To round off the year, the show takes a slightly different shape. In this brief episode, John reflects on some of the common themes from conversations in 2025 and says thank you to the guests and listeners who’ve shaped the series. He also looks ahead to what’s coming next. Thanks for being part of the show. We’ll see you in 2026! Host: John Howard, Partner at Garwood Growth

In a sector where scaling often leads to external investment or an eventual sale, what does it look like to build a consultancy that grows, stays independent and develops a long-term ownership model for its people? Olly Purnell is the co-founder of Q5, the organisational health consultancy that has grown from a small London start-up into a global firm operating across multiple regions, all without private equity or a planned exit. Instead of organising their business around an eventual transa...

In this episode of The Unlocking Value Podcast, John Howard speaks with Pekka Metsaranta, founder and CEO of Sisua Ltd, a consultancy known for stepping in to help clients succeed with their most complex programmes. From M&A integrations to large-scale systems delivery, Sisua operates where clarity and execution matter most. Just as Sisua thrives amid complexity, Pekka’s own path has been equally demanding. He built Sisua from the ground up without co-founders, delivered work while buildi...

If you’re leading a professional services firm and want to grow without losing what makes it yours, this episode brings clarity to one of the biggest decisions you’ll face: whether to take on investment and how to do it without compromise. In this episode, John speaks with Laura Morrill, Investment Director at Agathos Management LLP and a highly accomplished competitive tennis player. Laura offers practical insight into how external investors can help founders sharpen their direction and stre...

In this episode of the Unlocking Value podcast, John Howard speaks with Tom Burnet, an experienced chair, former public company chief executive and long-time leader across technology, services and people-centred organisations. Tom’s career spans the army, entrepreneurship, public markets and multiple board and advisory roles. On paper it looks unconventional. In practice, a consistent pattern runs through everything he has built. He leads with intent. He focuses on the few priorities that gen...

In this episode of the Unlocking Value podcast, John Howard speaks with Rhys Hefford, a serial founder who has built, scaled and sold multiple professional services businesses over the past fifteen years. Rhys has launched six firms and successfully exited two, typically taking each from start-up to around £2 million+ in EBITDA before handing over to new leadership teams. His experience gives him a unique view of how to build, scale, exit and start again without losing sight of the life you w...

In this episode of the Unlocking Value podcast, John Howard speaks with Marcus Eden-Ellis, the founder and chief executive of Bid Perfect, a specialist consultancy that helps organisations compete, persuade, and win. Marcus spent decades in senior sales roles before launching his own firm in 2006. Nearly twenty years later, his team has supported more than 900 companies across the UK, Europe and the US, training their people to sell more effectively and build sustainable growth through better...

In this episode of the Unlocking Value podcast, John Howard speaks with Adam Craker, Chief Executive of iqbusiness, one of South Africa’s leading consulting and digital integration firms. Adam has led iqbusiness for more than 15 years, guiding the firm through three distinct chapters: angel investor-backed growth, private equity ownership, and its current position within a listed corporate group. Throughout that journey, he has built a culture that blends high performance with purpose and per...

In this episode of the Unlocking Value podcast, we welcome Jon Grant, Tech M&A Director at Clearwater, one of Europe’s leading corporate finance firms. Jon is one of the UK’s most experienced advisors on technology and consulting deals and works closely with founders and leadership teams to help them build, grow and realise value in their businesses. Over his career, Jon has advised on some of the sector’s most high-profile transactions, including the sale of Infinity Works to Accen...

In this episode of the Unlocking Value podcast, John Howard speaks with Andy Strickland, Partner at Palatine Private Equity. Andy has spent more than a decade backing ambitious Professional Services founders and management teams, often at the point where external investment is being considered for the first time. He shares Palatine’s philosophy of Positive Equity, an approach that focuses on partnership, sustainability and people-led growth. Together, John and Andy talk about what private equ...

In this episode of the Unlocking Value podcast, John Howard speaks with leadership coach and former consultancy partner Richard Jones about one of the hardest things to get right in professional services: senior leadership transitions. On paper, it sounds simple: bring in a talented new leader to help the business grow. In reality, it’s far more complex. Richard and John talk about why these moments are so high-stakes and why more than half of senior hires fail within 18 months. They explore ...

In this episode of the Unlocking Value podcast, John Howard speaks with Craig Herd, founder of Consultancy Growth. Craig shares his journey from door-to-door sales at 19, to becoming National Sales Director with a team of 55, to working with a growth enablement consultancy, and now leading his company, Consultancy Growth, which helps UK boutique consultancies build growth systems that actually work. He explains his six pillars of consultancy growth and what consultancy-specific sales an...

In this episode, John Howard speaks with Justin Langford, co-founder and CEO of Coeo. Over nearly two decades, Justin has grown the business from a two-person start-up into a consultancy trusted by some of the UK’s largest organisations. Justin shares the key chapters in Coeo’s journey, from proving the model and scaling cautiously at first through to shifting gears and adopting a private-equity style playbook to accelerate growth without external funding. He explains how the firm has b...

In this episode, we explore one of the biggest hidden success factors in any deal: alignment between shareholders. We’re joined by four founders who’ve lived through the challenge of keeping ambitions, personalities and timelines aligned as their businesses evolved – and as the prospect of a transaction came into view. They share honest, practical advice about how to navigate the hard conversations, balance head and heart, and keep your culture intact without derailing the deal. This episode ...

In this episode, we look at how investors and advisors assess a business – and what can spook them. We’re joined by an investor, a corporate lawyer and a corporate finance advisor to talk about what builds confidence during a transaction – and what can cause it to break down. From messy data and vague narratives to unexpected risks that emerge late in the process, they share what buyers really watch for and what separates strong deals from aborted ones. If you want a clearer picture of how bu...

In this opening episode of the Unlocking Value podcast, we go right back to the first big question founders face: should we even do a deal? Host John Howard is joined by four guests with direct experience of weighing up whether to sell, take on investment or stay the course. They talk candidly about what led them to consider a transaction, how they judged the right time, what kind of deal felt right – and what they’ve learned along the way. This episode is packed with real-world insight...

In this episode, we focus on what it really means to be ready for a deal – not just in theory, but in practice. Host John Howard is joined by two seasoned founders and a corporate finance advisor to explore what it really means to be ready for a transaction process. Together, they dig into the systems, behaviours, and blind spots that shape outcomes – sometimes years before a transaction takes place. This conversation offers practical advice on getting ahead of the curve, managing risk, and s...

In this episode, we ask a deceptively simple question: what actually makes a business valuable? Host John Howard is joined by a founder, an investor and an advisor to explore what really drives high valuations in professional services. They talk about the importance of revenue quality, market positioning and delivery maturity – and why investors care just as much about what’s ahead as what’s already been built. Along the way, the guests share real-world examples of how they’ve made their busi...

In the final episode of this series, we talk to a panel of experienced consultancy leaders and advisors about what really happens after a deal is done – and what no one tells you in advance. The conversation explores the emotional, cultural and operational challenges founders and owners can face once the dust settles. We discuss everything from from shifts in identity and purpose through to leadership transitions, people dynamics and integration into new teams and roles. This is a candid, pra...