If your operating record has stopped
fitting on two pages, you have the
same problem as Marcus.

You have the exits, the OEE programmes, the board seats, the integration track record — and a CV format that flattens a seventeen-year operating career into a list of bullet points that reads the same as everyone else's.

PE houses screen on pattern recognition. Search firms filter on keywords. Operating partner mandates go to the candidate the selection committee already knows, because the document in front of them didn't do enough work to change the picture.

The Career Memorandum below shows what happens when an operational career is presented properly: six signature numbers scannable in five seconds at the top, four expandable roles with verified outcomes underneath, every named transaction and institution one click from its source. Read it the way a PE investment director would. Then ask whether your own CV is doing the same work.

The five-second read
Six numbers. First viewport.
EBITDA £18m to £41m. OEE 67% to 84%. Three exits at 2.1× average. The reader knows the operating level before scrolling a single pixel.
The evidence layer
Every claim, one click from its source.
Twenty-four outbound links across the document — to Advent International, the BVCA performance survey, Make UK benchmarking data, the Juran Institute, IMI plc investor pages. A selection committee can verify anything in the room.
The operating arc
The career shape is the argument.
McKinsey methodology. FTSE 250 P&L. PE-backed exit. Portfolio Operating Partner. The structure of the document tracks the structure of the career — so the reader sees the progression, not just the roles.
Career Memorandum — Marcus Alderton
Marcus Alderton — Career Memorandum
Executive Career Memorandum Updated April 2026
Executive Career Memorandum

MARCUS
ALDERTON

Mechanical engineer turned McKinsey operations specialist turned FTSE 250 COO — now an Operating Partner at Granville Partners, where he sits on four portfolio company boards simultaneously and has delivered three PE exits at an average EBITDA multiple of 2.1×.

Operating Partner, Granville Partners  ·  NED, Brindley Group plc

Precision Engineering  ·  Industrial Manufacturing  ·  PE-Backed Transformation

£18m → £41m
EBITDA growth at Praxis Precision Engineering across a 48-month PE hold period
Exit at 9.4× · Top-quartile Advent 2018 vintage
67% → 84%
Overall equipment effectiveness across 14 manufacturing sites at IMI Precision Engineering
£23m annual run-rate cost reduction
3 exits
Completed portfolio exits as Operating Partner at Granville Partners
Avg. EBITDA growth 2.1× · Avg. hold 38 months
£67m
Bolt-on acquisitions integrated at Praxis — three deals, each absorbed within 18 months
Zero production downtime across all three integrations
£340m
Revenue P&L as Deputy COO, IMI Precision Engineering — 2,800 headcount across UK, Germany, Poland
FTSE 250 · 14 manufacturing sites
£17m
Annual logistics cost reduction delivered as Engagement Manager, McKinsey & Company
Tier 1 automotive supplier · 6-country European network
Executive Profile

Career in full

Marcus Alderton trained as a mechanical engineer at the University of Nottingham — MEng, First Class — and joined McKinsey & Company's Operations practice in 2009. Three years there, working on manufacturing and supply chain transformation for automotive and industrial clients in the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands. The last engagement before leaving: a 22-month supply chain redesign for a Tier 1 automotive supplier operating across six countries, which produced £17m in annual logistics cost reduction on implementation. Promoted from Associate to Engagement Manager in 18 months, below McKinsey's typical 24–30-month promotion timeline.

Joined IMI Precision Engineering in 2012 as Head of Operational Excellence — a division of IMI plc, a FTSE 250 engineering group. The division ran 14 manufacturing sites across the UK, Germany, and Poland. Overall equipment effectiveness stood at 67% on arrival. The lean transformation programme — structured around Lean/Six Sigma Black Belt methodology applied at site level through dedicated improvement teams — moved OEE to 84% over 36 months, producing £23m in annual run-rate cost reduction. Promoted to Deputy COO in 2015 with full P&L accountability for a £340m revenue division and 2,800 direct and indirect headcount. Led two bolt-on acquisitions — combined cost £28m — and their operational integration, both completed without capital expenditure overrun. Represented IMI at the Make UK Manufacturing Performance Forum, contributing to the industry body's OEE benchmarking programme.

Recruited in 2017 as COO of Praxis Precision Engineering, an Advent International-backed precision machining business twelve months into the fund's hold period. EBITDA at arrival: £18m. Three sites, predominantly UK revenue, 480 headcount. Brief from the board: restructure the operating model, execute three identified bolt-on acquisitions, prepare the business for exit. Applied the Lean/Six Sigma framework from the IMI tenure — OEE across the Praxis network moved from 71% to 88% over the hold period. Led all three acquisitions — combined cost £67m, spanning hydraulic sealing, specialist fasteners, and CNC turning components — and integrated each within 18 months of close with zero production downtime. Headcount grew from 480 to 1,100. EBITDA at exit: £41m. Business sold to a US strategic buyer in 2021 at 9.4× EBITDA, a top-quartile outcome for Advent International's 2018 vintage.

Operating Partner at mid-market PE house Granville Partners since 2021. Sits simultaneously on the boards of four portfolio companies — total portfolio revenue £380m, sectors covering precision components, industrial automation, specialised packaging, and fire-suppression systems. Three completed exits in the role: average EBITDA growth of 2.1× at exit, average hold period 38 months. Currently leading the integration of a 480-person manufacturer in Germany acquired in Q4 2023 — site consolidation, ERP migration, and production scheduling redesign across two facilities.

Non-executive director of Brindley Group plc, an AIM-listed precision machining business, since 2022 — audit committee and remuneration committee member. Lean/Six Sigma Black Belt, Juran Institute. MBA, INSEAD (Fontainebleau, Dean's List). Works in English and conversational German.

Current position
Operating Partner
Granville Partners
Portfolio oversight
£380m revenue
4 boards simultaneously
Exit record
3 exits · avg 2.1× EBITDA
38-month average hold
Signature outcome
Praxis · 9.4× exit
EBITDA £18m → £41m
Board appointment
NED, Brindley Group plc
AIM-listed · 2022–present
Qualification
LSS Black Belt · INSEAD MBA
Dean's List, Fontainebleau
Languages
English (native)
German (conversational)
Operating Evidence

Career at scale

£380m
Total portfolio revenue under current board oversight
Granville Partners · 4 companies
2,800
Peak headcount under P&L accountability as Deputy COO
IMI Precision Engineering · UK / DE / PL
9.4×
EBITDA exit multiple at Praxis Precision Engineering
Top-quartile · Advent 2018 vintage
£23m
Annual run-rate cost reduction from the IMI lean transformation
OEE 67% → 84% · 14 sites · 36 months
£67m
Bolt-on acquisitions integrated at Praxis without production downtime
3 deals · each within 18 months
14
Manufacturing sites under operational leadership at IMI
UK · Germany · Poland
2.1×
Average EBITDA growth across 3 completed exits at Granville
38-month average hold period
£17m
Annual logistics cost saving delivered at McKinsey
Tier 1 automotive · 6-country network
Career History

Operating record

Joined as Operating Partner following the Praxis exit. Brief: provide hands-on operational board support to a portfolio of mid-market industrial businesses at different stages of the hold cycle — from pre-acquisition operational due diligence through to exit preparation. Four portfolio boards held simultaneously.
  • 3 completed exits as Operating Partner — average EBITDA growth of 2.1×, average hold of 38 months across all three.
  • Currently leading the operational integration of a 480-person German precision manufacturer acquired in Q4 2023 — site consolidation, ERP migration, and production scheduling redesign across two facilities. Target: full integration within 16 months of close.
  • All pre-acquisition operational due diligence conducted using a proprietary ODD framework developed from the Praxis and IMI experience — covers production capacity, workforce capability, supply chain resilience, and capex runway.
  • £380m total portfolio revenue across four concurrent portfolio companies: precision components, industrial automation, specialised packaging, and fire-suppression systems.
  • Led vendor due diligence and exit preparation for two of the three completed exits — management presentations, data room build, and operational Q&A with strategic and secondary PE buyer teams.
  • Non-executive director of Brindley Group plc (AIM) since 2022 — audit and remuneration committee member.
Portfolio revenue
£380m
Completed exits
3 · avg 2.1×
Boards held
4 concurrent
Recruited as COO twelve months into Advent International's hold period. EBITDA at arrival: £18m. Three-site business, predominantly UK revenue, 480 headcount. Board brief: restructure the operating model, execute three identified bolt-on acquisitions, and prepare the business for exit within four years.
  • EBITDA from £18m to £41m over 48 months — driven by operating model redesign, production scheduling overhaul, and revenue mix improvement toward higher-margin aerospace and defence contracts.
  • Led three bolt-on acquisitions with combined cost of £67m — spanning hydraulic sealing, specialist fasteners, and CNC turning components. Each integrated within 18 months of close with zero production downtime.
  • Applied the Lean/Six Sigma framework from IMI — OEE across the Praxis network moved from 71% to 88% over the hold period.
  • Built the operational infrastructure to absorb headcount growth from 480 to 1,100 — ERP migration, unified production scheduling, and site-level P&L accountability introduced across all facilities.
  • Revenue mix at exit: 38% aerospace/defence (11% at entry) — the deliberate shift to premium-margin end markets was central to the EBITDA improvement thesis.
  • Business sold at 9.4× EBITDA — top-quartile outcome for Advent International's 2018 vintage. Served as executive director on the company board for the full hold period.
EBITDA at exit
£41m (from £18m)
Exit multiple
9.4× EBITDA
Headcount at exit
1,100 (from 480)
Joined IMI Precision Engineering as Head of Operational Excellence to run a lean transformation across 14 manufacturing sites. Promoted to Deputy COO in 2015 with full P&L responsibility for a £340m revenue division and 2,800 headcount across UK, Germany, and Poland. First executive to hold combined operational and commercial accountability below the divisional CEO.
  • OEE across the 14-site network from 67% to 84% over 36 months — producing £23m in annual run-rate cost reduction. Programme delivered through Lean/Six Sigma methodology applied via dedicated site-level improvement teams.
  • As Deputy COO: full P&L accountability for £340m revenue across 14 sites and 2,800 headcount. Introduced site-level P&L reporting to replace a cost-centre model — enabling direct performance comparison between sites for the first time.
  • Led two bolt-on acquisitions — combined cost £28m — integrating both into the existing operating model within 12 months of close, inside the original capital expenditure envelope.
  • Seven consecutive quarters of EBIT margin improvement through the Deputy COO tenure (FY2015–FY2017), against flat end-market demand across UK automotive.
  • Trained 140 site-level improvement leads across UK, German, and Polish operations over the five-year tenure — building the lean practitioner community across the division.
  • Represented IMI plc at the Make UK Manufacturing Performance Forum, contributing OEE data to the industry body's annual manufacturing outlook.
OEE improvement
67% → 84%
Run-rate saving
£23m / year
P&L owned
£340m · 2,800
Joined McKinsey directly from Nottingham, placed in the Operations practice from day one. Three years working on manufacturing transformation, supply chain redesign, and operational turnaround engagements for automotive, precision components, and process chemicals clients across the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands.
  • Delivered £17m in annual logistics cost reduction as Engagement Manager on a 22-month supply chain redesign for a Tier 1 automotive supplier — six-country network covering UK, Germany, France, Poland, Czech Republic, and Romania. Programme included distribution centre consolidation, carrier contract renegotiation, and route-to-market redesign.
  • Led a 6-month operational turnaround assessment for a mid-market precision engineering business under covenant breach — output informed the lender's decision to extend headroom and the business's subsequent restructuring.
  • Promoted from Associate to Engagement Manager in 18 months — below the firm's typical 24–30-month timeline. Continued as primary client lead on the automotive supply chain engagement through to implementation completion.
  • Built the internal lean transformation playbook for the UK industrial sector practice, used as a starting framework on subsequent engagements by the team after his departure.
Logistics saving
£17m / year
Promotion timeline
18 months
Geographies
UK · DE · FR · PL · NL
Executive Education

Academic & professional formation

INSEAD
Master of Business Administration
Fontainebleau campus
Dean's List
Finance & operations strategy concentration
University of Nottingham
MEng Mechanical Engineering
First Class Honours
Dept of Mechanical, Materials & Manufacturing Engineering
Dissertation: thermal modelling in precision machining
Juran Institute
Lean / Six Sigma Black Belt
Certified 2013
Applied across IMI Precision Engineering (14 sites) and Praxis Precision Engineering
Embedded in Granville ODD framework
Sector Expertise

Domain authority

Operating Disciplines
PE-backed operational transformation Primary
Lean / Six Sigma manufacturing Primary
M&A integration & bolt-on execution Primary
OEE improvement programmes Primary
Supply chain redesign Primary
ERP migration & systems integration Practised
Exit preparation & vendor due diligence Practised
Board governance (listed & PE-backed) Practised
Industrial Sectors
Precision engineering & machining Deep
Industrial automation & components Deep
Hydraulic & fluid power systems Deep
Aerospace & defence supply chain Practised
Automotive Tier 1 & Tier 2 Practised
Specialised packaging & containment Practised
Fire-suppression & safety systems Practised
Process chemicals & fluid handling Adjacent
Contact

Get in touch

Available for Operating Partner conversations, non-executive appointments, and advisory mandates across precision engineering and PE-backed industrial businesses.

Location
London, United Kingdom
Email
[email protected]
References
Available on request
Marcus Alderton · Career Memorandum · Updated April 2026 Composite example · Headhunters International