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Weekly People Roundup: 24 September 200824/09/2008. Source: AltAssets. 
 All the week's most important people stories from across the globe. Essential reading for those who need to keep up-to-date with the private equity industry's key staff moves.
Mark T Donohue, the founder of cleantech venture capital firm Expansion Capital Partners, has been appointed clean technology entrepreneur-in-residence at Babson College. Donohue will help design and teach Babson's cleantech, sustainability and social entrepreneurship programmes.
Technology-focused venture capital firm Norwest Venture Partners has appointed Dror Nahumi as a partner in Israel. Nahumi has worked in both the US and in Israel in senior positions at organisations such as ECI, I-Link and AT&T Bell Labs. He most recently served as executive vice president and CSO of ECI, which he joined in 2004. NVP focuses on technology investments in the semiconductor and components, software, systems, services, internet, media and consumer sectors. The firm plans to invest even more heavily in Israeli technology companies in the years ahead, and will co-invest with local venture capital firms in Israel, as it has already done so with several of its existing portfolio companies, according to a statement.
European mid-market private equity firm Palamon Capital Partners has appointed Peter Currie to its board of advisors. He began his career with Morgan Stanley, where he worked both in Europe and the US where he specialised in the media and communications industries. He later was appointed executive vice president and CFO of McCaw Cellular Communications. Following that, he became the CFO of internet start-up Netscape Communications which was ultimately taken public and sold to AOL. Currently, Currie serves as a director on the boards of a number of public and private corporations, including Sun Microsystems and Clearwire Corporation. Currie joins eleven other professionals on Palamon's board of advisors.
H.I.G. Capital, has promoted Bret Wiener to managing director. He joined H.I.G. in 2004 and has been responsible for investments in industries including business services, financial services and aviation. As a member of H.I.G.'s Middle Market Group, Wiener will help develop H.I.G.'s mid-market practice and invest the $1.5bn pool of equity capital allocated to H.I.G.'s mid-market investments, according to a statement. Prior to H.I.G., Wiener worked at Microsoft as part of their Corporate Strategy Group.
US venture capital firm Highland Capital Partners has appointed John Hsin and Kuantai Yeh as managing directors. They will join Chuan Thor in the firm's Shanghai office. Highland has been investing in China since 2006. The firm's portfolio in the area includes interactive broadcasting service operator UUSee, internet and mobile search provider Qihoo and internet security provider NetentSec.
The Blackstone Group has appointed Jay O Light, dean of Harvard Business School to the firm's board of directors. Light joined HBS in 1970. As senior associate dean and director of planning and development at HBS, he led the school's strategic planning efforts and helped shape new educational and research programme initiatives.
US venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates has appointed David M Mott as general partner. Mott will focus on biotechnology and specialty pharmaceutical investing within NEA's East Coast healthcare practice. Prior to joining NEA, Mott was president and CEO of MedImmune, subsidiary of AstraZeneca, and executive vice president of AstraZeneca. He joined MedImmune in 1992 and also founded the company's venture capital subsidiary, MedImmune Ventures, in 2002.
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. has appointed Makram Azar as managing director and head of Middle East and North Africa. In his new role, Azar will develop the distribution of KKR products in the MENA region and source opportunities for private equity and infrastructure transactions, according to the firm. He will also explore co-investment opportunities with MENA institutions.
Philadelphia-based mid-market buy-out firm LLR Partners has hired Gregory M Case as a partner. Case spent 16 years at Apax Partners, most recently as a general partner leading the firm's US financial and business services group. Whilst there, he focused on growth capital and buy-out opportunities in enterprise software, technology-enabled business services, business-process outsourcing and internet-based direct marketing.
Energy Investors Funds, a private equity fund manager that invests in the US energy and electric power sectors, has made a number of new hires. Alycia L Goody has joined the firm as vice president and assistant general counsel. In her new role she will be responsible for providing legal support related to corporate and portfolio investment matters. She joins from BTU Ventures, where she was senior counsel.
Texas-based Austin Ventures has appointed Mike Dodd as a venture partner. Dodd will work on investments in early and expansion stage IT companies, with a focus on application and infrastructure software and technology-enabled business and consumer services.
CVC Capital Partners has formed a US advisory board. Former Hilton Hotels Corporation CEO and co-chairman Stephen F Bollenbach, former vice chairman of Burberry Rose Marie Bravo and former chairman of the board of Saks Holdings R Brad Martin have become the first three advisory board members.
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