As a member of our automotive aftermarket team, Rick Thomas, FOCUS CEO, has led our firm’s expansion into overlanding by helping several companies raise capital by selling all or parts of their businesses. As an overlanding enthusiast himself, Rick identified overlanding as a growth category for our firm so internally we have branded him as our ‘COE – Chief Outdoor Enthusiast’. In a recent interview, Rick discusses his personal connection to overlanding and how FOCUS helps firms in the industry.
Rick Thomas, FOCUS’ CEO, has 25 years of consulting, management and M&A advisory experience in the aerospace, financial services, manufacturing, software, packaging, marine and food services industries. He has led projects with such notable organizations as MCI WorldCom, Arthur Andersen, EDS, and The United States Agency for International Development.
Prior to joining FOCUS, Rick served as Vice President at VSI, a boutique investment banking firm located in Washington, DC. He led M&A activities for publicly and privately held companies in the middle market, several of which have annual revenues in excess of $1 Billion. Rick’s clients were involved in a wide array of transactions; from acquisitions and divestitures to minority interests and strategic partnerships.
In addition to his experience with clients, Rick has lectured to hundreds of senior executives on M&A best practices and has been an adjunct faculty member for The George Washington University School of Business and Public Management. His M&A teachings focused on coaching companies and senior executives in how to build an acquisition team, create a winning strategy, identify and engage not-for-sale companies, streamline company valuation, perform value added due diligence and techniques for financial modeling. Rick has also served as a U.S. representative to South African companies in the capacity of advisor and consultant on business linkages, partnering and financing for small and medium businesses.
He holds an MBA in International Business and Finance from The George Washington University. He earned a BS in Engineering from Michigan State University. After completing an undergraduate program in engineering, Rick spent several years working as a manufacturing engineer and supervisor for General Motors. In this role he was responsible for the quality and productivity of manufacturing teams. In addition to being recognized as an outstanding team leader and team builder, Rick implemented a number of process improvements which enhanced product quality and efficiency at numerous GM production facilities.
