Veteran executive Phil DaCosta recently joined Cook & James as vice president of business development.

Based in the Atlanta suburb of Alpharetta, Cook & James attorneys serve real estate closing needs in Georgia, New York, Connecticut and South Carolina. The firm was recently added as a network partner with national real estate eClosing software platform, Pavaso. 

DaCosta will be responsible for the firm’s market expansion and will foster relationships to heighten its recognition among Realtors, builders, developers as well as with executives in the financial sector. According to a release, DaCosta has an extensive background in process improvement, customer service, supply chain innovation, marketing and call center logistics.

During his career, DaCosta has seen significant results in the work he has done, including increasing the net worth of Cbeyond. While serving as the company’s customer experience director, its net worth increased from $100 million to $700 million. As senior manager of online operations for Home Depot, he streamlined a $24 million integration project that helped the company move from $450 million to $3.5 billion in revenue. DaCosta also previously served as a process improvement manager with Bellsouth, where he helped the company save $200 million prior to its merger with AT&T.

“We are thrilled to welcome Phil and know his rich business experience will further position Cook & James for continued success,” said Heather James, co-founding partner at Cook & James. “With Phil’s strong team leadership and award-winning track record, we are confident we can penetrate new verticals, compounding our recently-reinvigorated business development initiatives.”