Collaborative Strategies, Inc. is conducting this search on behalf of Seyer Industries, a 3rd generation, family-owned aerospace manufacturing company serving commercial and military markets. Founded in 1957, Seyer Industries is based in St. Peters, MO and has approximately 300 employees with an industry leading retention rate of 94%.
Seyer is widely recognized in the industry for the quality of its high-precision parts and assemblies. This track record of excellence has powered significant growth, which management expects will continue for years to come. They are seeking a proactive and forward-thinking leader with a demonstrated ability to apply their expertise in supporting growth. The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) will lead the Finance, Accounting, and Information Technology (IT) teams ensuring existing strengths are scalable with the forecasted growth. This individual will be a key member of the company’s Strategic Planning Group and Executive Leadership Team.
Reporting to the CEO, the CFO will:
PROVIDE FINANCIAL AND IT LEADERSHIP - Grow first-class Financial and IT departments by developing and implementing scalable strategies including systems, processes, organizational design, and talent needs. Oversee all areas of the Accounting and Finance teams including treasury, financial reporting, inventory and costing, and ensuring financial controls are in place and adhered to. Guide the IT team on supporting the organization’s needs including hardware, software, ERP, communication, and cybersecurity.
BE A TRUE BUSINESS PARTNER - Serving as a key member on the executive leadership team, acts as a sounding board to the CEO, building trust as well as giving both reasoned advice and honest feedback. Partners with other departments such as Sales, Operations, and Quality to increase financial literacy and support operational excellence.
DRIVE ORGANIZATIONAL GROWTH - Assist executive leadership in developing, monitoring, and evaluating overall corporate strategy. Takes a lead role in the long-term strategic planning and execution, creating metrics and other measures to track progress on the plan and strategies. Provides periodic overviews to the CEO and Advisory Board on company performance. Leads and manages M&A activities, including due diligence, financial modeling, valuation, negotiations, integration of acquired companies, and banking relationships. Coordinates with the CEO on financing activities to facilitate company growth.
PROMOTES SEYER’S CULTURE AND VALUES - As a highly visible senior leader, will contribute to and support the existence of a positive working environment through personal involvement by communicating, interacting, and behaving in a manner that promotes productive relationships with coworkers, supervisors, customers, vendors and others. Upholds the family-oriented culture of the business, emphasizing work-life balance and long-term value creation. Supports the development of others through succession planning and talent development strategies and providing ongoing feedback and mentoring to others.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, or a related field; MBA or CPA preferred
- Professional accreditation preferred, such as certified public accountant (CPA) or certified management accountant (CMA)
- Minimum of 10-15 years of progressive financial leadership experience, ideally in a privately held business with annual revenue of $150mm+, demonstrating the ability to “think like an owner”
- Prior leadership role in M&A activities
- Risk tolerance and the ability to thrive in a dynamic, fast-paced environment
- Knowledge of all aspects of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)
- Experience in manufacturing required; experience in aerospace preferred
- Experience with Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR), TINA compliance, and government audits
- Strong critical thinking and taking a collaborative approach to problem-solving
- High emotional intelligence (“EQ”) and a demonstrated ability to lead through influence
- Broad business knowledge preferred: technical sales, engineering, finance, and operations
- References validating proven performance are required
- Commitment to a strong on-site presence
- Proven leadership skills during periods of high growth and building high performance teams
- Metrics driven with understanding the details of creating value
- Activities Based Costing (ABC) experience preferred
- Possesses mental agility and a strong business sense with good judgement
- Action oriented and drives results
- Strong communication skills (verbal and written) and is an open and honest communicator
- Takes ownership for their performance and for their team’s performance
- Manages and prioritizes multiple programs to maximize value creation
Other Skills and Abilities
Ready to Apply?
If you are interested, qualified and ready to take the next step, click apply. All inquiries and resume submissions will be treated as strictly confidential. Please do not contact Seyer directly.
What We Do
Collaborative Strategies is our region’s leading strategic business planning firm – providing strategic planning, executive search, organizational development, succession management, and advisory board facilitation to the best organizations in the St. Louis area and beyond.
Collaborative Strategies is an entrepreneurial firm serving entrepreneurial leaders. Our team of consultants primarily assist closely-held businesses with annual sales ranging from $5 million to $1 billion as well as the not-for-profit organizations on whose boards business owners and civic leaders serve. Collaborative Strategies helps its clients tackle challenging issues and opportunities to achieve breakthrough performance.
Collaborative Strategies’ consulting team members fully embody the collaborative spirit. Prepared by education and enriched by experience, our principals and consultants combine deep knowledge with practical expertise gained across a wide spectrum of organizations. For more information, please visit us at www.getcollaborative.com.
