In many companies, the CFO is more important than the CEO. And the majority of private equity-backed CFOs are actually not up to par.
In this episode of the Run the Numbers podcast, CJ Gustafson is joined by Scott Engler — CEO and co-founder of Sync Executive Partners and co-founder of PE-Xcelerate — to explain why he believes these statements to be true.
What the Conversation Covers
Scott shares insights on the many hats the modern PE CFO wears — and which ones they should prioritize. The CFO role has moved decisively beyond financial stewardship into enterprise leadership, and the gap between CFOs who understand this and those who don't is widening.
How to navigate your relationship with the CEO, the PE sponsor, and other key stakeholders. The dynamics are unique to the PE environment — and most CFOs coming from non-PE backgrounds underestimate how different the operating environment actually is.
Social profiling hacks that help CFOs and the teams hiring them assess fit more accurately. The conversation covers the benefits of upside-down reviews — and why not having a recommendation can sometimes be the smartest move in a hiring process.
The best way to position for and land a CFO role in a PE-backed company — and how to negotiate equity packages once you're in the process. The equity conversation is one where most CFO candidates leave significant value on the table.
Scott Engler on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/scottengler
Sync Executive Partners: syncexecutivepartners.com
PE-Xcelerate: pexcelerate.com