Hobbs & Towne Recruits CFO for Solid Power
November 8, 2021 – Clean tech and sustainability recruiting powerhouse Hobbs & Towne has assisted in the recruitment of Kevin Paprzycki as the new chief financial officer of Solid Power, a developer of all-solid-state battery cells for electric vehicles. Senior partner Dan Cremins and partner Ryan Houder led the assignment. “At this pivotal moment in Solid Power’s history, we are elevating and enhancing our team to include the critical skills and high caliber leadership experience we need to effectively propel the company towards its vision of powering a cleaner, safer and cost-effective electric future,” said Doug Campbell, co-founder and CEO of Solid Power. “With the addition of Kevin’s finance and public company expertise we have the right leader in place to drive the company into its next phase of its evolution.”
Mr. Paprzycki brings more than 25 years of financial leadership experience, including over 15 years in C-level financial and executive leadership positions at Colorado-based public companies. Prior to joining Solid Power, Mr. Paprzycki served in various executive roles at Scott’s Liquid Gold, including serving as CFO, treasurer, and corporate secretary since 2018, a member of its board of directors since 2019 and as interim co-president since April. Previously, Mr. Paprzycki held several executive leadership roles at Westmoreland Coal Co. and its subsidiary, Westmoreland Resource Partners, including CEO from 2015 to 2017 and CFO from 2008 to 2015.
Veteran Consultants
For Philadelphia-based Hobbs & Towne, climate has been its sole agenda for more than two decades. The firm focuses exclusively on finding leaders for the clean tech, mobility, climate technology, food and agriculture, water, infrastructure and sustainability markets. Last year the firm enjoyed a 59 percent revenue jump and took first place in the exclusive Hunt Scanlon Media Top 25 rankings as the fastest growing search firm of the year. “This year, Hobbs & Towne is accelerating those growth rates and making good on its promise to be the singular source of talent for climate and sustainability talent,” said Scott A. Scanlon, CEO of Hunt Scanlon Media.
Related: Hobbs & Towne Assists Smart Wires in CEO Search
“Since 1997, we have partnered with mission-driven, forward-thinking investors, companies and people who approach decision-making with an ESG framework to drive disruptive solutions that have global impact on climate and sustainability,” said founding partner and CEO Andy Towne. Among the search firm’s notable recent placements: chief science officer of transformational food and beverage company Impossible Foods, chief people officer of Shoals Technologies, chief technology and innovation officer at National Grid, CEO of innovative electricity technology company Smart Wires, board director at CarbonCure, CFO and head of sustainability at Pivot Bio, CFO at Lightning eMotors, CRO at JustGreens/Aerofarms, chief people officers for Gathered Foods and Homeworks Energy, president of government relations at Gevo and VP global HR at Hazel Technologies
Today, Hobbs & Towne partners with venture capital, private equity and family office investors, as well as large, global companies across some of the most impactful technology categories, including but not limited to aerospace, agriculture, AI, bio and medical, data science, energy, food, IOT, mobility, robotics and sustainability. The firm has performed over 2,500 executive searches over the last 20-plus years. It maintains offices in San Francisco, Philadelphia, New York, Los Angeles, Toronto and London.
Sustainability and Clean Tech Meet the ‘Perfect Storm’ as Sector Surges
No one was saying it in so many words, but the report that the United Nations Global Compact and Russell Reynolds Associates released last year was aimed at nothing less than helping to save the world. Six years ago, leaders from 193 nations at an historic UN summit adopted 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) that involved everything from eradicating hunger to taking urgent action to overcome climate change. They were big, tough, imposing goals, with a deadline of 2030. With but nine years to go, the world remains far from meeting these objectives.
One big reason that progress is lagging is the contrast between what business leaders say about their commitment to sustainability and what they have actually delivered. For example, a previous study showed that 92 percent of CEOs said they believe integration of sustainability will be important to the future success of their business. Yet only 48 percent of chief executives said they were implementing sustainability in their operations. Only 21 percent of CEOs, meanwhile, said they believe that business is playing a critical role in achieving the SDGs.
Hobbs & Towne has completed searches for the specific roles of chairman, executive chairman, audit chair, CEO, COO, CFO, CTO, CSO, CCO, CMO, chief architect, chief engineer, general counsel and mandates at the EVP, SVP and VP level in technology, engineering, research and development, process development, software development, intellectual property, operations, manufacturing, supply chain, logistics, quality, human resources, finance, accounting, project finance, project development, asset management, development, business development, sales, customer success, marketing, product management, digital and regulatory.
Mr. Cremins has been conducting executive searches and building management teams for over two decades. He joined Hobbs & Towne in 2002 and has been a partner with the firm since 2007. Mr. Cremins has performed searches across a wide range of technology verticals including artificial intelligence, robotics, energy, automotive and mobility, aerospace technology, smart cities & buildings, internet of things, and agricultural and food technology with both large public and private companies as well as growth stage companies.
Mr. Houder is a member of Hobbs & Towne’s West Coast team, helping grow the firm’s presence within brands, food and agriculture technology, digital health, and industrial technology. Mr. Houder has completed board, C-level and VP-level searches. He has worked closely with the portfolio companies of venture capital and private equity firms such as Stray Dog Capital, Khosla Ventures, CAVU Ventures, 301 Inc., Oak Tree Capital, True North Venture Partners and Pegasus Capital.
Related: Hobbs & Towne Expands PE and Venture Capital Advisory Team
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
