WHEATON, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 13, 2026--
Adair & Company (“Adair”), a procurement and supply chain value creation firm serving middle-market private equity firms and their portfolio companies, today announced the appointment of Kim Killian as Chief Revenue Officer, effective January 1, 2026.
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Kim’s appointment reflects Adair’s continued investment in helping clients realize faster EBITDA improvement, stronger cash flow, and more repeatable value creation without the friction and overhead of traditional consulting models. As CRO, Kim will focus on expanding Adair’s national reach while preserving the firm’s defining advantage: senior-only execution that quickly creates real value, builds internal capability to sustain it, and then gets out of the way.
Kim brings more than 25 years of operating and revenue leadership experience, with a decade of focus on private equity-backed middle market organizations. A three-time C-suite executive, she has built and scaled commercial engines across the full investment lifecycle, from diligence and early post-close value creation through exit readiness and acquisition.
Most recently, Kim Killian served as Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Marketing Officer at Messina Group, where she helped transform the firm into a trusted partner to PE sponsors and portfolio company leaders. During her tenure, she grew the consulting business by 10x, secured the firm’s first PE clients, and built a modern revenue operations foundation to support scalable growth.
Earlier in her career, Kim co-founded and led the commercial organization of a healthcare technology company from startup through acquisition by Optum (UnitedHealth Group), gaining firsthand experience navigating the full M&A lifecycle and competing successfully against much larger incumbents.
In her new role, Kim will oversee all revenue-generating functions, including sales, marketing, strategic partnerships, and business development. She will work closely with operating partners to deepen relationships, improve market coverage, and ensure Adair’s offerings remain tightly aligned with the outcomes sponsors and management teams care most about: speed, materiality, and durability of results.
“Kim Killian understands how PE sponsors think—and how portfolio companies actually operate,” said Noah Adair, Founder and CEO of Adair & Company. “She has built scalable growth engines before, but more importantly, she knows how to help clients win during the moments that matter most. As we grow, Kim will help us extend that impact to more sponsors and portfolio companies.”
“Adair has earned its reputation by doing the work differently,” said Kim. “Clients don’t need more slide decks. They need experienced operators who move fast, deliver real financial results, and leave their organizations stronger. My focus is on scaling that model thoughtfully—so more sponsors and portfolio companies can experience the benefits.”
About Adair & Company
Adair & Company is a procurement and supply chain value creation firm serving middle-market companies and private equity portfolio companies. Founded by procurement and supply chain veteran Noah Adair, the firm deploys senior operators to deliver fast, margin expansion and working capital improvement through strategic sourcing, inventory optimization, and comprehensive PE support across the deal cycle. With a performance-based fee structure and a track record of delivering an average 6x ROI, Adair & Company partners with clients to create value, train teams for sustainability, and drive lasting operational improvement. For more information, visit www.Adaircompany.com.
Kim Killian has been appointed Chief Revenue Officer by Adair & Company effective January 1, 2026.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom won final approval from a key agency on Thursday, despite a federal judge recently ordering a halt to construction unless Congress allows what would be the biggest structural change to the American landmark in more than 70 years.
The 12-member National Capital Planning Commission, the agency tasked with approving construction on federal property in the Washington region, took the vote because U.S. District Judge Richard Leon’s ruling — which came two days earlier — affects construction activities but not the planning process, said the commission's Trump-appointed chair, Will Scharf.
A vote of 8-1, with two commissioners voting present and one absent, allowed the plan to move forward.
Despite the agency’s approval, the judge’s ruling and a legal fight over the ballroom could stall progress on a legacy project that Trump is racing to see completed before the end of his term in early 2029. It’s among a series of changes the Republican president is planning for the nation’s capital to leave his lasting imprint while he’s still in office.
Before the vote, Scharf, a top White House aide, noted that Leon's order has been stayed for two weeks as the administration seeks an appeal. He said, as he understood the decision, it “really does not impact our action here today.”
Reading from notes, Scharf also delivered an impassioned defense of the project that reviewed the full history of changes and additions to the White House that were criticized when they were made but have become beloved with the passage of time. He spoke about the addition of the north and south porticos and the balcony added by President Harry Truman.
Scharf suggested that Trump’s proposed ballroom will similarly come to be viewed as a wise addition — despite drawing contemporary opposition from some members of the public and government officials.
“I believe that in time this ballroom will be considered every bit as much of a national treasure as the other key components of the White House,” Scharf said.
Scharf also said the project has been viewed negatively because of opposition to Trump, instead of the merits, saying, “I feel that we’ve been unfairly slighted in the press and otherwise for the way we’ve gone about reviewing this particular project.”
The vote by the commission, which includes three members Trump gets to appoint, had initially been scheduled for March but was postponed to Thursday because so many people signed up to comment at the commission’s meeting last month. The comments were overwhelmingly in opposition to the ballroom.
The lone “no” vote was cast by Phil Mendelson, a Democrat who chairs the Council of the District of Columbia. Linda Argo and Arrington Dixon, the two commissioners appointed by Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, voted present.
Mendelson criticized the design of the ballroom addition and how fast it was approved.
“It’s just too large,” he said.
Criticism also came from Public Citizen, a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization. One of its attorneys, Jon Golinger, said the commission had discounted opposition from city officials and thousands of people who commented against the project, and ignored the judge's ruling. Several commissioners, including Scharf, had said they took the public feedback seriously.
“This approval is illegitimate and this vote is a joke," Golinger said.
Trump, in a statement after the vote, thanked the commissioners and said he was honored.
“When completed, it will be the Greatest and Most Beautiful Ballroom of its kind anywhere in the World, and a fabulous complement to our Beautiful and Storied White House!” the president said on social media.
Before voting, the commission considered design changes to the 90,000-square-foot (8,400-square-meter) ballroom addition that the president announced aboard Air Force One on Sunday, as he flew back to Washington from a weekend at his Florida home.
He removed a large staircase on the south side of the building and added an uncovered porch to the southwest side. Architects and other critics of the project had panned the staircase as too large and basically useless since there was no way to enter the ballroom at the top.
A White House official said the president had considered comments from the National Capital Planning Commission and another oversight entity, the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, which approved the project earlier this year, as well as members of the public.
The official, who was not authorized to publicly discuss the ballroom design and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said additional “refinements” had been made to the exterior.
The ballroom, now estimated to cost $400 million, has expanded in scope and price tag since Trump first announced the project last summer, citing a need for space other than a tent on the lawn to host important guests. Trump demolished the East Wing in October with little warning, and site preparation and underground work have been underway since then.
Two other Trump-appointed commissioners, Stuart Levenbach and James Blair, voted for the project.
Levenbach, who serves as vice chairman and is the federal government’s chief statistician, said the White House is currently “not suited” to accommodate large numbers of guests and the addition will improve the “utility” of the compound.
He said tunnels and other structures underground at the White House made it impossible to place many features of the ballroom there, too, as some have suggested might be possible. Levenbach said the addition is a “multipurpose facility,” noting that, in addition to a ballroom, it will also have offices for the first lady, kitchen space and a theater.
“This is not an expansion for its own sake,” Levenbach said.
Blair, a deputy to White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, said visitors and guests of the president deserve a “better experience."
Scharf and Blair also said Trump will get “very limited use” of the ballroom before his term ends.
Trump went ahead with the project before seeking input from the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts, which he reconstituted with allies and supporters.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a private nonprofit organization, sued after Trump demolished the East Wing last fall to build the ballroom addition — a space nearly twice as big as the mansion itself.
Trump says it will be paid for with donations from wealthy people and corporations, including him, though public dollars are paying for underground bunkers and security upgrades.
The trust sought a temporary halt to construction until Trump presented the project to both commissions and Congress for approval. Leon agreed but said that his order would take effect in two weeks and that construction related to security would be allowed.
President Donald Trump answers questions from reporters after signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Work continues on the construction of the ballroom at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
President Donald Trump holds a rendering of the proposed new East Wing of the White House as he speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One en route from West Palm Beach, Fla., to Joint Base Andrews, Md., Sunday, March 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Work continues on the construction of the ballroom at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
President Donald Trump holds a rendering of the proposed new East Wing of the White House as he speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One en route from West Palm Beach, Fla., to Joint Base Andrews, Md., Sunday, March 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
