Glenn Youngkin

Glenn Allen Youngkin (born December 9, 1966) is an American businessman and political candidate. He spent 25 years at the private-equity firm The Carlyle Group, including as president and chief operating officer, and was co-CEO from January 2018 through September 2020. 
He stepped down from the Carlyle Group in 2020, stating an intention to focus on community and public service efforts. He formed a nonprofit in mid-2020 to assist unemployed Virginia residents affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In January 2021 he announced his candidacy in the 2021 Virginia gubernatorial election, and won the Republican Party nomination for governor of Virginia on May 10, 2021.
Early life and education.
Youngkin was born in Richmond, Virginia. When he was a teen, the family moved from Richmond to Virginia Beach. He attended Norfolk Academy in Norfolk, Virginia, graduating in 1985.
Youngkin attended Rice University on a basketball scholarship, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering and a Bachelor of Arts in managerial studies in 1990. He earned an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1994.
Career.
Early career.
After graduating from Rice in 1990, Youngkin joined the investment bank First Boston, where he handled mergers and acquisitions and capital market financings. The company was bought out by Credit Suisse and became Credit Suisse First Boston; Youngkin left in 1992 to pursue an MBA.
In 1994, after receiving his MBA, he joined the management consulting firm McKinsey & Company, assessing strategic and operating issues in the energy, consumer product, and healthcare industries.
The Carlyle Group.
In 1995, Youngkin joined the private-equity firm The Carlyle Group, based in Washington, D.C., initially as a member of the U.S. buyout team. In 1999, he was named a partner and managing director of Carlyle. From 2000 to 2005 he was manager of the firm's UK buyout team.
In September 2005, he became the global head of Carlyle's industrial sector investment team, and held the position through early 2008, dividing his time between London and Washington. 
In April 2008, Carlyle's founders asked Youngkin to step back from deal-making to focus on the firm's broader strategy. In 2009 the founders created a seven-person operating committee, chaired by Youngkin, which oversaw the non-deal, day-to-day operations of Carlyle, including strategic planning, balance-sheet management, new product development, and other critical functions. In 2009 Youngkin also joined, along with Daniel Akerson, the firm's executive committee, which had previously consisted solely of the three founders.
When Carlyle's chief financial officer Peter Nachtwey left suddenly in late 2010, Youngkin stepped in as interim CFO until a new CFO, Adena Friedman, was hired in late March 2011. In 2010, Youngkin also joined the firm's management committee, which established Carlyle's overall strategic direction and set firm-wide policy, and which consisted of Youngkin, the three founders, and Friedman.
Youngkin was chief operating officer of the Carlyle Group from March 2011 until June 2014.
Beginning in 2009, Youngkin was a consistent proponent within Carlyle's management of a stockmarket listing, and he was instrumental in taking Carlyle public. When public-listing discussions, which had been interrupted by the departure of CFO Nachtwey in December 2010, restarted in mid 2011, Youngkin supervised the IPO and was the firm's spokesperson to analysts, investors, and media.
In June 2014, he became co-president and co-chief operating officer with Michael J. Cavanagh, who joined the Carlyle Group from JPMorgan Chase. Together they helped develop and implement the firm's growth initiatives and managed the firm's operations on a day-to-day basis. Cavanagh left the firm in May 2015 to become CFO of Comcast, leaving Youngkin as president and COO of Carlyle.
Co-CEO.
In October 2017, the Carlyle Group announced that its founders would remain executive chairmen on the board of directors but step down as the day-to-day leaders of the firm; they named Youngkin and Kewsong Lee to succeed them, as co-CEOs, effective January 1, 2018. As co-CEOs, Youngkin was tasked with overseeing Carlyle's real estate, energy, and infrastructure businesses, as well as its investment solutions segment; Lee focused on the firm's corporate private equity and global credit businesses. Youngkin and Lee also joined the firm's board of directors when they became co-CEOs.
During Youngkin and Lee's tenure as co-CEOs, they oversaw the firm's transition from a publicly traded partnership into a corporation. In 2.5 years they also oversaw the closure of more than $40 billion in new funds, including funds in Europe and Asia; the firm's assets under management increased 11%, and its stock price increased by nearly 30%.
Bloomberg News described the co-CEO relationship as "awkward ... and increasingly acrimonious", with Lee "gaining sole control" after 2-1/2 years. In July 2020, Youngkin announced that he would retire from the Carlyle Group at the end of September 2020, stating his intention to focus on community and public service efforts.
Public service.
In April 2020, Youngkin and his wife founded a nonprofit called the Virginia Ready Initiative to help unemployed Virginians get job training during the coronavirus pandemic, and it launched in June 2020. The nonprofit connects people looking for jobs with training programs to gain new skills, and then connects them with companies looking to hire.
2021 Virginia gubernatorial nomination.
In January 2021, Youngkin announced his candidacy for the Republican Party nomination to become the next governor of Virginia in the 2021 Virginia gubernatorial election. In February 2021, he launched an election integrity task force.
Youngkin won the Republican convention and became the party's nominee for Virginia governor on May 10, 2021.
Personal life.
Youngkin lives in Great Falls, Virginia with his wife Suzanne and their four children.