Jeff Clarke (businessman)

Infobox Person
name = Jeff Clarke


caption =
birth_date = July 1961
birth_place = Ithaca, New York, USA
death_date =
death_place =
other_names =
known_for =
occupation = CEO of Travelport

Jeff Clarke (born July 1961 in Ithaca, New York) is an American businessman. Currently he is CEO and president of Travelport and a member of Travelport's board of directors. [Thornton, Emily. [http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_45/b4057001.htm Perform or Perish.] "BusinessWeek", November 5, 2007. Accessed November 19, 2007.]

Education

Clarke earned a bachelor's degree in economics from the State University of New York at Geneseo in 1983 [ [http://www.geneseo.edu/news/nrap.php?pg=DonorDinner.html "Bank of Castile/Tompkins Insurance, Geneseo Alumni, Area Residents Honored at 26th Annual President's Donor Recognition Dinner"] , State University of New York at Geneseo press release dated May 7, 2007. Accessed November 19, 2007. "Those receiving the 2007 Geneseo Foundation Award for Philanthropic Leadership were The Bank of Castile/Tompkins Insurance; Jeff Clarke '83, of San Francisco..."] and a master's degree in business administration from Northeastern University in 1985. [ [http://investing.businessweek.com/businessweek/research/stocks/private/person.asp?personId=9549956&privcapId=8141949&previousCapId=98492&previousTitle=UTStarcom%20Inc. Travelport Limited: Jeff Clarke] , "Business Week". Accessed November 19, 2007.]

Career

Clarke was hired by Digital Equipment Corporation in 1985, and came to Compaq when it purchased DEC in 1998. Compaq appointed him as chief financial officer in March 2001. [Oppel Jr., Richard A. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9407E2D7173DF935A25750C0A9679C8B63 " Compaq to Cut 5,000 Jobs; Profit Forecast Is Lowered"] , "The New York Times", March 16, 2001. Accessed November 8, 2007.] He was executive vice president of global operations for HP, where he was responsible for overseeing the US$19 billion merger of HP and Compaq. Clarke was named chief operating officer for CA (formerly Computer Associates) in April 2004. [http://www.secinfo.com/darwj.12z.d.htm CA ANNOUNCES INTERIM CEO AND NEW COO] , Computer Associates Form 8-K, dated April 26, 2004. Accessed November 8, 2007.]

Clarke was promoted to chief executive officer and president of Cendant's travel distribution services in April 2006. [Sorkin, Andrew Ross. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F05EFDA173FF93BA25757C0A9609C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=print "Cendant expected to name chief of Web Travel Business Today"] , "The New York Times", April 18, 2006. Accessed November 8, 2007.] The company became Travelport in August 2006 after Cendant sold its entire travel distribution business to the Blackstone Group in a deal valued at US$4.3 billion. [Burnett, Erin. [http://www.accessmylibrary.com/comsite5/bin/pdinventory.pl?pdlanding=1&referid=2930&purchase_type=ITM&item_id=0286-17404208 "Travelport - Pres. & CEO Interview."] , "CNBC", August 24, 2006. Accessed November 9, 2007.]

As Travelport CEO, he reorganized the company around three brands, engineered the acquisition of Worldspan and coordinated the sale of Orbitz Worldwide in an initial public offering on July 20, 2007. [ [http://uk.reuters.com/article/marketsNewsUS/idUKWNAS679120070719 "Orbitz's IPO prices at $15/share"] , Reuters UK. July 19, 2007. Accessed November 19, 2007.] [ [http://www.btnmag.com/businesstravelnews/headlines/travel_management_technology_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003535626&&imw=Y "Travelport cues up Worldspan: One-on-one with CEO Jeff Clarke"] , "Business Travel News Online". Accessed November 19, 2007.] Additionally, he is chairman of the board of Orbitz Worldwide. [ [http://finance.google.com/finance?q=NYSE:OWW Orbitz Worldwide, Inc.] , Google Finance. Accessed November 19, 2007.] Clarke is a member of the UTStarcom board of directors, a NASDAQ-listed firm. [ [http://investorrelations.utstar.com/downloads/utsi_board_bios.pdf "UTStarcom board of directors list"] ] He is also a member of the executive committee of the World Travel and Tourism Council [ [http://www.wttc.org/eng/Members/Membership_List/index.php Membership List: Executive Council] , World Travel and Tourism Council. Accessed November 19, 2007.] and serves on the executive board of the Transatlantic Business Dialogue. [ [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N27323012.htm US, EU agree to cut red tape to boost trade] , Reuters, April 27, 2007.]

In January 2007, "Business Travel News" named Clarke one of the 25 most influential executives for 2006. [ [http://www.btnmag.com/businesstravelnews/headlines/frontpage_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003535206 "Business Travel News names the 25 most influential executives of 2006"] "Business Travel News Online", January 22, 2007. Accessed November 19, 2007.] Clark has addressed such issues as the carbon footprint of the travel industry. [Greenberg, Susan H. [http://www.newsweek.com/id/34688 "Next, the You-Tour"] , "Newsweek", May 14, 2007. Accessed November 19, 2007. ]

References

External links

* [http://www.travelport.com Travelport]
* [http://www.travelport.com/en/media/expertise_center/experts/show_source.cfm?id=55 Jeff Clarke Travelport Bio]
* [http://www.blackstone.com/ The Blackstone Group]