Interim Managing Director / COO | Operations, Turnaround & Continuous Improvement Leader
This interim operational leader has a proven ability to step into complex environments and rapidly diagnose the commercial, operational and cultural levers required to restore control and performance. They have repeatedly delivered results across engineering, manufacturing, automation and technology-led organisations, combining strong commercial acumen with hands-on operational depth. Their leadership style is pragmatic, structured and people-focused—building empowered teams, stabilising delivery, and embedding sustainable systems and processes.
The candidate has meaningful experience working within private equity environments and supporting investor value-creation plans. They have partnered with investment directors, reported directly into equity boards, stabilised newly acquired businesses, delivered turnaround programmes, and improved operational governance to strengthen EBITDA performance and enhance enterprise value. Their work has included post-investment stabilisation, multi-site integration, performance improvement, forecasting discipline, and margin recovery initiatives.
Well suited to assignments requiring operational transformation, turnaround leadership, or COO/MD-level interim coverage, they excel in businesses facing inefficient processes, low productivity, margin erosion or significant delivery challenges. Their track record demonstrates consistent ability to design and execute change programmes that improve profitability, strengthen commercial and operational foundations, and build resilient, scalable organisations.
Stabilised a precision engineering business as Interim Managing Director, identifying a £90m pipeline, securing £600k in contract recoveries, negotiating a £3.5m multi-year production contract and increasing revenue from £4m to £5m.
As Operations Director of a £70m engineering group, rebuilt senior leadership structures, embedded KPIs, improved delivery consistency, reduced non-conformance by ~10% and established forecasting processes enabling sustained £6m+ monthly revenues.
As Managing Director of an automation specialist, increased operational capacity by ~50%, grew the pipeline by ~400%, diversified the customer base, and consolidated operations into a modern 75,000 sq ft facility while maintaining strong revenue performance through the pandemic.
Delivered significant margin uplift and EBITDA improvement (from ~2% to 20%+) within an engineering business by renegotiating supply agreements, improving quality systems, enhancing IT resilience, modernising processes and introducing automation in production testing.
About the Candidate
This interim executive brings over two decades of operational, engineering and commercial leadership across manufacturing, automation, engineering services and technology-led environments. With deep experience spanning P&L ownership, multi-site operations, project delivery, procurement, quality, sales, and engineering functions, they specialise in stabilising distressed operations, modernising core infrastructure, and driving measurable improvements in efficiency, revenue consistency and organisational capability. They are known for creating clarity, introducing structure, and strengthening processes in businesses that require operational reset or accelerated performance improvement.
They thrive in situations involving failing delivery performance, inconsistent revenues, weak governance, lack of forecasting discipline, poor project execution, or operational chaos. Adept at embedding Lean methodologies, strengthening S&OP, implementing KPI frameworks, modernising systems, and leading cultural change, they bring a highly pragmatic, hands-on approach—balancing strategic leadership with the detail required to deliver dependable results. Their experience also spans private equity value creation, turnaround assignments and supporting investor-led transformation programmes.