Chief Operating Officer (COO) Executive Search

As Managing Director at ECA Partners, Burton leads the firm’s Private Equity Value Creation Practice and specializes in COO executive search for PE-backed companies, placing operations leaders who drive scale, margin expansion, and plant-to-enterprise excellence. A former manufacturing operator and business owner, Burt combines practical P&L experience with strategic insight from Oliver Wyman’s PE Operations practice. Earlier, he was an engineer at Boeing and General Dynamics. He earned his B.S. and M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, graduating summa cum laude.

As Senior Director at ECA Partners, Dan leads the firm’s COO Practice, specializing in COO executive search for private equity–backed companies. He partners with sponsors and boards to place operations leaders who drive EBITDA, scale multi-site footprints, professionalize teams, and build data-driven operating systems. A leader in ECA’s Value Creation Practice with extensive portfolio operations exposure at the fund level, Dan holds degrees in Economics from Cambridge, Law from Duke, and a PhD from UC Berkeley, and is a licensed attorney in Washington State.

Tim is a Senior Director at ECA Partners and a leader in the firm’s COO Practice. He specializes in COO and operations executive search for private equity-backed and middle-market companies, helping clients recruit leaders who drive operational excellence, scale complex organizations, and create long-term value. With more than a decade of global executive search experience, Tim advises investors and management teams on leadership selection, organizational transformation, and cross-cultural talent strategy. He holds a degree from Hult International Business School.