Our Team

During his 25 years as a corporate executive, investment banker and investor, Jim Gruskin has led or advised companies in the tech-enabled learning, media, communications, marketing services, data services, energy, food and beverage and consumer products sectors.  Jim has led over 60 strategic and capital market transactions as both a principal and an advisor with total value in excess of $70 billion.

In addition to leading Cobb Bay Partners' advisory business, Jim has worked with universities as well as corporate partners to enhance data driven strategic decision making through the use of AI and advanced data analytics.

Most recently Jim served as General Manager of Global Knowledge within Skillsoft Corporation.  He directed a 250 person organization operating in 12 countries across North America, Europe and the Middle East.  He established a dedicated team and stood up key functions following the acquisition by Skillsoft and helped initiate a collaboration with Microsoft to launch a comprehensive generative AI skilling program.  As Skillsoft's Senior Vice President of Strategy and Corporate Development, Jim executed two transformative transactions, the acquisition of Codecademy and the carve out of SumTotal.  At Global Knowledge pre-acquisition, Jim served in several roles including head of Strategy and Corporate Development, Chief Financial Officer and Chief of Staff.

Prior to forming Cobb Bay Partners, Jim served in senior executive positions at local marketing solutions provider Dex One Corporation (formerly R.H. Donnelley), including Vice President - Strategic Finance, Head of Corporate Development and Treasurer.  While at Dex One, Jim guided the company’s activities related to mergers and acquisitions; corporate development; capital structure; investor relations; cash management; risk management and benefits asset management.  Jim helped execute the company’s acquisitions of Dex Media; AT&T’s directory business in Illinois; LocalLaunch and Business.com as well as an investment in Quigo.  Jim’s activities were instrumental to the evolution of Dex’s strategy and the company’s transformation from a print advertising centric business to one with a diverse portfolio of marketing services for local businesses.  Jim also served on the core team that led R.H. Donnelley’s balance sheet restructuring.

Prior to joining Dex One, Jim served as Vice President of Business Development and Corporate Controller at Journal Register Company, a regional newspaper publisher. 

Previously, Jim spent seven years in investment banking at Morgan Stanley with a focus on mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance for broadcasters, publishers and diversified entertainment companies.  Prior to joining Morgan Stanley, he was a member of the media and communications investment banking group at Lehman Brothers.

Jim began his career at Prudential Insurance Company, where he focused primarily on debt and private equity investments at Prudential Capital.  At Prudential Capital, Jim invested in natural resources, manufacturing and consumer products companies.

Jim earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and an MBA from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.

George Bednarz is an accomplished senior executive with over 35 years experience in technology-enabled information and marketing businesses.  He has a strong track record of building high-performance teams and organizations that are tightly aligned and focused on executing upon common missions, strategies and game plans to achieve and surpass organizational goals.   George possesses a unique set of executive skills from his experience managing a wide-array of business functions and units and also from leading large-scale strategic initiatives including business re-engineering and merger-driven integrations.

Prior to joining Cobb Bay Partners, George was a senior executive at local marketing solutions provider Dex One Corporation (formerly R.H. Donnelley), most recently as Executive Vice President of Enterprise Sales and Operations where he drew upon his experience in strategic planning and digital operations to lead the company’s transformation from a yellow pages advertising business to a provider of a comprehensive suite of print and interactive marketing solutions.  During his tenure with R.H. Donnelley/Dex One, George also led the publishing, IT, strategic planning, interactive customer service and communications functions and business units.  George also was the co-lead and lead for the successful integrations of the RHD acquisitions of Sprint Publishing & Advertising and Dex Media, respectively.

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Prior to joining R.H. Donnelley, Bednarz worked at The Dun & Bradstreet Corporation, where he held executive positions of increasing responsibility in telephone call center operations, marketing database management, customer service, information technology and strategic planning.  He holds an MBA from Duke University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Vanderbilt University.

Tim King is a seasoned executive with over 25 years of leadership experience in strategy, sales operations and financial planning and analysis.  Throughout his career, Tim has focused on driving results while building strong cross-functional relationships.  He leverages a comprehensive set of skills to effectively work across all functions and levels within an organization.  His ability to align financial, technical, sales and operational teams has led to an outstanding track record as a transformation leader, growth creator and integration/optimization architect.  Tim balances a capacity for challenging conventional thinking with an understanding of what is practical – both critical attributes for companies undergoing transformation or any organization that seeks to innovate without getting stuck.

Prior to joining Cobb Bay Partners, Tim served as a senior executive at local marketing solutions provider Dex One Corporation (formerly R.H. Donnelley), most recently as Vice President - Sales Operations and Strategy.  In this role, Tim was responsible for the development and implementation of sales and sales operations strategy as well as field operations processes.  He led numerous transformation and optimization initiatives, including; re-engineering the sales coverage model to maximize monetization of an evolving product offering through 1,500 dedicated field and inside sales consultants and over 200 agency relationships; managing the start-up of a 400 person sales and service call center; developing and installing lean metric-driven "Management Operating Systems"; restructuring a 300+ person pre and post sales support and fulfillment organization in a rapidly transforming environment; reducing by one third the cost to support a $1.7 billion revenue company with 400,000 customers; designing and administering over $200 million in annual sales compensation programs; developing comprehensive sales and operating metrics and implementing leading-edge business intelligence, CRM and sales compensation tools and systems to deliver improved visibility and results.  Prior to leading the company’s consolidated sales operations functions, Tim served as a key member of the strategy and transaction team that planned and executed several mergers and acquisitions and directed broad post-acquisition process and organization design and integration efforts.

Before joining Dex One, Tim served as Executive Director, Strategic Planning & Analysis at DonTech, a partnership between Dun & Bradstreet’s Reuben H. Donnelley operating division and Ameritech, and was responsible for sales operations functions as well as the development and management of the company’s strategic plan.  Tim began his career at Dun & Bradstreet, where he helped finance organizations establish and strengthen operational finance functions through the implementation of management information systems and managed effective partnerships with sales, marketing and technology leaders to implement effective metric-driven operating plans.

Tim’s broad vision and innovative perspectives have enabled him to successfully bring teams together to accomplish common goals in complex situations.  He has experience working across both complex, highly-matrixed organizations and as part of lean and versatile teams in a rapidly transforming environment.

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Tim earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management and an MBA from the University of West Florida's College of Business.

During his 20 year career as a consultant, entrepreneur, and corporate development professional, Tad Schwendler has established himself as a proven leader of cross-functional efforts to identify, evaluate, and execute both organic and inorganic growth initiatives.  With key competencies in corporate finance, business strategy, M&A, and entrepreneurship, he combines financial and business acumen with excellent project management skills.  Tad has significant industry experience focused on Internet, media, information technology, and technology enabled services.  Other sector experience includes defense, healthcare, manufacturing, and consumer products.

Prior to joining Cobb Bay Partners, Tad served as an executive at local marketing solutions provider Dex One Corporation (formerly R.H. Donnelley), most recently as Director of Corporate Development.  Tad’s responsibilities entailed providing strategic and transactional leadership to accelerate the company’s digital growth and help transform it to a multi-platform local marketing solutions provider.

While at Dex One, Tad coordinated the company’s complex 2013 merger of equals transaction with SuperMedia to drive $175 million of synergies, accelerate tax asset monetization, scale the combined digital business to nearly $500 million, and restructure $3.4 billion of secured debt.  He also evaluated and executed various acquisition, investment and partnership initiatives.  Tad led and contributed to strategic projects that improved the company’s unit economics, enhanced its digital capabilities, expanded its product suite, reconfigured its channels and increased annual digital growth to more than 30%.  Tad also served on the core team that led R.H. Donnelley’s balance sheet restructuring in 2009. 

Prior to Dex One, Tad led the M&A program and provided strategic finance expertise for CACI International, a NYSE traded technology and professional services contractor serving defense, intelligence, and civilian agencies within the U.S. federal government.  While at CACI, Tad was instrumental in five acquisitions valued at nearly $400 million, one divestiture of a business with $20 million of annual revenue, and a $300 million convertible debt financing.

Tad developed client service expertise with PricewaterhouseCoopers and Ernst & Young, where he advised multinational clients on topics including intercompany pricing, intellectual property licensing, business and asset valuation, and global structuring and business strategy.  While at Ernst & Young, Tad was selected for an overseas assignment and lived abroad in Melbourne, Australia.

Additionally, Tad has co-founded a successful local retail business in the Durham, NC warehouse district and has grown a start-up digital marketing agency into a profitable, $1.5 million revenue business.

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Tad earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Tulane University, which he attended on a full academic scholarship, and an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.