How top level interim management can make all the difference in portfolio companies ?
"The private equity market has been hit by the global crisis in France pretty much as well as in the rest of Europe. These hard times have initiated new development and forced investors to find new solutions to maintain value and invest their available funds. Our clients in the private equity sector experience the same issue: they have cash but at the same time huge difficulties to identify the right targets. As some of them look beyond French borders to get at those ventures, others seek to improve their operational grip on their companies. To achieve those two objectives, they need highly qualified human capital, whether in the investment team itself or in their portfolio companies.
I can’t help but say that the distance between private equity funds and their portfolio companies often surprises us. The concerns of fund’s directors seem to be more financial than operational. I also think that many medium-sized French funds are almost exclusively focused on the French market, though they would like to expand internationally. That is why I strongly believe in the value inherent in board level interim management: our goal is to provide funds with aligned manager-investors either an interim or permanent basis. Our clients can depend on us providing an interim CEO where a turnaround is required over time or a CEO who is willing to co-invest. These are people whose abilities reach far beyond the financial and functional features of a deal, people who have commitment and skills at the same time."
