Case Studies: Tellurian Biodeisel

A team of accomplished entrepreneurs had positioned a young biodiesel company as a premier sales, marketing, and distribution business, following a unique model of local supply chains using 100% recycled materials.  Recognizing the opportunity to fully integrate their operations, they decided to expand into manufacturing.  Having multiplied the complexity of their business, they now needed a senior finance leader, but what that person would look like was uncertain.  The real estate, joint venture, and acquisition deals to be done suggested a seasoned CFO, but the nuts-and-bolts accounting and limited infrastructure pointed to a take-charge controller.

We devised dual recruitment strategies, scouting talent from within both the renewables community and conventional energy industry.  In both cases, we sought a rare skillset: an entrepreneurial CPA with demonstrated business acumen and success in a high-volume, low-margin environment, where seemingly tiny variances could spell the difference between prosperity and collapse.  The marketing of the company required extra versatility: candidates from a renewables background faced a leap from one startup to another, while candidates from conventional fuels companies had to weigh riskier prospects and a sharp departure from the established norms of their industry.  Our finalist was the most experienced by far of any candidate we presented, yet, perhaps counter-intuitively, was also the most willing to embrace change.  For a company in need of a steady hand, and an individual seeking to chart a new course, the fit was as natural as the fuel.