Mack-Cali announces major leadership shakeup

Mack-Cali announced a major shakeup to its management team early Monday morning.Barry Lefkowitz, executive vice president and chief financial officer, and Roger W. Thomas, executive vice president, general counsel and secretary, have agreed to resign from their respective positions effective March 31, the company said in a release.
The company also announced Jonathan Litt has been named to its board of directors.
The departures of Lefkowitz and Thomas come in mutual agreement with the company’s board of directors, the release said.
The company said in the release that the departures of Lefkowitz and Thomas are not related to the company’s operational performance, financial condition or issues regarding the integrity of the company’s financial statements or accounting policies and practices.
Mack-Cali said interim replacements already have been named.
Anthony Krug, the company’s chief accounting officer, will serve as acting chief financial officer.
Gary Wagner, vice president and senior associate general counsel, will serve as acting chief legal officer and interim secretary
Ivan Baron, executive vice president and general counsel for Roseland, a wholly owned subsidiary of Mack-Cali, will serve as chief legal officer of Roseland.
“This announcement reflects an important step in our ongoing strategic transition and will result in significant cost savings,” Mack-Cali President and CEO Mitchell Hersh said in the statement. “The re-organization of our team will create a more efficient management structure and facilitate our ongoing diversification into the multi-family sector.
“I have the utmost confidence in Anthony, Gary and Ivan, all of whom are proven leaders with distinguished track records in our organization, and I remain confident in Mack-Cali’s prospects for long-term growth and shareholder value creation.”
Litt is the founder and chief investment officer of Land & Buildings Investment Management, a registered investment adviser specializing in publicly traded real estate and real estate related securities, according to a company release.
Litt’s addition means the company’s board now has 11 directors, eight of whom are independent.
Both Lefkowitz and Thomas had been with the company and its predecessor companies for more than 20 years.
“We thank Barry and Roger for their service and contributions to Mack-Cali, and wish them the best in their future endeavors,” Hersh said.