Cynthia Romano
Global Director, Restructuring and Dispute Resolution Practice
New York, NY
Cynthia Romano is a Global Director of CohnReznick Advisory's Restructuring and Dispute Resolution Practice. She has more than 25 years of experience in performance improvement, turnaround management, transaction support, and investment analysis. Her industry experience includes:
- healthcare
- manufacturing
- technology
- energy/oil & gas
- distribution
- restaurants
- professional services
- not-for-profit
Cynthia guides companies from where they are to where they want to be - whether in need of a tune up or in significant distress. Partnering with CxO level management, her goal is to help companies transform their bottom line to maximize value for owners, investors and other stakeholders. Cynthia’s areas of expertise include liquidity management, profit improvement through operational restructuring, organizational and process redesign, capital sourcing, and business and creditor workout/management.
- Workout advisor to a $300M skilled nursing operator with significant liquidity challenges.
- Workout advisor to a $75M multi-specialty medical practice rollup.
- GM of ambulance company with 911 contracts. Stabilized cash and operations, sold business (start to finish) in 6 weeks.
- CFO of $75M oil distributor. Family business returned to profitability after 3 loss years via operational turnaround, successfully recapitalized, then sold for 50% higher than initial estimate.
- COO of $30M paper manufacturer. After 14 loss months, achieved profitability within 4 months.
- CRO of $40M construction engineering firm. Company returned to profitability and successfully refinanced.
- Acting GM of aerospace manufacturer in Chapter 11 with sole source defense-related contracts. Successfully operated company with limited infrastructure to complete manufacturing/sale of inventory, complete contracts, and sell business.
- Workout advisor to $300M multinational brokerage. Secured lender paid down 79% in 2 months; management buyout and refi paid remaining in debt in full.
- Liquidating agent for retailer under Chapter 7 Trustee control. Gross recovery exceeded appraiser’s valuation by 9x.
- Advisory to 170M family business. Improved financial controls, redesigned organizational structure around new management team, and spearheaded next generation assessment.
Before joining CohnReznick, Cynthia managed various restructuring practices and clients including as Partner at CR3 Partners, CEO of Chrysalis Management, Managing Director at CRG Partners, and Manager in Bain’s Corporate Renewal Group. She also founded and served as CEO of a technology company and was a Financial Analyst for an angel investor group in charge of the group’s due diligence.
EDUCATION
M.B.A., International Management, MIT Sloan School of Management,
B.A. with Honors, Educational History and Policy, Brown University
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
Turnaround Management Association, Board Member (Former, Northeast), Committee Member (NYC) and Member
American Bankruptcy Institute, Advisory Board Member (Northeast)
Association for Corporate Growth
Women Helping Other Women
Financial Women’s Association
International Women’s Insolvency and Restructuring Confederation
Awards and Recognition
Smart CEO Brava Award Honoring Top Female CEOs, Winner
Turnaround Management Association (TMA) Northeast Chapter’s Small Company Turnaround of the Year, Co-Winner
Harvard Business School Turnaround Conference, Panelist
MIT PE Symposium, Panelist
ABI National and Regional Conference, Panelist
Nassau County and Boston Bar Association, Panelist and Trainer
Debtwire Podcast - Healthcare Restructuring, Guest Speaker
Exit Planning Exchange (XPX) - Performance Improvement, Guest Speaker
Babson College, Suffolk University, and MIT Sloan MBA programs, Guest Lecturer
“The Three C’s of a Turnaround: Cash, Communication, and Control” ABF Journal, Co-Author
“Key Issues in Operational Turnarounds” (with Gerald Sherman), TMA Northeast Journal, Author