91探花

The appointment of a new CEO or Non-Executive Director (NED) is one of the most consequential decisions any business will make. In the world of venture and private equity-backed technology companies, the stakes are particularly high. Investors are backing a company not just for its product or market, but for the leadership team that will deliver the growth story.

We spoke with Peter Franks, founder of executive search firm , about what makes these searches so different and so important. Having led many CEO and NED searches for high-growth software and tech businesses, Franks has a front-row view of how the best leaders are hired and why the wrong approach can lead to painful mistakes.

What Makes A Great CEO?

The most successful CEOs in technology businesses tend not to be generalists in the traditional sense. 鈥淎lmost all CEOs have a functional spike,鈥� says Franks. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e not equally strong across every part of the business, nor should they be. The best CEOs understand where they鈥檙e strong, and they build complementary leadership teams around them.鈥�

For B2B software companies, this spike is often commercial: a track record of building and leading sales organisations, experience in pricing and packaging, or expertise in go-to-market strategy. In B2C businesses, Franks explains, the emphasis often shifts.

鈥淵ou鈥檙e looking for someone who really understands product and marketing and is exceptionally data-driven. The pattern recognition is different, but the principle is the same. You鈥檙e rarely looking for a general manager who dabbles in every area. You want a leader who knows where they add value, and who empowers others in the areas where they don鈥檛.鈥�

Prior P&L ownership is always helpful, particularly for first-time CEOs. But it’s rarely the only thing that matters. 鈥淧lenty of excellent CEOs step up for the first time with strong functional leadership behind them. But you鈥檙e still looking for signs of commercial judgment, maturity under pressure, and the ability to balance stakeholders鈥� needs.鈥�

Defining What Good Looks Like

One of the most important and underappreciated parts of any CEO search is alignment. 鈥淕etting all stakeholders on the same page about what 鈥榞ood鈥� looks like is harder than it sounds,鈥� says Franks. 鈥淵ou may have a founder, a Chairman, and multiple investors聽 all with slightly different views. Until those expectations are surfaced and reconciled, the risk of mis-hire is high.鈥�

Franks describes a common tension between 鈥榮torytelling鈥� CEOs and 鈥榦perational鈥� CEOs. 鈥淪ome boards want a visionary; someone who can raise capital and inspire teams. Others want a steady hand; someone who鈥檚 scaled a business and knows the pitfalls. Often they want both. But in the real world, candidates tend to lean one way or the other. You have to choose the right shape of CEO for the company鈥檚 stage and needs.鈥�

Previous experience in high-growth, founder-led, or investor-backed companies is usually a strong signal. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a very particular kind of environment,鈥� says Franks. 鈥淵ou need resilience, adaptability, and strong communication skills to navigate the complexity.鈥�

What Makes A Strong NED Or Chairman?

There was a time when Non-Executive Directors were seen primarily as guardians of governance. Today, particularly in VC and PE-backed companies, the bar is different. 鈥淚n early and growth-stage businesses, NEDs and Chairmen are expected to add real commercial value,鈥� says Franks. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not about ticking boxes. It鈥檚 about helping shape product strategy, advising on go-to-market, or supporting the CEO on key hires.鈥�

Franks explains that for many CEOs, especially first-timers, the relationship with the Chairman can be critical. 鈥淏eing a CEO is lonely. You鈥檙e managing investors, leading a business, and balancing short and long-term priorities. A good Chairman provides support, not pressure. They help make sense of the noise and provide perspective, especially when things get tough.鈥�

For Boards to work well, the dynamic needs to be collaborative, not adversarial. 鈥淭oo often, Boards feel like they鈥檙e there to judge the CEO鈥檚 performance,鈥� Franks says. 鈥淏ut the best ones act more like a strategic partner. The CEO needs to be open and honest about challenges and that only happens if they trust their NEDs to be supportive.鈥�

How The Best Searches Are Run

Neon River has built a reputation for thoughtful and precise searches at the senior-most levels. Franks credits this to the firm鈥檚 willingness to challenge assumptions and invest time upfront.

鈥淓very CEO and NED search starts with a deep discovery phase,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e spend time with the Chairman, the investors, the management team to understand the real context behind the hire. What kind of business is this? Where is it in its lifecycle? What does success actually look like, one or two years in?鈥�

The next step is market mapping identifying not just the obvious candidates, but often the under-the-radar ones who aren鈥檛 actively looking. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 just recycle names,鈥� says Franks. 鈥淲e do original research for every search, whether we鈥檙e hiring a CEO for a late-stage PE-backed business or a Chairman for a Series A startup. That鈥檚 where the value lies.鈥�

AI, Disruption And New Leadership Challenges

Franks notes that recent years have brought a new set of challenges for CEOs and their boards. 鈥淭he hype around AI is real but so are the opportunities,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e鈥檙e starting to see meaningful shifts in how software is developed and delivered. For leaders, that means staying informed and being able to separate substance from noise.鈥�

But AI is just one theme in a broader story. 鈥淭ech businesses have become more complex and leadership requirements have changed with them. Today鈥檚 CEO needs to understand how product, engineering, sales, and marketing fit together. Even if they鈥檙e not experts in each, they need to know enough to hire and empower the right people and to ask the right questions.鈥�

That, Franks suggests, is why hiring the right leaders at the top matters so much. 鈥淕reat companies are built by teams, not individuals. But it starts with the CEO and the board that supports them.鈥�