Edward Haggerty

Edward Haggerty joined FirstGroup America in February 2011 as the Director of Acquisitions. In this role, Haggerty manages all phases of the acquisition process, from prospect selection and nurturing relations with target company ownership, to overseeing the successful close of the transaction and organizing the early stages of implementation for First Student, North America’s leading school bus transportation services organization.

Prior to joining FirstGroup, Haggerty served at ARAMARK, the global leader in professional business services. Haggerty's eighteen-year career was characterized by high performance and record growth. As the Regional Vice President of Operations in the multi-unit Northeast market, Ed developed the New York City market, overseeing increased sales of approximately $23 million dollars. Then, as Senior Director of Acquisitions, Ed managed all phases of acquisition as well as organizing the initial phases of integration for 50+ acquisitions with a combined worth of approximately $200 million dollars.

At ARAMARK, Haggerty developed the Lead Program, which recruited high-potential college students from institutions around the country as well as the Acquisition Implementation Plan, which is employed to this date. 

Accolades include: three (3) separate People Development Awards in which Haggerty was recognized from among 18,000 fellow employees for his commitment to professional growth and personal achievement as well as several operational awards for excellence. 

Haggerty also worked at Coyne Textile Services, the largest family-owned industrial uniform service company in the United States. During his eleven (11) year career, holding the title of Division Group Manager, Haggerty had responsibility for the highest-grossing plant in the company. 

Haggerty received his Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the University of Massachusetts and attended graduate-level classes at Suffolk University.

Specialties: Acquisitions, Business Development, Implementation and Integration, Customer Experience and Business Transformation, Business Process Re-Engineering, Strategic Planning and Execution, Client Development, Management and Retention Strategies