Client Experiences/References
M&A post-merger integration branding for private equity backed cross-border turnaround in cleantech
“Richard is the person to turn to when you need to dig deep to extract and action the maximum competitive advantage. He’s fast, effective and relentless. Richard helped us refocus our market strategy and positioning on the organizations’ real strengths to maximize our growth and quality of earnings to help build investor confidence. We needed strategic support to optimize the market performance, as well as a good deal of tactical implementation to create a clear strategy roadmap and to realign the culture(s).”
Michael Froud, formerly Chief Growth Officer for PE backed turn-around in USA, Germany and Singapore (Rochem). Now Water & Bioenergy Project Development & Infrastructure Investor
Top 100 UK law firm
Winner - Legal Week Innovation Awards 2019
Trademark Law Form of the Year 2019
“Thomsett&Partners are one of the very few consulting firms who really understand the UK legal sector and the complexities of a Partnership, adding significant value to our Firm. Richard was instrumental in helping us take an objective and quantitative view of our own internal culture and also to see our own Firm in the context of the trends in the wider marketplace. Using his Competitive Advantage Framework Model he took our business on a concise 160-day journey from primary research, illuminating strategic options for our Partners, before building out the final Five Year Strategic Plan and finally supporting the Change Plan. He is highly commercial, intelligent, tenacious and experienced.”
John Banister, CEO and Equity Partners, Wiggin LLP
5-year strategy and management engagement and Vision
As one of the great historic landed estates, Hatfield House operates tourism, commercial and residential development, farming plus various other business investments.
“Richard has an uncanny ability to cut to the core of complex business models and root out the difficult issues that need to be resolved to move forward. His insight and intellect brought an unapologetic dose of objectivity which were transformational in the development of our strategic plan.”
David Horton-Fawkes, Chief Executive Officer, Gascoyne Estates (portfolio of business interests in UK, Germany and Australia including Hatfield House)
Visionary brand and business strategy to create £800m whole-of-life holistic health group
Multiple acquisitions focused on substantially repositioning an old fashioned hospital group for the 21st century
“Richard has supported multiple businesses that I have worked with over the last ten years from established healthcare organisations (Nuffield Health’s visionary strategy for whole-of-life care) to technology start-ups (Concentra). He is one of the first people that I turn to when a business needs its strategy simplified to enable change to be sustainable and position its self for growth in changing and global markets. His approach to immersing himself in each market means he can ask the challenging questions that most people don’t like to be asked.”
Adrian Downing, Group Strategy Director, Nuffield Health
Brand portfolio management and group organisational branding to unite UK’s largest estate agency and mortgage broker
Journey from financial rescue and de-listing to £750m IPO
“Richard has provided B2B consultancy for me for over 5 years and the insights and recommendations that his work has provided has been invaluable to our business. Going from a one of many [players] in the market, to the clear leader in our field has been a journey that has been charted by Richard and his consultancy has enabled us to maintain and sometimes realign our strategic direction.
Our B2B proposition covers various sectors and products and Richard has always been able to cut through the complexity of our markets and deliver clear thought leadership to us."
Paul Hunt, Countrywide PLC, Marketing Director
Vision-led roadmap to market leadership, refocusing business on their clients’ digitisation journey
Turning a financial and operational performance crisis into a major opportunity for Strategic change and reinvestment from private equity ClearCourse.
“During 2018, Richard worked closely with myself and the Senior Management Team to develop a strategic vision and change plan to deliver a successful future. Richard's objective, insightful and definitive style was a true 'change-agent' for Silverbear and one which ultimately enabled us, in no small part, to conclude the company's acquisition and now focus on our next stage of innovation and growth. If you're looking to 'scale to sale', find your purpose, or simply need some clarity of thought, or even a company-wide cultural 'uplift', I could not recommend Richard more highly.
It is with great pride and certainty now that I can confirm Silverbear's strategic imperative is to own and occupy a key market niche through Microsoft technologies, with a vision to 'be the leaders in liberating the value of relationships within member organisations', both of which were unrecognisable before Richard starting working with us.”
Carl Grieves, Chief Executive Officer, Silverbear (technology business built on Dynamics 365, acquired by private equity 2019)
Driving strategic value via branding in professional services
Post-merger integration branding through to £500m+ IPO plus new market entrant
“I engaged Richard and his company twice to work on brand identification and positioning for Benfield Group ahead of its IPO and Gallagher Re (following its creation as a new reinsurance intermediary). Richard led the strategic thinking on both projects. His ability to translate 'branding' to reinsurance brokers and make it meaningful to them in the context of our business was impressive and invaluable in getting traction internally. He also made sure that we didn't just follow the path of least resistance and compromise for the sake of an easy life.
I would wholeheartedly recommend Richard to work alongside organisations that recognise the power of a brand as part of their business strategy.”
Alison Burgess ACIM, Global Sales Operations Director, Aon
Venture innovation in greenfield consumer markets
Research and launch of 12 segment-specific job boards plus UK’s largest hiring platform (Totaljobs) with revenues moving from zero to £45m.
“Richard has been a business colleague and mentor of mine for over ten years. In that time he has also become a valued sounding board, on a professional and personal level. He has helped me win the hearts and minds of my peers on many occasions, and crucially the investments required to push forward the businesses I have worked for. Not an easy task.
Richard achieves this by rapidly gaining a deep understanding of a business, the market it operates in and the challenges it faces. He then applies candor, science and creativity to guide those businesses forward. I can think of no other compliment than to say that I attribute some of my own career success quite firmly in the hands of Richard.”
Michael Robinson, Group Marketing Director, Totaljobs Group, part of Reed Elsevier (formerly)
Uniting a complex, multi-cultural cross-border M&A using brand as a strategic tool for turnaround
On behalf of Kleiner Perkins private equity as trade sale as part of exit strategy
“We hired Richard to re-brand our company. He and his firm did a great job spending many days away from home to get the work done on a tight budget and tighter timelines. Richard has many talents and added a lot of value to our business and organizational change efforts.
I would hire him again - without a doubt, he is a great partner and a real asset to any business.”
John Kaestle, CEO of ULTURA, Long Beach, California
Part of LDC-backed turnaround of two stalwarts in the video technology and playout market
Repositioning from analogue legacy to support market trend for IP and ultimately fully digitised, decentralised production of high value content.
“We engaged Richard to work with us on the creating of a new brand definition for our business following the merger of Quantel and Snell. Our rebranding project had a very aggressive timescale with a hard deadline. Richard engaged with our business and stakeholders very effectively, from board level, through to key accounts. This enabled them to work with us to develop a new brand identity which has proven very successful, from a starting point where the way forward was far from clear. In summary, very efficient, very cost effective, and great outcome.”
Neil Maycock, SVP Strategic Marketing, Grass Valley (a division of Belden PLC)
New 2020 Vision and strategic communications thinking in support of major reshaping and Change programme driven by changing needs of the UK construction sector
Cultural change and strategic communications thinking and brand definitions. Board level.
“Richard has been a strategic partner to work alongside our team, revisiting our brand positioning against complex challenges during some business transformation. When Richard is involved, you’re in safe hands. For every project large or small, he’s in it with you throughout, always seeking every opportunity to maximise the impact and making necessary challenges to ensure the best outcome for us as a client. Richard shared strong, clear strategic recommendations and impactful solutions and has a passion for excellence that is very contagious.”
Liz Every, Marketing and Communications, CITB (Industry Training Board for the construction industry and a partner in ConstructionSkills, the Sector Skills Council)