Daversa Partners’ Post

ARE CEO SEARCHES MORE DIFFICULT IN THIS MARKET? I have been asked this question many times over the past 12-18 months : WHY ARE CEO Searches different?  Or WHAT MAKES them different I have completed over 100+ CEO searches here at Daversa. Majority being Series A-C with some later stages sprinkled in, common threads are the following ALIGNMENT ON SPEC IS PARAMOUNT.  75% of my work has been replacing a founder. 25% have been changing “professional CEO’s” out. You have to invest a tremendous amount of time creating true alignment, understanding the board and founder dynamic thoroughly What do we NEED.  Where are the GAPS?  What skills are essential to work in concert with the brilliant founder who got the company to where it is today?    What are the headwinds causing this change? Founder fatigue? Increase focus on GTM execution? (Shifting models perhaps?) Trying to find product market fit? STAGE RELEVANCY   I firmly believe that this is paramount to any CEO search I run.  You have to find someone who has seen the movie, wrote the script and directed the action.  There are outliers (many i can mention) but stage relevancy is a paramount criteria in my view DOMAIN EXPERTISE  In many cases domain expertise is critical, in others having an outside view can be helpful to a change of thought and approach.  There are exceptions- it's no secret I do a lot of work in cybersecurity. I firmly believe that knowing your buyer/ICP as a CEO is important.  In data, analytics and SaaS you can interchange a bit- it's a little more pliable FUNDING SITUATION One aspect that has become increasingly evident is fundraising experience. 75% of the time board members will ask about a candidates track record being able to successful raise capital. THE FOUNDERS MENTALITY IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT Lets face it. Some founders naturally conclude that stepping aside is the best for the business, some are moved on by the board.  No matter what the key is to truly understand the heritage story behind the founder and company. Truly understand their journey and skills. For most founders, they pour their blood, sweat and tears into building a great company, great culture.  We will need them to be ALL IN to land a legendary CEO.  FIRST TIMER VS BEEN THERE/DONE THAT  I firmly believe that when you run a CEO search your main goal is to buy experience. You want to obtain a CEO who has done this before.  But the way i like to run my projects is we look for both existing experience while also evaluating “next gen” CEO’s. At one time Frank Slootman, Dan Streetman, Bill McDermott and Doug Merritt needed someone to bet on them.  We know how those movies played out. So never turn your back on the next great CEO simply because they haven't risen to that level yet. More to follow… Daversa Partners Dan Streetman James F. Brear Tom Thimot Gregory Webb Justin Shriber Brad Brooks Glenn Weinstein Marshall Heilman Jim Hyman