PE-CXO’s Success Stories cast a spotlight on private equity-backed operators and the tools and tactics they leverage to create real value. In each entry, a world-class executive details a practical solution to a critical business issue. To be featured, contact mallory.stokker@pe-cxo.com with the subject line “Success Story.”
Executive: Nathan McBrayer, CFO at Praxis Packaging Solutions and multi-time PE-backed finance lead
Challenge: Overhauling a struggling finance department in a mid-sized, PE-backed transportation management company.
Solution: Total transparency with staff to expedite the evaluation and rebuild process. Key external hires that helped heal emotional damage among the go-forward team.
Private equity-backed roles often present the need to quickly rebuild, reorganize, or just totally wipe out and rebuild the entire finance/accounting team.
You often step into a situation where the finance department has not satisfied the needs of the sponsor. That incompetency has not only created instability and distrust but has likely contributed to the dismissal of your predecessor.
It’s something I’ve encountered multiple times, but one of the more extreme cases was as the CFO for a PE-backed transportation management company. During my interview for the role, one of the PE firm’s first questions was, “What if you have to fire the entire finance team within the first 30 days?“
They thought the accounting team was inept, and they didn’t hide it during the interview process. My first response was to immedi...