This interview series brings the hard-earned lessons of entrepreneurial leaders to those who crave guidance on their own journey. By sharing their stories, I hope to equip the next generation of bold builders. Please repost, comment, or share what insights resonate with you.
Recently, I had the opportunity to speak with the former CEO of Tandem HR, Tara Conger. Acquired by Vensure Employer Solutions in August of 2024, Tandem HR is a professional employer organization (PEO) that provides high-touch HR services to hundreds of thousands of worksite employees nationwide. Please read the following article to understand how Tara thinks about leading and scaling successful organizations.
Leading a private equity-backed business isn’t just about getting to a liquidity event. It’s about building a company that thrives under pressure, scales with discipline, and creates lasting value for employees, customers, and investors. In Tara’s time as CEO of Tandem HR, she learned that the playbook combines data, people, culture, and courage, all moving at speed.
Importance of Data
You can never have enough data if you use it the right way. It just has to be organized and actionable. Clean, actionable data makes decision-making faster and sharper in diligence, operations, and Board meetings. In PE-backed businesses, speed and clarity are competitive advantages.
Successful Integrations
Bringing companies together is about far more than cutting costs. The best leaders make tough calls early, align people early, and communicate relentlessly.
- People first. The very first step is making sure the right people are in the right roles. When change happens, clarity and speed matter more than anything.
- Systems. Know the overlaps, cut duplication, and move decisively into the right stack so teams can work seamlessly.
- Change management. Communicate the “why”, get buy-in, and answer ‘what’s in it for me?’ for every employee.
- Speed. Momentum builds confidence. We fully integrated every department within six weeks, and that urgency kept people aligned.
Build the Room, Don’t Be the Room
A CEO’s job isn’t to be the smartest person in the room – it’s to build the room.
“Hire for coachability and bias to action. Hold people accountable with 30/60/90 plans and weekly scorecards. And when the role outgrows the person: Coach them up or upgrade the talent. Being kind and clear about expectations beats being nice.”
Trust Fuels Culture
Culture drives performance. In high-change environments, trust is the glue.
- Consistent forums: “Bi-weekly 30-minute town halls were non-negotiable. Everyone heard the same message – where we’re going, where we’re winning, and where we’re losing.”
- Human connection: Sharing weekend highlights at the beginning of executive calls, skip-level meetings, and frequent 1:1s.
- Ownership and reachability. “If something happened at 9:00 PM, I could call anyone and they’d drop what they were doing. Everyone felt that we had each other’s backs.”
- Outcomes: “Our employee engagement was around 90% with a culture that felt fun and people bought in.”
Price with Courage
Pricing drives unit economics. If your value proposition is strong, the market will follow. Don’t chase perfection: “You don’t need every data point. If you’re confident enough, adjust your pricing strategy sooner.”
“We tiptoed on pricing to avoid churn.” When they finally moved, with a tight value story and proof, “retention held and unit economics increased immensely.” If value is provable, price with courage.
Advice for Rising Leaders
The best leaders turn mistakes into learning systems. Utilize scorecards, measurable outcomes, and accountability to transform missteps into long-term strength.
- Seek P&L responsibility early in your career. Nothing builds judgment faster.
- Choose great managers over shiny titles.
- Learn pricing deeply. It underpins every business model.
- Live by NPS. Understand your customer satisfaction and continue to drive it higher.
A Question Worth Asking Yourself Weekly
“What are we avoiding that, if solved, would change our trajectory?”
Closing Thoughts
The best outcomes don’t come from financial engineering alone. They come from building alignment, cultivating trust, and providing clarity with urgency. For young professionals and aspiring CEOs, the lesson is clear: Financial acumen matters, but leadership, accountability, and communication will define your impact.