Private Equity Power Talks: Map of the Maze

For this episode of The PepTalks Podcast, we are joined by Andrew Dyckhoff, Founder and CEO of Strengths Unleashed, who are experts in assessment, development and advisory, helping energise individual leaders, their teams and organisations to release untapped potential, transform performance and deliver outstanding results. Our main area of discussion is around personal and organisational energy a...

For this episode of The PepTalks Podcast, we are joined by Neil Rodford, Executive Director of Voly Music and Former CEO of YMU, a market-leading talent agency. Neil led YMU through 3 successful buyouts, delivering a 500% increase in enterprise value and a turnover in excess of £140m. During this time Neil executed over 40 acquisitions which are our key topic of conversation for this podcast. We a...

For this episode of The PepTalks Podcast, we are joined by Lois Heywood, CEO of Retail & Asset Solutions who are at the forefront of the audit and stocktaking industry. In 2018 Lois became CEO of Retail & Asset Solutions upon leading a Carve Out from ODS group with the support of LDC. Lois draws on this experience and describes how to transition from corporate to PE-backed leadership. We also disc...

For this episode of the PepTalks Podcast, we are joined by Elona Mortimer-Zhika, CEO of Iris Software Group, who help organisations to make better business decisions by developing integrated software solutions.  In 2016 Elona joined Iris as CFO, transitioned to COO in 2018, and finally to CEO in 2019. During her tenure, Iris has seen incredible amounts of growth. Their most recent exit in 2018 was...

For this episode of the PepTalks Podcast, we are joined by Clare Roberts OBE, Founder and CEO of Kids Planet Day Nurseries, an award-winning group of 137 nurseries across the UK. Clare founded the business in 2008 and has since completed two private equity transactions. Clare shares how she successfully transitioned from an entrepreneur to a PE-backed business leader, and how this path to success...

How can Commercial Due Diligence be used to make your business more attractive to prospective buyers in an extremely competitive deals market in 2023? To discuss this, we are joined by Simon Hemley, Partner of Armstrong, who offer CDD and value creation consulting to private equity backed businesses in the UK mid-market.

In this special edition of the Private Equity Power Talks Podcast we are joined by David Laws, former Education Minister & Chief Secretary to the Treasury and Robin Grainger, Exec Chair and Founder of GK Strategy. We will be discussing the impact of Truss’ resignation. Who will be the next Tory Leader? What will their effect be on inflation and a potential recession? And ultimately what effect wil...

In this episode of the PepTalks Podcast we are joined by Chris Merry, CEO of Stonehage Fleming, an independent advisor to some of the world’s leading family and wealth creators. Prior to this Chris has held CEO positions at 4 other businesses, both in the public and private sector. Chris looks back at his career and shares the lessons he learnt along the way to becoming a high growth PE CEO and sh...

In this episode of the PepTalks Podcast we are joined by Richard Madden, CEO of leading international investment bank and PepTalks Advisory Partner, DC Advisory UK. DC provide buy and sell-side advice during PE transactions and other M&A activity. Richard will be drawing on this expertise and current state of the market to make predictions for the future. This podcast is a vital piece of listening...

In this episode of the Private Equity Power Talks Podcast, we are joined by Andrew Howe, Founder and former CEO or Bridge Leisure. We discuss Andrews Exit journey with Bridge, including taking a business you have started from scratch into PE ownership, orchestrating a successful off market PE deal and the complexities of completing a PE backed Trade Sale. We also discover Andrew’s key learnings fr...

For this episode of the Private Equity Power Talks Podcast, we are joined by Chief People Officer at MVF, Andrea Pattico. Over the past 6 years Andrea has been responsible for creating and implementing a strategy that makes MVF a great place to work, resulting in the business coming first in the Sunday Times Best Companies to Work For in 2020. In this pod, Andrea reveals how she nurtured a high pe...

For this episode of the Private Equity Power Talks Podcast, we are joined by Adrian Gardner to discuss the role of CFO under PE ownership. Adrian is currently COO at Stonehage Fleming and has held several positions as a PE backed CFO. He draws on these experiences to discuss the transition from FD to CFO, the importance of building a strong partnership with the CEO and how to professionalise the f...

In this special edition of the Private Equity Power Talks Podcast we are reflect on an episode we recorded last year with Former CHS Healthcare CEO, Dr Gaby Silver. During this podcast we asked Gaby her thoughts on what can be done to encourage and promote women into senior leadership roles in PE. Now, whenever we get challenged on this at a PEPTalks event, Gaby’s response is something we always r...

For this episode of the Private Equity Power Talks Podcast, we are joined by Reward Gateway COO, Rob Boland. Rob explains how he laid the operational foundations that allowed Reward Gateway to grow rapidly, culminating in the sale of the business to Abry Partners and Castik Capital in 2021. Rob also discusses the importance of operational hygiene, diligent tech implementation, employee mindset and...

For our first episode of 2022 we are joined by loveholidays CIO, Mike Jones. This is the first in a series of episodes where we dive into the world of a PE executive outside of the CEO role. Mike explains how he implemented tech transformation programmes at uSwitch and loveholidays in order to help them scale effectively under private equity ownership. He also discusses the importance of authentic...

In this episode of Private Equity Power Talks: Map of the Maze, we are joined by Don Henshall, Former CEO of Farrow & Ball and Chair at Bruce’s Doggy Day Care, an award-winning UK market leader in dog day care. Don discusses his journey as a retail CEO and how leading with an entrepreneurial spirit and owner’s mindset can help you succeed and grow under PE ownership. Don also discusses life after...

In this episode of Private Equity Power Talks: Map of the Maze, we talk to Andrew Hodgson, Former CEO of SMD and Exec Chairman of Recycling Lives, an award-winning recycling and waste management services provider, and a champion of UK communities. Recycling Lives unique social programmes are game-changing in offender rehabilitation and ending food poverty & homelessness. Andrew discusses how build...

In this episode of Private Equity Power Talks: Map of the Maze, we are joined by Tim Ham, CEO of Pearson Ham. Pearson Ham work collaboratively with PE backed businesses to help them create value through better pricing. Tim reveals the benefits of updating your pricing model and how PE backed leaders can take control of their own pricing strategies.

In this special bite-sized episode of Private Equity Power Talks: Map of the Maze, we revisit our interview with Ellie Romer-Lee, former Strategic People Manager and Chief of Staff at Onfido. In this never heard before segment, we discuss the power of language in culture building and how Ellie used the personification of animals to represent the key values and behaviours of the business.

In this episode of Private Equity Power Talks: Map of the Maze, we talk to Dr Gabrielle Silver, Former CEO of CHS Healthcare who partner with the NHS to deliver vital care to patients from the point they are discharged from hospital and beyond. Gaby discusses her response to the Covid pandemic and how she delivered care to thousands of patients whilst simultaneously growing the business, culminati...

In this episode of Private Equity Power Talks: Map of the Maze, we are joined by Susie Hillier, Partner & Head of Wealth Planning at Stonehage Fleming. Stonehage is an independent adviser to the world’s leading families and wealth creators. Susie explains how PE backed CEOs and their management teams can be affected by the sudden increase in wealth when a business is sold and how Stonehage Fleming...

In this episode of Private Equity Power Talks: Map of the Maze, we are joined by Justin Stead, CEO of Radley and Founder of the Aurelius Foundation. Justin describes his adoption of stoicism and how he uses its teachings to lead a calmer more productive life. Justin also explains how he applies stoicism to his role as CEO of Radley when approaching ESG, Resilience, Culture and Transformation.

In this episode Private Equity Power Talks: Map of the Maze, we have our first returning guest to the Podcast, as we once again talk to Richard Madden, CEO of DC Advisory. For this discussion our focus is on the future and how PE backed CEOs can prepare for and execute the Exit process. Richard explains each step a CEO must take and shares his insights on how to run a competitive and ethical biddi...

In this episode of Private Equity Power Talks: Map of the Maze, we talk to Ellie Romer-Lee, former Strategic People Manager and Chief of Staff at Onfido. Ellie joined Onfido as employee number 12 in 2014 and ran the people team through to 2020, when the business had a headcount of more than 400. Ellie explains how she developed talent and culture at Onfido by promoting diversity of thought, open d...

After a short break in production to record some new content, The Private Equity Power Talks Podcast will be returning for season 2! This season we will be bringing you some fresh perspectives as we look to diversify the podcast, both in terms of guests and subject matter areas. We will also continue to interview some of the UKs most successful PE backed CEOs. The first episode will be released ne...