How PE Investors Pick CEOs

PE firms look for key attributes in the CEO beyond the normal standard stack.

1. Growth Appetite

CEOs in PE-invested companies cannot survive if the growth rate is anaemic, and they need to display a huge appetite to grow the top line and margins.

2. Capability To Grow

PE companies advise CEOs to look for inorganic growth opportunities through mergers and acquisitions, hence they look for CEOs with prior deals’ experience.

3. Strategic Fin Management

The CEO will be selected either from the domain or possess great general management capabilities, which is fundamental.

4. Capability Building

PE companies keep pushing the CEO to hire a successor or identify someone within and make sure that the CFOand COO are capable executives.

5. Communication Skills

In a PE-invested setup, the requirement is for the CEO, who proactively communicates with the board.