National Burger Maker Adds Janus Chairman

So exactly what sort of workload can the average chairman of a fund complex handle? Evidently, quite a substantial one, according to a report from The Rocky Mountain News.

Dennis Mullen, 61, is chairman of the Janus Capital funds in Denver , a fund shop that's fighting to reestablish itself in the eyes of investors after the fund scandal. But Mullen is also the newly minted chairman and CEO of the struggling national restaurant chain Red Robin Gourmet Burgers in nearby Greenwood Village .

Mullen's leadership role at Red Robin is notable, if for no other reason, for the fact that guiding a major fund group is reportedly a massive undertaking for any one person.

"It's an awful lot of work," said Meyrick Payne, a partner at Management Practice, a Stamford , Conn..-based consultant to mutual fund directors.

Mullen, however, is well-compensated for his late nights, The Rocky Mountain News noted. Last year at Janus, he earned about $429,000, which exceeds the average director's pay of $128,000 for a shop with more than $30 billion in assets under management, according to estimations from the Investment Company Institute in Washington . At Red Robin, where the previous CEO resigned over improper travel and entertainment expenses he billed the company, Mullen makes about $625,000 annually. He receives performance-based bonuses on top of his salary.

But how does he fit it all into one day? Quite nicely, said Cameron Avery, a lawyer at Bell Boyd & Lloyd in Chicago that represents Janus directors.

"All I can say is that he has been a phenomenally good trustee of the Janus funds," Avery said. "And he devotes an enormous amount of time to Red Robin."