The library
Take what's useful. Written from real work with founder-led SMEs.
Business transformation
Business Transformation vs Process Improvement: Which Does Your SME Actually Need?
Two terms, two very different interventions. Here is how to tell which one your SME actually needs before you commit.
Do SMEs Really Need a Business Transformation Consultant? Here's the Honest Answer.
The word "transformation" puts most SME founders off. Here's what you actually need, and when outside support genuinely earns its place…
How Do I Know If My Business Actually Needs Transformation?
Most SMEs that think they need transformation actually need something more targeted. Here is how to tell the difference before you comm…
Transformation Consultant vs Internal Team: Which Is Right for Your SME?
The internal vs consultant debate misses the option that tends to work best for founder-led SMEs. Here is how to think it through.
Why Business Transformations Fail (And How SMEs Can Avoid the Same Mistakes)
Most transformation programmes fail before they finish. Here are the structural reasons why, and what founder-led SMEs can do different…
M&A and integration
M&A Integration Checklist: What Acquirers Should Tackle First
Most integration checklists miss the two things that determine whether everything else works. Here is what to prioritise in the first 9…
The Communication Plan Every Acquirer Needs Before Day One
A roadshow is not a communication plan. Here is what acquirers actually need to have in place before day one, and what goes wrong witho…
What Happens to Culture When You Acquire a Business?
Culture after an acquisition is determined by the opening signal, not the communication plan. Here is what that means in practice.
Why Do SME Acquisitions Fail After the Deal Closes?
Most acquisition failures are set up before the deal closes. Here is what actually drives them and what founders on both sides need to…
Systems and operations
Leadership and the owner
The Most Expensive Problem in Any Business Is the One Nobody Has Named
The loudest problems in a business get managed. The expensive ones get normalised. Here is how to find and fix the real constraint.
Why It's Harder to Shrink a Business Than to Grow One
Growing a business is well supported. Shrinking one is harder. The real lesson is not about size, it is about the systems that make you…
You Delegate Your Way Up. That's Also How You Get Absorbed.
A lesson from Babson that explains mergers and acquisitions: you climb by delegating your specialism away, and the market decides when…
Insights and analysis
Is the UK Energy Transition Actually on Track?
After two days at All Energy 2026 in Glasgow, the honest answer is: the ambition is real, the data is credible, and the plan does not y…
The Most Expensive System Is the One Your Team Stops Using
Why most ERP investments overshoot the optimum, how to find the right level of system complexity for your business, and what a £20-a-mo…
Two Documents, Two Stories: What Lenders Are Really Reading When They Assess Your Business
Your P&L shows how you manage money. Your pipeline shows what the market thinks of you. Finance-ready means both are in order.
Why ERP Integration Plans Fail Before the Systems Are Even Switched On
Most ERP integration plans assume two businesses work the same way. They rarely do, and the gaps show up before a single screen is swit…
Why I Built the PeakRatio Forecast Tool (And What It Actually Does)
A cash flow tool for SME owners: seven tabs, a 15-month forecast, no accountant required. Here is the thinking behind it.