Private-Equity: A Multifaceted Approach

Our Private Equity Practice, which has grown in tandem with the rapid rise of the PE industry on the whole, includes four clients in the “Top 10” of the private equity universe. Over the last few years, we have all seen tremendous activity in the PE arena – in the number, size, and complexity of deals – at least partially driven by the abundance of “cheap” money. As PE firms grow in terms of funds under management, and as their reach extends further across the globe, many have sought to create new positions and processes to attract superior talent for the long term. The firms with the best talent have a significant edge, and they increase their chances of driving improved returns through operational transformations.

Our PE Practice is comprised of three distinct components:

For some of the best known firms in private equity, we recruit investment professionals, those who source and structure deals across all industries.

Portfolio company executives are those senior leaders hired by the private equity owner(s) with a specific mandate to turn around underperforming companies, in return for which they receive an equity stake in a portfolio company.

There is a growing market for skilled operations executives, the group of functional experts that works across a PE firm’s portfolio of companies, usually within defined industry sectors.

Since 1993, private equity clients have driven a considerable portion of our business. While every PE firm has consistently focused on bringing in the strongest investment professionals possible for the “deal team”, those PE firms with the proper resources also have invested in the recruitment of strong functional leaders. These senior executives “parachute” into troubled companies and either lead the entire turnaround, or are members of the small team that does so for the largest and most complex entities. These roles provide some of the greatest possible experiences one can gain as a CEO or on the path to CEO, and the PE world is an ideal place to establish one’s reputation as a driver of change.

It is no secret that private equity can be a very lucrative endeavor for those involved in successful investments and turnarounds. But it takes more than ambition to gain entry to this exciting industry. We seek out driven top performers with established track records – people who can embrace ambiguity and deliver under great pressure. Today’s market environment provides the strongest PE firms with the opportunity to acquire both undervalued companies, as well as their future transformational leaders.