Southern Company elects David J. Grain to board of directors
ATLANTA, Dec. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern Company
today announced the election of David J.
Grain to its board of directors. Grain is founder and
managing partner of Grain Management, LLC, a Sarasota, Fla.-based private equity firm
specializing in investments in wireless communications
infrastructure throughout the U.S. He is also CEO of Grain
Communications Group, Inc.
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Grain Management, LLC's flagship funds manage capital on behalf
of domestic institutional investors including academic endowments,
public pension funds and foundations.
Before forming the Grain entities, Grain served as president of
Global Signal Inc., where he was hired to lead Pinnacle Holdings,
Inc. from bankruptcy through its successful operational turnaround.
After Pinnacle Holdings, Inc. was renamed Global Signal Inc. in
June 2004, Grain grew the company
into one of the largest independent wireless communications tower
companies in North America. Under
Grain's leadership, Global Signal Inc.'s portfolio expanded from
approximately 2,000 towers to more than 11,000 sites in all 50
states, Canada and the
United Kingdom. In January 2007, Crown Castle International Corp.
acquired Global Signal Inc.
"David knows how to build and grow an infrastructure-intensive
business through effective leadership," said Southern Company
Chairman, President and CEO Thomas A.
Fanning. "As we prepare for America's energy future,
Southern Company and our customers will benefit from his experience
and expertise."
Prior to joining Global Signal, Grain served as a senior vice
president with AT&T Broadband from 2000 until 2003. He was a
principal with Morgan Stanley from 1992 until 2000.
In 2011, Grain was appointed by President Obama to the National
Infrastructure Advisory Council. He also serves as chairman of the
Florida State Board of Administration Investment Advisory Council
as an appointee of former Governor Charlie
Crist. Additionally, he is a director of the Gateway Bank of
Southwest Florida and a trustee of
College of the Holy Cross.
Grain founded the Grains Scholars Program at Booker High School
in Sarasota, Fla., a philanthropic
organization focused on increasing the matriculation of black and
Latino high school students into top-rated colleges.
Grain earned a bachelor's degree in English from College of the Holy Cross and an M.B.A. from
Dartmouth College.
With 4.4 million customers and more than 43,000 megawatts of
generating capacity, Atlanta-based
Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is the premier energy company serving
the Southeast through its subsidiaries. A leading U.S. producer of
clean, safe, reliable and affordable electricity, Southern Company
owns electric utilities in four states and a growing competitive
generation company, as well as fiber optics and wireless
communications. Southern Company brands are known for energy
innovation, excellent customer service, high reliability and retail
electric prices that are below the national average. Southern
Company and its subsidiaries are leading the nation's nuclear
renaissance through the construction of the first new nuclear units
to be built in a generation of Americans and are demonstrating
their commitment to energy innovation through the development of a
state-of-the-art coal gasification plant. Southern Company has been
recognized by the U.S. Department of Defense and G.I. Jobs magazine as a top military employer
and listed by DiversityInc as a top company for Blacks. The company
received the 2012 Edison Award from the Edison Electric Institute
for its leadership in new nuclear development, was named Platts'
2011 Power Company of the Year and is continually ranked among the
top utilities in Fortune's annual World's Most Admired Electric
and Gas Utility rankings. Visit our website at
www.southerncompany.com.
SOURCE Southern Company