Philip K. Woodlief

Professor Woodlief is a 30+year veteran of the finance and accounting industry, serving most recently as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Brentwood-based Doane Pet Care, the largest provider of retailer pet food brands in the world, before it was purchased by Mars Inc. in 2007. Prior to his tenure at Doane, Woodlief was Corporate Controller at Ohio-based Insilco Corp., formerly a Fortune 500 holding Company that was best known for its Rolodex brand of office products. Woodlief began his career at KPMG, ending his tenure as the company’s Senior Audit Manager for their Houston office.

Woodlief’s extensive financial management experience includes operating in distressed highly-leveraged environments including with companies undergoing business transformation and/or under Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization. He has in depth experience working with public companies including managing mergers/ acquisitions and divestitures, security offerings and SEC financial reporting. He has also had direct responsibility for financial auditing, risk management and related financial derivative transactions, cost reduction initiatives including downsizing and outsourcing, as well as development of executive compensation plans.  

 

While his experience at Doane and Insilco involved international consumer and industrial manufacturing operations, his experience at KPMG was in the oil and gas exploration and production industries and to a lesser degree not-for profit and financial institutions. Woodlief began teaching while at KPMG where he instructed the firm’s national oil and gas audit course.

Woodlief is currently on the Board of Directors of the Boys and Girls Club of Middle Tennessee, the Audit Committee for the Catholic Diocese of Nashville, and Chairman of the Finance Committee at the Cathedral of the Incarnation Catholic Church. In recent years, Woodlief has also served as a consultant to venture capital sponsored companies.