Operating Executive for Asset‑Intensive & Multi‑Property Platforms

Erwin Keus

Interim or Permanent Operating Executive | PE-Backed & Asset-Intensive Platforms 

Raleigh, NC (Global Mobility)
U.S. Citizen | Overseas Citizen of India (OCI)
English (Native) | Spanish (Fluent)

I am a hands-on operating executive with more than 25 years of global experience leading, stabilizing, and scaling asset-intensive organizations across construction, facilities management, infrastructure, hospitality, manufacturing, and remote industrial operations. My career has been spent building, fixing, and growing businesses where execution discipline, asset reliability, safety, and cash control are central to value preservation and growth.

I am most effective in post-acquisition or transitional environments where operations are fragmented, margins are under pressure, leadership accountability is unclear, or physical assets represent both operational risk and upside potential.

I bring true operator experience, not advisory distance. I have repeatedly been deployed into environments that require:

• Immediate operational control
• Rapid diagnosis of execution and cost breakdowns
• Stabilization of safety-critical and infrastructure-heavy assets
• Resetting leadership accountability and operating cadence
• Converting cost centers into predictable, repeatable platforms

I have managed monthly P&Ls exceeding $20M, overseen international portfolios with $150M+ in contracted value, and delivered durable improvements in profitability, asset uptime, and workforce stability across multiple geographies and business models.

In PE-backed or investor-led situations, I am typically engaged to:

• Stabilize operations following acquisition or leadership change
• Stop EBITDA leakage tied to asset performance, labor inefficiencies, or procurement gaps
• Impose operating discipline and governance across fragmented teams and sites
• Protect and extend asset life through lifecycle management and CAPEX discipline
• Provide sponsors and boards with clear, unfiltered operational insight and decision-ready options. 

My approach prioritizes control before growth, reliability before scale, and facts over narrative. 

• Delivered 300%+ margin improvement on distressed construction and infrastructure projects through cost control, sequencing discipline, and leadership reset
• Increased manufacturing output by 50% while reducing costs by 25% in large-scale modular and industrial operations
• Recovered failing EPC and utilities programs (power, water, wastewater) and delivered mission-critical infrastructure ahead of schedule in remote environments
• Reduced operating budgets by 35%, workforce turnover to under 1%, and utility consumption by up to 60% through process and asset optimization
• Scaled founder-led businesses from early-stage revenue to $29M+ annual turnover with repeatable operating systems

I lead with clarity, presence, and accountability. I am direct, practical, and effective in cultures that require ownership, decision-making, and execution under pressure. I am equally comfortable in board-level discussions and on the ground with technical and frontline teams.

Sponsors value my ability to surface the truth early, stabilize operations without disruption, and leave organizations materially stronger than I found them.

I am open to interim, fractional, or permanent operating roles within private-equity portfolio companies and asset-intensive enterprises, particularly during post-acquisition, turnaround, or scale-up phases. Global assignments considered

For discussions regarding operating roles, portfolio involvement, or specific situations requiring stabilization and execution support: 

Email: Erwin.Keus@outlook.com