CALIFORNIA : PEOPLE IN BUSINESS : Deloitte & Touche Appoints Managing Partner for Southland

National professional services firm Deloitte & Touche has appointed Sharon L. Allen as managing partner for Southern California and Nevada. She was most recently managing partner of the firm’s regional office covering Portland, Ore., and Boise, Idaho. In her new post, she will be in charge of the firm’s offices in Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, Las Vegas and Reno. Allen succeeds John Cardis, who was named a national managing partner.

Deloitte & Touche also appointed entertainment industry veteran Thomas K. Gray as a senior manager in the entertainment and new-media practice. He will be based in Los Angeles.

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Los Angeles-based international investment bank Houlihan Lokey Howard & Zukin said David M.V. Barnes has joined the firm as a senior vice president. Barnes, who will be based in Los Angeles, will be responsible for providing merger and acquisition, private equity and debt and equity placement services. He had been vice president of strategic planning for Protection One, a Culver City-based security services company.

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Sheree Aronson, a financial communications specialist, has joined the Los Angeles office of communications consulting firm Fleishman-Hillard Inc. as a senior vice president. Aronson, who previously was senior director of investor relations for Equity Marketing Inc. of Los Angeles, will develop financial and investor relations programs for Fleishman-Hillard’s clients.