Cornerstone International Group Fills Head of Investor Relations Role for Bitfarms

February 28, 2024 – Investor relations is a strategic management responsibility that is capable of integrating finance, communication, marketing and securities law compliance to enable the most effective two-way communication between a company, the financial community and other constituencies, which ultimately contributes to a company’s securities achieving fair valuation. With the growing importance of the IR role especially in private equity, it’s no wonder why organizations turn to executive search firms to fill these positions.
Cornerstone International Group, a global executive search and leadership development firm, has assisted in the recruitment of Tracy Krumme as senior vice president, head of investor relations of Bitfarms in Toronto. “We are excited to have Tracy join our team,” said Geoffrey Morphy, CEO. “In addition to her extensive investor relations and capital markets experience, Tracy has an established reputation among the investment community. I am confident that her strategic acumen and proven track record will make her highly effective in this role. We look forward to her contributions as we continue to execute on our strategic initiatives and elevate our profile among the investment community.”
Ms. Krumme has more than 30 years of leadership experience in investor relations, financial communications, investment banking, and equity research. She has led investor relations at several public companies, including PPD, Inc. (now part of Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.), Nuance Communications Inc. (now part of Microsoft Corp.), Luxoft (now part of DXC Technology Company), and NCR Corp, where she was instrumental in driving shareholder value, global visibility, and prominence.
Ms. Krumme most recently led the pre-IPO process at Galderma SA and has held positions as an equity research analyst at Sandler O’Neill + Partners, L.P., an investment strategist at Prudential Securities, and an investment banker at Kidder, Peabody International in London.
International Management Team
“I am impressed by the strength of Bitfarms’ international management team and am thrilled to join the company at this important stage in its development,” said Ms. Krumme. “With a robust balance sheet and an ongoing transformative fleet upgrade, the company is poised to significantly enhance fleet energy efficiency ahead of the next Bitcoin Halving. I look forward to engaging with investors and analysts to foster relationships and effectively communicate Bitfarms’ compelling growth story.”
Rewriting the Script for Investor Relations Recruitment
Not long ago, veteran executive recruiter Smooch Repovich Rosenburg came to her latest client, a global technology company, with a group of candidates for a pivotal investor relations officer role that had now come down to three finalists. One prospect had not yet served as an IRO, but was ready to make the transition; another had a significant background in global management consulting before making the move to investor relations; and the third candidate was a sitting head of IR. Throughout the search process, the chief financial officer favored the third candidate as this individual represented the “easy choice.” But Ms. Repovich Rosenberg pushed back. “I remember saying to him, ‘Really? That’s the reason you want to make a hire?’ I wanted to remind him that the easy choice isn’t always what is right.”
The recruiter urged her client to give the second candidate a harder look. This person might seem like an odd choice, she said, but actually brought something completely different to investor relations. As it played out, the client wisely followed her advice and chose candidate No. 2. Later, Ms. Repovich Rosenberg remembered the CFO telling her that he had “never had a search partner who thinks holistically— most search firms just want to find someone who will fit the box on the organization chart.” To which Ms. Repovich Rosenberg replied: “That’s just not who I am.”
Founded in 2017, Bitfarms is a global, publicly traded Bitcoin mining company that contributes its computational power to one or more mining pools from which it receives payment in Bitcoin. The company develops, owns, and operates vertically integrated mining farms with in-house management and company-owned electrical engineering, installation service, and multiple onsite technical repair centers. The Bitfarms’ proprietary data analytics system delivers best-in-class operational performance and uptime.
Bitfarms currently has 11 farms in production, one in expansion, and two in development, in four countries: Canada, the United States, Paraguay, and Argentina.
Cornerstone International Group provides executive search and leadership development services to global roster of clients. Both before (with psychometric assessment) and after (onboarding) its search process, the firm looks to ensure the highest possible chance of success in filling talent needs, the firm said. Cornerstone has 66 experienced member firms in both developed and emerging markets worldwide.
Related: Building a Top Tier Investor Relations Function
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor; Lily Fauver, Senior Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media