Real World Assignments

These case studies represent a small cross-section of the assignments I have undertaken in the past.

TEAMWORK

Prior to founding Turn Works in 2001, Mr. Minihane served as an operating executive at The Heico Companies in Chicago, participating in the successful turnaround of complex, acquired business units. Through Turn Works, he has since led high-stakes executive and advisory engagements across performing and underperforming middle-market assets—specializing in leadership stabilization, rapid operational adjustments, financial restructuring, aggressive cost reduction, and capital protection.

Selected Overview Interim Management and Turnaround Engagements

Chief Transformation Officer then Interim Chief Financial Officer

This is a ~$200M fineblanking operation with 5 locations, 1 in MX. Erratic steel pricing seemed to be causing a lot of uncertainty in the financial results. Couple that with deteriorating operating plant performance and the lack of explanations, the Board decided to bring in an independent resource to assist in peeling back the layers of the onion to explain what was going on with the company’s performance.

  • Orchestrated the replacement of the executive team to include the CEO, Interim Chief Financial Officer, Sales Manager, and 2 plant managers.
  • Reduced head count from 687 to 516, or <25%>.
  • Closed and consolidated the corporate offices into one of the other locations.
  • Drove Adj. EBITDA from $4.3M (2.5% of sales) to $22.4M (21.9% of sales), a 776% in margin %.
  • Developed and implemented a monthly reporting cadence and package with a 10-day close.
  • Tightly managed liquidity thru the trough of the restructuring process ensuring deliveries.

Interim President

A holding company of multiple trade brands providing consumables and associated equipment for the ongoing maintenance, conversion, and placement of concrete flooring and other hardscapes through its industry-leading brands.

  • Increased sales 8% while building out the commercial strategy around 3 strong brands.
  • Adj. EBITDA grew 10%.
  • Backlog was reduced by 53%.
  • Inventory dropped 8%.
  • Achieving the annual operating plan for the first time in 3 years.
  • Built-out the monthly and quarterly board reporting to ensure clear and accurate.

Interim Chief Financial Officer

A global service business with a worldwide network designed to deliver real-time, real-world insights that provide customers with data and analysis for decision-making capabilities. The company grew fast but was burning through cash. Premise wanted someone to professionalize the culture and management systems and implement an operating rhythm with KPIs and cash flow metrics to ensure profitable growth going forward.

  • Reduced EBITDA losses by an annualized $58M from $72M to $14M on declining sales.
  • Choreographed and executed multiple reductions-in-force managing headcount down 49% from 906 FTE to 462 over a ~18-month period while maintaining customer deliverables.
  • Bettered account receivable past dues from 44.6% of A/R to only 9.4% of A/R past due.
  • Streamlined the production of the monthly financial package from 60 days to 15 days including full balance sheet account reconciliations.
  • Righted the company culture while cleaning up open employee claims through education, communication, new processes, and improved controls.
  • Successfully minimized operational disruptions while clearing $12M in past due A/P balance.
  • Managed a capital raise, restructured senior debt facility, hired IB and sold operating assets.

Interim Chief Executive Officer

Multi-channel health and beauty product company with $100M in revenue that had lost its focus with too many product lines, channel conflict, poor purchasing decisions, all followed by unfortunate cost and personnel management.

  • Reduced operational and general and administrative expenses by 27%.
  • Increased EBITDA 11% while sales continued to drop another 35%.
  • Improved inventory turns by 54%.
  • Accelerated A/R collections 26% from 47 TO 35 DSO.
  • Sold a non-health and beauty manufacturing subsidiary.
  • Negotiated 18-month forbearance with senior lenders with no additional capital infusion.

Consultant

Engaged by this $800M fresh produce manufacturer at acquiring private equity firm’s request to expedite cost and process improvements in its two main plants.

  • Analyzed current systems and controls.
  • Identified and quantified specific opportunities for change.
  • Crafted and began installation of a control and production efficiency system.
  • With momentum and plan design completed, transitioned implementation to new management team.

Interim President then Interim Chief Financial Officer

A private equity firm carved three plants out of a large global parent. The plants are plastic injection molding facilities focused on complex assembled components for datacenter, oil & gas, medical, aerospace, and other end markets. The operations were standalone cost centers based in Houston, TX, Wales, UK, and Suzhou, China.

  • Successfully executed the 100-day post-closing plan and transitioned off the seller’s transition services agreement on schedule, lacking penalties, and without business interruptions.
  • Increased EBITDA dollars 33% while improving EBITDA margin 82% from 11% to 20%.
  • Reduced the largest customer’s sales concentration from a TTM 68% to a new monthly low point of 38%.
  • Optimize the international production costs and installed transfer pricing mechanism.
  • Lead integration workstreams including but not limited to installing a finance team and systems, corporate staffing, informational technology infrastructure - hardware and software solutions, human resources, legal, tax, environmental, pension, PE reporting and cadence.

Chief Restructuring Officer

A $310M, revenue integrated manufacturer of exterior and interior aluminum and vinyl products used in commercial and residential construction. Company had recently emerged from Chapter 11 with a new balance sheet but had not addressed its operational issues in court.

  • Designed and implemented a cost reduction effort that eliminated $15M in annual excess expenses.
  • Reduced head count by 25% from 974 to 733.
  • Closed 35% or 9 of 26 locations.
  • Improved inventory usage by 24%, inventory on-hand declined from $24M to $18M on level sales and solid on-time delivery performance.
  • EBITDA improved 83% from <$18M> to <$3M> annual run rate.
  • Determined company was not a viable standalone entity in current macro environment and sold the assets in a court supervised process before winding down the remaining corporate operations.

Interim Chief Financial Officer then Interim President

A $250M provider of secure and non-secure prepaid and debit-style cards with falling sales. Company attempted multiple plant consolidations (5 to 2) in short succession which were poorly thought through and badly executed. Company quickly entered a tailspin, losing control of all aspects of management and was in payment default to senior lenders.

  • Reduced employee headcount by 38% in all non-direct personnel categories.
  • Assumed the C.F.O. and C.O.O. roles and responsibilities prior to the mass layoff.
  • Decreased inventory dollars on hand by 53%.
  • Improved on-time delivery 24% from 76% to 94%.
  • Re-established vendor terms and relationships as A/P DPO had been stretched over 180 days.
  • Hired bankruptcy counsel, negotiated an engagement agreement with investment banking firm and forbearance with senior lenders then guided company through a successful UCC Article 9 Secured Party sale.