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The
client was formed as a result of an MBI from the merger of
two IT services companies. Activities included outsourced
IT, IT support, consultancy, training, and facilities software.
Unfortunately the MBI failed, and company revenue shrank in
a rapidly growing sector. Huge losses were incurred through
overspending, and the MBI team demonstrated failure to establish
organisational structure by maintaining an executive board
comprising 14 directors. Management accounting and statistical
commercial reporting became non-existent, and the main investor
became concerned, as more cash was required.
Collingwood
was hired initially as CEO and later as CFO to restore the
client to profitability and to re-organise and help re-fund
the business. Collingwood was involved for seven months and
130 days. The most important actions taken by Collingwood
were to:
- Rationalise
the organisation by slimming the executive board from 14
to 4.
- Institute
significant reduction in spending mainly through senior
staff savings.
- Re-build
the sales process by re-instituting the bid review process,
which concentrated resources on winnable work where our
circumstances gave us an advantage over the competition.
- Recruit
and train new finance department following a move in premises.
- Introduce
management account and statistical reporting.
- Make
a Continental acquisition and thus establish the client
as a pan-European company.
- Re-finance
the business having restored it to a sound financial footing.
The
client is one of Microsoft's six worldwide strategic partners
and has an enviable reputation in both consultancy and outsourced
IT. The investor is now in the process of realising its investment
some three years later.
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