Managing Director

J.S. Held LLC•New York, NY

23h•$250,000 - $300,000•Hybrid

About The Position

We are seeking a Managing Director to join our Strategic Advisory Group with a primary focus on operational and profit improvement. This is a unique opportunity for an entrepreneurial, highly driven leader with a well-rounded operating, financial, and commercial skill set. The ideal candidate will have significantly demonstrated experience designing and executing performance transformation and value-creation programs in complex, transaction-driven, private equity-backed, and distressed environments. This person will rapidly identify and quantify high-impact opportunities; translate data-driven insights into practical execution plans; align executives, boards, sponsors, lenders, and other stakeholders; and lead hands-on implementation that delivers measurable improvement in EBITDA, cash flow, working capital, operational efficiency, growth, and enterprise value. J.S. Held’s Strategic Advisory Group helps organizations improve performance, stabilize operations, protect stakeholder interests, and execute sustainable value-creation strategies. We take a hands-on, operationally focused approach that connects commercial, operational, and financial performance. Our professionals combine experience-based hypotheses with data-driven analysis to identify improvement opportunities, establish accountable implementation plans, and deliver measurable results. The team advises private equity sponsors, portfolio companies, lenders, creditors, legal counsel, executive teams, boards of directors, and investors in both healthy and challenged situations. Our Strategic Advisory Group has an opening at the Managing Director level for a senior professional who can originate, lead, and deliver operational and profit improvement engagements. The candidate will join an experienced, closely knit team with deep expertise in assessing complex situations, partnering with management teams, and executing initiatives that create durable financial and operational results.

Requirements

15+ years of relevant experience in operational improvement, performance transformation, value creation, turnaround, management consulting, or operating leadership, including significant experience leading client engagements and developing business.
Demonstrated record of identifying, quantifying, and implementing initiatives that produce measurable improvements in EBITDA, cash flow, working capital, growth, operational performance, ROI, and enterprise value.
Experience across multiple improvement levers, such as pricing, revenue growth, gross-margin enhancement, procurement, supply chain, labor productivity, organizational design, working capital, or technology-enabled transformation.
Strong financial acumen and advanced analytical capability, including the ability to link operational drivers to income statement, balance sheet, cash flow, and investment-return outcomes.
Proven ability to build executive alignment, lead cross-functional teams, delegate effectively, manage multiple workstreams, and mentor professional staff.
Executive presence and communication skills sufficient to advise CEOs, CFOs, boards, private equity sponsors, lenders, and other senior stakeholders and to translate complex analyses into clear decisions and actions.
Experience working in private equity-backed, transaction-driven, complex, or resource-constrained environments; turnaround and restructuring experience is strongly preferred.
Established business-development capabilities and relationships within private equity, corporate, lending, legal, and investor communities, together with the ability to cross-sell J.S. Held expertise.
Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university; an MBA or other relevant advanced degree or professional certification is preferred.
This position requires travel to client locations, at times extensively.

Nice To Haves

Turnaround and restructuring experience is strongly preferred.
An MBA or other relevant advanced degree or professional certification is preferred.

Responsibilities

Originate, scope, and lead operational and profit improvement, performance transformation, value-creation, and related due diligence engagements;
Rapidly assess businesses and quantify high-impact opportunities across revenue growth, pricing, gross margin, procurement, supply chain, labor productivity, overhead, organizational effectiveness, working capital, capital efficiency, and technology enablement;
Translate analyses and investment theses into practical value-creation plans with defined initiatives, owners, milestones, financial targets, dependencies, risks, and governance;
Partner directly with CEOs, CFOs, operating executives, private equity sponsors, boards, lenders, and other stakeholders to align priorities and drive implementation;
Establish performance-management routines, dashboards, and initiative tracking to validate benefits and sustain improvements in EBITDA, cash flow, working capital, operational efficiency, growth, ROI, and enterprise value;
Lead hands-on implementation in resource-constrained or time-sensitive environments, including interim or embedded leadership assignments when appropriate;
Direct integrated teams across operational, financial, commercial, technology, and transaction workstreams; manage multiple engagements and develop junior professionals;
Deliver clear, executive-level analyses, recommendations, implementation roadmaps, and communications that connect operational actions to financial outcomes;
Develop and cultivate referral sources and client relationships within private equity, corporate, lending, legal, and investor communities to generate revenue opportunities;
Collaborate with internal stakeholders to develop go-to-market strategies and cross-sell relevant J.S. Held capabilities; and
Provide support on other strategic advisory assignments and ad hoc initiatives as requested.