COO COMPENSATION IN PE-BACKED RESIDENTIAL SERVICES FIRMS

We analysed compensation data from 45 COOs operating within Private Equity-backed Residential Services businesses across North America.
The data is segmented by revenue size to show how COO compensation, incentive structures, and equity participation evolve as residential platforms scale and operational complexity increases.

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RESPONDENT BREAKDOWN

• 36% from firms backed by PE funds under $500M AUM

• 34% from firms with $50M–$150M revenue

• 30% from firms with over $150M revenue

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BASE SALARY

Firms < $50M Revenue

• Lowest: $150,000

• Median: $225,000

• Highest: $275,000

Firms $50M–$150M Revenue

• Lowest: $225,000

• Median: $275,000

• Highest: $315,000

Firms > $150M Revenue

• Lowest: $270,000

• Median: $300,000

• Highest: $400,000+

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BONUS STRUCTURE

• 74% of COOs at firms < $50M receive a bonus of 50% or less

• 83% of COOs at firms $50M–$150M receive a bonus of 50% or less

• 79% of COOs at firms > $150M receive a bonus of 50% or less

Key insight: Bonus structures remain conservative across residential services, reflecting PE’s focus on predictable execution, service quality, and margin discipline rather than aggressive short-term cash incentives.

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EQUITY & PROFIT PARTICIPATION

• 41% of COOs at firms < $50M receive carry or profit/partner share

• 58% of COOs at firms $50M–$150M receive carry or profit/partner share

• 71% of COOs at firms > $150M receive carry or profit/partner share

Equity participation increases meaningfully with scale, aligning COOs with multi-branch execution, operating leverage, margin expansion, and integration outcomes.

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KEY TAKEAWAYS

• COO base salaries scale steadily with revenue, rising from a $225K median in sub-$50M businesses to $300K in platforms exceeding $150M.

• Bonus targets are tightly capped, with the majority of COOs across all revenue tiers receiving ≤50% bonus opportunities.

• Equity becomes a more meaningful component of total compensation as platforms scale, reflecting the COO’s growing role in enterprise value creation.

• Pay dispersion widens at scale, driven by differences in geographic footprint, branch count, and operational scope.

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Bottom Line

COO compensation in PE-backed Residential Services firms is execution-led, equity-aligned, and highly disciplined.
As residential platforms grow, upside shifts away from variable cash incentives and toward ownership participation tied to operational performance and exit outcomes.

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Looking to benchmark COO compensation or hire a proven Residential Services operating leader for your portfolio company?
Connect with kaj.coffey@raw-selection.com

Raw Selection | De-Risking Executive Search for Private Equity firms across Europe & North America

All insights in this salary report are derived from Raw Selection’s proprietary data.