Port Washington, N.Y. – Systemax reports that it has placed Gilbert
Fiorentino, CEO of its Technology Products Group, on administrative leave and
plans to terminate him under terms of his employment contract.
According to a company statement, the action by Systemax followed
the conclusion of its independent investigation of anonymous whistleblower
allegations concerning the company’s Miami, Florida operations. The
investigation was initially disclosed in Systemax’s Form 10-K filed with the
SEC on March 17, 2011.
The company was not specific in its statement on the reasons
for its action. Systemax did report that the investigation, which was conducted
by its Audit Committee with the assistance of independent counsel, determined
that the issues giving rise to the allegations did not have a material impact
on Systemax’s previously reported financial results and were limited to the
Miami operations.
Systemax expects normal business operations to continue for
its Technology Products Group businesses, which include TigerDirect, Circuit
City and CompUSA.
Systemax has named Robert Leeds to serve as interim CEO, technology
products, reporting to Systemax chairman/CEO Richard Leeds. Robert Leeds was
the founding CEO of Systemax’s Technology Products business and currently
serves as vice chairman of the board.
In a prepared statement, chairman/CEO Richard Leeds said, “We
appreciate that our internal processes facilitated the efforts of the
individual who brought these matters to our attention, and we appreciate the
diligent work done by our Audit Committee and its independent counsel to
thoroughly evaluate the complaints. Systemax’s technology products businesses
benefit from the leadership of a strong team and the hard work of many great
employees throughout the organization. We thank them for their continued
support and dedication and look forward to a promising future.”
systemax
