When you place a CFO into a portfolio company, you're not looking for someone who needs a learning curve on how sponsor-backed companies run. You need a financial leader who can step in and lead from day one.
James ShoreCPA/ABV · MAcc · MBAEY · The Home Depot · JLL Technologies.
A portfolio company's finance function is only as strong as the person leading it.When that seat is empty, weak, or in over its head, it shows.
It shows up where you feel it most: in the quality of the reporting, the confidence of the lender conversations, and the board's trust in the numbers. You're getting a CFO with the pedigree to operate at your level — proven on the company side of complex capital structures and live debt workouts.
Not a controller who learned to close the books and raised their rate. A leader who's sat in the rooms that matter — and knows how to win in them.
A financial leader already fluent in the language of the board, the capital structure, and the people your fund answers to — ready to lead from day one.
Investor-grade reporting, board materials that hold up to scrutiny, and a financial voice your LPs and board can trust — communication that makes a sponsor’s life easier, not harder.
Managing the debt stack, staying ahead of covenant pressure, and serving as the credible face to the lenders throughout the hold — fluency with complex structures as a matter of course.
Real partnership with the CEO and your deal team on the decisions that drive the value-creation plan — margin, cash, capital allocation, and the discipline a sponsor-backed company lives by.
Most CFOs can run a clean, growing portfolio company. Far fewer can hold the line when there's real stress in the capital structure. When a company hits credit or liquidity pressure, you want someone who's already done it:
Rolling 13-week cash command when liquidity tightens.
Hard negotiations with banks and vendors — on the company’s side of the table.
A steady, credible presence in front of the board and the lender when the situation is anything but steady.
However you need to deploy us across the hold.
When a portfolio company’s finance leader departs unexpectedly and the seat can’t sit empty.
In the first 6–12 months post-close, when the company needs a steady hand while the permanent structure gets built.
For portfolio companies that need senior financial leadership for the full hold but not a full-time hire.
Fixed monthly retainer for ongoing roles; defined-term for interim and transition.
Priced accordingly. A small roster on purpose, so every portfolio company gets a CFO who’s genuinely present.
Company after company, hold after hold — someone who already knows how your fund thinks.
Whether you have a seat to fill now or you're building a bench you can rely on, that's the right reason to start a conversation.
