Part time CFO or Interim CFO - Lawson A. Rankin, Jr.

Lawson Rankin is the president and co-founder of RANKIN McKENZIE LLC, North Carolina's largest and most trusted financial management firm. As an entrepreneurial financial executive with over 31 years of multi-industry experience, he offers seasoned entrepreneurial expertise, strategic financial leadership, and executive management talent to companies of all lifecycle stages throughout the Southeast.

A strategic chief financial officer specializing in promoting growth, Mr. Rankin is responsible for overall financial management of companies, financial reporting and transparency, multiple corporate functions including Controller, Treasury, investor relations, long-range planning and corporate and strategic development. In addition to performing CFO duties for companies in Raleigh and beyond, Mr. Rankin has extensive experience in venture capital financing, leveraged buy-outs, angel financings, mergers and acquisitions, development of strategic Business Plans, fast growth and cash-strapped situations, contract administration, and business development activities. Currently, Mr. Rankin serves on the Board of Directors for NC IDEA, Polyglot Inc., and Southlight Inc. He is also the part-time CFO for Major Steps Inc. and HexaTech Inc.

A native of North Carolina, Mr. Rankin attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he earned a Bachelor's degree in Business with a concentration in Accounting and Duke University's Fuqua School of Business where he earned a Master's in Business Administration. Additionally, Mr. Rankin is a member of American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the North Carolina Association of CPAs.

Professional Career Highlights:

• From 2004-2006, Mr. Rankin served as the Interim CEO for Lumberg, Inc., an ISO 9000 recognized global manufacturer of connectors. While at Lumberg, he helped the company return to profitability and achieved the highest revenue in Lumberg's history in the U.S.
• Early in 2002 Mr. Rankin started Rankin McKenzie along with Robert McKenzie and John Autrey. Since that time, Mr. Rankin has concentrated his efforts on promoting the growth of his entrepreneurial client companies.
• From 1997-1999, Mr. Rankin served as Interim or full-time CFO for Engineous Software, Trillium Industries, InvoiceLink Corporation, and Nine Rivers Technology Corporation, where he helped raise over $52 million in debt and early stage equity funding for these companies.
• From 1993-1996, Mr. Rankin served as CFO, Secretary, Treasurer, and Board of Directors member for Network Construction Services Inc. Using venture capital financing, Mr. Rankin helped the company with a successful management buyout of the telecommunications construction division of Sumitomo Fiber Optics Corporation. He also developed and managed all accounting, finance, MIS, and human resource functions as the company's sales grew from $23 million to over $66 million.
• Mr. Rankin served as an Accounting Manager for Northern Telecom's Digital Switching Division, where his roles include consolidating strategic business information from five subsidiaries and controlling all accounting for a $1.1 billion distribution center. As the lead financial member of an IT improvement team, he helped to completely revamp the distribution center's operational and financial reporting systems.