Hiring at each stage of an investment.
We support private equity owners and their portfolio companies in securing executive leaders, function heads and senior professionals in pivotal roles, from separation and the first 100 days to value creation and exit.
A hold period is short, and the cost of a wrong senior hire is high. We help owners and management teams make pivotal appointments that hold up, at each stage of the investment.
We work inside the rhythm of an investment: separation, the first 100 days, value creation and exit readiness. Our work spans PE-backed businesses, buy-and-build platforms, carve-outs and transformation situations in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.
Each assignment runs on a statement of work with a pre-agreed budget ceiling. There is no placement fee and no link to salary, and interim managers contract directly with the portfolio company, without a markup.
Appointments since 2021, permanent and interim.
To a first shortlist, typical for permanent searches.
Placement fee, whatever the salary.
Markup on interim hours, extensions included.
Five moments where one hire changes the outcome.
From separation to exit, the roles that matter change. The way we work stays the same: one partner, one assessment standard, and a statement of work with a pre-agreed budget ceiling.
- 01
Separation and standalone setup
Treasury, tax, reporting and IT leadership for a business leaving its former parent, often within weeks.
- 02
The first 100 days
The CFO, COO or function heads the value-creation plan depends on, with interim cover where a seat cannot stay empty.
- 03
Value creation and buy-and-build
M&A, integration, commercial and operations roles for a growth or acquisition program, run as one team build where roles land together.
- 04
Reporting and exit readiness
IFRS, group reporting, control and governance roles that give buyers a reliable view of the numbers.
- 05
Internal or external
Internal candidates assessed against the external market on one scorecard, so promotions and appointments rest on evidence.
Five years, two owners, one hiring partner.
A pan-European industrial distribution group, anonymized. We began working with the group in 2021, before its sale to a private equity owner, and continued through the separation and the years that followed.
PE-owned industrial distribution group
An embedded hiring partner before, during and after a sale.
- Before the sale
- Searches across finance, operations, digital, commercial, legal and HR.
- Separation
- A newly created head of treasury, plus cash management, tax and group reporting roles for the standalone business.
- New ownership
- Interim finance managers contracted directly by the group, including a lead for the move to IFRS, and internal candidates tested against the external market.
- Outcome
- Continuity through the change of ownership, one view of the market across every function, no placement fees and no markup on any interim hour.
In private equity, an empty seat is rarely just a timing issue. It holds back the plan the investment was made for.
