John Desimone

Background

About John Desimone

A Senior Finance Executive with broad experience directing financial operations, driving financial M&A activity, and leading corporate financial planning & analysis. Led strategic initiatives to profitable growth opportunities, including startups, integrations, and transformations. Known as a trusted strategic partner with corporate and operating business leaders. Recruited to Hasbro following completion of my MBA program at Duke University, I had the opportunity to develop my financial skills in an innovative and dynamic environment. My rise through the Hasbro consumer products ranks was swift and rewarding, learning new skills and building on my previous knowledge brought me to leading Corporate FP & A where I established investment metric criteria, category margin dashboards, and a consistent review process for capital decisions. Partnering in the formulation of Hasbro’s strategic direction and leading the 5-year strategic plan allowed me to be viewed as the “in-house” expert across all businesses for unique and complex analytical decisions, both large and small. Mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and new business development financial activity came under my leadership as I became recognized as the “go to” expert in these areas. I established all valuation and investment risk profiles and led due diligence efforts from initial discussions to close and through integration and transition services. We successfully transacted on 16 strategic investments ranging from Wizards of The Coast ($325M) to Entertainment One ($4.6 Billion). As Divisional CFO, I established a new operating segment comprising a portfolio of six strategic adjacent businesses. I designed and implemented multiple new business models and established operating principles for acquisition integrations and unique investments. I helped drive strategic business development partnerships with Warner Brothers Discovery, Paramount, and Universal. This segment grew to $300M in annual revenue and $100M in operating profit. Skills and knowledge that have served me well include being recognized for communicating and collaborating across the organization and Board of Directors, delivering clear, concise and actionable information, and building amazing teams that consistently delivered above and beyond expectations. Specialties: Global Finance, Trusted Partner, FP & A, Strategy, Partnerships, Startups, Transformations, Integrations, Investment Profiles, Mergers & Acquisitions, Divestitures, Joint Ventures, Risk Profiles, Due Diligence, Valuations, Consumer Products, Entertainment, Video Games.