Korn/Ferry Strengthens European Presence With Three New Senior Consultants

MILAN, June 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Korn/Ferry International (NYSE: KFY), a premier global provider of talent management solutions, today announced that three senior consultants will join the Firm's Milan, Rome and Paris offices.

Maurizia Villa will join Korn/Ferry as the head of Italy, after more than 15 years at Heidrick & Struggles, where she most recently served as vice chairman.  Also joining Korn/Ferry are Barbara Valaperti, a partner in the Heidrick & Struggles global financial services practice and a lead for the private equity European practice, as well Giovanni Mantica, who led the Heidrick & Struggles consumer practice and was a consultant at the firm for 14 years.

"The addition of these well-respected, high caliber consultants affirms Korn/Ferry's commitment to strengthen and grow our European presence and establish ourselves as the undisputed leader in Italy and throughout the region," said Gary D. Burnison, CEO of Korn/Ferry International.  "We are delighted to welcome this team to our organization."

"We are excited to have three, new highly-talented consultants who have an impeccable track record of working at the highest levels throughout the region," said Bernard S. Zen-Ruffinen, president of EMEA for Korn/Ferry International.  "From boardrooms to the C-suite, Maurizia is regarded as a premier search and talent management professional.  Her experience, relationships and vision for the direction of our industry will be a strong addition to our management team."

Ms. Villa has successfully conducted assignments for international and domestic financial institutions, including banks, investment funds, asset management and insurance companies and legal firms.  She has focused most of her activity on the recruitment of CEOs, CFOs, board members, heads of financial products and other senior-level executives operating in the financial sector.  Previously, Ms. Villa worked for eight years as head of the private equity investment department and corporate finance of Cofilp, Merchant Bank (owned by Banca Popolare di Novara).

Ms. Valaperti will be based in Rome.  Her area of focus will be both the Italian and French markets, with a strong emphasis on top management professionals in the M&A, corporate finance, capital markets, private equity and leverage finance arenas.  She previously worked for Shearson Lehman Hutton in Paris, where she spent two years in their corporate service department, working mainly on French privatizations. 

Mr. Mantica will work from Milan.  His efforts will be focused on consumer companies in Italy, building off his strong track record of leading consumer engagements for some of the most prominent companies in Europe.  He also served as senior vice president of marketing with Alitalia.  Prior to this role, at ACNielsen he held different senior management positions at the European and international levels over a 19-year period and was ultimately appointed to the role of managing director of Central and Southern Europe.

About Korn/Ferry International

Korn/Ferry International, with a presence throughout the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, is a premier global provider of talent management solutions. Based in Los Angeles, the firm delivers an array of solutions that help clients to attract, develop, retain and sustain their talent. Visit www.kornferry.com for more information on the Korn/Ferry International family of companies, and www.kornferryinstitute.com for thought leadership, intellectual property and research.

SOURCE Korn/Ferry International