The $1.4 billion University of Arkansas Foundation has lost CIO Mike Condon to Southern Methodist University in Dallas and is planning to conduct a nationwide search for a new investment chief. Condon, the long-time cio at Atlanta-based Georgia Tech, moved to Arkansas last year to take the newly-created cio position (FEMM, 9/1/07). A source close to Condon said he left the Fayetteville-based foundation after one year because he wanted to live in a larger city. Condon, who was between jobs, could not be reached for comment.
"The market for CIOs right now is pretty hot, and we lost him," said Clay Davis, executive director at Arkansas, declining to elaborate on Condon's reasons for the departure. He added that the foundation did not plan to adjust its hiring strategy
or prospective compensation package due to Condon's brief stay on the job, and that the position should be attractive to many candidates.
Arkansas' board is meeting Dec. 4 to discuss how it will proceed with the cio search. It has not yet been determined whether the Razorbacks will use a recruiting firm. It had hired Condon directly without the assistance of a headhunter. The foundation is looking for someone with endowment investment management experience, which could include someone who is already a cio or the number-two person at another nonprofit, Davis said. There are some staffers in the investment office who worked for Condon, and the foundation is open to considering them for the spot as well.
At SMU, Condon will replace Liz Williams, who is retiring at the end of the year after serving as investment chief since 1991. The Mustangs have a $1.4 billion portfolio and recently were exploring the possibility of investing in Asia (FEMM, 9/29).
