April 07, 2025
PrimeFlight Aviation Services announced a leadership transition as President and CEO Dan Bucaro steps down from his role after more than seven years. Bucaro’s transition is the result of several years of planning, and he will continue to play a critical role in the company’s leadership as Chairman of the Board.
“Under Dan’s leadership, PrimeFlight has been built into a global aviation services leader with nearly 18,000 employees worldwide,” EVP and Chief Operating Officer Charlotte Cheatham explained. “His strategic vision and leadership have positioned PrimeFlight for continued growth and success.”
The company has tapped ground handling industry leader, Craig Smyth, as the succeeding President and CEO. With over 30 years of experience in the industry, Craig has held a series of senior leadership roles, most recently serving as Group CEO for Worldwide Flight Services (“WFS”), where he led global strategic growth initiatives and operational advancements. Since 2023, Craig has served as an active Board Member for PrimeFlight Aviation Services, bringing strategic guidance and assisting directly the company’s growth trajectory.
Prior to his tenure at WFS, Craig spent more than two decades at Menzies Aviation, where he held key leadership positions, including CEO. In addition to his extensive executive experience, he has been actively involved in private equity, advising and leading businesses through investment cycles, strategic transformations, and value creation initiatives. Craig holds a Bachelor of Accountancy from the University of Glasgow.
“Dan has been a trusted advisor and partner to us for many decades. We thank him for his years of leadership and congratulate him on this well-deserved transition. We look forward to his continued guidance as Chairman” said Adam Palmer, Partner at Capitol Meridian Partners. “We are thrilled to announce Craig as our next CEO. Craig has served on our Board and as a trusted advisor since 2023, giving him a detailed understanding of our business and strategy. This experience, paired with his expertise in aviation services and phenomenal track record in the industry, make him the ideal leader to lead PrimeFlight into its next phase of growth,” said Greg Elliott, Partner at The Sterling Group.
About PrimeFlight Aviation Services
Headquartered in Sugar Land, Texas, PrimeFlight Aviation Services provides major airlines and airports with GSE maintenance, ground handling services, aircraft services, into-plane fueling, deicing, aviation cleaning supplies, and terminal services, as well as general aviation aircraft cleaning and support services, across a global footprint. PrimeFlight is a portfolio company of The Sterling Group and Capitol Meridian Partners. For more information, visit www.primeflight.com.
April 04, 2025
The Sterling Group (“Sterling”), a Houston-based, operationally focused middle market private equity firm, is pleased to announce three additions to the Sterling team: Jason Taibel as Operating Partner, Financial Operations; Nadeem Ahmed as Operating Partner, Technology; and Matthew Cobb as Director, Operations.
Jason Taibel, Operating Partner, Financial Operations, joins Sterling from BDO USA, P.C. where he was the Texas Market Managing Partner of Assurance Services. Jason has a long history of partnership with Sterling, having advised many of Sterling’s portfolio companies on financial matters over the past decade. Jason will lead the firm’s Execution lever and serve as a technical expert, working with Sterling’s portfolio companies to evaluate and support financial operations.
Nadeem Ahmed, Operating Partner, Technology, joined Sterling in March to lead the firm’s Technology lever. Nadeem brings over 20 years of technology strategy, management and execution experience, having worked for several private equity firms and product technology companies. Nadeem will support technology-enabled growth initiatives at Sterling portfolio companies, including systems implementations, data management, and AI.
Matthew Cobb, Director, Operations, joined Sterling in January from Boston Consulting Group, where as Principal, he led growth strategy and operational effectiveness initiatives for industrial companies. Matthew will assist Sterling portfolio companies in all areas of operational improvement, with a particular emphasis on procurement and supply chain.
“We are thrilled to welcome Jason, Nadeem and Matthew to the Sterling team and to the firm’s Portfolio Resources Group,” said Brad Staller, Partner at The Sterling Group. “Their extensive experience and deep expertise in their respective fields will be immediately impactful as we continue to drive operational improvements across our portfolio through our Seven Levers methodology.”
For forty years, Sterling has partnered with management teams of industrial businesses to drive growth and transformation. Execution, Operations, and Technology are three of Sterling’s Seven Levers, or seven areas in which the firm consistently and materially impacts businesses. Investments in these areas typically offer meaningful opportunities for value creation at industrial companies.
To learn more about a career at The Sterling Group, please visit www.sterling-group.com/careers/ or contact Claudine Lussier at clussier@sterling-group.com.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 73 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $25 billion. Sterling currently has $9.4 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
February 07, 2025
The Sterling Group (“Sterling”), a Houston-based, operationally focused middle market private equity firm, is pleased to announce four internal promotions: Nate Reeve to Director; Annika Ward to Director, Management Company Accounting; Vincent Gennaro to Principal; and Nikhil Nayak to Principal, Commercial Diligence & Strategy.
“As a firm, our success is built on the dedication and talent of our incredible team. We are thrilled to celebrate those being promoted for their hard work, growth, and achievements. These promotions reflect not only their individual commitment but also the collective strength of our team,” said Brad Staller, Partner at The Sterling Group.
To learn more about a career at The Sterling Group, please visit www.sterling-group.com/careers/ or contact Claudine Lussier at clussier@sterling-group.com.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 73 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $25 billion. Sterling currently has $9.2 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
December 19, 2024
The Sterling Group, a Houston-based,
operationally focused middle market private equity firm, is pleased to announce that
John Griffin and Claudine Lussier have been promoted to Partner.
“We are excited to recognize the extraordinary contributions of John and Claudine,” said
Brad Staller, Partner at The Sterling Group. “Each has played a critical part in Sterling’s
success to date. We are thrilled to celebrate their accomplishments and welcome them
as Partners.”
John Griffin, Partner, joined Sterling in 2018 from McKinsey & Company’s Houston
office where he focused on strategic and operational initiatives for industrial and energy
companies. John has been a leader on the PrimeFlight Aviation, West Star Aviation,
Fencing Supply Group, Tangent Technologies, and Lynx FBO Network investment
teams. John has also been a key member of the firm’s Operations Committee, which
drives continuous improvement in Sterling’s own value creation capabilities.
Claudine Lussier, Partner, Human Capital, joined Sterling in 2017 to lead Human Capital
at Sterling and its portfolio companies. During Claudine’s time at Sterling, she has
contributed to a significant build-out of the team and has driven a dramatic improvement
in Sterling’s ability to drive value creation through the Human Capital lever. Claudine is a
critical business partner to investment teams and management teams alike.
To learn more about a career at The Sterling Group, please visit
www.sterling-group.com/careers/
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment
firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services
companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from
$100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 73 platform
companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $24
billion. Sterling currently has $9.4 billion of assets under management. For further
information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to
loss.
July 08, 2024
The Sterling Group, an industrial focused middle market private equity firm, announced the addition of Jonathan Jackson as Managing Director of Foundation Fund, the firm’s lower middle market strategy.
Jonathan Jackson joins Sterling from Sun Capital Partners, where he spent thirteen years focused on middle market investing in a variety of services, industrial and food sectors. “Jonathan is a key addition to Foundation Fund’s senior leadership team,” said Lucas Cutler, Partner. Foundation Fund launched in 2023 to apply Sterling’s experience and operational capabilities by partnering with industrial companies in the lower middle market.
In addition, Sterling Foundation Fund has completed the acquisition of founder-owned OGD Overhead Garage Door (“OGD”), a provider of repair, replacement and installation services in the overhead door and dock industry. Headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, OGD serves a large and growing base of commercial and residential overhead door and dock customers with installation and repair and replacement services. “We look forward to leveraging Sterling’s industry expertise and operational capabilities to continue to expand OGD,” said Bret Westbrook, founder and CEO of OGD.
Sterling has extensive experience partnering with founders to build residential and commercial service businesses. OGD is the fourth acquisition for Sterling Foundation Fund. Each partnership to date has been with founder owned businesses.
Adams Street Partners’ Private Credit investment strategy provided senior debt financing and an equity co-investment in support of the acquisition.
McDermott Will & Emery LLP served as legal counsel and HamptonRock Financial Advisory, LLC served as a financial due diligence advisor to The Sterling Group.
BlackArch Partners served as exclusive financial advisor to OGD Overhead Garage Door.
About OGD
OGD is a provider of repair, replacement and installation services in the overhead door and dock industry. OGD operates in 45 MSAs across the Southeast, Midwest, Mid-Atlantic and the Mountain West regions. OGD is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas.
About The Sterling Group Foundation Fund
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to over $1 billion. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 72 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $24.0 billion. Sterling recently closed its sixth investment fund with $3.5 billion in commitments and currently has $9.4 billion of assets under management. Launched in 2023, The Sterling Foundation Fund aims to leverage the firm’s operational capabilities and experience in the industrial sector to “set the foundation” for growth at lower middle market companies. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
February 20, 2024
The Sterling Group (“Sterling”), a Houston-based, operationally focused middle market private equity firm, is pleased to announce eight internal promotions: John Griffin and Meghan Leggett to Managing Director; Jared North to Managing Director, Business Development; Johann Friese to Director; Anu George to Director, Fund Accounting; Aryan Sameri to Director, Commercial Diligence & Strategy; Jacob Broom to Principal, Private Credit; and Patrick Vocke to Principal.
In addition, Jenny Harris, current Managing Director, Private Credit, has been named Managing Director, Capital Markets for all of Sterling’s investment strategies.
“Since 1982, Sterling has been building winning businesses for customers, employees, and investors, and this would not be possible without a team of highly skilled and passionate individuals such as the ones being recognized here. We are proud to celebrate those who have been promoted for their contributions to the firm,” said Brad Staller, Partner at The Sterling Group.
To learn more about a career at The Sterling Group, please visit www.sterling-group.com/careers/ or contact Claudine Lussier at clussier@sterling-group.com.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 67 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $22.0 billion. Sterling currently has over $6.0 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
February 28, 2023
The Sterling Group, a Houston-based, operationally focused middle market private equity firm, is pleased to announce that Franny Jones, Jim Apple and Jud Morrison have been promoted to Partner. In addition, Claudine Lussier was promoted to Managing Director, Human Capital.
“We are excited to recognize the dedication and contributions of these key team members,” said Brad Staller, Partner at The Sterling Group. “Franny, Jim, Jud and Claudine are experts in their respective roles and have played a critical part in Sterling’s success to date. We are thrilled to celebrate the talents and contributions of these four individuals.”
Franny Jones, Partner, Investor Relations, joined Sterling in 2010 to lead the firm’s fundraising and investor relations efforts. During Franny’s time at Sterling, the firm has raised five funds across its Middle Market, Lower Middle Market and Private Credit strategies totaling over $4.4 billion in capital commitments.
Jim Apple, Partner, Sourcing, joined Sterling in 2013 to lead the firm’s sourcing efforts. For over a decade, Jim has helped families and entrepreneurs, find and structure the right solutions for their businesses. Jim is passionate about understanding the current and potential “future state” of a company and its industry, a passion shared across the Sterling team.
Jud Morrison, Partner, Operations, joined Sterling in 2018 to lead the execution of operational initiatives at Sterling portfolio companies and continuous improvement efforts within Sterling. Jud works closely with Sterling’s investment professionals and portfolio management teams to drive growth and build capabilities for Sterling portfolio companies. Since joining Sterling, Jud has played a critical role in the execution and continued refinement of the Sterling value creation model.
Claudine Lussier, Managing Director, joined Sterling in 2017 to lead both the firm’s and its portfolio companies’ human capital efforts. She is responsible for developing and implementing people and talent management strategies to help drive growth through comprehensive human talent strategies and the identification and acquisition of talent.
To learn more about a career at The Sterling Group, please visit www.sterling-group.com/careers/ or contact Claudine Lussier at clussier@sterling-group.com.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 64 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $14.0 billion. Sterling currently has over $5.1 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
October 04, 2022
The Sterling Group, a Houston-based, operationally focused middle market private equity firm, announces the addition of Amath Fall as Operating Partner, Financial Operations. As a member of the firm’s Portfolio Resources Group, Amath will lead value creation initiatives in the areas of accounting and financial operations across the firm’s portfolio companies.
Amath brings over 20 years of financial and operational leadership experience as Chief Financial Officer and in other various roles in industrial businesses. Most recently, Amath was the Chief Operating Officer after serving as CFO at Berlin Packaging, where he led a team of around 600 employees. Amath also brings experience from his time as CFO of FleetPride.
“Amath brings extraordinary operational and financial expertise to the Sterling team, and will have a tremendous impact on our portfolio companies as a critical and integral part of the Sterling value creation model,” said Brad Staller, Partner at The Sterling Group.
For forty years, Sterling has partnered with management teams of industrial businesses to drive growth and transformation. Sterling investment teams and members of its Portfolio Resources Group work collaboratively with management teams to seek growth and optimize operations. Over 75% of Sterling’s past investments have been corporate carve-outs or partnerships with family or entrepreneur owned businesses.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 63 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $14.0 billion. Sterling currently has over $5.7 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
April 18, 2022
The Sterling Group, a Houston-based, operationally focused middle market private equity firm, announces the additions of Meghan Leggett as Director, and Jared North as Director, Sourcing, as well as six internal promotions: John Griffin has been promoted to Director; Steven Hirsch to Director; Nate Reeve to Principal; Annika Ward to Vice President, Management Company Accounting; Jared Bell to Vice President; and Christine Shtepani to Vice President, Sourcing.
“Each of these talented individuals has made tremendous contributions to the firm and we look forward to their continued success in their new roles,” said Brad Staller, Partner at The Sterling Group.
Meghan Leggett, Director, joins Sterling from White Deer Energy where she was a Managing Director focused on investing in products and services businesses in the energy, industrials and infrastructure end markets. Jared North, Director, Sourcing, joined Sterling in March to expand the firm’s sourcing efforts in the Northeast. Prior to Sterling, he spent twelve years in investment banking, most recently with Stifel and RBC Capital Markets in New York, advising clients on acquisitions, divestitures and financings across the Diversified Industrials sector.
To learn more about a career at The Sterling Group, please visit www.sterling-group.com/careers/ or contact Claudine Lussier at clussier@sterling-group.com.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity investment firm that targets controlling interests in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 62 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $14.0 billion. Sterling recently closed its fifth investment fund with $2.0 billion in commitments and currently has over $5.7 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
October 13, 2021
The Sterling Group, a Houston-based, operationally focused middle market private equity firm, announces the addition of Carsten Weber as Technology Director. As a member of the firm’s Portfolio Resources Group, Carsten will lead technology value creation across the firm’s portfolio companies.
Carsten brings over 20 years of technology leadership experience in various roles both in industrial businesses and in consulting. Most recently, Carsten was the Director of PMO and ERP Transformation at Enbridge.
“Carsten is a great addition to the Sterling family and has already begun executing important initiatives firm-wide in the few months he has been with us,” said Brian Henry, Partner.
For forty years, Sterling has partnered with management teams of industrial businesses to drive growth and transformation. Technology is one of Sterling’s Seven Levers, or seven areas in which the firm consistently and materially impacts businesses. Technology investments typically offer meaningful opportunities for value creation at industrial companies.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 61 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $14.0 billion. Sterling currently has over $5.0 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
The Sterling Group is an operationally focused middle market private equity firm that builds winning businesses for customers, employees and investors.
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