CEO Advisory Success Stories | Newport Board Group

NEWPORT HELPS AMANO McGANN DRIVE GROWTH IN URBAN MOBILITY

Rohit M Chande, SVP of Engineering Services at Amano McGann comments on his firm's experience with Newport.

We invited Tony Cord and Fred Fink to work with our leadership team to help execute on the vision and growth strategy. As a global company with a dominant position in the Urban Mobility industry, we needed to transform our business model and provide additional services to our customers to maintain the competitive edge. In this regard, the Newport Board Group was instrumental in advancing our M&A strategy.

In addition, our leadership team itself was undergoing transition with the appointments of a new CEO and CFO. With assistance from Newport Board Group team, the newly-formed deal team had to quickly learned about each other’s strengths and working styles.

NEWPORT ADVISORS HELP NUSURA EXPAND ITS CLOUD-BASED SOFTWARE COMPANY’S GROWTH

Mark Amann, CEO of Nusura, Inc., describes his company’s experience working with Newport.

Our company, located in Denver, is a rapidly growing software and services company that helps organizations prepare for crises and emergencies.

Newport advisors helped us take advantage of a key customer’s request that we license our cloud-based software to them to run on their in-house systems. We had no experience in enterprise licensing--it was totally new territory for us. Bill Heermann and his Newport Partners helped us think about how to design and implement an enterprise licensing business model including pricing, licensing terms and marketing.

Nusura has grown very quickly and we expect to more than double our business in the next two years. Success is great, but it can be hard to deal with. We really are a second stage company, no longer a start-up. And we are outgrowing a lot of the ways we did business when we were smaller. Our financial management systems and reports were pretty simple--really just recording cash in and cash out.

Digital Advertising Agency Mogo Marketing & Media Engaged Newport Board Group For Help With Their Growth Plan.

Doug Mowbray, CEO of Mogo and Sheri Mowbray CFO of Mogo comment on their firm’s relationship with Newport:

Growth With Predictability

“Mogo is a digital advertising agency with cutting-edge solutions focused on the needs of middle-market clients in a select group of vertical industries.

From a strategic perspective, we engaged Newport for assistance with developing and executing a well-planned growth agenda for our company. We had been growing quite rapidly for the past few years and we knew we needed help if we were going to achieve our full potential. We were a classic "No Man’s Land" organization in that we had grown too large to continue operating the way we had when we were a 5-person company, but we weren’t quite large enough to have all the skills required to elevate our performance to the next level. Newport was able to help us integrate all the necessary elements of a solid growth plan and has worked closely with us in carefully executing the plan.

Working Across the Organization

In addition to directly supporting us in our roles as CEO and CFO, Newport Partner Kevin Poole has worked with our entire leadership team on a number of initiatives including strengthening the budgeting process, creating a long-term employee incentive plan and identifying a number of productivity initiatives. Newport also helped us extend our industry-based sales focus beyond the Arts vertical to include Entertainment, Education, Public Media and Sports. Kevin has become a valued member of our leadership team whom we all turn to for advice on a wide range of topics. When he isn’t able to personally address one of our needs, he is able to draw on the skills and experience of the other 80 Newport partners across the US.

Middle Market PE Firm LongVue Capital Uses Newport OpenPhone^TM to Find Operating Partners to Team with on Due Diligence and Portfolio Company Growth.

Carol Hance, Managing Director of New Orleans-based LongueVue Capital, comments on her firm’s relationship with Newport:

Industry-specific Expertise

“We have had the opportunity to work with Newport Board Group on several occasions via our OpenPhone agreement with them and have been very impressed with the in-depth industry knowledge and overall expertise of its partners.

We invest across many industry segments and appreciate the ability to access industry specific knowledge from experienced operating professionals via the Newport OpenPhone arrangement. We recently turned to Newport to support our due diligence efforts for a transaction in the retail store fixture space. We didn’t want just another consulting firm but rather a senior individual who was deeply ingrained in the space and had overseen projects and strategies that were similar to the ones we would implement with our portfolio company.

Insight for Due Diligence

Our contacts at Newport quickly referred us to their partner Helen Bulwik. Prior to our visiting the management team and submitting a proposal, Helen provided an industry perspective on the opportunity that was informed by her decades of experience in the retail space. She also worked with us to identify key areas of diligence that were important to address prior to moving forward with a letter of intent. Helen worked as a member of our deal team, attending diligence visits with management, participating in customer and vendor calls, and summarizing her findings to us in a comprehensive report.

Owners of a Growing Custom Equipment Solutions Firm, Joule Processing, Believe That Newport’s CEO Advisory Services Help Them Make Better Decisions, Assuring Their Business Thrives.

Ben Victor, CEO of Houston-based Joule Processing, comments on his organization’s relationship with Newport:

Experience

"Newport’s assistance with developing and defining our positioning as a leader in providing customized solutions in the natural gas processing, separation, and liquids handling arena was key.

We’ve honed our culture and messaging both internally and with our customers. We have clarity about our value proposition, the importance of strong processes and leadership. We’ve brought on board the key skill sets needed to support and grow with our customers.

Industry-specific Contacts and Knowledge

We are experts at refrigeration and natural gas liquids handling (stabilization and fractionation), but like many executives, we’re still honing our ‘business’ expertise. When looking to form an advisory board, our financial institution referred us to Newport Board Group’s Kim Denney. She’s not only helped us with internal processes and taught us better ways to evaluate and hire employees, she’s also connected us to potential clients and expanded our network. We’re always in the market working to better serve our existing and future customers. We’ve grown to trust Kim and know that no matter the situation, Kim or one of her partners or contacts has seen it before and will provide valuable insight in support of our next steps.

Newport Board Advisor Brings Seasoned Judgment, “Infectious Energy”

The Culpeper Wellness Foundation is a community health foundation in Virginia, formed as a result of the acquisition of a community hospital by an academic medical center, and a subsequent partnership with another sizable health care system. Our Wellness Foundation is a grant-making resource and management entity that runs several operating programs.

In 2013, Laura Bingham of Newport Board Group was engaged by the hospital board and CEO to evaluate the effectiveness of our fundraising and community outreach. Then in a subsequent engagement, she advised us on how to improve the foundation’s effectiveness by building consensus and strategy around the new foundation’s philosophy, staffing, funding and community positioning.

Newport Advisor "Stays and Implements"

"Armand Shapiro and Newport have been instrumental in helping me with several of the companies that I am involved with. As an entrepreneur, I love to put ideas, people and capital together to create new business ventures. I realized early on the value of having a third party looking over my shoulder and helping me evaluate the ideas, businesses, management, operations and all other aspects of the business before we invest and after we are fully invested.

When we were looking for an advisor, we didn't want just another consulting firm to charge a huge upfront fee and give us a thick report. We wanted someone who had "been there and done that!" Someone who had the real world experience from which to draw. Armand fit that profile perfectly.

Newport Partner "Asks The Right Questions"

"Kim Denney has been a positive force within our company by challenging our management team in ways they’ve never been challenged before.

Newport Partner Helps Accomplish Key Milestones

"Jennifer Knight has been a key element to the accomplishment of several milestones in the last six months. From assistance with the recruiting and hiring of a key Operations Manager to financial advice on growth strategies, she has been with us every step of the way.

Client Testimonials

NEWPORT HELPS AMANO McGANN DRIVE GROWTH IN URBAN MOBILITY

NEWPORT ADVISORS HELP NUSURA EXPAND ITS CLOUD-BASED SOFTWARE COMPANY’S GROWTH