MBO opens a new era for Insight
PSYCHOLOGY and leadership consultancy Insight HRC has been acquired in a management buyout.
The deal, the value of which has not been disclosed, sees the long-standing management team of Pip Gwynn, Jemma MacLean, Jessica Cooper and Laura Di Rienzo taking on ownership.
The MBO has provided an exit for founders John Lazarus and Simon Wiltshire, who established the Newport-based firm more than 25 years ago.
Insight HRC supplies leadership development, psychometric assessment, culture change and team development for some of the UK’s biggest companies and public sector organisations, including Welsh Water, Cardiff and Vale NHS Trust and Western Power Distribution.
It as has a team of 10 consultants across the UK, with the leadership team based out of the new head office in the redeveloped Newport Market.
The deal was part-funded with a sixfigure loan by the Development Bank of Wales, as well as advice and support from Social Business Wales, which is delivered by Cwmpas, formerly known as the Wales Co-operative Centre. Darwin Gray and Haines Watts acted for the senior management team in relation to the acquisition. Mr Lazarus and Mr Wiltshire
were represented by James Subbiani of Bellavia & Associates.
Ms Gwynn, managing director of Insight HRC, said: “We are thrilled to have completed the MBO and with our solid business plan we aim to stretch our expertise and reach even further and continue the legacy of John and Simon.
“We support our clients to be at their best, which means ensuring people are valued, empowered, resilient and confident. This approach made employee ownership a great fit when we started looking at succession planning.”
Emily Jones, of the Development Bank of Wales, said: “Pip and the team have a wealth of experience and a proven track record in delivering for their clients. Our funding means that they can now take control of their own destiny, investing in the business and developing their UK-wide client base from their new offices in Newport.”
Derek Walker, chief executive of Cwmpas, said: “Working with Pip and her team, and with the support of the Development Bank of Wales, we put in place a successful succession solution, in this case a MBO.
“It is a great mechanism to pass a
business on to people who already have a vested interest in it. Insight HRC join a growing list of innovative, motivated and adaptable Welsh business that are in employee ownership.
“Not many people realise that being employee-owned is one of the fastestgrowing and innovative business models in the UK. ... It is a great way to pass thriving companies on to the next generation and is why we want to encourage more soon-to-be-retiring founders and employees to consider it as an option, particularly as there is funding available from the Development Bank to help finance deals.”