Mark Carlson is the Firm's first chief growth officer, a position that focuses on lateral attorney recruiting, acquisition and integration. He is responsible for structuring and executing the recruitment of lateral attorneys across Baker Donelson, as well as identifying and vetting candidates for law firm mergers.
Before serving in this capacity, Mr. Carlson acted as the Business Department Operations Director, a role in which he developed strategies for growth, alternative pricing, profitability and the business of law within the Firm's Business Department. He is a former shareholder at the Firm and served for seven years as leader of the Firm's Corporate/Mergers & Acquisitions Group.
Mr. Carlson is an advisory board member of the Firm's Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) Compact, a multi-year plan to drastically increase Baker Donelson's number of diverse attorneys.
During his career, Mr. Carlson has worked as a strategy consultant for a leading management consulting firm in Boston, as general counsel for an Atlanta-based technology manufacturer and as senior in-house M&A counsel for a large international infrastructure corporation based in San Francisco.
Previously, as a practicing attorney, Mr. Carlson helped his clients to structure, negotiate and execute middle market M&A deals, joint ventures and other business combinations as well as general business transactions. His industry experience includes transactions and strategic initiatives in wireless technology, manufacturing, private equity, financial services and international transactions.