True Search Places CFO for ZwitterCo
April 20, 2023 – Global talent provider True has assisted in the recruitment of Christopher Ling as chief financial officer of advanced membrane technology company ZwitterCo. Mr. Ling most recently served as CFO for Veo Robotics Inc., where he led finance, operations, IT, and other support functions across the company. Partners Dan Cremins and Chris Clements and senior associate Shelby Chan led the assignment for True.
“Meet Chris Ling, ZwitterCo’s chief financial officer,” said True in a post on LinkedIn. “ZwitterCo is a company that is poised to make a significant impact on the global water crisis. Their breakthrough membrane technology enables filtration for the most challenging separations. Thank you Alex Rappaport, CEO and co-founder, for working with us on this search. Congrats!”
Mr. Ling brings more than 25 years of financial leadership and a proven track record of successfully leading companies through accelerated product development and growth. His expertise in scaling companies is a strong fit for ZwitterCo, which is expanding into new markets to meet demand. The company delivers a novel membrane with properties that make it immune to irreversible organic fouling, even in the face of extremely contaminated wastewater. As water scarcity and the need for water reuse has increased, the demand for ZwitterCo’s technology has grown significantly.
“Christopher is a financial executive with a breadth of experience that will enable ZwitterCo’s next phase of company growth,” said Mr. Rappaport. “It’s imperative that we make industrial water reuse achievable and affordable, and Christopher’s deep expertise in the technology industry and global commercialization will help us grow and scale to achieve these aspirations for our company and for the planet.”
Strong Experience
As CFO, Mr. Ling will lead all aspects of the company’s finance and IT functions, including overseeing the financial growth model for the company, supporting the executive management team on long-term strategic initiatives, building upon the strong customer portfolio, and assisting with capital equipment investment. He holds a bachelor of commerce degree from Dalhousie University and an MBA from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business.
At Veo Robotics, Mr. Ling helped lead the company to product commercialization and adoption of groundbreaking technology with industry leaders across geographies and market verticals. He also successfully closed multiple funding rounds and developed products at scale, in addition to growing people and teams across the organization.
Mr. Ling also brings a variety of experience in strategy and corporate finance from the Boston Consulting Group, FTI Consulting, and KPMG, as well as leadership roles at Avery Dennison, CCL Industries, and Agilent Technologies.
Related: True Search Recruits CEO for Imperfect Foods
The hiring comes on the heels of a year of growth for Woburn, MA-based ZwitterCo. In September, the company announced a $33 million Series A investment, in addition to welcoming senior hires across sales and operations, and breaking construction on a 30,000-square-foot technology innovation center in which the company plans to move new polymer formulations to field testing in under one month.
Serving Private and Public Sectors
Working in both the private and public sectors, True Search has offices throughout the U.S. as well as the EMEA and APAC regions. Since the late 1990s, the firm’s founders have refined their search process with a blend of data-centric insights, relationship-building, and experience to produce a methodology that consistently improves hiring decisions and accelerates growth.
True’s clients include Jet, Work Front, and Summit Partners. True Search is a subsidiary of True Platform, a global portfolio of human capital services and products for high-growth tech and tech-enabled organizations. True recently placed No. 6 on the Hunt Scanlon Media 2023 “Top 50 Recruiters” ranking.
True Search Recruits CEO for Match Group
True Search has assisted in the recruitment of Bernard Kim as the new chief executive officer of Match Group, a provider of digital technologies designed to help people make meaningful connections. Shar Dubey will be stepping down from the company’s top post at the end of the month. Todd Zangrillo, Agata de Reyes, and Ish Elhelbawey led the assignment. “For Match Group CEO we needed to find an executive who intuitively understands consumer tech products and community, is attuned to new technologies, has a global perspective and is experienced in managing a portfolio of highly successful brands,” said Ms. de Reyes. “In Bernard we were able to find all that plus a dynamic leader who fosters innovation and is a fantastic culture builder and people magnet. We can’t wait to see how he will shape the future of this exciting and important category and take Match Group to new heights.”
Mr. Cremins has been conducting executive searches and building management teams for more than two decades. He has developed an extensive global network and knowledge base in many impactful technology domains allowing him to place C-suite and VP level roles.
Mr. Clements has developed an extensive global network and knowledge of many impactful technology domains which allows him to place C-suite and VP level roles.
Both Messrs. Cremins and Clements, who joined the firm as part of True’s 2021 acquisition of climate technology and sustainability executive search firm Hobbs & Towne, perform searches across a wide range of technology verticals, including artificial intelligence, robotics, energy, automotive and mobility, aerospace technology, smart cities and buildings, internet of things and agricultural and food technology with large public and private companies, as well as growth-stage companies. Both are based in San Francisco.
Ms. Chan, who is based in the Boston area, serves in True’s climate tech practice. Previously, she worked at a venture capital start-up where she coordinated investing operations for the company’s food and ag-tech fund. She also has extensive experience in higher education administration, with a focus on connecting students and alumni with social impact resources and opportunities.
Related: True Search Recruits New CFO for PE-Backed MikMak
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
