The firm was seeking a multi-faceted professional to serve as a strategic partner to the CFO/COO. The ideal candidate profile required a unique blend of skills and experience:

• Operational Acumen: Experience in process improvement and developing efficiencies
• Financial Expertise: The ability to handle day-to-day financial operations and support reporting requirements
• Vendor Management: Strong organizational skills to serve as a key point of contact for external partners, such as fund administrators
• Deal Team Support: An integrated support function, strategically pulling in key resources during the due diligence process

As the firm grew to nearly 15 people and approached $1 billion in AUM, the CFO/COO (who was also the sole non-investment leader) recognized a need for a strategic hire. He required a partner who could provide leverage across a wide variety of functions, enabling him to shift his focus from daily operational tasks to broader strategic initiatives.

The firm was seeking a multi-faceted “unicorn” with the technical and financial skills to handle day-to-day responsibilities, combined with the strategic mindset to execute in a rapidly evolving environment. Crucially, the role demanded strong soft skills and an excellent cultural fit to foster effective collaboration with deal teams and senior leadership.

After a five-month search with two contingent recruiters, the process yielded no viable candidates. The recruiters consistently presented one-dimensional “Controller-types” who lacked the comprehensive skill set, adaptability, and interpersonal skills essential for the role.

Leveraging our extensive experience supporting both CFOs and COOs, Spire Search Partners had a deep understanding of the unique blend of skills required to build their teams.

To begin the search, we started by mapping a long list of local Bay Area PE firms, given the client’s four-day in-office policy. We systematically targeted relevant teams at the appropriate levels and leveraged our deep existing network for referrals and market insights.

Working closely with the hiring manager, we developed a compelling Employee Value Proposition and identified ideal target profiles. Recognizing that personality, soft skills, and communication were paramount, our initial outreach focused on engaging conversations to assess each candidate’s energy and genuine interest.

Each candidate on our long list was then thoroughly vetted. They were assessed against a scorecard we developed in collaboration with the hiring manager and were interviewed twice by our team to explore their experience, motivations, and strengths in detail.

Through our comprehensive and deliberate process, we successfully identified and placed a candidate who not only possessed the required skills but was also the perfect cultural fit.

This strategic hire provided the CFO/COO with the critical leverage he needed, enabling the firm to continue its aggressive growth trajectory with a solid, scalable platform.