Executive Search Success Story: Transforming Leadership at a PE-Backed Consumer Packaged Goods Company

How JRG Partners executed a confidential, multi-role North American executive search strategy that equipped a private equity-owned household and personal care CPG company with the operational and financial leadership needed to drive an aggressive value creation plan, reverse margin erosion, and prepare the business for a successful future exit.

The Challenge

A private equity firm had recently acquired a mid-market consumer packaged goods company specializing in household and personal care products. While the business had strong brand recognition and nationwide retail distribution, operational performance had stagnated. The investment group identified significant opportunities to improve profitability and prepare the company for a future exit—but doing so would require a fundamental transformation of the leadership team.

Working closely with the PE sponsors, the Board identified a cluster of interlocking value creation challenges:

• Margin erosion driven by rising raw material costs and inefficient procurement practices
• Outdated manufacturing processes limiting productivity and EBITDA potential
• Fragmented leadership across multiple separate production facilities
• Weak succession planning and a lack of organizational depth within critical functions
• Limited data-driven decision making across commercial and operational teams
• A severe shortage of executives with proven experience in private equity-backed environments

The PE sponsors established an aggressive three-year value creation plan and required a complete leadership transformation to execute it. The confidential mandate required the recruitment of a Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, VP Operations, VP Procurement, VP Commercial Excellence, and Director of Continuous Improvement. The organization needed an executive search partner capable of identifying leaders with documented experience in operational turnarounds, EBITDA growth, and PE-backed consumer goods environments—executives who understood the pace and accountability of private equity ownership.

Why They Chose JRG Partners

Private Equity & CPG Expertise

JRG Partners understood the unique demands of private equity ownership—including accelerated growth expectations, rigorous operational efficiency targets, investor reporting requirements, and exit planning considerations. That context shaped every aspect of the search strategy, from candidate profiling to final selection.

Real Access to Transformation Leaders

Rather than recruiting traditional corporate executives, JRG Partners targeted leaders who had successfully executed performance improvement initiatives inside PE-backed consumer businesses—executives with documented records of EBITDA improvement, cost reduction, and operational turnaround in high-pressure environments.

Confidential Market Intelligence

The search required discreet outreach to executives currently leading successful transformation initiatives within competing CPG organizations. JRG Partners conducted every aspect of the engagement with the strict confidentiality necessary to protect both the client’s competitive position and the reputations of the candidates engaged.

National Talent Reach Across CPG Markets

The assignment required executive talent across major CPG markets throughout North America—including Chicago, Cincinnati, Minneapolis, Atlanta, Dallas, and Toronto—requiring a partner that could engage the strongest available candidates credibly across all target geographies.

Our Executive Search Strategy

Phase 1 — Value Creation Alignment

JRG Partners met with investors, Board members, and executive stakeholders to develop a clear understanding of EBITDA improvement targets, growth objectives, operational challenges, leadership gaps, and exit timeline expectations. Each executive profile was built around measurable business outcomes and the specific capabilities required to execute the value creation plan—rather than traditional, static job descriptions.

Phase 2 — Market Mapping

JRG Partners conducted an extensive market-mapping initiative targeting executives from PE-backed CPG companies, household products manufacturers, personal care brands, consumer goods conglomerates, and operational turnaround environments. In total, more than 500 executive profiles were evaluated across North America.

Phase 3 — Targeted Executive Engagement

Using a research-driven, discreet outreach framework, our consultants prioritized executives with demonstrated success in cost optimization, Lean manufacturing, procurement transformation, EBITDA expansion, post-acquisition integration, and multi-site operational leadership. Every candidate was evaluated on their ability to operate effectively under private equity governance while driving meaningful commercial and operational results.

Phase 4 — Leadership Assessment

Each finalist underwent an extensive evaluation covering financial impact history, operational leadership capability, change management effectiveness, team development skills, investor communication experience, and cultural adaptability—ensuring selected leaders could perform in the high-accountability, results-driven environment of a PE-owned business.

Key Outcomes

• 500+ targeted corporate CPG turnaround, procurement, and multi-site operational executive profiles mapped across primary North American consumer corridors.
• Successfully built and integrated a fully synchronized executive tier spanning financial leadership, commercial excellence, and Lean manufacturing within 14 months.
• Reversed margin erosion by implementing strategic sourcing initiatives that dropped material costs and strengthened supply chain resilience.
• Boosted plant productivity and optimized EBITDA potential through the deployment of specialized operational and continuous improvement leaders.
• Eliminated critical organizational depth and succession risks by establishing a unified management infrastructure tailored to PE velocity.
• Protected corporate continuity and protected brand reputation through discreet, research-driven outreach during sensitive organizational restructures.
• Secured institutional investor alignment, transforming the leadership asset into a powerful asset prepared for competitive exit evaluation.