Spire Search Partners reveals talent market highlights in the PE sector for 2Q 2026.

Spire Roundtables & Search Intelligence

Private Equity Leadership Roundtables

Our PE HR/TA Roundtable in New York City last quarter brought together Human Capital Operating leaders from a variety of firms and covered how artificial intelligence is reshaping human resources and talent acquisition – the resources being used, changing expectations, and the operational bottlenecks that remain. Read the recap

Our PE CFO Roundtable in NYC hosted CFOs from PE and VC firms with $3B to $100B in AUM, and the conversation spanned AI, fundraising, data infrastructure, service providers, and more. One theme kept surfacing: firms with well-organized data and strong leadership are making the fastest progress. Read the recap

AI Operating Partner Search: Bridging the AI Execution Gap

Our recent portfolio operations search work surfaced consistent themes from middle-market and large-cap PE executives on what’s actually working in AI implementation right now. Read our write-up

Private Equity Talent Trends

The leadership bar keeps rising — even as the market stays stuck

More firms are re-underwriting stalled assets, and the conversation keeps coming back to the same place: you can have a new value-creation plan, but without the right leadership energy to execute it, you’re not moving.

  • Key Takeaway: If your portfolio has stalled assets and your incentive plans are underwater, waiting on market conditions isn’t a strategy. The firms moving on C-suite changes now are the ones that will own the exit.

Fewer deals and much bigger bets

Deal volume dropped 34% in H1 2026 vs. H1 2025, but average deal size rose significantly, according to PwC’s midyear outlook; capital is concentrating in high-conviction plays. The tolerance for a wrong leadership hire has dropped considerably, and we’re seeing the best firms raise the bar on assessment accordingly.

  • Key Takeaway: In this environment, a wrong hire at a high-conviction portfolio company isn’t just costly — it can be deal-breaking.

F&A talent flipped from surplus to shortage – compensation nearly doubled year-over-year

A May–June 2026 national survey of CFOs and Controllers found the Talent Shortage Index dropped to 77% (from a surplus of 108% in 2025), while the Hiring Index hit 134%.

  • Key Takeaway: If you’re benchmarking F&A comp against 2025 levels, you’re already behind. Revisit your pay frameworks now or expect to lose candidates late in the process.

Search activity tied to PE keeps growing

Hunt Scanlon’s April 2026 rankings report found fee revenue at the 50 largest U.S. search firms jumped 11% in 2025, with PE, healthcare, and financial services driving the biggest gains. 75% of firms reported positive growth, nearly half by double digits.

  • Key Takeaway: The firms locking in relationships with search partners now will have the access and speed advantage when the deal window opens.

The CHRO role has outpaced most succession plans

Boards are struggling to find internal candidates – not because the talent isn’t there, but because it wasn’t developed to meet the role’s actual requirements today. The CHRO role has shifted from owning talent and culture to driving how the entire organization operates, and most development programs haven’t caught up.

  • Key Takeaway: If your CHRO succession plan was built around the traditional talent-and-culture mandate, it’s worth revisiting. The role now requires someone who can drive organizational performance.

Our Recent/Current Executive Searches

  • Head of Investment Strategy & Business Planning – $10b AUM Private Markets
  • Head of FP&A – $5b AUM Alternatives (Real Estate)
  • Operating Advisor – Value Creation (CFO’s Office) – $1b AUM LMM/MM PE
  • CFO – LMM Business Services
  • VP of Portfolio Analytics & Fund Operations – $8b AUM PE
  • Director of Finance – $3b AUM Private Markets (Equity Buyout, Credit)
  • CFO – LMM Consumer Services PortCo
  • Head of FP&A – LMM Industrials PortCo

Notable Market Moves: C-Suite & Executive Appointments

CFO PE/VC

  • Brian Motechin joins Niobrara Capital (AUM $17.1b) as Partner & Chief Financial Officer. He previously was Partner, Chief Financial Officer & Chief Compliance Officer of ZMC Advisors.
  • Mandy de Turck Norris joins Unity Hunt (AUM $3b) as Chief Financial Officer. She previously was President & Chief Financial Officer of A.G. Hill Partners 
  • Sumeru Equity Partners (AUM $3.4b) promoted Pankti Shah to Chief Financial Officer. She previously was Vice President, Finance. 
  • Pratik Gangwal joins Revelation Partners (AUM ~$2.3b) as Chief Financial Officer. He previously was Chief Financial Officer of Altos Ventures.
  • Frank J. Garafalo joins Decera Clinical (Portco of The Riverside Company, AUM ~$16b) as Chief Financial Officer. He previously was Chief Financial Officer of Eden Capital.
  • Pete Lee joins DC Capital Partners (AUM ~$4.3b) as Chief Financial Officer. He previously was Chief Financial Officer & Chief Compliance Officer of NaviMed Capital (AUM ~$450m). 
  • Vanessa Generelli joins Blue Wolf Capital Partners (AUM $11b) as Chief Financial Officer. She previously was Senior Controller at a Single Family Office and Director of Finance at One Rock Capital Partners (AUM ~$7b).

CFO AM

  • ACON Investments (AUM ~$8b) promoted CJ Cimino to Chief Financial Officer, US. He previously was Managing Director of Finance.

HR

  • Alana Zell joins Serent Capital (AUM $5.5b) as Executive Vice President. She previously was Executive Director, Talent Acquisition at Vista Equity Partners (AUM ~$100b). 
  • Ben Passafuime joins Battery Ventures (AUM ~$13b) as Talent Partner. He previously was Vice President at Alpine Investors (AUM ~$17b). 
  • Joe Schuster joins Valor Equity Partners (AUM ~$18b) as Vice President, Talent. He previously was Senior Vice President, Head of Talent at Tide Rock.

Operating Partners and Execs

  • Hunter Crittenden joins Banner Landscaping (Portco of Percheron Capital) as Chief Financial Officer. He previously was Operating Partner, Interim Portfolio Company Chief Financial Officer at New State Capital Partners (AUM ~$1.8b). 
  • Kim Katzenberger joins Brook + Whittle (Portco of Lindsay Goldberg) as Chief Financial Officer. He previously was Operating Partner – Finance at Blue Point Capital Partners (AUM ~$1.8b)
  • Chris Marshall joins Gridiron Capital (AUM $7.97b) as Operating Partner. He previously was an Operating Partner at Altamont Capital Partners (AUM ~$4b). 
  • Giovanni Costamagna joins Bregal Sagemount (AUM ~$7.5b) as Operating Partner. He previously was Operating Partner at Growth Factors. 
  • Amy Lang joins Bain Capital (AUM ~$185b) as Operating Partner. She previously was President, Global Business Operations, CDS at Advantage Solutions: Sales, Marketing, Technology. 
  • Shelly Singh joins Peak XV Partners (AUM ~$9b) as Operating Partner. She previously was Chief Growth Officer at Fractal.
  • Mason Chapple joins Graham Partners (AUM $4.9b) as Operating Partner. He previously was Senior Vice President, Commercial Excellence at American Securities (AUM ~$18.9b).
  • Eric Linde joins Bernhard Capital Partners (AUM ~$4b) as Operating Partner. He previously was Principal at Boston Consulting Group.
  • Andrew Rollo joins Sentinel Capital Partners (AUM ~$12b) as Operating Partner. He previously was Chief Financial Officer of New York Bariatric Group.

BD/IR

  • Ava Miner joins BlackRock (AUM ~$12.5t) as Vice President, Global Partners Office. She previously was Vice President, Investor Relations at B Capital (AUM ~$8b).
  • Tyler Lorberbaum joins Bessemer Venture Partners (AUM ~$20b) as Vice President, Investor Relations. He previously was Vice President, Investor Relations at B Capital (AUM ~$8b).
  • John Mendell joins Diameter Capital Partners (AUM ~$28.8b) as Managing Director. He previously was Managing Director, Investor Relations at Comvest Partners.
  • Stripes (AUM ~$7b) promoted Aidan Lynch to Principal. He previously was Vice President, Business Development & Capital Markets.
  • Kim Carlson joins Avenir (AUM ~$3.5b) as Head of Capital Formation & Investor Relations. She previously was Investor Relations at Stripes (AUM ~$7b).
  • Melissa Toma Ryan joins BlackRock (AUM $15.3t) as Managing Director, Capital Formation. She previously was Managing Director, Head of Business Development & Investor Relations at Virgo Investment Group (AUM ~$1.1b).
  • CF Private Equity (AUM ~$15.6b) promoted Mario Virtudes to Managing Director, Head of Secondaries Investor Relations. He previously was Managing Director, Institutional Business Development.