The Growth Expert
COO and attorney sets his sights high
By Cassandra J. Sproles
It’s not often you find a chief financial officer with duties outside the financial realm. Chris Haley (LAW ’01), however, also has worn the hat of general counsel at the same time.
Not only did Haley perform double duty at the web-based investment performance software company, Black Diamond Performance Reporting LLC, he also helped increase annual company revenue from $1 million to $13 million.
Haley, who earned his undergraduate degree in accountancy and a master of taxation from the University of Mississippi as well as his master of law taxation from New York University, says the two jobs actually go together very well.
“The jobs combine all of my education and experiences with my best skills,” says Haley. Use of those skills culminated in the sale of Black Diamond for $73 million, which was approximately six times the projected revenue for the year.
Currently, Haley is the chief operating officer at Knowledge Infusion LLC, a consulting service for human resources officers. The company seeks to help other businesses get maximum value from their employees. As COO of the company, Haley believes he is using his law degree as well as some of his most important skills.
Before working at Knowledge Infusion and Black Diamond, Haley was an associate at Bass, Berry, and Sims PLC in Nashville.
Haley’s wife Colleen (LAW ’01) says her husband has consistently shown leadership abilities in not only his professional life, but also their community in Jacksonville, Florida.
“He is an active member of his church and community, and has been asked to serve in leadership positions at each of the charitable organizations in which he participates,” says Colleen.
As a member of the Rotary Club of Ponte Verda Beach, Haley served as the club’s program chair and was named the club’s Rookie of the Year for 2010–2011. He currently serves on the club’s membership committee.
Haley hopes to take his knowledge of successful business growth and apply it to his volunteer work with Jacksonville’s Second Harvest Food Bank, where he currently serves as chair of the Strategic Advisory Committee.
“The Strategic Advisory Committee is tasked with trying to figure out how to help the Food Bank grow the amount of food it distributes,” says Haley. “There’s a tremendous need in our community for food, and we are trying to create a plan that will take our food distribution from 20 million pounds annually to 40 million pounds in the next three to five years.”
Name: Chris Haley
Age: 36
Location: Jacksonville, FL
Employment: Knowledge Infusion LLC
Focus: Chief Operating Officer
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Read this story and more online at issuu.com or download the fall 2011 issue of Tennessee Law (pdf).