Brought to You by the Customer

Rory McKeand, CEO - TSG

Belden Menkus

Download

In this episode we speak with Rory McKeand, CEO of TSG, an IT services company helping UK businesses fit technology seamlessly into their operations. TSG is among the largest Microsoft training partners in the UK and helps clients implement and adapt to new technologies.

Rory emphasises that TSG’s business strategy centres on the customer experience, and how that focus has been embedded in TSG's company culture. He lays out the keys to great customer care and describes how TSG has been making use of AI while keeping customer service extraordinarily human-focused.

Rory also talks about TSG's history, including its founding through a consolidation of over 20 businesses and the transformations it has gone through since. He discusses their journey into employee ownership, and PE investment by Pictet, the entrepreneurial capital arm of the Swiss private bank. He shares why Pictet's flexible, long-term hold period, rather than a fixed exit timeline, made them the right fit as TSG heads into its next stage of growth.

Check out the TSG website.

A special thanks to Richard Rankin for suggesting this conversation!

Supported by Norman Broadbent.

Rory McKeand

“Investing Well” in the Financial Sector

David Ferguson, Executive Chair - Seccl

Belden Menkus

Download

In this episode we speak with David Ferguson, Executive Chair at Seccl. They provide the back-end infrastructure for numerous investment and wealth management companies including Monzo’s pensions and GoHenry’s Junior ISA. To David, Seccl is a force for positive change in an industry which “has not always been fair to people.” He describes how they encourage “investing well” across the sector, first by choosing to work with firms who have fair consumer practices, and second by leveling the competitive playing field, enabling smaller companies to enter the market with their ready-made infrastructure.

On strategy development, David emphasises the power of rigorous, blunt analysis of where they are now, as a foundation for charting a clear path forward. He reflects on how Seccl has matured in its vision of itself and who it works with.  David also makes predictions on the future of digital infrastructure in wealth management and the limitations of AI, and he discusses what drew him to Seccl. Overall, David’s goal is for “investing well” to become the modus operandi of the financial sector.

Check out the Seccl website.

Supported by Norman Broadbent.

David Ferguson

Growing Fast Without Losing What Matters

Peter Haden, CEO - Fletchers Group

Belden Menkus

Download

In this episode we speak with Peter Haden, CEO of Fletchers Group, one of the UK's leading personal injury and clinical negligence law firms. As a PE-backed firm, a major focus of Fletchers is growing [a lot] while maintaining their service and values.

Belden and Peter discuss the relatively new role of PE in the legal space, including how the focus on rapid growth squares with the unique management needs of a law firm. Peter speaks to the challenges of balancing the legal and business sides, the strategy behind choosing acquisitions, and the value of holding weekly review meetings of every aspect of the practice.

They also discuss Fletchers’ enduring social values in caring for clients and colleagues. Peter describes the need for empathy and professionalism when serving clients as they deal with the pain and uncertainty of a serious injury or malpractice incident. In recruiting colleagues, he notes that benefits such as flexible work help them to attract and retain top talent. In all cases, Peter observes a clear alignment between doing the right thing for people and doing the right thing for business.

Check out the Fletchers website.

A special thanks to Ken Fowlie for suggesting this conversation!

Supported by Norman Broadbent.

Peter Haden

Getting More People on the Bus

Janette Bell, Managing Director - First Bus

Belden Menkus

Download

In this episode we speak with Janette Bell, Managing Director of First Bus, the bus division of FirstGroup Plc and one of the largest bus operators in Britain, running around a fifth of all bus services outside London across a fleet of more than six thousand vehicles. Janette has a simple, steadfast purpose since she entered the role in 2020: “to get more people on the bus!”

Janette bolsters this purpose by laying out the social and economic benefits of a robust bus transit system, and directly connects these benefits to their bottom line. For instance, bus service increases public access to opportunities, thereby driving economic activity in the local area, creating a feedback loop straight to the fare box. As Janette describes these and other local benefits, a through line is that the better the bus operates for the community, the more people will ride it.

We also discuss the push for net zero, which Janette sees in terms of opportunities, not obstacles. Electrification of the fleet has spurred First Bus to enter innovative collaborations and partnerships. And as Janette sees it, the benefits of the bus will increase as the fleet gets cleaner.

Janette leaves us with a profound question. In a highly competitive industry with a broader purpose, what does winning mean? Her answer after over 40 years in service industry leadership: if the social benefits are the focus, the profits will follow.

Check out the First Bus website.

A special thanks to Lesley Cotton for suggesting this conversation!

Supported by Norman Broadbent.

Janette Bell

The "So What" of Energy Data: Cutting Cost and Carbon at IMSERV

Jo Cox, CEO - IMSERV Europe

Belden Menkus

Download

In this episode we speak to Jo Cox, Chief Executive Officer of IMSERV Europe, a provider of meter and data services to the UK’s commercial and industrial energy sector. Jo reflects on joining a long-established but under-the-radar business which is trusted by the industry, yet perceived as slow to change. She discusses the choices she has made since arriving in early 2025 to move it forward at pace.

Jo explains where IMSERV sits in the energy system: installing and maintaining the meters behind business energy bills, collecting the data, and making sure it is accurate for utility providers and the regulator. She describes the three pillars of her strategy: high-performing field engineers who keep meters communicating, collecting accurate data across large meter portfolios, and the IMSERV Astral data platform – an acquisition which will turn their data into insights to reduce both cost and carbon. It’s a strategy she’s continuing to build on, with IMSERV’s more recent acquisition of arbnco, a Glasgow based proptech company whose AI-powered platform helps real estate owners and asset managers turn energy data into decarbonisation action, further strenghtening IMSERV’s ability to help customers cut both cost and carbon across their portfolios.

The conversation also explores Jo’s approach to leadership, which is non-hierarchical, fast-paced, and willing to get “into the weeds.” She talks candidly about treating private equity as a partner rather than holding them at arm’s length, and shares her advice for any CEO walking into a business for the first time: don’t lead with an ego, and ask a lot of questions before assuming you have the answers.

Check out the IMSERV website.

A special thanks to Michael Diamond from Norman Broadbent for making this conversation possible!

Supported by Norman Broadbent.

Jo Cox

The Future of British Sports Cars

Mark Tapscott, Co-Founder & CEO - Longbow

Belden Menkus

Download

In this episode we speak with Mark Tapscott, Co-Founder and CEO of Longbow, an electric sports car company whose aim is to engineer vehicles that are fast, ultra-lightweight and will stand the test of time. Mark co-founded Longbow in 2023 after two decades launching electric vehicles into new markets, including for Tesla and BYD. He explains their vision for success and the factors behind it, including the UK’s world-class supply chain, a high-powered advisory board, and their dedication to craftsmanship over volume. Mark explains his view that the UK is among the best places in the world to design, assemble and sell sports cars.

Mark describes how Longbow takes the best parts of strategies gleaned from Silicon Valley and China, such as periodically “breaking and rebuilding” the company as they grow and relying on nimble expert teams of engineers. He also goes deeper into Longbow’s focus on lightweighting, describing it as an efficiency philosophy that will shape the future of transportation. In an industry with a longstanding affinity for petrol and heavy design, he has received some pushback on electric lightweight vehicles. However, Mark leaves us with an insight from his early days at Tesla: if enough people tell you an idea won't work, you may be onto something.

Listen here and on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, and check out the Longbow website.

Supported by Norman Broadbent.

Mark Tapscott

Navigating the Complexity of Healthcare

James Murray, Chief Executive - HCML

Belden Menkus

Download

In this episode we speak with James Murray, Chief Executive of HCML, a leading provider of healthcare services to the corporate and private medical insurance markets. HCML specialises in the bringing clarity to complex health journeys, helping people access the right healthcare, in the right way, at the right time. Through case management, they understand what’s needed and bring together the right specialist support and coordinate the right pathway around the person’s needs, circumstances and goals.

James makes both a moral and a business case for facilitating swift and simple access to high-quality healthcare. He describes the factors behind a striking statistic that £1 of healthcare investment yields £4 in returns, and argues that employers can and should view employee health as a core responsibility. James also elaborates on HCML’s place in the healthcare market in comparison to the NHS, including the market gaps that HCML fills.

Their conversation also covers the how and why behind HCML’s business strategy, from their steadfast focus on their core case management and rehabilitation services, to implementation of AI tools in their day-to-day work. In addition, James describes how PE investor Apposite Capital helps the HCML executive team to grow their impact, while leaving strategic autonomy to them.

Finally, James reflects on his decades-long career in the healthcare industry, and why he will never leave. In his words, this work is “good for the soul.”

Check out the HCML website.

A special thanks to Norman Broadbent’s Luke Horrigan for suggesting this conversation!

Supported by Norman Broadbent.

James Murray

What Mutual Really Means: Purpose, Pride, and the Long Game in Financial Services

David Hynam, CEO - LV=

Belden Menkus

Download

What does it take to lead a mutual insurer with over a million members and to balance commercial performance and long-term member value? In this episode, David Hynam, CEO of LV=, reflects on more than three decades in financial services and the choices that have shaped his leadership of one of the UK's most recognised financial mutuals. He reflects on what mutuality actually means in practice, what he found when he arrived, and how the organisation has moved since.

David talks about building pride in the organisation, the discipline of translating a five-pillar strategy into day-to-day delivery, and the tools he uses to keep an executive team accountable. He notes the difference between a real strategy and a chief executive's wish list, and about what it takes to avoid the latter.

The conversation also explores what it means to operate without shareholders, how they balance member value against financial sustainability, and what the distinctive mutual model asks of a leader. David is candid about the grey areas, and about why he thinks a CEO who isn't optimistic has no business being in the chair.

Special thanks to Jim Islam for suggesting this conversation!

Supported by Norman Broadbent.

David Hynam