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Search Funds

Trusted by the nation's top search funds.

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Entrepreneurship that endures.

Building lasting enterprises from first acquisitions.

Search fund entrepreneurs and independent sponsors face a distinctive challenge: turning a single acquisition into a sustainable enterprise. At ECA, we specialize in helping these founders build leadership teams that professionalize operations, accelerate growth, and create enduring enterprise value.

ECA brings an unparalleled understanding of the search fund model—its loan structure, entrepreneurial leadership needs, and value-creation expectations across both board-level and operating-level perspectives. Our industry expertise across business services, tech-enabled services, healthcare, manufacturing, and healthcare allows us to deliver the right talent, fast.

With an extensive network of lower-middle-market operators who are hands-on, adaptable, and execution-focused, we connect our clients with leaders who thrive in low-structure, resource-constrained environments. These are operators who roll up their sleeves, wear multiple hats, and deliver results without large teams of bureaucracy.

ECA has executed more than 100 searches within search-fund-backed companies—spanning President, CFO, COO, CRO, and functional leadership roles across Finance, Operations, Sales, Marketing, Engineering, and Portfolio Operations. Whether supporting a first acquisition or helping build a growing platform, ECA delivers the entrepreneurial leadership that drives lasting success.

Our Areas of Expertise.

We deliver top executive talent and flexible consulting solutions built for search fund success.

SECTORS

Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition (ETA)

Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition (ETA)

Enabling first-time CEOs to professionalize and scale acquired companies.

Independent Sponsors

Independent Sponsors

Seasoned operators driving buy-and-build growth across the lower middle market.

Transition & Succession Businesses

Transition & Succession Businesses

Strengthening management and structure in founder- and family-led firms.

Early Institutionalization

Early Institutionalization

Building the systems and leadership depth to support institutional growth.

Fund Formation & Operations

Fund Formation & Operations

Establishing scalable investment platforms and operational infrastructure.

Meet Your Search Funds Practice Leads

Burton Francis

Burton Francis

Managing Director

Burton is a Managing Director at ECA Partners where he leads the Private Equity Value Creation Practice and works closely with search fund investors and operators. He specializes in placing CEOs, Presidents, and Operating Partners who scale founder-led and newly acquired companies through operational excellence and disciplined growth. A former manufacturing operator and business owner, Burton brings practical P&L experience and strategic insight from Oliver Wyman's PE Operations practice. He holds a B.S. and M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, summa cum laude.

Dan Baker

Dan Baker

Senior Director

Dan is a Senior Director at ECA Partners and a leader in the firm's Search Fund Practice, specializing in executive and operator placements for ETA investors and their portfolio companies. He partners with searchers, CEOs, and investors to recruit leadership talent across growth, operations, and finance – helping entrepreneurial acquirers scale successfully post-acquisition. A leader in ECA's Value Creation Practice, Dan holds degrees in Economics from the University of Cambridge, Law from Duke University, and a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, and is a licensed attorney in Washington State.

Have a role you'd like to discuss?

Reach out. We’d be delighted to learn about your hiring goals.

Have a search funds role you'd like to discuss?

Reach out. We'd be delighted to learn about your hiring goals.