Case study
Fera Science Ltd
Chief Commercial Officer
Opportunity
Fera Science Ltd (Fera) is a UK-based expert science services organisation with over 100 years heritage of protecting the environment and supporting food production. It is a highly successful public private partnership operating as a Joint Venture part-owned by the UK Government (DEFRA) and backed by Bridgepoint Development Capital. Eden continued our relationship with Fera to identify and recruit its Chief Commercial Officer to accelerate its international growth in the commercial sector. This leadership role will be critical for the delivery of Fera’s strategic plan reinforcing its position as the leading scientific partner for sustainable food production, biosecurity, food integrity and laboratory assurance.
The Eden team ‘got the brief’ quickly and focussed their research optimally for the most efficient use of our time in reviewing and meeting only the highest calibre candidates. They are expert at managing expectations of candidate and prospective employer through this process and take great care to curate each conversation so that all aspects of each engagement in the process is fully transparent, focused on the outcome and – therefore – produces the best result most expediently.
Andrew Swift. CEO, Fera.
Our approach
Following in-depth discussions with Fera’s CEO and CFO, it became clear that the ideal candidate needed a proven track record of driving and scaling commercial growth within scientific businesses at a scale of annual turnover exceeding £100 million. Success in this role required strong leadership capabilities, commercial acumen and the technical expertise to credibly develop, articulate and sell scientific services. Given these criteria, our search took a global approach, leveraging extensive market mapping alongside our established network and collaborating with Fera to capitalise upon their experience and knowledge of the sector. The shortlist was further refined to focus on individuals with experience in leading teams and successfully operating within private equity-backed businesses.
The results
Eden’s targeted search identified five highly qualified candidates where 60% of our shortlist was based outside of the UK. Following a rigorous interview process conducted by a selection of Fera’s Board including its Chairman, Fera appointed a candidate who brings both the commercial capabilities, achievement record and the aptitude to drive growth and successfully deliver Fera’s growth strategy.