Fractional CPO for High-Stakes Change | M&A · IPO · Growth

I lead the People side of high-stakes change — M&A, IPO, restructures, founder-led growth, and AI-era transformation — and build the operating discipline most organizations skip.

Strategy, systems, and execution. I turn complexity into clarity and people strategy into business momentum — for CEOs, Founders, CFOs, COOs, and Boards across Canada, the US, and Europe.

25+ Years leading high-stakes People work

50–12,000+ Employee scale, startup to enterprise

8+ Industries — tech, healthcare, mining, logistics, SaaS & more

3 Geographies — engagements across Canada, the US, and Europe

Two distinct ways I'm brought in.

Most engagements start at one of these doors. The work is rarely confined to either — but the entry point shapes how I show up on Day 1.

For CEOs & Founders

Scaling through complexity. Operationalizing strategy.

Building leadership alignment, vision, values, and the operating system that lets the team execute. Translating strategy into the structure, decisions, and rhythm that move the business forward.

Leadership alignment Org design Vision & values Operating cadence Scale-up

How I help CEOs and Founders →

For CFOs, COOs & Boards

Managing the high-stakes events.

M&A integration, IPO readiness, restructures, governance, cross-border systems, and leadership transitions. Owning the People workstream end-to-end so value isn't quietly eroded post-close.

M&A integration IPO readiness Restructures HR systems Governance

How I help CFOs and Boards →

The same operating method, every engagement.

The method is consistent. The timeline isn't — it adapts to scope. An interim CPO covering a search runs differently than an M&A integration or a systems transformation. The phases stay the same.

Get oriented fast

First few weeks

Listening tour. Interviews with executives, managers, and the front line. Document review. Pulse on the real issues vs. the stated ones. Within the first stretch of an engagement, you have a clear read on what's actually going on — not what people think is going on.

Frame the problem and the path

Early phase

I bring the executive team a structured view: here's the real problem, here are the options, here's what I'd do, here's the tradeoff. Decision-grade, not theater. No 90-page decks.

Run the work — not the plan

Main engagement

Weekly cadence. Clear owners. Decision rights. Friction surfaced early. I work shoulder-to-shoulder with the team, not from the sidelines. Status updates that say something useful.

Build the operating discipline

Built throughout

Governance, communication rhythm, accountability — the things that make change stick after I'm gone. Most fractional engagements end and the change unwinds. This is the part that prevents that.

Hand off cleanly

Final phase

Successor profile. Structured transition. Documented playbooks. The function is stronger than I found it. If you're hiring a permanent CPO/CHRO, I help recruit and onboard them.

Real outcomes from high-stakes work.

Two examples below. Full library — public co IPOs, post-acquisition integrations, HR systems resets, leadership transitions — on the Client Impact page.

IPO CPO Public company

Numinus Wellness · Public Company · Mental Healthcare

Building the People foundation through TSX-V listing and uplisting.

Joined as Advisor, then as Chief People Officer. Built and scaled the full People function from the ground up — talent, total rewards, performance, learning, org design — while leading the People workstream through the TSX-V listing, the subsequent uplisting, and a clinic acquisition integration.

TSX-V listing and subsequent uplisting completed
Full People function built and scaled
Clinic acquisition integrated across people, systems, and culture
Leadership team aligned through one of the company's most complex periods

"Kraig was instrumental in building our company from the ground up and taking us public. He united geographically and culturally diverse teams into one family." — Payton Nyquvest, Co-Founder & CEO

M&A Integration Unionized

Major North American Logistics Acquisition

Orchestrating HR integration across a 9,000-person workforce.

Led the HR integration workstream end-to-end following an acquisition that merged two enterprises into a single 9,000-person workforce. Unionized and non-unionized environments, multiple ERP/HCM systems, tight regulatory and operational continuity requirements.

Held a 9,000-person integration together through sustained disruption — two companies, two cultures, an enormous volume of change and communication on a compressed timeline
Systems consolidated across SAP, Kronos, multiple UKG implementations, and Dayforce
Change adoption sustained through 12+ months of overlapping change
Leadership team retained through the most volatile phase of integration

"Kraig was a critical partner throughout our integration project portfolio. He brought structure and clarity to highly complex work, communicated clearly under pressure, and consistently helped us make sound decisions when the stakes were high. His ability to translate between HR, technology, payroll, and operations made him a trusted and steady partner throughout." — Alvin M., Director, Total Rewards and HR Technology

I lead the People side of high-stakes change — M&A, IPO, restructures, founder-led growth, and AI-era transformation — and build the operating discipline most organizations skip.

Two distinct ways I'm brought in.

Scaling through complexity. Operationalizing strategy.

Managing the high-stakes events.

Readiness, not roadmaps.

The same operating method, every engagement.

Real outcomes from high-stakes work.

Building the People foundation through TSX-V listing and uplisting.

Orchestrating HR integration across a 9,000-person workforce.

Most engagements start with a 30-minute call.