Director of Strategy

The Hiring Challenge in PE-Backed Businesses

The investment thesis sets the direction. The Director of Strategy is accountable for translating it into a plan the management team can actually run on, and the role is frequently filled by people who are strong on analysis but weak on execution, or strong on internal politics but weak on rigour.

The Analyst Gap

Many candidates can build a market model or competitive landscape but have never owned a strategy through to implementation, tracked it against a value creation plan, or adjusted it when the first 100 days didn't go to plan.

The Insider Gap

Internal candidates know the business but often lack the outside pattern recognition to challenge the thesis itself, particularly when parts of it no longer hold up under PE-grade scrutiny.

Why Portfolio Companies Mis-Hire

Boards sometimes promote a strong operator into the role without strategy training, expecting business knowledge to substitute for structured thinking. Elsewhere, firms hire a strategy consultant straight out of a firm with no experience operating inside a business under hold-period time pressure, and the strategy never makes it past the deck.

The Movemeon Approach

Our network includes ex-consultants from McKinsey, Bain, BCG, and other top-tier firms who have advised on commercial due diligence, carve-outs, and portfolio strategy before moving into permanent Director of Strategy roles themselves.

Consulting Background, Applied to the Hold Period

These candidates have built investment theses for PE clients, then taken the discipline of structured problem-solving inside an operating business: setting strategic priorities, building the supporting business case, and being accountable for delivery against an investment committee timeline rather than a project end date.

What Strong Candidates Solve For

• A thesis that needs translating into an operating plan: turning the investment rationale into priorities the leadership team can execute against
• Strategic drift after acquisition: realigning the business when early performance diverges from the original thesis
• Weak strategic narrative for exit: building the case that supports valuation at sale
• Fragmented decision-making across functions: no single owner driving strategic priorities through to delivery
• Limited internal capability for ongoing strategic planning: no function responsible for market sensing, competitive response, or M&A pipeline support

Built for the Permanent Mandate

Continuity Through the Hold Period

A permanent Director of Strategy owns the strategic agenda from acquisition through to exit: refining the thesis as the business evolves, rather than handing strategic continuity off mid-hold.

Investment Committee Fluency

Candidates are assessed on their ability to engage credibly with the board and investment committee, not just produce internal strategy documents; a distinct skill from corporate strategy roles outside a PE context.

Why PE Firms and Portfolio Companies Choose Movemeon

Speed

A vetted network of 100,000+ ex-consultants and strategy operators delivers shortlists in days, against the 8-12 weeks typical of retained search; critical when board timelines are already set.

Discretion

PE mandates often require confidentiality before a deal or leadership change is public. Our process is built to operate within that constraint.

Start Your Search

Tell us about the thesis that needs an owner, the strategic gap in the plan, or the function that needs building, and we'll put forward candidates who've operated under the same pressure before.

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