Services
Services
Performance Improvement
Performance improvement needs to be sustainable to be meaningful. We have optimised processes, reduced costs and improved performance for major corporates, the portfolio companies of leading PE firms, and the world’s most sophisticated investors to deliver lasting bottom-line impact.
Drawing on the broad experience and toolkits of our independent consultants, we work with clients to design and deliver the best approach to their particular challenge – bringing creativity, insight, analytical rigour and pragmatism. Because our consultants have both line and consulting experience, they know what it takes to make change happen, and together we develop and deliver results that stick.
Related case studies
Supply chain improvement for a chemicals player
Supported a PE-owned multinational to identify significant cost savings in Warehousing and logistics operations, and to design the transformation.
Our expert team built on deep industry knowledge and detailed analysis to bottom out robust savings opportunities and design a complete transformation programme to deliver these efficiencies over 6-8 months.
Crisis management in an industrial supply chain
Supported this chemicals producer to rapidly resolve a major operations crisis in a key warehouse in Europe.
In a paralysed warehouse that had recently gone live with a third party logistics partner, we rapidly diagnosed and addressed issues across information feeds, order prioritisation, picking, shipping and distribution, leaving a smoothly functioning operation and a restored collaboration between our client and their logistics partner.
Sales optimisation for an office services player
Developed a detailed strategy to double gross margin in a key customer category for this provider of B2B document management solutions.
For the client’s commercial customers, based on contract and financial analysis as well as customer insight, we developed a pragmatic customer segmentation, and tailored value propositions. The strategy would double the gross margin generated by commercial customers, improving value per sale, volume of sales, salesforce productivity and cost per unit of sales.
Contact centre optimisation for a telco
With a major UK Telco, we reconfigured the customer service delivery model to realise £30m savings and enhance performance.
Over 12 months, our combined client and consultant teams implemented a programme to consolidate the call centre footprint and rationalise outsourced partnerships, exit high-cost sites, and increase cross-selling and multi-branding. The rapid transition was delivered with minimal impact on customers, and left the business well-positioned to cost effectively expand their proposition.
Deep cost-cutting for a media company
Supported a media organisation to reduce its cost base by over 25%, enabling its successful sale.
Working in an open-book, creative and collaborative way across the business, our work penetrated through resistance and risk of rejection to successfully identify, design and deliver these significant cuts, underpinning a successful future for the company.
Procurement optimisation for a leisure group
For a multi-brand leisure company, led a procurement diagnostic that delivered over 7% savings across the business.
Working with a proven procurement diagnostic framework, through analyses and workshopping with procurement staff we honed in on the priority areas of opportunity, and ultimately identified £55m of annual savings off a £750m addressable spend. We went on to programme manage the implementation, support specific workstreams and negotiations, and train teams to ensure skills transfer.
Business-wide cost reduction for a UK restaurant group
For one of UK’s largest casual dining chains, we identified efficiencies of £20-40m, and supported the resulting transformation.
Our work covered multiple brands, regional and head office functions and all restaurant operations. We rapidly identified savings to be achieved through labour scheduling, operational process improvement, head office cost-cutting and reducing complexity. We went on to support the client to detail, trial and implement the plans, including running the transformation PMO.
Learning & development for a global oil & gas player
Supported one of the world’s largest companies to achieve a step-change in their in-house strategy capabilities.
Initially focused on the company’s in-house strategy teams across 4 continents, our targeted coaching programme drove a sharp uplift in project feedback scores, and was then rolled out to senior business leaders globally.
Turnaround for a major UK energy supplier
For a major UK energy supplier, developed a turnaround programme to reverse a sharp decline in profits in their storage division.
Our joint team, working with in-house leaders from across operations, finance, project management and sales, designed a programme that would release £250m NPV over 3 years, including a 20% reduction in headcount, streamlined organisational structures, and top line growth through pricing and tailoring to specific customer segments.
Rethinking the cost base in online retail
Supported an online multi-category retailer in a radical rethink of their cost base to generate sustainable savings.
The client’s successful implementation of the resulting programme overcame organisational fatigue with in-year cost challenges, to deliver sustainable savings of 15% of the addressable cost base over 3 years.
Performance improvement for a high tech player
Delivered a complex and sensitive performance diagnostic for a PE-owned entity, leading to further investment and a shared way forward.
Our expert team of strategists built credibility with highly technical teams and conducted a diagnostic of cutting edge R&D entities and pipelines. The resulting recommendations would focus development, unlock group synergies, and more profitably utilise resources. Based on our granular and robust assessment, developed in close collaboration with company teams, the PE firm agreed to further investment, and the plan is now being implemented.
Transformation programme design for a B2B technology provider
Supported this tech company to rapidly detail a transformation programme to increase profits by 5-6%
In a rapid and pragmatic effort we set up a PMO and led the mapping out of initiatives, a tight prioritisation, more detailed design on priority workstreams and the technical setup of programme tracking, leaving the client set up to deliver the implementation internally.