Our client is a private equity fund manager based in Toronto focused on mid-market buy-out opportunities in Canada and the US. They purchased a US pet treat company with the objective of building the company organically and through business acquisitions. In order to meet this goal, they needed to hire an executive team consisting of a CFO, a head of sales and a head of supply chain. They needed individuals with specific industry knowledge as well as experience working with private equity firms. Furthermore, they had to be experienced and accomplished in their functional areas of expertise. It was also important that they would complement the existing bench strength in their leadership and work together as a high functioning executive team. We were brought on board to source these individuals.
We met with the incumbent leadership team including the President and the Board to gain a thorough understanding of our mandate. We developed a company profile and reviewed the organizational structure to understand how these roles fit within the company. Together, we drafted position profiles for each role as well as a go-to-market strategy to identify top candidates. Prospective candidates were personally researched, recruited, interviewed and assessed. Short-listed candidates were presented and recommendations made based on their qualifications and fit. We sequenced the hiring plan to first target the sales role, followed by the supply chain role and then the finance role. A winning team was lined up.
We undertook an exhaustive search of the marketplace until we found individuals that fit the criteria of having relevant industry, private equity and functional area experience. The new VP Sales had extensive experience in the pet food industry and previously worked in a leading company that was private-equity owned. The VP Supply Chain also came from a private-equity owned company that was recently sold to a strategic buyer. The CFO was sourced from the food industry, having most recently been involved in the divestiture of a business to a private-equity firm. We put in place this highly competent leadership team which was well-positioned to move the company forward in their growth objectives.