Focus Search Partners Creates Interim Executive Services Practice
June 30, 2020 – Top experts in talent management and leadership recruitment agree that filling an interim leadership position can be a significant opportunity for an organization. Focus Search Partners, the executive search division of talent solutions provider Vaco, recently launched an interim executive services practice to leverage the firm’s 20-year history. The firm tapped C-suite talent veteran Monica Foster to lead the new business, which will specialize in serving the private equity market.
The interim executive services practice supports organizations needing high-caliber C-suite leaders at pivotal moments. Through the new practice, companies can leverage Focus Search Partners’ network of experienced operating executives who can step in quickly to amplify business performance during times of leadership transitions, M&A activity, performance improvement and operational optimization.
“As we’ve grown, we’ve realized the need in the marketplace – especially with our firm’s private equity clients – for exceptional leadership talent to lead at critical transitional moments,” said Paul Frankenberg, founder of Focus Search Partners. “We are excited and fortunate to have Monica join our team to launch and lead this new initiative. Her extensive experience placing interim executives as well as her leadership roles with multi-billion-dollar private equity funds instantly provide our clients with experience and perspective in securing high-quality executive talent in transformational times of need.”
“Our clients have repeatedly told us that the market lacks a consistent go-to service provider in the interim segment and that there is an opportunity for a firm to step in and become the leader,” Mr. Frankenberg said. “Focus Search Partners is aggressively building an exceptional practice that aligns in-demand experienced executives with the needs of our private equity-backed clients.”
The new practice complements Focus Search Partners’ retained search services as it continues to grow in the marketplace, helping companies scale their organizations efficiently and effectively. “It also creates the opportunity to offer these services more broadly to Vaco’s client portfolio as a strategic talent solution,” said the firms.
Focus Search Partners works with a variety of industries, including health care services, consumer products, frontier and space technology, manufacturing and industrial, private equity, restaurant and retail, software and technology, and energy and natural resources.
15-Year Track Record
Ms. Foster, who brings a 15-year track record of helping clients identify top executive interim talent, serves as managing director of Focus Search Partners’ interim executive services practice. She will be responsible for origination, talent acquisition, client service delivery and business operations.
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Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Foster supported senior-level recruiting efforts for Vista Equity Partners’ portfolio companies in the software and technology sector. There she gained experience understanding the operational rigor of a top performing private equity firm. Earlier in her career, Ms. Foster was national managing partner within Tatum, one of the largest project-based CFO solutions firms in the nation, where she led national recruiting and service delivery teams through periods of the firm’s high growth.
“As we continue to recognize the increasing complexity of business operations, I am excited to join Focus Search Partners to launch its interim executive services practice,” Ms. Foster said. “We have already established a solid roster of experienced executives ready to provide their expertise and leadership, at a moment’s notice, to private equity firms that need strategic support with their portfolio companies.”
The addition of Ms. Foster is part of Focus Search Partners’ strategy to deliver best-in-class talent and solutions to clients worldwide. “The need for interim talent in times of transition has never been more important than now, as business emerges from the coronavirus crisis, and Focus Search Partners is dedicated to providing optimal solutions for clients as they build for the future,” the firm said.
Founded in 2001, Focus Search Partners was acquired in 2014 to become the executive search division of Vaco, a consulting and strategic solutions firm. The company specializes in matching high caliber board members, executives and senior-level individuals with leading technology and healthcare services organizations across the U.S. The firm has recruited senior leaders for a wide variety of companies in the space, including Adobe Systems, Cisco, Cornerstone OnDemand, Convergys, DataPipe, Experian, FICO, Google, HP, Infor Global Solutions, Informatica, JDA Software, Microsoft, PayPal, Progress Software, Salesforce.com, SAP, Sitel, TeleTech and Verint, among others.
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Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
