Introducing Nummo's first Advisor: Michael Newcomer, CEO of Riviera Partners
We here at Nummo are thrilled to welcome Michael Newcomer as our first Advisor.
Michael Newcomer is the CEO of Riviera Partners, a firm that has been placing technical executive leadership since 2001, focused entirely on product management, software engineering, IT, AI/ML/data, security, and design. They work as the go-to talent partner for private equity investors, venture capitalists, public companies, and high-growth companies globally, and have grown to over 200+ team members with placements across more than 25 countries.
Why we asked him
A lot of people can tell us how a search runs. Far fewer can tell us how a CEO decides what to adopt, what changes when a process moves at the firm level rather than the desk level, and what, and whether a workflow is worth the time once you weigh the cost of headcount and capacity against it.
Michael is in the seat, running a business with real scale, an ownership structure, and a board. When he looks at a problem he sees capacity and risk before he sees convenience. Having that lens in the room while we build gives us a direct read on what to prioritize and what to leave alone.
Riviera also made a bet on building its own technology at a point when most of the industry was not investing in product at all. Its co-founders started that work, and Michael has carried it forward since joining as CEO. Deciding what is worth continuing to invest in, and getting a room full of recruiters to actually use it, is where technology in this industry usually stalls. With Michael as advisor, Nummo is in the room where the future of recruiting is being shaped.
Why he said yes
The first time I spoke with him, Michael described the problem before I got the chance to. His view is that recruiters should really be doing just two main things: meeting candidates and engaging with clients. All the coordination work in between is work that technology promised to have taken off their plate. He has also seen enough vertical AI products that look like savings in a deck but do not survive a week of real use. After speaking with our team and seeing where Nummo is headed, he is excited about what is to come.
“What stood out about Nummo is that they went and mapped how the work actually happens inside firms, and it shows in the product. I want recruiters on candidates and clients, with everything around that handled, and that is the state Nummo is building toward. This is a team I trust to get it right, and I am glad to be behind them.”
What's next?
Michael, as our trusted advisor, will help us think through scaling, product development, and accelerating our growth. He will pressure test the roadmap against how a firm actually operates, help us understand how technology decisions get made and unmade inside a business of size, and keep us honest about where we are creating real time savings rather than the appearance of them.
We are lucky to have him, and we are glad the standard he holds us to is a high one.