Mr. Schnitzer is a seasoned financial and operational executive with extensive experience leading global organizations through growth, integration, restructuring, and strategic transformation. His background includes more than three decades serving as Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operations Officer, and Board Member across public, private, and private‑equity–backed companies.
Most recently, Mr. Schnitzer served as Chief Financial Officer for a global manufacturer of hair care products with revenues exceeding $230 million, where he provided strategic and financial leadership to the Chairman of the Board and oversaw Finance / Accounting, FP&A, Credit & Collections, Legal, Commercial Insurance, and led the implementation of an ERP upgrade and a new E-commerce platform. During his tenure, he negotiated contracts and royalty agreements generating meaningful incremental profit, reduced expenses, and implemented operational and inventory initiatives that significantly improved profitability and customer service.
From 2012 - 2020, Mr. Schnitzer served as EVP, Chief Operations Officer & Board Member of Lapolla Industries, Inc. (“Lapolla”), where he led a turnaround of a distressed public company into a high‑growth, profitable enterprise with 100% revenue growth and a six‑fold increase in shareholder value. Lapolla was subsequently sold to a private equity firm, taken private and merged with a portfolio company, Icynene. Two years later the company was sold to Huntsman Corporation (“Huntsman”), and merged with a subsidiary of Huntsman, forming Huntsman Building Solutions, a $500 million global manufacture of spray foam insulation and roof coatings. Mr. Schnitzer was instrumental in the integration of the two merged companies, managed a team of 32, and oversaw $500 million in revenue. He drove strategic initiatives that generated $22 million in planned synergies, reduced inventory by $10 million, and transitioned the organization to a unified reporting model.
From 2003 – 2012 Mr. Schnitzer was the Chief Financial Officer of Energy Maintenance Services, a start-up company that successfully purchased their first company in 2004 and over the next five years purchased 25 companies, resulting in total revenue of $250 million and 1,200 employees. Mr. Schnitzer was instrumental in closing various financings including, mezzanine financing, institutional investors, a private bond offering and securing private equity financing. Mr. Schnitzer was heavily involved in negotiating all Purchase & Sale Agreements, financing agreements, due diligence processes and finalizing the associated legal documents.
Mr. Schnitzer began his career with Price Waterhouse as an auditor and has since held CFO and COO roles across several industries, including energy services, manufacturing, professional associations and investment banking firms. He is a Certified Public Accountant and has an Executive MBA from Loyola College and a BS in Accounting from Fairleigh Dickinson University. He has also completed executive programs at MIT in Negotiation and Managing Change in Complex Organizations.