Case Study: CEO Succession at a NASDAQ-Listed Semiconductor Company
Amtech Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASYS) needed to solve its chief executive succession. As a small cap public company with SEC reporting obligations and an active investor base, it had to do so without a gap in operational leadership and without signaling instability to the market. Amtech engaged Cowen Partners Executive Search to run a succession search built around a single requirement: place an executive who could own operational performance immediately and whom the board could credibly appoint as chief executive. That executive now holds the CEO seat.
Company Background
Amtech Systems is a publicly traded semiconductor equipment company headquartered in Tempe, Arizona. Through its Semiconductor Fabrication Solutions and Thermal Processing Systems divisions, the company provides process equipment, advanced packaging tools, and high-margin consumables serving power semiconductors, advanced packaging, and electronic assembly markets globally.
Operating at approximately $80 to $90M in revenue with 250 employees, Amtech serves customers across North America, Europe, and Asia, with growing exposure in the APAC region.
Positioned at the intersection of semiconductor innovation and accelerating demand driven by AI, advanced packaging, and power electronics, the company was entering a pivotal growth phase and needed the operational leadership to match that moment.
The Challenge
Amtech Systems (NASDAQ: ASYS) engaged Cowen Partners Executive Search as part of a planned chief executive succession. The board’s approach was to bring the successor in as Chief Operating Officer first, giving the incoming leader real operating ownership and a working relationship with stakeholders, the executive team, and the board before any title change. That structure raised the bar on the search considerably. The hire had to deliver near-term operational results in a public company where every quarter is disclosed, and satisfy the board that he was ready to lead the enterprise.
The role carried significant weight for the organization’s long-term leadership continuity and strategic direction, requiring a leader who could deliver immediate operational impact while also growing into increasing levels of responsibility over time.
The search carried several compounding complexities. The hire needed to deliver near-term operational results while also demonstrating the capacity to grow with the organization over time.
As a small-cap public company, Amtech had limited margin for error, and every leadership decision carried board and investor visibility. The semiconductor equipment market is highly specialized, with a narrow pool of executives who truly understand the product, customer, and operational dynamics at this level. Because Amtech is an SEC reporting company, the engagement also carried disclosure sensitivity throughout. Candidate confidentiality and the timing of any public communication had to be managed against the company’s obligations to the market.
The role also required relocation to Tempe, Arizona, which meaningfully compressed an already limited candidate universe.
Beyond the structural requirements, Amtech needed a hands-on operator with genuine P&L ownership, not a purely strategic or sales-led executive. The board and CEO were aligned on that distinction from the outset, and it shaped every aspect of how the search was structured.
Search Strategy and Execution
Cowen Partners partnered closely with the CEO and Board to define a success profile that balanced four dimensions: operational rigor and full P&L ownership, deep semiconductor equipment domain expertise, the presence and credibility to engage effectively with a board and investor base, and the leadership ceiling to grow with the organization over time.
We aligned early on the need for a business-unit-oriented operator with experience spanning product, operations, and commercial execution.
Precision Targeting Across a Specialized Market
Our search focused on semiconductor capital equipment and adjacent markets, specifically seeking executives with full P&L ownership in the $80M to $200M range, experience in both public and private equity-backed environments, background in advanced packaging, consumables, or lifecycle services, and a demonstrated ability to drive growth, margin expansion, and operational discipline simultaneously.
We reviewed more than 500 profiles, screened more than 130 candidates, and delivered a highly curated shortlist built around both the immediate role requirements and the organization’s longer-term leadership needs.
What Made the Difference
The most important alignment decision came early: the board and CEO agreed on what the COO role was actually for. Not a functional operator. Not a cost manager.
A commercially minded business-unit leader who could optimize the product portfolio, sharpen pricing strategy, drive margin improvement, and build the organizational capability to support Amtech’s next revenue inflection point, while also demonstrating the leadership range to grow significantly within the organization over time.
That clarity of purpose allowed us to screen with conviction and move quickly when the right candidate emerged.
The Outcome
Cowen Partners successfully placed a seasoned semiconductor equipment executive with a career defined by exactly the profile Amtech required.
- Full P&L ownership across semiconductor equipment and services businesses in the $80M to $160M range
- A track record of scaling revenue significantly through product portfolio optimization, pricing discipline, and annuity service model development
- Deep experience in advanced packaging technologies directly aligned with Amtech’s core markets
- Leadership spanning both PE-backed transformation and public-company environments, including a NASDAQ-listed organization
- Hands-on, low-ego operating style aligned with Amtech’s culture and board expectations
- Established relationships with Tier 1 semiconductor customers, including global foundries and memory manufacturers
The placed executive previously grew a global services business from $40M to approximately $160M through new capability development, annuity product expansion, and pricing discipline, and more recently played a central role in a transformation that produced significant revenue growth at a PE-backed advanced packaging equipment company.
Strategic Impact
This placement gives Amtech Systems the operational and commercial leadership its next chapter demands.
The succession itself now has a public answer. The executive Cowen Partners Executive Search placed as Chief Operating Officer took ownership of operations, built standing with customers and the executive team, and was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Amtech Systems, with a seat on the board. The previous CEO moved to Executive Chairman, which maintains his capital allocation experience and shareholder relationships for the company and its incoming chief executive. For the market, the transition read as continuity rather than disruption.
Final Thoughts
Searches with long-term leadership implications are among the most demanding engagements in executive search because they require simultaneous alignment on two different questions: who can perform in the role today and who can grow with the company tomorrow. Those are often different profiles, and finding the overlap requires clarity that most organizations struggle to articulate on their own.
Chief executive succession is the highest consequence decision a public company board makes, and it is the one most often deferred. The boards that get it right treat succession as a build rather than a scramble, which means identifying the successor early enough to give that person real operating responsibility before the title arrives.
That is the search Cowen Partners Executive Search ran for Amtech Systems. A narrow candidate universe in semiconductor capital equipment, a relocation requirement, a disclosure sensitive public company context, and a mandate that had to satisfy two leadership questions at once. Precision targeting and disciplined candidate engagement were the entire game.
The leader who arrived to run operations now runs the company, and the board made that appointment with a full operating track record in hand.
If your organization is competing for scarce talent in hyper-competitive markets and traditional recruiting approaches aren’t delivering results, partner with Cowen Partners Executive Search to secure the leadership your business needs.
About Cowen Partners Executive Search
Cowen Partners Executive Search is a premier executive search firm in all 50 states, dedicated to connecting organizations with top-tier talent that drives strategic objectives and fuels success.
Our executive recruiters specialize in C-Suite, board, and senior leadership placements, providing unparalleled access to the top 1% of leaders across diverse industries.
Our proven processes and guaranteed results have empowered hundreds of clients in sectors including manufacturing, technology, financial services, healthcare, and private equity to build winning teams. Partner with us to find world-class leaders who will accelerate your company’s growth and success.
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