Dave Goldberg is a senior operating executive with over 30 years of experience leading geographically distributed, multi-unit service businesses in the education, hospitality, and franchise industries. Mr. Goldberg’s specialties include formulating strategy, growing stagnant brands, improving the customer experience, enhancing operations, and launching new concepts.
Mr. Goldberg serves on the Board of Directors of Audax portfolio companies Medi Weight Loss, a premier chain of franchise and company-owned medically supervised weight loss clinics and 42 North Dental, a leading dental service organization; Morgan Stanley Capital Partners portfolio company Emler Swim Schools; and TSG Consumer portfolio company Endeavor Schools, a leading provider of early childhood education.
Mr. Goldberg has led and participated on management teams that completed successful sales among private equity companies (Cadence Education), created public company organic growth (Choice Hotels) took a private company public (2U), and took a public company private (Sunrise Senior Living).
From 2014 through 2021, Mr. Goldberg served as President and CEO and a member of the Board of Directors at Cadence Education LLC, the 4th largest private provider of early childhood education in the U.S. In this role, Mr. Goldberg delivered a 7+x return to shareholders over a 5½ year period through the successful completion of two transactions – the first a sale of the company from Audax Private Equity to Morgan Stanley Capital Partners in September 2016 and the second a sale of the company from Morgan Stanley Capital Partners to Apax Partners in March 2020.
His notable accomplishments in this role included creating a strong customer-focused culture improving company Net Promoter Score from 47 to a world-class 74, delivering 220 straight weeks of YOY same-school revenue growth, enhancing EBITDA margins, and acquiring 152 schools in 46 transactions. Mr. Goldberg also successfully navigated the company through the pandemic, including closing and re-opening almost all schools and furloughing and returning over 6000 employees.
During this time, Mr. Goldberg also served on the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of the Early Care and Education Consortium, the leading industry advocacy organization, and was a key member of the small CEO group that restructured the industry advocacy group to be a leading voice for childcare in the U.S. and successfully lobbied for over $50 billion of pandemic relief funds and enhanced childcare funding.
Prior to Cadence Education, Mr. Goldberg held a series of executive positions with leading hospitality, education, and franchise brands, including as a senior executive of global hotel franchisor Choice Hotels International (NYSE: CHH), e-commerce leader 1-800-Flowers.com (NYSE: FLWS), as Senior Vice President, New Business for Sunrise Senior Living and as Senior Vice President, New Programs at 2U, a leading provider of online education (NASDAQ: TWOU).
Earlier in his career, Mr. Goldberg served as an executive consultant, including four years with Andersen Consulting (now Accenture), and served in various marketing positions for firms in Washington, D.C. and New York. Mr. Goldberg holds a BSBA from Washington University in St. Louis and earned an MBA from Georgetown University, where he was co-valedictorian.
Mr. Goldberg splits his time between North Potomac, MD and Scottsdale, AZ with his wife, and they have two grown children. His hobbies including running marathons, hiking and mountain biking.
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