Wayne Marhelski

About Wayne Marhelski

I am a private equity operating executive focused on building disciplined, scalable operating systems that support sustainable growth. Across manufacturing, defense, and industrial businesses, my work centers on aligning execution capability with strategy so that revenue growth translates into durable EBITDA expansion and strong cash generation.While I am often engaged during periods of underperformance or transition, my role is not simply cost reduction or short-term stabilization. The objective is to restore operational discipline, flexibility, and accountability so the business can grow with confidence. That work requires balancing rigor with adaptability: strengthening processes, teams, and decision-making while preserving the capacity to respond to customers and markets.The result is organizations positioned to scale: reliable delivery performance, improved capital efficiency, and operating models that support product innovation and market expansion. In leadership roles as COO, General Manager, and Division President, these efforts have led to record shipment months, sustained margin improvement, and businesses moving from reactive execution to repeatable, growth-ready performance.Operating Focus• Scaling operational capability to support growth without margin erosion• Translating revenue growth into sustainable EBITDA and cash flow• Building operating discipline that enables flexibility, not rigidity• Strengthening leadership teams, decision cadence, and accountability• Aligning operations, capital allocation, and strategy in PE environmentsIn private equity environments, value creation comes from aligning operating discipline with growth ambition. My focus is on strengthening execution capability, improving operating leverage, and ensuring that revenue growth translates into durable EBITDA and cash flow. This work emphasizes building teams, systems, and decision frameworks that allow businesses to scale without breaking. Core Strengths & Skills:• Operational Value Creation• Scaling Operations• Private Equity Portfolio Leadership• EBITDA Expansion & Cash Flow Management• Lean Manufacturing Systems• Multi-Site & International Operations

Experience

1. Chief Operating Officer

   Ajax Defense

   Sep 2025 — Present · Louisville, KY, US

   Chief Operating Officer for Ajax Defense. A Kentucky-based provider of advanced defense solutions, and delivering mission-critical capabilities to the U.S. defense industry.

Education

• University of Liverpool

  MBA, Accounting and Finance

  2007 — 2009

• The Wharton School

  Certificate, Business Analytics: From Data to Insight

• The Ohio State University Fisher College of Business

  Certification, Certified Lean Manager

  2004 — 2004

Skills

• Business Development
• Restructuring
• Business Modeling
• Due Diligence
• Kaizen Facilitation
• Manufacturing
• Supply Chain
• Six Sigma
• Turnarounds
• Continuous Improvement
• Process Engineering
• Corporate Development
• Lean Manufacturing
• Venture Capital
• Process Modeling
• Manufacturing Operations
• P&L Management
• Kaizen
• Management Consulting
• Business Strategy
• Business Process Improvement
• Cross-Functional Team Leadership
• Sales Management
• Strategy
• Product Development
• Supply Chain Management
• Mergers & Acquisitions
• Design for Manufacturing
• Business Turnaround
• Strategic Sourcing
• Engineering
• Business Valuation
• Finance
• Management
• Purchasing
• Value Creation
• Process Improvement
• Private Equity
• Corporate Finance
• Strategic Partnerships