Heidi Smith is a Principal at ghSMART and co-leader of the CEO succession practice. She partners with Fortune 500 Boards and CEOs as well as leading private equity investors on their most challenging talent and organizational issues, including succession planning, management assessment, team effectiveness, organizational change initiatives, and leadership coaching.

Prior to ghSMART, Heidi spent several years at Bain & Company in the Boston and New York offices, where she worked across several industries to advise corporate clients on turnaround work, full potential analysis, organizational effectiveness, operational improvement, and strategic blueprints. Heidi also spent several years leading teams and advising clients in Bain’s Private Equity Group, providing rigorous diligence and post-merger integration support for top private equity firms. Heidi was active in Bain’s training efforts and ran a global training program for experienced consultants. Heidi also spent 2 years working at Talbots as the VP of Strategy with the CEO and leadership team on key organizational, operational, and strategic issues.

Heidi graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University with a degree in Economics. She earned her MBA from Harvard Business School, where her elective coursework focused on business strategy and organizational strategy.