Focus Search Partners Expands
December 5, 2023 – Executive search firm Focus Search Partners, a Vaco company, has appointed industrial executive search expert John Davidson as managing director. “Our ability to provide substantive recommendations, unparalleled service and unwavering support to our clients means having the right talent in-house,” said Paul Frankenberg, founder and managing partner at Focus Search Partners. “We are thrilled to have John’s tenure and expertise at Focus Search Partners, and we are eager to continue making these important investments. John is a well-known talent partner in the industrial and mobility sectors, and he will undoubtedly expand our offerings across these dynamic and growing spaces.”
With over 20 years of executive search experience, Mr. Davidson focuses on the transportation and logistics sectors and has worked across aviation and aerospace for public, private, and private equity-backed companies. He most recently served as partner at Caldwell. He is an advisory board member at BRW Enterprise, which is retained by job seekers to identify executive and board-level opportunities. Mr. Davidson is also a board member at DataPrime, an AI and machine learning company focused on driving significant EBITDA gains at private equity-backed companies.
“Focus Search Partners is renowned for its unwavering commitment to white-glove service and unparalleled industry expertise,” said Mr. Davidson. “The firm’s growth trajectory and expansive array of solutions have established it as a premier hub, offering seasoned search professionals, such as myself, a platform to thrive while delivering exceptional service to a specialized client base. I look forward to bolstering the Focus Search Partners strategy and collaborating across the enterprise.”
Focus Search Partners was acquired by Vaco to become the retained executive search division of the global talent solutions firm. With 35-plus team members and 13 partners across nine states, Focus Search Partners specializes in building teams to grow companies, focusing on recruiting board members, executives, and senior-level individuals.
Related: Vaco Appoints President
Founded in 2002 by Jerry Bostelman, Jay Hollomon, and Brian Waller, Brentwood, TN-based Vaco provides boutique-level service with global reach in executive search, consulting, permanent placement and strategic staffing. Its areas of expertise include accounting, finance, technology, healthcare IT, operations, administration, and managed services. The firm operates more than 35 offices, with 780-plus employees and 4,300 consultants worldwide.
Recent Additions
Focus Search Partners recently named Michael Caggiano as managing partner. In his role, he will look to grow new revenue streams for Focus Search Partners from both inside and outside of the Vaco Holdings family of companies. “Michael has a rich track record in executive search, primarily in leading revenue growth and fostering brand collaboration through scale,” said Mr. Frankenberg. “These have been hallmarks of his career. As Focus Search Partners surges ahead with our aggressive growth and expansion, Micael’s leadership and experience will be invaluable.”
Focus Search Partners Acquires Southerland Group
Focus Search Partners acquired Dallas-based Southerland Group, complementing its existing expertise across the healthcare industry. Southerland Group is a nationally recognized retained executive search firm with specialization in complex integrated delivery systems, hospitals, academic medical centers, children’s hospitals and payer organizations. Under the agreement, Southerland Group’s founder Keith Southerland and his team will join Focus Search Partners’ leadership team. Mr. Southerland brings more than three decades of experience leading executive search for healthcare provider organizations to the firm and has conducted more than 1,100 searches for non-profit multi-hospital health systems, professional associations, pediatric health systems, public hospitals, academic medical centers and managed care organizations.
With over 20 years of experience, Mr. Caggiano has conducted numerous successful searches for public and private companies nationwide. His industry expertise spans professional services firms, manufacturers, government contractors, nonprofit organizations, technology development companies, sports and entertainment groups, banking and financial institutions, and private equity firms. Mr. Caggiano most recently served as senior vice president of U.S. search operations for Robert Half Executive Search, where he increased profitability to record levels and created a comprehensive executive search training program.
Focus Search Partners also added Seth Blumenthal as managing director to lead executive- and board-level engagements for their enterprise technology practice. “Seth’s track record of success, diverse experience and knowledge across business funding, organizational design, regulatory frameworks and executive search make him an incredible expert in the market,” said Adam Charlson, managing partner of Focus Search Partners. “Our clients will benefit tremendously from his insights and our firm is gaining an exceptional resource to solution for the needs of the venture capital community. We are thrilled to have him join our team.”
“Seth understands the needs of high-growth businesses during the various stages of their lifecycles,” said Mr. Frankenberg. “His holistic approach will create the on-brand experience for our stakeholders—both clients and candidates—that we are invested in creating across our business. Enterprise technology and deep tech is and will continue to be a focal point for our practice, and we are thrilled to add talented individuals like Seth to our growing team.”
Related: Vaco Acquired by Private Equity Firm
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor; Lily Fauver, Senior Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
