Business Performance Review
“Thanks for the report on FSP it clearly sets out the key shortfalls and the opportunities, which we can now action with the management team”
David, August Equity
The Challenge
August Equity is an independent private equity firm investing between £10 and £25 million in UK based companies. It invests in buyouts of high growth service-orientated companies in the UK mid-market.
The development of company in their portfolio had been fast by sector standards. Evolving from a start-up in 2007 to a “top 5” operator in 2011, with more than 65 locations and 300 staff, a large proportion of which had been delivered in the last 18 months.
The issue was the business had stalled and was now going backwards. The investors needed independent objective answers as to why and quickly.
The Assignment
insight was asked to review a number of aspects of the businesses, to assess: the current situation, the way it had grown in the last 18 months and its plans and capacity for future change. The areas considered included:
- Performance of the business in the context of the market.
- A review of the management action plans.
- An assessment of the management team.
- An evaluation of the acquisitions approach and integration process.
The Insight Impact
insight within 9 days conducted a detailed business review, identified a number of areas of opportunity and provided recommendations around:
- Community focus / activity programs
- People performance management
- Management capability and capacity
- Ancillary sales ideas
- Acquisition approach and integration
Additionally, the management team were engaged and re-energised with new ideas and suggestions. Implementation of recommendations led to improvements in financial performance within 6 months.
The Deliverables
On completion of the business review specific actions were recommended to address performance issues:
- Community focus : agreed a regional specific activity program to drive awareness
- People performance: KPI’s and targets set for all managers
- Management capability: gaps identified with actions set out to address them
- Branch refurbishment: prioritised those most in need, to meet brand standards
- Acquisitions integration: more detailed and comprehensive approach set out