SPMB Recruits General Counsel for Aven
December 19, 2022 – SPMB, an executive search firm that helps find transformative executives throughout Silicon Valley, has assisted in placing Ronald Chillemi as general counsel of Aven. The search was led by Sarah Auten, client partner at SPMB.
Mr. Chillemi is a general counsel with 10+ years experience leading cross-functional teams on major growth projects including optimizing partnerships and integrating acquisitions. He has had success in streamlining operations, mitigating risk, and reducing costs. His expertise includes strategy, team leadership, regulatory compliance, project management, investigations and crisis management, litigation, insurance and brand protection.
Aven is a provider of financial advisory services intended to reduce the cost of capital in the world. The company’s services include providing an asset-backed credit card that uses technology and operations, enabling users to reduce the high-interest rates that they pay.
Veteran Recruiters
For over 40 years, SPMB has worked alongside its clients to build executive teams that ensure venture capital and private equity-backed game-changers achieve scale, and position multi-billion-dollar public companies to unlock innovation. Specializing in technology and innovation, SPMB recruits upper management and board members to growth-oriented companies in tech, consumer, and sustainability industries. SPMB has also placed dozens of senior executives at the portfolio companies of leading private equity firm partners including Blackstone, KKR, and TPG.
Inside the High Demand for General Counsel Leaders
The legal and compliance market is booming. The number of in-house lawyers and law firm partners with aspirations of becoming a general counsel is at an all-time high. Unfortunately, landing the position is a challenge. Every search has specific criteria established by the executive leadership team and board which must be met. Some of the criteria could include specific industry experience or business knowledge, a background in public company securities and governance, as well as expertise in regulatory, compliance, litigation, M&A, employment/labor law, intellectual property, government relations, leadership, career track record, law firm training, law school ranking, and the list goes on, according to Robert Barker, co-founder and managing partner of BarkerGilmore, which specializes in building corporate legal and compliance teams.
“Keep in mind cultural fit and soft skills which cannot be found on the resume are equally important,” he said. “And diversity can play a major factor in the CEO and board’s final decision. Most are using the general counsel position as a means of adding diversity to the executive leadership team,” he added. The demand for excellence is understandable as the general counsel plays such a critical role. One wrong answer or move during the interview process can lead to immediate disqualification. “Even after an offer is made, any red flag demonstrating a lack of judgment or ethics discovered during the background investigation will lead to a retraction,” said Mr. Barker.
Specializing in technology and innovation, SPMB Executive Search recruits upper management and board members to growth-oriented companies in tech, consumer, and sustainability industries. SPMB has also placed dozens of senior executives at the portfolio companies of leading private equity firm partners including Blackstone, KKR, and TPG.
Some of SPMB’s recent C-level technical assignments have included filling key roles for: Disney Streaming (media and entertainment), Google Cloud (cloud services), and Comcast (communications and media) among many others.
Ms. Auten joined SPMB in 2018 from Heidrick & Struggles. Since then she has helped launch SPMB’s Los Angeles office and co-leads the financial officers practice, recruiting accomplished and strategic CFOs and VPs for venture and private equity backed expansion and growth stage companies in consumer, cleantech, fintech and SaaS. As a former attorney, she also launched the general counsel practice at SPMB, recruiting top legal talent in consumer companies.
Related: SPMB Recruits Chief Marketing Officer for Ethos
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
