In this episode of The Private Equity Podcast, Alex Rawlings speaks with Adam Crandall, Chief Revenue Officer at Addtronics, a private equity-backed platform of robotics and automation companies.
Adam shares how he helped quadruple revenue at a founder-led automation business before its successful exit. He explains why growth begins with putting the right people in the right seats, rather than relying solely on processes, industry experience, or technology.
The conversation explores how private equity firms and portfolio company leaders can identify attractive markets, improve pricing, align compensation with profitability, and build a repeatable go-to-market playbook across multiple operating companies.
Adam also discusses the cultural shift from pursuing revenue at any cost to prioritising profitable growth. He explains how sales leaders can communicate price increases confidently, assess commercial talent effectively, and give operating company presidents autonomy while maintaining platform-wide alignment.
Key Takeaways
Why the right talent is the foundation of scalable revenue growth
How Adam helped a founder-led company achieve 4X revenue growth
Why attitude, adaptability, and soft skills can outweigh lengthy industry experience
How market specialisation can create a dominant competitive position
When strong demand and long backlogs signal an opportunity to increase prices
How to position price increases around customer value
Why sales compensation should reward profitable growth, not revenue alone
How a standardised go-to-market playbook supports add-on integration
Tools for assessing salespeople and commercial leaders
Timestamps
00:00 – Introduction to Adam Crandall and Addtronics 00:30 – Adam’s career journey from HR to revenue leadership 01:25 – Quadrupling revenue and exiting a founder-led business 02:19 – The foundations of 4X revenue growth 02:49 – Getting the right people in the right seats 04:08 – Identifying high-growth end markets 05:01 – Hiring for attitude, adaptability, and soft skills 07:48 – Building a team capable of accelerated growth 08:17 – Value creation through market specialisation 09:40 – Pricing as a value creation lever 11:33 – Implementing price increases in founder-led businesses 12:01 – Communicating price increases to customers 14:23 – Shifting the culture toward profitable growth 15:22 – Aligning sales compensation with margin targets 16:49 – Creating a repeatable go-to-market playbook 17:44 – Balancing platform consistency with operating company autonomy 18:11 – What belongs in a scalable commercial playbook 19:36 – Assessing sales talent and commercial leadership 20:33 – Recommended resources for private equity revenue leaders 21:00 – How to connect with Adam Crandall 21:28 – Closing remarks
Raw Selection partners with Private Equity firms and their portfolio companies to secure exceptional executive talent. We focus on de-risking executive recruitment through meticulous search and selection processes, ensuring top-tier performance and long-term success.
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