mike brady

Director at LASER STRATEGY LTD

Bio Summary

2010-present: Laser Strategy Ltd: Director (Independent Consultant) 2019: SIG plc (FTSE 250 Construction Products Supplier): Group Transformation Director 2011-12: Wilson Perumal & Co. (US Operations Strategy Boutique): Head of UK Business 2005-10: Bain & Co.: Principal 2000-05: L.E.K. Consulting: Manager Pre-MBA experience: Ogilvy & Mather (and other advertising agencies): Account Management

Employment History

Director

LASER STRATEGY LTD

July 2010 - present

London, UK

Independent consultant, working with own clients & via intermediaries such as Eden McCallum. Expert at creating break-out strategies to drive profitable growth & bridging from strategy development to transformation. Key strengths include: rapid focus on what really matters in complex commercial situations to generate case-cracking insights; developing practical strategies with tangible action plans which can be implemented effectively; articulating strategies into robust, compelling narratives that can be cascaded to ensure strategic buy-in; & navigating complex high-pressure situations to generate alignment across multiple stakeholders. Experience includes: • Strategic review & vendor due diligence for European Distributor of Construction Materials looking to divest non-core manufacturing business. Project assessed strategy & developed a more saleable strategy & identified organisation changes required to execute the new strategy. Project culminated in VDD which supported the successful sale of the business once the new strategy had begun to generate results • Strategy review for French division of Global Builder’s Merchant. Benchmarked client vs. group peers; diagnosed drivers of under-performance; developed plans to address. Identified €50M of EBITDA improvement opportunity • Worked with UK Boiler Manufacturer over 10-year period. Market share increased from 4% to 24%, Operating Profit grew from loss-making to an industry best 25% operating margin. Developed strategy to initially stabilise the business through enhanced pricing, product development, sales effectiveness & customer service. Then, once business was stabilised, developed strategy to target market leadership through improved customer service, enhanced warranties, marketing & targeting high-value installers • Developed growth strategy for UK Filter Manufacturer to double profit in 3 years through: product development, sourcing & manufacturing efficiencies, marketing to drive new usage occasions & salesforce effectiveness • Developed strategy for UK Radiator Manufacturer to grow market share & unit value. Project analysed customer journeys to determine key decision-makers & purchase rationale. Project developed recommendations on expansion of distribution, product availability, consumer & trade marketing

Group Transformation Director

SIG PLC

February 2019 - November 2019

London, UK

Responsible for driving transformation programme for £2.8Bn turnover FTSE 250 PLC building materials supplier. Focus on distribution and roofing businesses across France, Germany, and the UK. Key deliverables included pricin ...see more

Principal

Bain & Company

May 2005 - July 2010

London, UK

Experience included: Private equity: • Managed Private Equity Group of 24 Consultants; responsible for staffing client projects & client development work to optimise utilisation, project delivery and team development Media & telecoms • Revamped sales & marketing strategy for UK Commercial Broadcaster & organisation structure to better serve advertisers. Identified ~£250M revenue uplift (+20%) • Developed global strategy for UK Public Broadcaster including identification of funding options & org implications of new strategy • Conducted strategic review of struggling PE-owned Sports-TV Operator to determine viable strategic routes to support refinancing • Developed strategy for UK Football Club to best exploit its media assets. Scoped initiatives (with value of £350M NPV) & implementation plans to deliver strategy • Developed growth plan for UK Yellow Pages Business with incremental value of £150M revenue (+20%) to address identified customer-related issues. Initiatives included recommendations on pricing, salesforce effectiveness & marketing • Developed strategy for distressed UK Mobile Phone Distributor to secure refinancing. Launched initiatives with value of £50M EBITDA (+100%) to deliver strategy. Worked with company to implement these initiatives Consumer goods • Strategic review for Danish Toy Company & development of performance improvement programme across product development, pricing, marketing and branding Chemicals/Plastics • Developed process for EMEA Plastics Manufacturer to apply value-based marketing to marketing to sales & pricing strategy. Operationalised this with one BU & identified €10M of EBITDA uplift via price optimisation & product re-launch • Developed systematic process for EMEA Plastics Manufacturer to determine company’s pricing power with different customers to drive pricing. Identified €10M EBITDA uplift from targeted price increases • Developed performance improvement plan for Automotive division of EMEA Plastics Manufacturer – including recommendations on pricing, administrative costs, international expansion & product development. Identified €50M of EBITDA uplift

Manager

L.E.K. Consulting

September 2000 - April 2005

London, UK

Hired as Consultant out of business school promoted to Manager, ahead of schedule, in under two years. Focus on strategy (corporate & business unit) & commercial due diligence. Sample projects include: • Rationalised de ...see more

Selected Project Experience

Project Description:

UK Boiler Manufacturer: Turnaround and Growth Strategy (12 months over 10-year period) PE-owned UK Boiler Manufacturer had suffered catastrophic market share loss (10% to 4%). As Consultant, created strategy to stabilise business, then drive recovery/growth. Undertook business diagnostics via interviews, historical data analysis, competitor review, and designed stabilisation strategy; as market share recovered, developed growth strategy, including training/loyalty programme; and, as company reached #2 in market, developed strategy to target market leadership through improved service to heating engineer customers, consumer marketing and improved warranty proposition. Over 10-year period (and 4 owners) succeeded in supporting growth in market share to 24% and achieved industry-best 25% operating margin (from loss-making start-point).

Industry: Consumer Products

Topic(s): Strategy & Planning

Project Description:

European Insurance Company: 100 Day Plan (4 months) European Insurance Co. had been refinanced by its PE owner with mandate to achieve step-change in profitability. As Consultant, developed 100-day plan to drive 3-5-yr strategic focus. Partnered with Exec to undertake prioritisation exercise to assess strategic logic/financial outcomes of alternative plans; facilitated Transformation team workshops to analyse initiatives; reviewed c.60 initiatives with focus on achievability; and developed transformation plan. Succeeded in agreeing a plan to increase operating profit by 60% over 5 years, including international expansion, digitising sales/service, and applying data science to marketing.

Industry: Financial Services

Topic(s): Strategy & Planning

Project Description:

UK Freight & Parcels Carrier: Operational Turnaround UK Freight & Parcels Carrier had been loss-making for 3 years. As Consultant, developed short-term turnaround plan and long-term growth strategy. Diagnosed under-performance drivers; developed plan to drive profitable growth (focus on higher margin customer segments, improved revenue and yield management); established plan to drive operational efficiencies (fleet mix, resource management, route planning); and set out plan to reduce indirect costs (headcount reduction). Succeeded in creating a 3-year plan to achieve industry-leading 6-10% operating margin

Industry: Transportation & Logistics

Topic(s): Operations

Project Description:

UK Electricals Retailer: Digital Performance Improvement UK Electricals Retailer faced multiple inefficiencies across its digital platforms. Engaged as Consultant to determine priority issues and generate rapid fixes. Ran diagnostic analysis to identify priority concerns; mapped and redesigned ineffective processes; improved product selection process using online analytics; enhanced product set-up process; upgraded reporting of online stock availability to increase accuracy; aligned store and digital promotions; and optimised product exit strategy to maximise exit values. Succeeded in a 20% operating profit uplift with c.50% of total projected benefits landed before project end.

Industry: Consumer Products

Topic(s): Digital

Project Description:

Global Wireless & Broadcast Infrastructure Products Provider: Turnaround Strategy Global Wireless Co. was JV between Chinese Financial Investor and European Telecoms Technology Provider. €400m turnover business with cumulative losses of €100m over 5 years. As Consultant, developed full potential plan and assessed strategic options. Reviewed market attractiveness (size, growth, profitability); assessed ability to win by market (share, trajectory, profitability); analysed financials; diagnosed under-performance drivers; and developed recommendations to re-focus on areas of strength and deprioritise areas of underperformance. Succeeded in agreeing a 3-year plan to achieve 7% operating margin by Year 3, double the company’s original profit target.

Industry: Telecom

Topic(s): Strategy & Planning

Project Description:

UK Supermarket Toy Category: Category Strategy Development UK Supermarket had a strong position in impulse toys, but little headroom for growth, and faced strong sector/online specialists in other toy segments. As Consultant, developed multi-channel strategy to drive profitable growth over 3 years. Undertook consumer research and segmented customer buying journeys; prioritised target segments; broadened range of secondary toys (£10-20); tailored range by store size; flexed store space and marketing seasonally; increased range of impulse toys on digital platform; and increased impulse toy pricing. Succeeded in developing a plan to target sales growth of 45% and profit growth of 55%.

Industry: Consumer Products

Topic(s): Sales & Marketing, Strategy & Planning

Project Description:

European Construction Materials Distributor: Divestment Strategy & Vendor Due Diligence Construction Materials Distributor was looking to divest its non-core manufacturing business. Engaged to position the business for sale and drive short-term revenues. Undertook vendor due diligence; reviewed strategy; refocused the business to grow core products in core customer segments and regional markets; improved commercial efficiency; adjusted pricing in price-sensitive product segments; enhanced salesforce effectiveness; and oversaw non-core business disposal. Succeeded in positioning the business for sale at a multiple of 11.4 x prior year operating profits (> industry benchmark).

Industry: Industrial Goods

Topic(s): Sales & Marketing

Project Description:

Global Industrial and Electronics Components Distributor: Transformation Design and Launch Global Industrial and Electronics Components Distributor had a high-level strategy but no clear plan to deliver that strategy. As Consultant, was engaged as right-hand to new Chief Transformation Officer (who had no prior transformation experience) to develop an implementable plan for the business, and to launch that plan. Engaged external consultants for initial discovery phase to identify highest areas of potential for the business. Then worked with the consultants to develop the implementable plan to realise that potential – including prioritisation and sequencing across geographies and functions, considering technology feasibility. Set up and launched plan to more than double the operating profits of the business within three years, with improvements across product range, sales effectiveness, digital marketing direct and indirect procurement, supply chain, SG&A, and technology. Designed the end-to-end transformation governance to support delivery of the programme.

Industry: Industrial Goods

Topic(s): Project & Program Management

Country Experience

United Kingdom France Belgium Austria

Industry Experience

Material

Building Material,

Chemicals