Alumni and Friends Directory

James Nelson

James Nelson

Title: President and CEO

Company: Solar 3D, Inc.

Location: Santa Barbara, California

Educational Background

MBA, Brigham Young University


Huntsman School Interactions:

Member of The Center for Entrepreneurial Excellence Founder's Board - Present
Dean's Convocation Speaker - April 20, 2011

Biography

James Nelson is the president and CEO of Solar3D, Inc., a developer of new solar technology that will make solar energy economically accessible to the world.

Mr. Nelson began his executive career 30 years ago at Bain and Co., the world’s premier business strategy consulting firm, where he managed teams of consultants on four continents, solving CEO-level issues for global companies. Prior to joining Solar3D, he spent 20 years in the private equity industry as a capital partner and operating CEO-to-portfolio companies. He was a general partner at Peterson Partners and at Millennial Capital Partners from 1991 through 2010. In addition to his responsibilities in acquisition and divestiture, he worked as a chief executive of two portfolio companies. The companies he has led have created exceptional returns for investors -- sometimes more than 20 times the value of the original investment.

Prior to his years in private equity, he was an officer of The Gap, where he managed company-wide marketing for Banana Republic, as well as its initial international expansion. He was also general manager for the highly profitable catalog division. He also served as an officer of Saga Corporation, a multi-billion dollar food service company.

Mr. Nelson received his master’s degree in business administration from Brigham Young University, where he graduated summa cum laude and was named “Outstanding MBA Graduate.”

Videos:

Dean's Convocation: James Nelson