Primarily executive
Judgment or conduct remains unreliable despite clear authority, timely information, reasonable demand and adequate organizational support.
Private Equity Decision Brief
Diagnose Before You Replace.
Before replacing a portfolio-company CEO, determine whether the execution problem rests with the executive, the surrounding decision system or both.
Discuss a live situation ↗THE DECISION
A CEO change should follow a clear diagnosis of the problem it is intended to solve.
A replacement may be justified. Before reaching that conclusion, the sponsor should determine whether the executive lacks the required capability, has lost reliable access to that capability under current demand, or is compensating for weaknesses in the surrounding decision system.
A new CEO inherits the same decision rights, information flows, management depth, escalation patterns and initiative load unless those conditions are changed. Replacing a capable executive without correcting the operating conditions affecting the role can leave the original execution problem in place.
Heidrick & Struggles reports that more than 70% of CEOs at PE-backed companies are replaced during the average holding period. The same report cites AlixPartners data indicating that 55% of CEO turnover is unplanned. The frequency and consequence of those decisions warrant a disciplined review before action.
What the Pilot distinguishes
Three materially different conclusions.
The purpose is to identify the source of the exposure with enough confidence to support the next sponsor decision.
Primarily systemic
A capable executive is absorbing recurring escalation, unclear authority, late information or more concurrent demand than the role can reliably carry.
Combined
Executive choices and decision-system conditions reinforce each other. Corrective action must address both.
A LIMITED FIRST ENGAGEMENT
Enough evidence to answer a defined question.
The Pilot is intentionally narrower than the full Executive Decision Reliability Diagnostic. It provides an initial decision-ready view without expanding into a broad enterprise or talent assessment.
INCLUDED
- Sponsor intake and one tightly defined operating question
- One portfolio company and one critical executive role
- Selected interviews with the executive and relevant participants
- A limited review of pertinent operating evidence
- Reconstruction of one or two consequential decisions
- Confidential findings and immediate priorities
OUTSIDE THE PILOT
- A complete enterprise-wide decision-system assessment
- A broad management-team or talent review
- A psychological, clinical or employment-fitness evaluation
- A prediction of EBITDA, valuation or transaction outcomes
- Implementation of organizational changes
- The full report and evidentiary depth of the Executive Diagnostic
Two to three weeks
A short process with clear evidence limits.
Elapsed time depends on timely access to the selected participants and operating materials. The agreed boundary remains fixed unless the sponsor authorizes a change.
Define the decision
Agree on one sponsor question, one critical role, the relevant operating period and the evidence boundary.
Examine the conditions
Conduct selected interviews, review limited operating evidence and reconstruct one or two consequential decisions.
Provide the answer
Deliver confidential findings, a Reliability Margin view, immediate priorities and a proportionate recommendation.
PILOT FEE
$25,000
The fee assumes the stated boundary: one company, one critical role, one sponsor question, selected participants and limited operating evidence. Any expansion is discussed and agreed before additional work begins.
TYPICAL OUTPUT
A direct answer to the agreed sponsor question
A concise Material Findings Register
An illustrative Reliability Margin assessment
Confidential sponsor and executive readouts
Immediate priorities for the next 30, 60 and 90 days
A recommendation on whether broader assessment is warranted
THE DECISION AT THE END
The Pilot should narrow the sponsor’s choices.
The conclusion may support direct action within the existing management system, a targeted follow-on, a full Executive Decision Reliability Diagnostic or no further work. The Pilot does not presume that replacement is wrong. It gives the sponsor a clearer basis for deciding whether replacement addresses the source of the problem.
Portfolio Executive Reliability Pilot
Start with the decision you need to make.
One company. One critical role. One defined sponsor question. A confidential answer in two to three weeks.
Request a confidential discussion ↗