Former Emerson EVP Craig Ashmore Brings Unique Seller’s Perspective to Platinum Equity’s Buy-Side Efforts

LOS ANGELES, CA, June 10, 2014. Former Emerson Executive Vice President Craig Ashmore, who joined Platinum Equity earlier this year in a senior business development role focused on sourcing new acquisition opportunities, today sits on the other side of the table from where he once sat during a 22-year career as an executive and corporate dealmaker. 

He spends much of his time meeting with executives at other large, global companies who are wrestling with the same challenges he once faced as part of the leadership team at Emerson, a $25 billion global manufacturing and technology company. 

“I know what corporate sellers are going through, trying to manage their portfolios and maximize shareholder value, all while balancing myriad internal and external pressures,” said Mr. Ashmore. “More importantly, and I’m speaking from personal experience, I know how Platinum Equity can help.”

Mr. Ashmore most recently served as executive vice president for planning and development at Emerson. In that role he had responsibility for Emerson's M&A, strategic planning and corporate technology functions as well as Emerson Network Power's connectivity solutions business. He led the sale of a controlling stake in Emerson’s Embedded Computing and Power (EC&P) business to Platinum Equity in November 2013.

 “Craig has been a great addition to our team and has sharpened our focus on partnering and transacting with the top companies in the world,” said Platinum Equity Chairman and CEO Tom Gores. “His experience in M&A and as a business leader has made us even stronger as we forge ahead executing our global strategy.”

For the last five years Mr. Ashmore was a member of Emerson's Office of the Chief Executive, the company's top management team that sets global strategy and has overall operational and financial responsibility for the company. As head of Emerson’s M&A organization Mr. Ashmore evaluated more than 500 potential acquisitions, executing 58 buy-side transactions with an aggregate cost of approximately $6.6 billion. He also led the sale of 26 operating units with combined revenue of approximately $2 billion. 

Mr. Ashmore, who joined Platinum Equity as a Principal, said he was especially attracted to the opportunity having gotten to know the firm well through the EC&P sale.

“Platinum Equity has an extraordinary track record of working with corporate sellers to forge creative divestiture solutions,” said Mr. Ashmore. “Having sat across the table from Platinum Equity as a seller myself, I witnessed firsthand the value of their approach and their unyielding determination to get things done.”

Jacob Kotzubei, the partner at Platinum Equity who led the EC&P acquisition, said Mr. Ashmore has further solidified Platinum Equity as a partner of choice for corporate sellers.

“The corporate divestiture market has always been a strong source of deal flow for us as sellers look for real operators they can trust, who will do right by the assets being sold, and who will execute with minimal disruption,” said Mr. Kotzubei. “Very few private equity firms have the combination of experience, track record and operational resources necessary to excel in this space. Adding Craig to the Platinum Equity team has made our value proposition that much more compelling.”

In addition to Emerson, over the past two years Platinum Equity has acquired businesses from corporate sellers such as AP Moeller-Maersk, Caterpillar, CBS, CheckPoint Systems, Deutsche Post DHL, Telstra, United Technologies and Volvo. 

Mr. Ashmore said making the transition from the Fortune 500 to private equity has been seamless.

“The operations sensibility is such a part of Platinum Equity’s DNA that in many ways the firm thinks more like a strategic corporate acquirer than a traditional private equity firm,” said Mr. Ashmore. “They view the world as business operators, which is comforting because we speak the same language.”

During his 22 year career at Emerson, Mr. Ashmore also served as Group Vice President of Emerson Telecommunication Products, Vice President of Profit Planning and President of numerous operating divisions. He holds a bachelor's degree in Mechanical and Civil Engineering from the University of Connecticut and a master's degree in business administration from the Harvard Business School.

About Platinum Equity

Founded by business operator and entrepreneur Tom Gores in 1995, Platinum Equity is a global investment firm with more than $7 billion in assets under management and a portfolio of operating companies that generated approximately $15 billion in revenue in 2013. Platinum Equity specializes in mergers, acquisitions and operations – a trademarked strategy the firm calls M&A&O^®  – acquiring and operating companies in a broad range of business markets, including manufacturing, information technology, telecommunications, transportation and logistics, media, equipment rental, metals and other industries. Over the past 19 years Platinum Equity has completed more than 150 acquisitions.