Drew Madsen '78 is President & COO of Norwegian Cruise Line

October 13, 2014

Drew Madsen, a 1978 graduate of DePauw University, has been appointed president and chief operating officer of Norwegian Cruise Line.

"Madsen brings a strong track record of success to Norwegian with more than 30 years of leadership experience in the hospitality and consumer products industry, most recently as president and chief operating officer at Darden Restaurants, Inc., the world's largest full-service restaurant company," today's announcement states.

"Having delivered exceptional results during his tenure at Darden, Drew has a wealth of experience to draw upon as he joins Norwegian," said Kevin Sheehan, president and chief executive officer of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. "We are at an exciting point in our company's history. With the upcoming acquisition of Prestige Cruises International, Inc., it is the opportune time to add such a talented individual to our already diversified leadership team to focus on the core day-to-day business. I am confident in Drew as a results-oriented, highly collaborative and thoughtful leader who will continue to propel Norwegian on our positive growth trajectory."

The company notes, "Madsen played an instrumental role in establishing Darden as the most successful multi-brand operator in the full-service restaurant industry, increasing sales from $4.8 billion to $8.6 billion, while delivering a cumulative total shareholder return of 110% that significantly exceeded the S&P 500 by more than 47%. He also had the distinction of having Darden recognized as one of Fortune's "100 Best Companies to Work For" -- a first for the food service industry that was repeated for three consecutive years. Prior to Darden, Drew held leadership and marketing positions at James River Corporation and General Mills, among others."

Madsen, who was an economics major at DePauw, says, "I am thrilled to be starting the next chapter of my career at Norwegian Cruise Line. I am looking forward to ensuring that Norwegian excels in every facet of operation and that we continue to produce industry leading financial results, while also bringing new ideas and ways of doing business that improve guest satisfaction and team member involvement."

Madsen graduated from DePauw magna cum laude with membership in Phi Beta Kappa. He went on to earn his M.B.A. from the University of Michigan.

The complete announcement may be viewed at Yahoo! Finance.

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