Grow Business Value

Engage
A private equity firm with an $8 billion portfolio wanted valuations on a portfolio of tech companies it was going to acquire. The portfolio of 20+ companies included social media, online marketing, and web infrastructure entities.

Design
We prepared a design for our work together with the PE firm and its portfolio manager. We discussed its investment strategy, risk appetite, and desired exit strategy. This helped identify which companies in the portfolio would add the greatest value.

Implement
To implement the project, we reviewed the business strategy, market position, sales and revenue, traction, and management of the target companies. We evaluated strategic opportunities, management focus, and traction. We separated out the clear winners from the others. We then formed a valuation basis and investment outlook for the target companies.

Result
We briefed the portfolio manager on the strengths and opportunities for each of the target companies. and gave specific m&a recommendations, including price range and management strategy for the new portfolio entities. 

Engage
This 20+ billion dollar client had multiple problems relating to the existing workflow between marketing and merchandising. These problems were affecting the efficiency of over 200 merchants, buyers, marketing and production staff, and leading to lost time and exorbitant expenses in the millions of dollars. Management wanted to determine the best course of action to simplify and automate many cumbersome and expensive processes and to eliminate vendor costs overruns.

Design
We undertook an initial survey of process, interviewed staff and management to determine key pain points and bottlenecks. We worked with the EVP of merchandising and marketing and his direct reports to craft a plan of action that involved both systems and workflow. Our approach was to first truly understand the problems. Second, we framed alternatives that would simplify workflow and reduce errors. Third, we prepared the business case that could be taken to the executive board. This business case included a detailed ROI from implementing our recommendations. We included a complete, step-by-step plan for implementing a fully integrated workflow and production system.

Implement
To prepare for implementation, we obtained comprehensive support from merchandising, marketing, and IT. This was presented to management in the context of different ROI alternatives. 

This strategy consisted of a timeline for technology implementation, benchmarks and best practices with which to measure progress. Our goal was to ensure low risk and high return, to eliminate the pain points, and reduce vendor expense overruns.

Result
We successfully implemented a highly vetted and structured plan to enable the exchange of information between advertising and production and automate this process. Savings exceeded $10 million annually, a 20x savings over project cost.

Engage    
A global consumer electronics firm wanted to develop marketing strategy for its $20 billion North American division, with the objective of growing sales by $2 billion over the next few years. This was a target from the Executive Board.

Design
The strategic objectives included a study of the B2B landscape, identifying key acquisition targets, valuation of m&a targets, and outreach strategy to top retailers. We developed a comprehensive plan towards these goals in conjunction with corporate development,  business improvement, and strategy teams.

Implement
Management was briefed on the US retail landscape, with detailed market research on e-commerce and store systems. We identified m&a targets, mapped strategic outlook by sector, and prepared valuation ranges.       

Result
We prepared extensive opportunities for organic growth, disruptive tech investment areas including Internet of Things  (IoT) and RetailTech, and retail business development strategy.  The North America management team continues execution of our recommendations.

Engage
A $6+ billion retailer publicly-traded engaged us for advisory support while it went private. The company had national store footprint. Management wanted to increase its selling price and rewards its shareholder as well as possible.

Design
Working with the CFO we reviewed the five-year growth plan, financial projections, cost-reduction programs, and examined impact on top-line sales and EBITDA and cash flow.

Implement
We discussed the strengths and opportunities of multiple bids from Private Equity bidders and and worked together to improve valuation.

Result
The company successfully sold to Private Equity investors at a significant premium to the initial market price and was one of the largest retail transactions of the year. 

Engage
A $6 billion retailer planning a 2 billion dollar spinoff needed a complete technology migration plan for the new entity, with no risk of downtime.

Design
Working with the EVP of Strategy, we mapped out a detailed plan for technology separation. This was quite intricate in that the work had to be completed flawlessly, with no downtime or impact on production, marketing, or merchandising.

Implement
We developed the plan to include wind-down of content ingestion, internal data transfer, and servers. It also included duplication of assets (as failsafe back up), migration of systems to a new physical location, and start-up in the new environment.

Result
We delivered a complete day-by-day transition plan for a multi-billion dollar company. This included a detailed plan for separating over 100,000 assets with millions of price points, all the while bringing systems online for the new entity.

Engage 
A regional US Federal Reserve bank needed a multi-year digital strategy to support its financial literacy program covering 40+ million people. This is a responsibility mandated by Congress under Dodd-Frank.

Design
The 3-year strategic plan had to demonstrate improved outreach to teachers, students, and minorities, and improve the efficacy of the programs. The plan was developed in a team setting  working alongside the team leaders to improve the existing strategy.

Implement
The plan covered student and teacher outreach to thousands of high schools, assessment and efficacy of educational programs, and outreach to 40+ million people.

Result
We successfully formulated a three-year digital strategy that was delivered and accepted by the Bank in order to accomplish its goals of improving financial literacy, enhancing student and teacher outreach, and supporting education for minorities.