Chief Executive Officer

Founded over forty years ago, our client is a growing privately held trusted leading distributor in the state of Michigan specializing in educational products and services for the K-12 marketplace. Headquartered in southeastern Michigan with 30+ employees, this is an entrepreneurial environment with a high performing team, experiencing quantum growth and a “no drama” culture dedicated to providing excellent customer service and care.

THE OPPORTUNITY

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) will be responsible for strategic leadership and ultimate day‑to‑day operations for the company. This leader’s responsibilities will be broad and include managing all operations either directly or through internal department heads. With an entrepreneurial mindset, the CEO is a visionary who will develop an articulate clear strategic vision for the company’s next phase of growth and lead the organization through a successful ownership transition while maintaining continuity, driving growth and process improvements. P&L management; lead financial planning, budgeting and forecasting processes, oversee profitability, cash flow, and overall financial health.

This position reports to the Owner with 4 – 6 direct reports.

JOB DEFINITION

The ideal candidate will have an own‑it mentality with strong project management experience and a proven ability in creating, implementing, and optimizing operational processes. The CEO will be passionate about coaching and training the team in effective goal setting while developing, evaluating, and fostering a culture of transparency, collaboration and high performance. The successful candidate will have a sense of urgency, exhibit a hands‑on approach to operations management, will be highly organized, initiative‑taking and solutions minded. Set clear expectations that ensure accountability through business planning and a workable performance management system. Working with ownership, this newly created position will lead and craft a course when there is a limited roadmap and ambiguity.

SKILLS

This newly created position will work closely with the Owner to assist with the strategic direction of the company; establish the company’s long‑term direction, market positioning & opportunities, expansion plan for the business, and goals. As a transparent and open communicator, effectively lead and manage a cohesive team. This position will serve as the point person with customers and contractors, as well as direct and manage the field team. The CEO will contribute to the growth of the company by developing, maintaining, and managing professional relationships, and leveraging existing cohesive solutions driven culture.

• Instrumental in helping to optimize and maximize overall productivity.
• Supervise and monitor job responsibilities of the team and allocating manpower. Communicating with project leads to monitoring the progress of each contract to effectively ensure all projects are completed on schedule and within budget expectations.
• Ability to provide support for the internal teams who are installing, scheduling, and determining when to ramp up or scale down projects.
• Create key performance indicators (KPI’s) that maintain and maximize the overall effectiveness of the total operation. Must be able to clearly communicate job expectations as well as plan, monitor, appraise, and review job performance while enforcing policies and procedures.
• Interact regularly with customers to strengthen the relationship, report results, and identify new opportunities for providing value added services.
• Implement a new CRM system to improve customer retention by providing personalized experience and automating sales processes. Drive vendor delivery to ensure that solutions are aligned with business objectives, regulatory expectations, and industry practices.
• Collaborate with the management team to develop a long‑term strategy and implement processes.
• Oversee the safety and risk management program, continuous improvement, and development according to or better than best practices.
• Oversee day‑to‑day operations are conducted in compliance with safety, regulatory, legal requirements, and company policies.
• Ensure efficient sourcing, inventory management, and distribution. Maintain reliability and consistency in product delivery, and ensure customer satisfaction and loyalty through service excellence, innovation and execution.
• Evaluate and optimize existing business processes, systems, and workflows to improve efficiency and scalability.
• Implement performance metrics across all departments to ensure accountability and continuous improvement.
• Oversee technology adoption and integration to support operational goals.
• Monitor financial performance and ensure profitability, sustainability, and compliance
• Identify cost reduction opportunities for analysis and implementation. Develop comprehensive procedures for reporting, information flow and management, business processes and organizational planning.
• Lead and supervise the team responsible for fleet management and maintenance. Direct and manage the team responsible for purchasing and inventory of raw materials.
• Work with external and internal teams to manage risk and support strategic investments.

Leadership and Management:

• Direct leadership and management of the company’s day‑to‑day operations and team. Inspirational leader with an approachable style.
• Identify new market opportunities and partnerships to expand the company’s footprint.
• Embrace challenges while accepting the reality of obstacles. Flexible and adaptable, and able to effectively build, develop and mentor a strong leadership team aligned with the company’s values and goals.
• Well developed negotiation skills and can resolve conflict and facilitate negotiations with tact and diplomacy.
• Champion employee development and succession planning.
• Conduct performance management and support an effective service‑oriented team environment.
• Maintain strong relationships with key clients within the K‑12 education sector.
• Represent the company externally with stakeholders and vendors.

BACKGROUND EXPERIENCE

• 20 years of senior management experience (with minimum 5 years executive level leadership) involving full P&L, balance sheet, business planning, and growth responsibilities.
• Proven track record as Chief Executive Officer, President, Chief Operating Officer, General Manager or Vice President, Operations.
• Demonstrated success in leading a company through growth, transformation, or ownership transition.
• Proven ability to manage a fast paced and entrepreneurial environment. Honest, authentic, and trustworthy.
• Experience in AV technology, education markets, and/or construction industry is preferred but not required.
• Strong background in building and refining business systems, processes, and infrastructure. Experience in sales and direct customer relationships
• Strategic thinker who is solutions oriented with strong project management skills with focus on results.
• High performer with strong leadership and communication skills involving employees, customers, and vendors.
• Experience implementing a new CRM system is a plus.
• “Own‑It” mentality with Midwestern work ethic, e.g. “roll‑up your sleeves” leader. Humble and accountable and is committed to personal growth and development for self and others.

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in business, finance or management required. MBA is highly preferred.

If you have these qualifications and are looking for a challenging career, please submit your Resume using the button below.