Ms. Peterson is the Chief Operating Officer of PPL Group LLC, a private equity firm headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois. Prior to joining PPL in October 2012, she served as CEO of Syrus Global, which she founded in 2002 (risk management and compliance services). Syrus was acquired in 2009 by SAI Global, a public company, where Ms. Peterson continued to work through the summer of 2012. Previously, Ms. Peterson held the position of President of RIM Finance during 2002. Ms. Peterson served in a variety of senior staff and operating roles at Sears, Roebuck and Co. over a ten-year career there. She started and ran the Sears Online business from 1998 through 2000, setting up supply chain systems, procuring technology platforms, establishing customer service and e-marketing functions, and coordinating merchandising.

Prior to the Online assignment, Ms. Peterson served as the VP and Treasurer of Sears. She was a key player in Sears’ strategic repositioning activities in the mid-1990’s, including the IPOs and spin-offs of Allstate and Dean Witter Discover, and the sales of Coldwell Banker and Prodigy. Prior to Sears, Ms. Peterson was an Assistant Treasurer at Kraft from 1988 to 1989 (when Philip Morris acquired the company). She was the Director of Capital Markets at PepsiCo at the company’s headquarters in Purchase, NY and held other staff positions there from 1984 through 1988. She worked at Harris Corporation from 1981 through 1984.

Ms. Peterson has served on public company boards of directors since 1996: 360 Communications (acquired by Alltel), Fleming Companies, and Hanesbrands. She currently serves on the board of Williams Partners, L.P., a publicly traded master limited partnership with market cap in excess of $20B. She is also on the board and chairs the audit committee at Ravinia Festival, summer home of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

Ms. Peterson holds an MBA from Vanderbilt University (1981) and an undergraduate degree from the University of Louisville (1979).