans, and we are hopeful that with its new management team in place, Zynga will begin to earn investor confidence.

Maintaining our OUTPERFORM rating and our 12-month price target of $4. Our price target reflects 2x cash and real estate of $2/share. Despite the cost cuts outlined over the past two days and the new share repurchase program, we expect Zynga shares to remain somewhat constrained over the next few quarters until management and investors can judge the success of the turnaround plan.

Risks to the attainment of our share price target include changes to game release timing, decreasing interest in Facebook and other social networks among the general public, changes to the terms or economics of its Facebook agreements, the inability to create popular mobile games, increased competition from other social gaming companies and the traditional video game publishers, greater-than-expected consumer demand for video game hardware and single purchase software, and changing macroeconomic factors.

Michael Pachter is an analyst at Wedbush Securities.

The company made the announcement Friday. Here is the press release.

Anthony J. Vallillo, who launched his career at The United Illuminating Company as an assistant engineer 44 years ago, has announced he will retire as the company’s president and chief operating officer, effective December 31, 2012.

Vallillo choose to postpone the planned announcement until the Company completed restoration efforts during Hurricane Sandy and the Nor’easter of 2012. He felt it was important to lend his help in one of the largest restoration effects in UI’s history.

Vallillo also will leave his role as executive vice president of UI’s parent company, UIL Holdings Corporation (NYSE: UIL). James P. Torgerson, UIL’s chief executive officer, will assume the position of UI’s president after Vallillo’s retirement takes effect.

“Tony’s long and remarkable tenure at UI, spanning many positions at various career levels, has made him a tremendous asset and leader for our companies,” said Torgerson. “His vision, passion and commitment are unmatched. Tony has always shown an uncanny ability to remedy challenges and offer strategic insight that has helped fortify excellence in our organization. ”

Vallillo, who is currently one of the longest-tenured employees at UIL, began his UI career in 1968 as an assistant engineer. He was immediately recognized for his determination and drive. Over the course of the subsequent decades, he held positions in the areas of operations, engineering, production, marketing, client services, sales and marketing. He became UI’s president in 2001.

Vallillo has been credited with starting many of the programs, policies and practices that are in place at the company today. He also oversaw several major developments in the company’s history, including the divestment of its power plants as a result of deregulation, and integral in the integration of three natural gas utilities as a result of UIL’s 2010 acquisition of The Southern Connecticut Gas Company, Connecticut Natural Gas Company and Berkshire Gas Company.

“It’s not often you find a person as dynamic as Tony,” added Torgerson.  “Not only has he been extremely active within UIL and instrumental in the growth and development of UI, Tony has also been a tireless civic leader in the community.”

Vallillo has served on numerous boards of directors over the years, including most recently St. Vincent Health Services, Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce, Fairfield University School of Engineering and Connecticut Business and Industry Association, among others.

“I have had an incredibly rewarding and gratifying career and will undoubtedly miss our UIL family,” said Vallillo. “After 44 years in this business, I look forward to experiencing the next phase of my journey. While I’m somewhat uncertain what I’m going to feel like or even do that first day of retirement, I do look forward to finding out.”

TORONTO, Nov. 16, 2012 — /CNW/ – Sears Canada Inc. (TSX: SCC) announced that Douglas C. Campbell has been appointed Executive Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company effective today. In his new role, Mr. Campbell will oversee retail operations, logistics, replenishment, information technology and international sourcing, and lead the Company’s undertaking to improve efficiency across the enterprise.

Mr. Campbell joined Sears Canada in March, 2011 and was most recently Executive Vice-President, Home and Hardlines, which includes the key Sears categories of Major Appliances and Mattresses.  Prior to joining Sears, Mr. Campbell was a Principal with Boston Consulting Group, an organization he joined in 2005 and with which he led turnaround projects with major corporations in the sectors of retail, manufacturing, packaged foods, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals.

Mr. Campbell was born in Redwood City, California, the son of a naval officer, and grew up near Washington, D.C.  He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy with a Bachelor of Science in Economics – with Honors in 1994.  He was commissioned an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps and pursued a career as a Naval Aviator, where his personal decorations include the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal and two Air Medals awarded for service in combat operations.

In 2005, Mr. Campbell earned a Masters of Business Administration with a concentration in Finance from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.  He and his wife, Margie, have four boys.

“We are pleased that Doug will take on this major leadership role at Sears Canada,” said Calvin McDonald, President and Chief Executive Officer, Sears Canada.  “Doug has already demonstrated leadership and success in executing strategies that are key to the success of our Transformation, specifically in our hero categories of Major Appliances and Mattresses, and I look forward to being able to have Doug’s skill, expertise and approach to business more broadly extended across the organization.”

Sears Canada is a multi-channel retailer with a network that includes 195 corporate stores, 269 hometown dealer stores, 8 home services showrooms, over 1,500 catalogue and online merchandise pick-up locations, 102 Sears Travel offices and a nationwide home maintenance, repair, and installation network. The Company also publishes Canada’s most extensive general merchandise catalogue and offers shopping online at www.sears.ca.

Tribune Co. gets FCC waivers on media ownership; emergence from bankruptcy advances

When Tribune Co. emerges from bankruptcy, the new owners plan to name television executive Peter Liguori as the company’s chief executive, according to sources familiar with the situation.

Liguori is a former top TV executive at Fox and Discovery. The decision to name him Tribune Co.’s CEO would end months of speculation and usher in a new era for the Chicago-based media company, which owns newspapers, including the Chicago Tribune, and television stations.

The Federal Communications Commission on Friday signed off on waivers needed to transfer Tribune Co.’s broadcast properties to the new ownership, the final significant hurdle before the company can emerge from its long-running stay in Chapter 11.

While a date for emergence is not set, the new ownership group controlled by senior creditors Oaktree Capital Management, Angelo, Gordon & Co. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. will likely take the reins by the end of the year. An initial step for the owners will be to appoint a board of directors. It will have final say on who becomes CEO, but sources say the owners have chosen Liguori.

“The decision has been made,” one of the sources said.

Los Angeles Times Publisher Eddy Hartenstein has been CEO of Tribune Co. since May 2011. A Tribune Co. spokesman declined to comment.

A former advertising executive who transitioned into television more than two decades ago, Liguori, 52, is credited with turning cable channel FX into a programming powerhouse during his ascent to entertainment chief at News Corp.’s Fox Broadcasting. More recently, he served as chief operating officer at Discovery Communications Inc., where he helped oversee the rocky launch of the Oprah Winfrey Network.

Liguori is considered by some observers to be a good fit for Tribune Co. and its new owners. While the company’s identity is closely connected to publishing, broadcasting is now the headline business and core profit center. One of Liguori’s main jobs will be to help maximize TV ratings, advertising dollars and increasingly important affiliate fees for WGN America and Tribune Co.’s 23 local stations, according to industry insiders.

Liguori “is a very, very smart hire for Oaktree and the guys that run the company because I think what Tribune needs more than anything is somebody to kind of build the brands back and make it a true media company, as opposed to just a collection of businesses,” said Jeff Shell, London-based president of NBCUniversal International, who worked with Liguori for six years at Fox beginning in 1996. Shell, whose name had once been floated as a candidate for Tribune Co. CEO, spoke recently about his former colleague’s potential value as head of Tribune Co.

Liguori is also expected to address the fundamental question of whether Tribune Co. should retain its ownership of newspapers or divest them to focus on the healthier TV business. Revenues for newspapers have been halved in recent years as readership migrates to the digital world.

Liguori, who could not be reached for comment, became president of Fox’s FX Networks in 1998, when it was a small basic cable channel airing reruns of everything from “M.A.S.H.” to “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” Elevated to CEO in 2001, he remade FX by offering edgy original programming. Starting with “The Shield” in 2002, Liguori then rolled out “Nip/Tuck” and “Rescue Me,” creating first-run successes that redefined FX, and perhaps basic cable, in the process.
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“FX was a channel when he took over — a little, tiny cable channel losing a bunch of money,” Shell said. “He made it into something big by imagining something different, and I think that’s what Tribune needs.”

Liguori became president of entertainment for Fox Broadcasting Co. in 2005, where he headed up program development and marketing. Squeezed out in 2009, he then joined Discovery as chief operating officer, where one of his responsibilities was to oversee the nascent joint venture with OWN.

In May 2011, Liguori assumed the dual role as interim CEO of OWN after inaugural head Christina Norman was forced out at the struggling network. That added responsibility evaporated two months later when Winfrey made herself CEO of OWN. Liguori left Discovery in December, and the company eliminated his chief operating officer position.

Liguori has been working since July as a New York-based media consultant for private equity firm Carlyle Group. He is on the boards of Yahoo Inc., MGM Holdings Inc. and Topps Co.

Tribune Co. has been operating under bankruptcy court protection for nearly four years, having buckled under the $13 billion in total debt it took on after its 2007 buyout. The case was prolonged by a drawn-out battle for control among creditors.

With the court having resolved the major ownership questions, the FCC’s decision to grant waivers was the last major piece of the puzzle to come together.

The FCC issued the waivers of its so-called cross-ownership rules for Tribune Co. in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, South Florida and Hartford, Conn., where it owns TV stations and newspapers. In Chicago, the company’s properties include WGN-Ch. 9.

Getting the waivers “will enable the company to continue moving forward toward emergence from Chapter 11, a process we expect to complete over the course of the next several weeks,” Hartenstein, Tribune Co.’s CEO, said in a statement.

BUDAPEST: Will Harrison, whose previous stints include Disney, Time Warner and A&E Television Networks, has been tapped to fill the new post of COO at HBO Europe. Globo International. ADVERTISEMENT. Harrison will take on the new role as of January …

Ava Parker, who has served on the State University System Board of Governors for 10 years, will start Dec. 1.

LAKELAND | A Jacksonville lawyer who has served on the State University System Board of Governors for 10 years has been tagged to take over as interim chief operating officer of Florida Polytechnic University.

Ava L. Parker, president of Linking Solutions Inc. and a practicing lawyer at Lawrence & Parker P.A., will resign from her board position to take over the new university. She will start Dec. 1 and hold the position for a term of two years.

Tim Campbell, a lawyer who is consulting for the university, said Parker’s employment agreement terms had not been negotiated yet.

Robert Gidel, chairman of the Florida Poly board, had been authorized by the board to interview job candidates and make a decision. He told the board at its Monday meeting that he was delighted to announce he had convinced Parker to take on the daunting task of heading the university.

Moments later, she walked into the room. And within minutes, board members were asking her questions and presenting work for her to address.

She said after the meeting she’s ready for the job.

“I know that this is a huge undertaking,” she said.

“But it is also very exciting. I think it’s a wonderful opportunity to work with a new university.”

Parker is familiar with the background of the polytechnic.

She was serving as chair of the Board of Governors when it voted to allow the university to separate from the University of South Florida if certain benchmarks were followed. That was Nov. 9, 2011.

Still, the job of heading the university will certainly bring forth new challenges, board members said.

They said they hoped to hire someone who could face head-on the difficulties the situation presents, and Gidel said Parker is the one for the job.

The board said Parker will be charged with helping to shape the institution’s mission and vision, oversee the ongoing development of the new campus, hire key staff, and ensure that the institution stays on track to academic accreditation as it recruits its first students.

“As we started to think about the interim leader of the polytechnic, it became clear that we needed someone not only with a background in higher education, but with real-world savvy to help us communicate our vision to the many, varied stakeholders interested in ­seeing this university succeed,” Gidel said in a statement released after the meeting.

“Ava Parker is the right person for the job. We are excited she agreed to take on this challenge.”

David Touchton, a Lakeland businessman who served as interim chancellor at USF Poly during its turbulent final days, said Gidel’s choice was spot-on. “I think it’s a very, very wise move on his part,” Touchton said. “She has a proven track record on education, and when I watched her run one of the BOG meetings she was very much in command of the meeting. They have someone there now who has a leg up on understanding the university system. I think it’s a big win.”

Parker also serves on the Jacksonville Transportation Authority and has previously served on the University of Central Florida Board of Trustees. She received her bachelor’s and law degrees from the University of Florida.

“A trend in higher education is appointing lawyers as presidents,” said Preston Mercer, a USF professor who once headed the USF Lakeland campus. “Ms. Parker is certainly prominent in Florida education, chairing the FBOG recently. I wish her the best.”

Board members are new to the task of setting up the polytechnic as well. Created in an unusual way when the Legislature approved its formation, the university is developing initial steps as they crop up.

Gidel said it’s been a tremendous learning experience for everyone involved, but he’s optimistic about the future. “This is great,” he said about Parker accepting the job. “She’s fantastic.”

He joked that he probably didn’t work as hard to convince his wife to marry him as he did when meeting repeatedly with Parker about the position.

She said she’s glad to be part of the excitement the new university presents. “It’s such an opportunity to do something different than has ever been done before,” she said.

ORLANDO, Fla. — Darden Restaurants Chief Marketing Officer JJ Buettgen has resigned to become president and CEO of Ruby Tuesday Inc.

Buettgen will take on his roles at Ruby Tuesday on Dec. 1. He takes over from Ruby Tuesday founder Sandy Beall, whose retirement was previously announced.

“We understand and respect JJ’s desire to lead an organization and we wish him well in his new endeavor,” Darden President and Chief Operating Officer Drew Madsen said in a statement. Darden Restaurants Inc. owns and runs more than 2,000 restaurants, including the Olive Garden and Red Lobster chains.

Madsen said Monday that the Darden’s enterprise marketing will report to him until a new chief marketing officer is appointed.

Shares of the Orlando, Fla., company gained 88 cents to $51.80 in morning trading.

Ruby Tuesday also said Monday that it named board member Matthew Drapkin as chairman, succeeding Beall.

It has Ruby Tuesday restaurants in 45 states, the District of Columbia, 12 foreign countries, and Guam. There were 712 company-owned and operated Ruby Tuesday restaurants and 78 franchised locations as of Sept. 4.

Shares of Ruby Tuesday, based in Maryville, Tenn., gained 17 cents, or 2.4 percent, to $7.40.