Teneo CEO Declan Kelly resigns after showing up drunk at charity event
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Teneo, the prolific consulting firm for Fortune 500 execs, announced Tuesday that its CEO, Declan Kelly, has resigned after he reportedly got drunk and acted inappropriately with a number of women at a charity event last month.
Teneo’s board said the firm’s co-founder and chief operating officer, Paul Keary, would take over as CEO immediately.
In his role as Teneo’s CEO, Kelly has been an adviser for the chief executives of General Electric, Coca-Cola and other blue-chip companies.
Kelly, who was Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s special economic envoy to Northern Ireland from 2009 to 2011, was kicked off the board of anti-poverty campaigning group Global Citizen after a May 2 event hosted by the charity during which Kelly’s drunken behavior stoked concerns.
Page Six reported last week that Kelly was extremely drunk and acted inappropriately with as many as six women at the party in front of other guests, according to one source. The Financial Times reported “the inappropriate behavior included the non-consensual touching of a number of women.”
And separately, Page Six reported earlier Tuesday that Kelly, who is married with children, allegedly carried on a not-so-secret affair with a senior female executive at Teneo for years.
“On May 2nd I made an inadvertent, public and embarrassing mistake for which I took full responsibility and apologized to those directly affected, as well as my colleagues and clients,” Kelly acknowledged Tuesday in a statement.
“In order to protect the employees of Teneo and its clients, and with my family’s strong support, I have decided to leave the company and resign as Chairman and CEO.”
An independent investigation into the May 2 incidents has been launched by Global Citizen and is still ongoing, Page Six reported.
Teneo’s philanthropic contribution to Global Citizen was returned and their sponsorship deal ended. After reports of the drunken antics emerged, General Motors dropped Teneo as an adviser.
Kelly last week apologized to his staff, saying, “This incident has been a huge wake-up call for me. I immediately quit drinking and am undertaking ongoing counseling from healthcare professionals. I will never drink again.
“I have learned hard lessons and the work that needs to get done is on me and I am doing it right now. It will be an ongoing journey that will last the rest of my life.
“As many of you know I have temporarily reduced my work responsibilities so I have the time to focus on my health. Please know I will be back in a full capacity in September and remain as committed as ever to Teneo.”
Kelly, Keary and Doug Band founded Teneo in 2011. The 1,200-person firm prides itself on helping CEOs finesse their own reputations, as well as advising large companies on how to market themselves as socially responsible.
Page Six’s Emily Smith contributed reporting
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