Visual Map: URS is Deeply Connected into Washington Group

IntellectSpace's Knowledge Map depicting URS's common connections with Washington Group International reveals interesting relationships that quite deeply bind the two companies.

According to the Knowledge Map, two individuals who are currently affiliated with URS, Reed N Brimhall (Chief Accounting Officer) and John D Roach (Director of the Board) have been directly affiliated with Washington Group in the past. Mr. Brimhall assummed a VP/Controller position with Washington Group Int, whereas Mr. Roach served as a board member until 2002.  Both individuals have left Washington Group Int at around the same time to assume their posts in URS. 

Other influencial positions behind URS's acquisition of Washington Group include Betsy J Bernard (BOD of URS) intersecting with Gail Hamilton, C Scott Greer, and Jerry K Lemon of Washington Group through Stanford, United Technologies, and Bearing Point.

An interactive version of this Knowledge Map renders relationships such as board positions, executive positions, vested interests, non-profit affiliations, and others in a color-coded fashion, where red lines denote executive positions, blue lines denote board position, and dashed lines represent past connections.

To view an interactive version, either follow or past the following URL into your Internet Explorer browser: http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=f8b2ed5b-7df2-4c23-b581-38d7dddc70d3

BHP Billiton's Reach into Alcan is Weaker than Alcoa's

BHP Billiton has emerged as a new bidder for Alcan.  IntellectSpace's Knowledge Map illustrating BHP's reach into Alcan shows that it is a significant bidder, as its network has a direct reach into Alcan's leadership team. 

BHP's reach, however, is weaker than Alcoa's reach, as discussed in this post.  Alcoa and Alcan share deep relationships involving the Business Council, Council on Foreign Relations, Business Roundtable, and others, while BHP's relationships into Alcan is limited to past executive positions in a handful of companies. 

For an interactive version of the same Knowledge Map, navigate your Internet Explorer to the following URL:  http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=23b30787-4f0d-4f91-b99e-834fa13ca70f

Goldman Brings Relationship Capital into Alltel Deal

Goldman's far-reaching relationships into Alltel are well depicted in the following Knowledge Map.   

According to the Knowledge Map, the strongest relationship that Goldman Sachs has with Alltel is through Western Wireless.  The Knowledge Map shows that Terence M O'Toole was a board member of Western Wireless as well as a senior executive of Goldman Sachs.  Goldman Sachs was also an investor into Western Wireless and its financial adviser during its 1996 IPO and secondary offerings. John W Stanton, a co-founder and a former board member of Western Wireless assumed a board seat on Alltel after it acquired Western Wireless nearly two years ago. 

Mr. Stanton's deep relationships into Goldman Sachs also include his former board seat at NII Holdings Inc, where he intersected paths with Carolyn Katz, a former Managing Director of Goldman.  Other relationship intersections include Crane, Adic, and Harvard Business School.

An interactive version of the Knowledge Map is available at the following URL: http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=4bb11446-5525-4018-9de6-a06cbddc629f (Internet Explorer browsers only)

Relationships Behind Microsoft's Acquisition of aQuantive

An automatically generated IntellectSpace Knowledge Map that identified common connections between Microsoft and aQuantive involving board, executive, ownership, non-profit, education, and organization membership relationships sheds more light on the individuals who probably were involved in the acquisition discussions.

The Knowledge map shows that Mr. Gregory Maffei, a former board member of Microsoft is connected into aQuantive directly (former board member) as well as indirectly through Expedia (former board member), Electronic Arts (current board member), Dartmouth College (education), and Harvard University (former leadership post). 

Furthermore, the Knowledge Map shows that Ian Morris who was a former director of Microsoft and a founder of HouseValues, shared a seat with Nicolas Hanauer, who is currently a board of aQuantive.

An interactive version of this Knowledge Map is available at the following URL: http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=589f9be6-f9d4-4fe5-a28f-7e74c9ee6ae9

How are Conrad Black and Henry Kravis Connected?

The latest New York Times Article titled "Parallel Paths Diverging Sharply" published on May 17, 2007 discusses how Mr. and Ms. Kravis shared the same social circles in New York with Conrad Black, but their paths are "diverging" as Mr. Black faces life in prison if convicted. 

The following IntellectSpace Knowledge Map provides more insight about common relationships that these two families shared, and discovered two more ties that were not mentioned in the article.  According to the Knowledge Map, both Mr. Kravis and Mr. Black shared a board seat at Sotheby's Holdings Inc, and sat on the Council of Foreign Relations.

You may find an interactive version of the Knowledge Map by navigating or pasting the following URL into your Internet Explorer browser: http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=ca436eb6-ec0b-4216-be91-f350b079bb6f

Map of Blackstone's Far-Reaching Ties into Alliance Data

Both Stephen A Schwarzman and Peter G Peterson are directly related to the biggest individual investors of Alliance Data through Centennial Cellular, according to an automatically generated IntellectSpace Knowledge Map that illustrates common connections between Alliance Data and Blackstone using a unique visual presentation.

This Knowledge Map offers interesting insights into the behind-the-scenes deal-making as it delineates decision-makers and how they are related. 

More specifically, Knowledge Map shows both Steven Schwarzman, Chairman of Blackstone and Peter G Peterson to be connected to Centennial Cellular in an ownership capacity (green line).  Centennial Cellular is connected to 14 individuals through ownership, including Anthony Denicola and Thomas McInerney, who are also investors of Alliance Data.  The Knowledge Map depicts investment relationships with green lines, board positions with blue lines, and executive positions with red colored lines. 

This Knowledge Map is also available in an interactive version by navigating to the following URL (Internet Explorer viewers only): http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=57925ce2-3731-4cd7-8ee4-d4af53313d86

Carl Icahn's Relationships into his Acquisition - Anadarko

Carl Icahn's recent acquisition of Anadarko illustrates minimal common relationships at play, according to an automatically generated IntellectSpace Knowledge Map.   

Every Mr. Icahn's relationship into Anadarko involve Temple-Inland, where he increased his ownership during 2006 and 2007, according to the SC 13 D SEC filing from 1/22/2007.  (Ownership position is denoted by a green line in a Knowledge Map). 

James Hackett and Paul M Anderson, are both connected to Temple-Inland through current and former board positions, respectively.  (Board positions are denoted by blue lines between entities).  James Hackett's thick array of lines connecting to Anadarko show the strength of the relationship that he has with Mr. Icahn's new acquisition target - Anadarko.  Mr. Hackett is a Chairman, former CEO, and a beneficial owner of Anadarko.

Another inroad, albeit weaker one, that Mr. Icahn has to Anadarko is through Paul M Anderson, a former board member of Temple-Inland.  Mr. Anderson was a former board member of Kerr McGee, a company that became a subsidiary of Anadarko. (Double-clicking on the green line connecting Kerr McGee to Anadarko reveals a snippet from the 10K-SB SEC filing dated 1/16/2007 that describes the subsidiary relationship).

An interactive Knowledge Map showing details of these relationships is publicly available at the following URL and is only viewable by an Internet Explorer browser: http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=83959bf1-d61d-45f8-8ee7-dbd7f52832a2

Warburg Pincus is Deeply Connected to Bausch & Lomb

An IntellectSpace Knowledge Map of Bausch & Lomb's common relationships with Warburg Pincus, involving board, executive, non-profit, investment and other business ties reveals an interesting picture about who was involved in bringing the deal together. 

John Purcell, a former but a long time board member of B&L shared a board seat with senior Warburg Pincus leaders including John Vogelstein and Sidney Lapidus through board seats on Journal Register Company and Information Holdings (Ih).  As a matter of fact, Warburg Pincus had a direct equity position in Information Holdings as noted in the SC 13 and Form 4 filings (green line between Ih and Warburg Pincus on the Knowledge Map).

Ronald Zarrella, current board member of Bausch & Lomb, currently shares a board seat with Avaya, that is deeply connected to Warburg Pincus directly (through an equity position - green line), and indirectly (through a common board members - Joseph P Landy - blue line). 

Lastly, Jonathan S Liden, a board member of Bausch and Lomb, shares a membership on the Council on Foreign Relations with Charles R Kaye and Henry B Schacht, both of whom are deeply connected into Warburg Pincus (thick red/blue lines).

Moreover, one of Bausch & Lomb's largest investors, Franklin Templeton Investments, has dealt with Warburg Pincus in numerous occasions, particularly when purchasing Nuance Communications Inc.

For an interactive version of the Knowledge Map that at a single glance depicts the aforementioned relationships, navigate to or paste the the following URL into your Internet Explorer browser: http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=45e33a61-d518-4400-8aff-2fe87a2769f2

Oracle Leverages the Board to Buy Agile

The following IntellectSpace Knowledge Map illustrates common connections between Oracle and Agile board members, and shows relationships of players who likely played key roles in the acquisition discussions.

For example, the Knowledge Map shows how Larry Ellison, Chairman of Oracle, shared a board seat with Gareth Chang on Apple's board who is also a board member of Agile (past board seats are denoted by dotted blue lines). 

Common relationships between Oracle and Agile also include university ties, particularly University of California at Berkeley, Stanford University, and Santa Clara University.  Lastly, the Knowledge Map reveals that Sun Microsystems and Flextronics connected two board members of Oracle with two board members of Agile. 

It is a good indicator for both parties in an acquisition to have deep board ties, because board synergies often translate to post-merger corporate synergies.

For an interactive version of this Knowledge Map, please reference the following URL using an Internet Explorer browser: http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=977a7266-03bb-4a1f-85fb-467137442b13

Map of Synergies of JetBlue and Southwest

If JetBlue Airways and Southwest Airlines were to merge, what would be their board/executive synergies?  The following IntellectSpace Knowledge Map answers this question with a simple and a visual illustration.

Three individuals including M Anne Rhoades, John Owen and David Neeleman have assumed senior positions in both organization, suggesting that each company's culture is similar to one another. Morris Air Corp also binds Thomas E Kelly (EVP of JetBlue), David Neeleman, and June M Morris (former director of Southwest). 

This Knowledge Map suggests that most relationships are past (dotted lines) and involve executive relationships (red lines), board memberships (blue lines) and education (light blue lines). 

For an interactive vesion of the following Knowledge Map, navigate or paste the following URL into your Internet Explorer browser: http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=cebf3c97-16f0-4e3f-b915-6fcec5fb7055

Map of Related Parties in Cerberus - Chrysler Deal

Following IntellectSpace Knowledge Maps provide a visual perspective on inter-relationships between Cerberus and Chrysler, in the midst of Cerberus's buyout of Chrysler unit of DiamlerChrysler.

The following Knowledge Map shows how John W Snow, non-executive Chairman of Cerberus, shares membership seats with Peter Magowan and Robert E Allen (directors of DiamlerChrysler) through the Business Roundtable, the Business Council, and the U.S. Japan Business Council. 

An interactive version of this Knowledge Map is available by navigating to the following URL using your Internet Explorer: http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=e7ba7698-1bf4-49aa-8c4a-3a335fcde0c8

Perella Weinberg's Relationship with Thomson

The following Knowledge Map shows the possible avenue that Perella Weinberg utilized in securing its advisory deal with Thomson Corp:

Analysis conducted by IntellectSpace's Knowledge Map shows that Ronald W Tysoe engagement with Parella Weinberg began in January 2007.  Formerly, Mr. Tysoe assumed a senior leadership (board and executive) position with Scripps E W Co.   Scripps E W Co, moreover,  shares two industry groups with Thomson, especially News Syndicates (NAICS: 519110), and four research analysts, each of whom have covered Thomson Corp in the past. 

Although this Knowledge Map does not reveal other relationships that might have played a role in landing Thomson, Ronald Tysoe's network of relationships and market expertise might have played a key role.

A free version of this Knowledge Map is available here (only for Internet Explorer browsers). It provides a dynamic view by allowing to hover over colored relationship lines by a mouse pointer, dragging elements on the screen,  expanding/collapsing relationships, and exporting the map to Microsoft Excel. 

Visual Map of Alcoa - Alcan's Deep Board Connections

Alcoa's unsolicited bid for Alcan, probably involved a number of individuals who were or are deeply connected in the network of board of directors.  The extend of the board interrelationships of these two organizations can be best represented by IntellectSpace's dynamic Knowledge Map (URL Below).

Most notable Board relationships between between Alcoa and Alcan include:

• Alcoa - Henry Chacht - Warburg Pincus - Jeffrey Garten - Alcan
• Alcoa - Franklin A Thomas - Citicorp/Citibank - H Onno Ruding - Alcan
• Alcoa - Franklin A Thomas - Citicorp/Citibank - Lawrence E Fouraker - Alcan
• Alcoa - Paul H O'Neill - GM - Guy Sait Pierre - Alcan

On an interactive Knowledge Map, to see the details (dates, titles, etc) of the board positions denoted by colored lines, just hover your mouse (granted that you are using Internet Explorer as your browser). To "drill down" into the details of the relationship, just double-click on a given relationship line.

An interactive version of the Knowledge Map can be found here (Internet Explorers only): http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=7ec19983-fb7b-4def-aa27-0b46a0f15ba2

Visual Analysis of Thomson's Possible Acquisition of Reuters

Automatically generated Knowledge Map by IntellectSpace shows common relationships that Thomson has with Reuters.  These relationships involve primarily board position and non-profit relationships. 

According to the Knowledge Map (URL Below), Steven A Denning, Michael Sabia, Mary Cirillo, and John Thomson who sit on the board of Thomson have multiple ways into the board of Reuters through IBM, Cisco, Royal Dutch Shell, Council on Foreign Relations, and other organizations.

To experience an interactive version of this publicly available Knowledge Map, navigate or paste the following link to your Internet Explorer browser:  http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=a5ad8764-6ed5-4627-9224-633c82bebdb4

No Strong Bond Between Apollo and Countrywide

According to the automatically generated IntellectSpace  Knowledge Map (URL below), only three individuals have seeming ties from Apollo's side.  They are John Hannan (connected to Countrywide through HBS), Arthur H Penn, and Jeffrey D Benjamin (both connected through UBS).  These relationships are quite week, because they are former relationships and by nature cannot exert as much influence as current positions.   

To view an interactive version of the Knowledge Map, navigate or paste the following URL into your Internet Explorer browser:  http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=abf78a11-2372-4790-ad05-a1079ca7d148

Barry Diller and Nelson Peltz are Deeply Connected to Each Other

Everyone knows that Barry Diller and Nelson Peltz are connected, but they probably don't realize even themselves how connected they are to each other.   

The following IntellectSpace Knowledge Map shows that Diller and Peltz are vastly interconnected through universities, Fortune 100 companies, and many people in between.  Below are the most notable relationships:

• New York University  (12 paths)
• New York Public Library (3 paths)
• University of Southern California (15 paths)
• IAC InterActiveCorp (3 paths)
• Coca Cola (8 paths)
• Vivendi (3 paths)
• Tiffany's (6 paths)

To experience an interactive version of this Knowledge Map, navigate or paste the following URL into your Internet Explorer Browser: http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=5de4f312-f9f6-4d57-9dea-c32c2dd75296

Bank of America / LaSalle Lack Key Connections

IntellectSpace’s Knowledge Map (URL below) reveals many common connections between Bank of America and LaSalle Bank. However, after taking a closer look at the Knowledge Map, it appears that many of the relationships stem from common connections involving Chicago Symphony Orchestra, University of Notre Dame, Spelman College, Urban Land Institute, and other not-for-profit entities, and that most of the connections are former engagements (past relationships are denoted by dotted lines, solid lines represent current relationships).

Due to a lack of current key connections between the two firms, I feel that this merger will be difficult for B of A to close...Bank of America will likely have to offer a hefty premium to push this deal through.

Below is the URL. You can only view it in an Internet Explorer:

http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=0b0e0324-2f96-4262-a905-250a7d28dc78

KKR and Goldman Sachs are Tightly Bound

A dynamically generated Knowledge Map by IntellectSpace graphically depicts strong ties between Goldman Sachs's and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co's (KKR) leadership teams. For instance, Henry Kravis (from KKR) shares a membership on the Council on Foreign Relations with John L Weinberg, Stephen Friedman, Thomas Rhodes, and Ruth Simmons from Goldman Sachs. Moreover, GS Board Member Edward Libby sits on the Business Roundtable with KKR's Edwin Artzt.

To view a publicly accessible and interactive Knowledge Map that visually maps these relationships (among others), access the link below or paste the following URL into an Internet Explorer browser:

http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=cebec6fd-2584-493f-9ba0-128956448f7d

Boards of News Corp and Dow Jones are Deeply Routed

In the midst of a possible acquisition, a visual Knowledge Map automatically generated by IntellectSpace shows how deeply routed News Corp and Dow Jones truly are. Examples of Board intersections include:

News Corp Board Member John Thornton intersects with David Li (via PCCW), Irvine Hockaday (via Ford), and Donald Peterson (via Ford) - each of whom either serve or have served as Board Members of Dow Jones

Peter Chernin and Hamish Maxwell of News Corp intersect with Harvey Golub, Vernon Jordan and Frank Newman of Dow Jones through American Express and the Banker's Trust.

To see an interactive version of this Knowledge Map, click on the link below or paste the following URL into your Internet Explorer browser (other browsers are not supported at this time):

http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=56889998-6107-4320-bdf9-ab752bfc8a11