Challenge:
At the start of 2025, Sunvair Aerospace Group—a Greenbriar Equity portfolio company providing MRO services for commercial landing gear, cargo loading systems, hydraulics, pneumatics, avionics, and approved special processes such as plating and thermal spray—was preparing for a bold new phase of growth.
With private equity leadership setting aggressive expansion goals, the company required a high-impact commercial executive who could energize global business development, re-engage key customers, and drive revenue performance across a diverse set of service lines.
Sunvair’s Group Vice President of HR, a long-tenured and respected leader who had grown within the company through operations, business development, and HR, reached out to Aerosource to lead the retained search for a new Chief Commercial Officer. This was to be a critical hire—someone capable of aligning with the focused and respected CEO, while earning the confidence of the Greenbriar board and delivering commercial execution at scale.
The right candidate would be an MRO industry insider with global market fluency, deep customer relationships, and the ability to build and lead high-performing commercial teams in both the U.S. and abroad.
Strategy:
Our team led a collaborative discovery process with Sunvair leadership and Greenbriar Equity to define the ideal CCO profile. The successful candidate would bring not only aerospace and MRO sales expertise, but also high integrity, team-building skills, and a track record of reinvigorating underdeveloped customer channels—particularly within U.S.-based commercial and cargo airline markets.
We conducted an exhaustive and confidential search targeting 247 senior aviation MRO Sales & Business Development leaders across the global aerospace ecosystem. Our outreach focused on those with experience in component MRO—including landing gear, hydraulics, and systems repair—and a demonstrated ability to drive sustained commercial growth.
From this effort, we presented six highly qualified semi-finalists. Three standout candidates advanced, each possessing strong commercial leadership credentials and cultural fit.
One candidate quickly emerged as the favorite: Joe Greenwood, a widely respected executive with deep relationships in the landing gear MRO sector, extensive international business development experience, and a reputation for high integrity and people-first leadership.
Results:
Joe Greenwood was unanimously selected as Sunvair’s new Chief Commercial Officer. Just days after accepting the role, he was on the road meeting with strategic U.S. customers and conducting deep-dive sessions with his new commercial team.
A senior Greenbriar executive remarked, “This is a huge win for Sunvair and Greenbriar.”
Joe immediately began aligning Sunvair’s commercial organization with the company’s long-term growth strategy—energizing the salesforce, sharpening focus on priority accounts, and laying the foundation for international expansion.
With Greenwood in place, Sunvair Aerospace Group and Greenbriar Equity have complete confidence in their ability to meet—and exceed—the aggressive growth targets ahead.