Red Cross CIO Dismisses Top Two Staffers

Greg Williamson, CIO, American Red Cross (Art by Chris Buzelli)The American Red Cross’ new CIO Greg Williamson has shaken up his senior investment team, the nonprofit confirmed. 

Deputy CIO Anne Shelton and Managing Director Edward Karppi—Williamson’s two most senior staffers—have lost their positions, according to a source with knowledge of the situation. 

A Red Cross spokesperson confirmed “an organizational restructuring in which certain positions within the department will be created, while others will be restructured or eliminated.” 

A third member of the investment team is said to have stepped down earlier in the month. Outgoing Associate Director Jordan Levine resigned to lead the nonprofit American Chemical Society’s $1.8 billion fund, according to an insider. Levine is set to begin at the new position later this month.

Levin, like Shelton and Karppi, could not be reached for comment. 

The Red Cross spokesperson did not indicate if these positions had been filled or will be overhauled with the larger restructure. The statement noted that Williamson had been hired to “review the systems, infrastructure, and personnel of the department to ensure that the Red Cross is an industry leader in investment asset management.”

He took over the $5 billion fund in May, following a long and distinguished career leading BP America’s pension fund. Several executive recruiters have praised his decision to wait for that opportunity—a position which he has now begun to make his own. 

This senior-level shakeup comes a month after he announced the creation of three new positions to add back office and operational expertise. Recruiting is underway for a chief operating officer, chief administrative officer, and database/information manager.  

His outgoing deputy CIO Shelton spent two years in that position, and nearly a decade as a senior staff member. She joined the Washington, DC-based nonprofit after several years at Cornell University’s endowment, specializing in hedge funds. 

Likewise, Managing Director Karppi has worked at the Red Cross since mid-2005. Prior to that, he served as a mutual funds director with ICMA Retirement, and as an accountant and examiner with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Asset managers and service providers to the fund might take note: The investment office review is expected to hit portfolio holdings, strategy, and implementation, as well. 

The American Red Cross spokesperson’s statement to CIO is reproduced in part below.

In early 2015, the American Red Cross recruited Greg Williamson to serve as its new chief investment officer to oversee the investment assets of the Red Cross and review the systems, infrastructure, and personnel of the department to ensure that the Red Cross is an industry leader in investment asset management.

After review and upon agreement with American Red Cross executives and board committees, Red Cross Investments is undertaking an organizational restructuring in which certain positions within the department will be created, while others will be restructured or eliminated. Potential changes to the investment policies and implementation models for each pool of capital managed are also being reviewed to more closely align the investment portfolio expectations with their return, risk, operational and governance objectives and requirements.

Related: New Red Cross CIO Starts Recruiting & BP CIO Quits for American Red Cross Foundation