• CDO, LA Promise Fund
  • Manager, Mattel Corp. Strat.
  • Consultant, Bain & Company
  • Business Advisor, Peace Corps
  • Analyst, JP Morgan
  • MBA, Wharton, University of Pennsylvania
  • BA, Business Economics, Brown University

Representative Projects

  • Developed a three-year strategic plan for a financial services client (1.5 years+) with ~$45B in managed assets. Worked on product development, strategic planning, advisor productivity, Salesforce effectiveness, and organizational design engagements
  • Completed five acquisitions for a PE-backed industrial goods company. Identified targets in adjacent markets, led prospecting, and prepared investment memorandums 
  • Identified additional revenue opportunities for a leading ridesharing platform by assessing the market size of the music and sporting event industries
  • Led strategy and implementation of key organizational turnaround initiatives at LA’s largest charter (~$200M) network of 25 schools 
  • Analyzed and prioritized 50+ R&D investments for a ~$64B beverage company 
  • Conducted due diligence for an automobile manufacturer acquiring a large RV competitor. Acquisition was the largest transaction in the company’s history
  • Analyzed competitors and industry trends to create a competitive intelligence report for a leading cruise company

Expertise

Industries

  • Automotive
  • Consumer Products
  • Financial Services
  • Food and Beverage
  • Industrials
  • Nonprofits
  • Private Equity
  • Retail
  • Tourism/Hospitality
  • Transportation Services

Project Types

  • Growth Strategy
  • M&A Strategy
  • Market Intelligence
  • GTM Strategy
  • Organizational Design
  • Due Diligence

Representative Clients

  • Alliance College-Ready Public Schools
  • AlphaSights
  • Aramsco
  • Ares
  • Authen Activewear
  • Avantax Wealth Management
  • ChromoLogic
  • Financial Recovery Technologies
  • Pepsi
  • Singer
  • Uber
  • Viking Cruises
  • Winnebago

  • COO, J&S Audio Visual
  • VP, Apple Leisure Group
  • Principal, Plutus Capital
  • Principal, SunTx Partners
  • Consultant, Bain & Company
  • J.D. University of Virginia Law School with emphasis on M&A
  • B.S., B.A. Southern Methodist University Dallas

Representative Projects

  • Developed cost reduction initiative for large public property management company based in Toronto/New York.  Led business process outsourcing plan for several back-office functions including HR, Payroll, F&A, Call Center.
  • Consolidated back-offices functions of three PE-backed travel companies and 10 different business departments including Operations, Call Center Customer Service, F&A, Rate Loading saving $6mm annually.  
  • Oversaw divestment of large $250M E-commerce business for a PE backed company which included winding down operations and data-centers.
  • COO of $100M+ PE-backed hotel services business encompassing 400+ employees.  Oversaw FP&A and all aspects of Operations. Created Key Performance Indicators, vision, and strategy for group.
  • Created continuous improvement office which identified bottlenecks in a $1B+ Canadian copper mining operation,  increasing production by 18%.
  • Developed outsourcing plan for large software application company identifying over $20M in annual savings.
  • Created Centralized Procurement office for major aero-space defense contractor which consolidated purchasing efforts with company’s largest suppliers saving 12%.

Expertise

Industries

  • Airline
  • Business Services
  • Defense
  • Mining
  • Private Equity
  • Real Estate
  • Retail
  • Technology
  • Tourism/Hospitality
  • Transportation Services

Project Types

  • SG&A Reduction
  • BPO
  • Operations Optimization
  • KPI Dashboards
  • Business Process Transformation
  • M&A Assessment/PMI
  • PMO

Representative Clients

Companies

  • Brookfield Properties
  • Apple Leisure Group
  • Woolworths (Australia)
  • Ned Bank (South Africa)
  • Teck Industries (Canada)
  • Sabre Group
  • Rio-Tinto (Australia)
  • Expedia/Travelocity
  • Freeman Industries
  • United Airlines
  • Lockheed-Martin

PE Firms

  • Plutus Capital
  • SunTx Capital

Mark Hess   

Founder

  • Founder, Maven Associates
  • Principal, Stagen
  • VP Strategy & BD, GES
  • Manager, Bain & Company
  • Engineer, Black & Veatch
  • MBA, Tuck-Dartmouth
  • BS, Mechanical Engineering, Rice University
  • BA, Economics, Claremont McKenna College

Representative Projects

  • Led development of a strategy to accelerate company growth and maximize exit valuation multiples for a ~$300M metal manufacturer
  • Developed a growth strategy for a ~$200M online consumer loan business
  • Created a roadmap for a ~$40M publisher to improve profitability and pursue new strategic growth opportunities
  • Conducted a 3-week due diligence of a PE acquisition target in the equipment moving space
  • Led the development of a profit improvement plan for a hydraulic seal manufacturer
  • Developed a 5-year Value Creation Plan for a ~$600M wine distributor in Canada post acquisition by a PE fund
  • Built a growth strategy for a ~$200M luxury recreational boat manufacturer
  • Conducted a 3-week due diligence of a PE acquisition target in the land management space
  • Developed detailed analysis of the Top 20 competitors of a national big box retailer
  • Created a growth strategy for a ~$100M SaaS business

Expertise

Industries

  • Business Services
  • Consumer Products
  • Financial Services
  • Manufacturing
  • Metal Fabrication
  • Restaurants
  • Retail
  • Technology
  • Transportation Services

Project Types

  • Due Diligence
  • Growth Strategy
  • M&A/PMI
  • Marketing/Branding
  • Organizational Design
  • Profit Improvement

Representative Clients

Companies

  • Cobalt Boats
  • At Home
  • Safariland
  • PointClickCare
  • WorldStrides
  • Alliance Equipment
  • Arterra Wines
  • Craftmark Bakery
  • Raybern’s
  • PDC
  • Best Egg

PE Firms

  • Carlyle Group
  • JMI Equity
  • Ontario Teachers
  • Anchor Partners
  • Satori Capital

  • Founder, Forseti Partners
  • VP Analysis/Planning, Amtrak
  • Manager, McKinsey
  • Engineer, GM/Ford
  • Faculty, Univ. of Michigan
  • MBA, Cornell
  • PhD, Mechanical Engineering, Michigan
  • BS, Aerospace Engineering, Iowa State
  • Representative Projects
  • Developed market assessment and growth analysis for advanced soft magnetic materials (ferrites, nanocrystallines, amorphous.)
  • Developed comprehensive commercial assessment of the impact of wide bandgap semiconductors on power electronics markets.
  • Developed North American market entry strategy for new high horsepower diesel engine joint venture.
  • Created a strategic roadmap for a manufacturer of hydraulic off-road axles for trucks and agricultural equipment, including the analysis of alternative motive technologies.
  • Developed go-to-market and share capture strategy in the large industrial gear market.
  • Developed detailed growth strategies for the largest global Tier 1 heavy truck axle/brake manufacturer.
  • Led comprehensive sourcing and supply chain optimization efforts for a $7B aerospace tier 1 supplier with >$1.5B in external spend.  Developed category specific strategies for a complete range of manufactured components and services.
  • Served as the CPO for a $10B entertainment and technology supplier, managing over $2B in annual external spend.

Expertise

Industries

  • Automotive
  • Manufacturing
  • Medical Devices
  • Technology
  • Transportation Services

Project Types

  • Growth Strategy
  • M&A Strategy
  • Operations
  • Procurement/SCM
  • Organizational Design
  • Due Diligence

Representative Clients

Companies

  • Meritor
  • BNSF Logistics
  • Alcoa
  • Cummins
  • General Electric
  • Ticketmaster
  • Northwest Hardwoods
  • Mark43
  • MTD
  • Xerox
  • Spirit Aerosystems

PE Firms

  • Onyx
  • HCI
  • Ontario Teachers
  • Watermill

  • Manager, McKinsey & Co.
  • Director, Ford Motor Company
  • Manager, General Electric
  • Captain, US Marine Corps
  • MBA, Wharton – UPenn
  • BA, Economics, Harvard

Representative Projects

  • Drove a construction productivity effort for a $1 billion methanol plant under construction in Trinidad
  • Identified and implemented actions to decrease mining production cycle time for a $200 million mine of multi-national gold mining company
  • Led implementation of private-equity driven strategy with 17 initiatives for a $500 million PE-owned automotive business process outsourcing company
  • Spearheaded idea generation, valuation and implementation planning for cost reduction and revenue generation for a $23 billion regional bank
  • Developed overview of automotive seating aftermarkets in USA, Europe and China for $100 million division of multi-billion automotive tier one supplier
  • Drove idea generation and implementation planning to deliver profitable growth for an $11 billion integrated energy company
  • Managed process to develop projects to capture savings for a $6 billion trucking and transportation company
  • Led effort that identified opportunities to increase productivity for a $150 million PE-owned manufacturer of steel structures

Expertise

Industries

  • Aerospace/Defense
  • Automotive
  • Financial Services
  • Industrials
  • Manufacturing
  • Public Utilities
  • Transportation Services

Project Types

  • Strategic Growth
  • Process Improvement Cost Reduction
  • Productivity
  • Accountability
  • Business Development
  • Implementation
  • Mergers & Acquisition

Representative Clients

Companies

  • Teck Resources
  • Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
  • Goldcorp
  • Adient
  • MSX International
  • Valley National Bank
  • Entergy
  • J.B. Hunt
  • Fleetgistics

PE Firms

  • Bain Capital
  • Harbor Group