He subsequently became head of Continental Investors, a private equity firm that invests in Internet-enabled financial services and consumer companies.
Phil Purcell was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he graduated from Judge Memorial Catholic High School.
Purcell began his business career in 1967 at McKinsey & Co., an international management consulting firm, traveling and working with clients throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia.
When he left McKinsey to join Sears in 1978, he was Managing Director of the Chicago office—the youngest head of a major office in the firm's history.
He played a leading role in Sears's acquisition of Dean Witter Reynolds on December 31, 1981, and became President in 1982 and Chairman and CEO in 1986.
"[7] After a series of missteps, including firing President Vikram Pandit [8] and a $1.4 billion jury verdict against the firm, [9] Purcell began to lose the confidence of shareholders and his board of directors.
[12] As part of the deal to step down, Purcell was awarded a $113 million pay package [13] The events that led to his resignation are covered in detail in a 2007 book by Patricia Beard, Blue Blood and Mutiny: The Fight for the Soul of Morgan Stanley.
[14][15] Purcell was at the helm of Morgan Stanley on September 11, 2001, when the terrorist hijacked planes hit the twin towers of the World Trade Center.