Acertitude Recruits CFO for Ascend Healthcare
June 19, 2025 – Acertitude has recruited Nicole Byers as the new CFO of Ascend Healthcare, an Abry Partners portfolio company. The search was led by partner Heather Johnson and principal JJ Houldin. “Ascend is actively expanding access to high-quality, compassionate behavioral healthcare services via telehealth and our community health partners,” Ms. Byers said in a LinkedIn post. I’m grateful for the opportunity to partner with such a passionate, purpose-driven team to support this important mission.”
Ms. Byers most recently served as CFO of Point Quest Group, a provider of special education services nationwide. Before that, she served as vice president at Patient Square Capital. Prior to this, Ms. Byers held the same position with Housatonic Partners. During her career, she also gained experience in senior roles with FFL Partners and Bain & Company.
Ascend Healthcare is a provider of outsourced telepsychiatry and behavioral health services, specializing in partnerships with Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) to deliver integrated care to underserved populations nationwide. With a vision to transform mental health delivery, Ascend emphasizes patient-centered, high-quality care through innovative telehealth and comprehensive treatment options.
Founded in 2015, Acertitude specializes in recruiting CEO, C-suite, and executive talent in the consumer, financial, healthcare and life sciences, industrial, private equity, professional services, and technology sectors. Its consultants work from offices in Boston; Dallas; Miami; London; New York; Philadelphia; Providence, RI; Raleigh, NC; Shanghai; and Washington, D.C. Acertitude’s global professional services practice recruits leadership talent for technology services, strategy and management consulting, turnaround and restructuring, M&A and deal advisory, business process outsourcing, and human capital advisory firms.
Ms. Johnson works across healthcare services, HCIT, and private equity. She has completed over 300+ searches in the C-suite throughout her career. Ms. Johnson has over three decades of experience working in healthcare, private equity, and management consulting, forging partnerships with clients and honing specialized knowledge across diverse sectors, including behavioral health, healthcare services, technology-enabled services, pharmacy services, and outsourced services. Ms. Johnson has spearheaded executive search initiatives for middle-market, private equity-backed healthcare enterprises and has led numerous high-profile C-suite searches across the sector, driving value creation.
Related: CFOs as Strategic Architects: Navigating Transformation in Financial Services
Mr. Houldin specializes in providing Board, CEO, and GTM executive search and leadership advisory services (e.g., assessment, team effectiveness) to investor-backed companies. He is a key member of the firm’s private equity practice and brings particular expertise in venture studios. With over a decade of experience spanning finance, executive search, and the PE/VC sector, his background includes working with clients ranging from seed stage businesses to public companies. Prior to joining Acertitude, Mr. Houldin was a director of talent at Juxtapose, an investment firm focused on building new companies in the technology and healthcare space.
The Evolving CFO Role in Private Equity
Navigating a tapestry of challenges, private equity CFOs have undergone a transformative evolution, shifting from being financial overseers to becoming strategic pilots. Their role surpasses the scope of accounting and reporting monthly numbers; they now own and harness data, providing invaluable insights that improve fact-based decision making for the organization at large, according to a recent report from Acertitude’s Scott Carberry. “The emerging PE CFO is a vital linchpin, balancing the financial acumen, operational resilience, and strategic foresight poised to unlock new dimensions of success in an ever-changing landscape,” he said. “Adapting to these evolving circumstances, the responsibilities shouldered by PE CFOs have experienced a notable metamorphosis in contrast to previous years.”
A Look at the High Demand for Top CFOs for Private Equity Firms
In times of volatility, financial stability becomes an understated hallmark of business success. Private equity firms have, appropriately, responded to the severe macroeconomic challenges of recent years with caution, making unprecedented pullbacks in investment and reaching record levels of dry powder, according to a new report from Slayton Search Partners’ Dan Dunn.
“Today’s firms are steadying their balance sheets and preparing for long-term growth by building quality over quantity—a process that will increasingly require proactive CFOs,” he said. “CFOs are key drivers of sustainable value creation for PE firms and their portfolio companies. As portfolio sizes remain limited and the need for exceptionally successful exits grows, the role of the chief financial officer will expand in the coming years. Subsequently, demand for experienced private equity CFOs is certain to rise.”
“Today’s CFO is an adept communicator and collaborator, transcending silos to engage operational leaders, investors, and portfolio company executives to navigate fluid market dynamics, conserve cash, and drive transformation,” Mr. Carberry said. “Most importantly, they enable the ability to drive better and faster decision making, aiding in the execution of the value creation plan.”
In the current landscape, there are heightened market challenges confronting PE CFOs compared to previous years, according to Mr. Carberry. He says that executives grapple not just with survival, but proactively rising from economic inflation to maintain the original investment thesis. “These times demand meticulous attention to minute details and a strategic pivot around new pain points – namely inflation, rising interest rates, and supply chain disruptions,” he said. “Each of these challenges bears its own set of sub-challenges leading to after-effects, and the key areas to focus on during these times include balancing cash management and revenue growth, evaluating headcount, benefits, procurement, and facilities, while also investing in automation.”
Mr. Carberry explains that amidst these dynamics, pace is still paramount. “Even in the face of impending challenges, the deal team continues to expect prompt execution within the business, tasking PE CFOs to augment their strategic maneuvering while managing rapid timelines,” he said.
Related: Financial Services is Booming, CFO Role Continues to Evolve
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief and Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
