Michael Capellas
| Michael David Capellas | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 19, 1955 (age 61) |
| Alma mater | Kent State University |
| Occupation | Business executive Board member of Cisco |
| Known for | Chairman and CEO of VCE CEO of First Data Corporation MCI CEO prior to Verizon acquisition Compaq CEO prior to HP acquisition |
Michael David Capellas (born August 19, 1955) is an American executive in the computer and telecommunication industries. Capellas served as chairman and CEO of First Data Corporation, acting CEO of Serena Software, chairman and CEO of Compaq Computer Corporation until its merger with Hewlett-Packard where he became president of the post-merger company briefly, and president and CEO of WorldCom (later MCI) where he led its merger with Verizon.
Capellas claims that he inherited a gritty determination from his father, a Greek citizen who fought with the Greek Army against the Germans in Italy in World War II. After the war, the elder Capellas met and married his wife, Juliet, in Italy. The family then emigrated to Ohio where Capellas' father worked his way up from laborer to superintendent at the Republic Steel Corp. My dad had an unbelievable work ethic. He was intensely loyal to the company. He worked there for 30 years, says Capellas.
As an undergraduate at Kent State University, Capellas developed an interest in computers. Shortly after he graduated with a BBA from Kent State, Capellas met his future wife, Marie Angelillo, a former nurse. The two married in 1979, and for the next 20 years they traveled around the world as Capellas climbed the ranks of each company he joined.
Capellas began his career at Republic Steel. He went on to hold senior executive roles at Schlumberger, Benchmarking Partners, SAP, and Oracle Corporation. Capellas joined Compaq Computer Corporation as CIO in 1998. In 1999, when president and chief executive officer (CEO) Eckhard Pfeiffer was forced to resign after a boardroom coup led by chairman Benjamin M. Rosen, Rosen took on the capacity of interim CEO while Capellas was elevated to COO. Several months later, Capellas became permanent CEO and Chairman of Compaq.
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