Umbrex is pleased to welcome Mallika Adarkar with MECE Matters. Mallika has 18+ years of consulting experience on growth strategy, operations, risk management and data analytics. Before launching her advisory business, she was at McKinsey & Company and PwC in their financial services practices. Her clients have included bulge bracket banks, asset managers and life insurance companies. Mallika has an MBA from Columbia Business School, an MS in Information Systems from Drexel University and a BTech in Computer Science and…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Jessica Shamoun. Jessica spent 6 years with Bain & Company focused on private equity, portfolio optimization, and growth strategies. Since Bain she has held leadership roles at two startups, first in CPG then in real estate tech, most recently as the VP of Business Operations and Product Strategy leading projects at the intersection of product, operations, and sales. She has deep expertise and experience in data/analytics, process improvement, M&A, product strategy, and program management. She…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Austin Riggs. Austin describes his practice : I am a strategy consultant with over 10 years strategy and operations experience. In addition to my expertise in growth strategy, M&A, and strategic planning, I have deep experience in new business launches and social innovation. My industry expertise covers financial services, technology, entertainment and consumer electronics. I am especially passionate about sustainability and mission-driven businesses. With professional experience in the USA, UK, South Africa, and Jordan, I…

In this article, Hari Sripathi asks if growing globally is the right move for your business. Companies, in particular, those headquartered in large domestic markets such as the US, China and India, often tend to wonder out loud why, if at all, it is necessary to grow globally? While it is definitely appealing to build a global brand, many bottomline focused companies prefer taking the safe route of competing only at home. The various complexities of growing internationally further convince…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Lan Harrington with Gravitas Consulting. Lan is the founder of Gravitas Consulting, an advisory firm focused on M&A, commercial diligence, and growth strategy. She has 20 years of experience in strategy consulting and investment banking. Lan spent five years at Bain & Company, where she did a number of international M&A engagements out of Bain’s Dallas, London, and San Francisco offices. She then joined MHT Midspan, a startup investment bank serving middle market businesses and private…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Daniel Behr. Daniel is an entrepreneurial leader skilled at developing and implementing growth and innovation strategies. He brings a unique combination of experiences in strategy consulting, startups, business development and the commercialization of new technologies in the life and physical sciences. Daniel seeks to help leadership teams figure out “where to play” and “how to win”. He is based in the Boston area….

Umbrex is pleased to welcome James Haywood with Haywood Strategic Consulting. James  spent three years at Bain & Company, with a large part of that time in the Private Equity practice doing strategy and commercial due diligence projects across different industries including energy, industrials, manufacturing and telecommunications. Prior to Bain, James was a Chemical Engineer, and has worked on two oil refineries in the UK, as well as having an operations role for Conoco UK. He then spent five years…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Anuar Heberlein with STRATYGIKA CONSULTING. Anuar has participated in transactions totaling +US10 billion and in +50 strategy & management engagements over the past 15 years. He has extensive experience working with C-suite executives and helping many Fortune 500 clients with corporate and growth strategy projects, conducting market research, performing due diligence, supporting transactions and implementing performance improvement projects. Prior to founding Stratygika in 2012, Anuar worked with Second City Capital, a Vancouver based Private Equity…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Xavier Lederer with Ambrose Growth. Xavier was a strategy consultant with Bain & Company for 4 years in Europe (Brussels & Amsterdam office). He is now a business coach, helping CEOs of mid-market companies, who are frustrated by the way their company is growing, redefine their growth strategy/execution and their management approach, so they can get back on track to profitable growth. Prior to starting his own practice Xavier was the President of a chocolate manufacturer…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Rahul Bhargava with PurpleCrest. Rahul was a management consultant at McKinsey for 6 years, and has been running his own consulting firm since 2012. PurpleCrest, his firm, focuses on strategy consulting and high-performance business coaching to mid-market organisations in India and Canada. After leaving McKinsey, Rahul also led the operations for one of the United Nations offices in India, focusing on accelerating the achievement of health related millennium development goals (MDG-4 & 5). He is…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Matthew James with Materia Consultancy Ltd.  Matt was an Engagement Manager the McKinsey London office from ’98 to ’02 before joining the Mining & Metal industry in Australia, growing Lynas Corporation from a start-up to a $3 billion market cap ASX 100 company. In 2014 Matt returned to the UK and started Materia Consultancy Limited and worked as a freelance consultant, with a focus on industrial growth strategy projects, programme management and due diligence studies. In…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Francesca Muller with Francesca Muller Ltd. Francesca started her career as a senior associate at McKinsey, where she worked in the media practice in New York and then London. She has been working as an independent consultant since 2004, leading growth strategy and transformation projects across a range of sectors including healthcare, financial services, environmental, B2B and industrial services. She has a BA and JD from Harvard University and currently lives in London with her…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Pontus Kristiansson with Altaverita. Pontus spent his early career with McKinsey & Co and Procter & Gamble. Then went on to spend 20+ years as serial entrepreneur and tech CEO before going back to management strategy consulting through his independent practice Altaverita, while also chairing his family office Realinvest.se. Believes in saving the world through climate impact investing and scaling technological climate solutions. Thrives on helping others succeed. Secret super power: Strong problem solver, with…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Wayne Patten with Innovation Strategies. Wayne has over 30 years of experience in consulting to senior leadership in companies of all sizes. In 2000, Mr. Patten founded Innovation Strategies, LLC to focus on helping clients achieve significant organic growth and operational excellence. Prior to founding Innovation Strategies, he co-founded Prism Consulting International, and helped grow the firm to over 25 consultants. He also worked as a strategy consultant for Booz-Allen & Hamilton. Mr. Patten has…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Andrew McKee with Headland Strategy Group. Andrew has 15 years’ experience in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, and other healthcare sectors. In his health care work, he specializes in consulting projects for healthcare executives that combine disruptive growth strategy expertise (e.g., disease area strategy, pipeline marketing/commercial evaluations, novel disruptive technologies) with distinctive consulting offerings (e.g., strategic decision-making workshop design and facilitation; qualitative market research with thought leaders). These projects necessarily require Andrew and his team to be…

  David Burnie shares a post that explains why now is the time to refresh your growth strategy. The COVID-19 crisis has impacted businesses worldwide. Globally, governments have put economies on pause, and businesses have shuttered their doors to try and limit the virus’ spread. Factories have idled, and customers have sheltered in place as the world weathers the storm. Whether or not this strict response was necessary, or an overreaction, is a side debate – it happened. As we…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Peter Hsia with CH Consulting Advisors. Peter  is one of the founders of CH Consulting Advisors, a strategy consulting firm focused on consumer and retail.  He has over 30 years of consulting experience with Accenture, Kurt Salmon, Swander Pace and McKinsey.  CH Consulting focuses on serving the private equity community with due diligence and portfolio strategy as well as working with mid-cap companies on growth strategy.  CH Consulting is based in the San Francisco Bay…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Matthew Kien-Meng Ly.  Matthew spent four years at Bain & Company helping companies understand market insights and develop growth strategies. Prior to Bain, Matthew was a software engineer and technology professional. Matthew has particular expertise in identifying customer / competitive insights and new markets, assessing policy / regulatory impact on markets, and developing growth strategies / plans. He lives in Toronto, Ontario, Canada with his fiancée and enjoys woodworking in his spare time. He holds…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Rashay Jethalal.  Rashay has over 20 years of experience in North American financial services and a deep passion for scaling modern businesses.  He had led businesses in asset management (Purpose Investments) and transaction banking (CIBC) and a proven track record of providing strategic advice in both capital markets and retail banking.  He enjoys working with early stage and rapidly scaling new ventures, particularly in the fintech space.  Rashay has deep acumen in growth strategy and…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome James Agres with 2nd St Strategy. James is a Senior Management Consultant with 10+ years of strategic consulting experience. His work focuses on sell-side and buy-side commercial due diligence for Private Equity and Investment Banking clients. James possesses deep expertise in developing and executing organic and M&A driven growth strategies for mid-market clients. He also has extensive experience in operational performance improvement, value creation, and transformation initiatives across diverse industries including industrials, healthcare, consumer products,…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Christopher Rischard.  Christopher Rischard spent eight years as Digital Leader in the TMT practice at Booz & Company based in Paris and Madrid focused on digitalization, data and tech-enabled growth strategy. After several years as a Principal, he set off as an independent consultant in London in 2014. Prior to Booz and his MBA at INSEAD, Christopher lived in Washington DC where he was raised and he worked for 8 years in enterprise solutions sales…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Amit Bhagat. Amit Bhagat brings together a combination of corporate and consulting experience.  In the corporate world, he was General Manager of a $300M business unit of a public consumer goods company.  In addition, he was Head of Strategy and M&A. Within his portfolio of responsibility, Amit led teams in each of corporate strategy; M&A and post-merger integration, business insights and analytics; and transformation.  In the consulting world, Amit was Managing Director at PwC Strategy&…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Yi-Hsin Chang with Chang Unlimited.  The secret to Yi-Hsin Chang’s success, no matter the industry, company or situation, is her creativity, tenacity and hard work. She is single-mindedly driven by a need to succeed and to make a positive impact on everything she does. Yi-Hsin has developed and implemented growth strategies, and led transformational change in companies small and large. She is particularly adept at assessing and adapting to new situations, and managing challenging personalities….

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Marla Malluk Gozman.  Marla Malluk Gozman spent nearly ten years at Bain & Company in their Boston, London, and New York City offices. Since then, she has been an independent strategy consultant and also spent three years as Sales Strategy Director with Zearn, a nonprofit education technology organization. Marla has expertise in growth strategy and strategic planning, market and competitive analysis, and pricing, as well as advising start-up and nonprofit organizations. She has experience in…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Sai Patil.  Sai Patil spent seven years as a strategy consultant at Bain & Co and then three years at Mattel leading strategy and marketing teams. Sai has particular expertise in growth strategy for consumer/retail companies as well as retail promotional strategy and marketing optimization. Prior clients include Fortune 500 companies in beauty, fashion, home decor, coffee, printing, pet food and education. Sai is highly strategic with deep expertise in utilizing consumer and market insight….

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Lawrence E Adjah with Adjah.  Lawrence is a community builder and business advisor who began his career as a management consultant for McKinsey & Company in its New York office, helping to serve some of the world’s largest professional sports organizations and media companies. After McKinsey, Lawrence served as the Senior Director of Business Development at a premiere sports and entertainment marketing agency in New York. He later became a direct advisor to some of…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Surbhee Grover with Steel & Graffiti Strategy consulting. With 18 years experience in consulting and brand management, Surbhee Grover provides growth strategy, innovation, digital and marketing advice to leading companies across consumer oriented industries (incl. food & beverage, beauty/ cosmetics, education, hospitality, luxury and digital media). She gained considerable experience during her six year tenure with Booz & Company (2004-2010). Her work has included projects such as the development of an innovation strategy & processes…

  James Black shares the first post in a series that explores the development of customer understanding in 2020.  To kick off the new year, I suggested ‘20 Questions to Help Your Brand or Business See 20/20 in 2020.’ To help brands and businesses assess the state of your business and identify opportunities, I wanted to take a closer look at the topic of Customer Understanding. Developing a deeper Customer Understanding is helpful to identify opportunities to strengthen your business….

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Travis McElveen with Matterhorn Advisors. Travis McElveen spent nearly 4 years at McKinsey & Company in a variety of roles, including Engagement Manager, where he served companies in the transportation, aerospace, and basic materials industries across multiple functions, including operations, pricing, advanced analytics, and growth strategy.  Additionally, Travis has extensive experience serving organizations in the federal and non-profit sectors. After starting his career at McKinsey & Company as a Business Analyst, Travis joined the US…

  Kaihan Krippendorff asks a most pertinent question to help companies identify a strategy that will improve customer relations and revenue.   The former president of Starbucks, Howard Behar, told me a few months ago that the most important decision Starbucks made, that led to many of the disruptive choices this category-defining company made, was their decision to be “in the people business serving coffee” rather than the “coffee business serving people”. In other words, Starbucks decided to view their “customer”…

  Eric Hiller’s company blog takes a look at the strategy and growth probability of the Ride-hail market from the perspective of the Lyft CEO. Summary for Lyft CEO Ride-hail is not going away, but it must to get profitable.   You can try to ‘grow to profitability’, but as we have learned in the past, that is a risky proposition. Uber is expanding, but it is already bigger than Lyft.   Is that strategy profitable, and if it is,…

  Jason George uses the evolution of the aviation industry as a means to explore the cost of risk aversion and how it can stymie growth. Building in every possible contingency as part of a strategy can end up producing something so encrusted with extraneous elements that agility is compromised. Alternatively, it may hew so closely to known and safe paths that it ends up losing the novelty that would make it compelling. If you can’t cut yourself loose from…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Seline Karakaya with Excelerate Global.  Seline Karakaya is Founder and Managing Director of Excelerate Global, a venture capital and private equity advisory group. In this capacity, Seline has worked with closely with companies ranging from start-ups to multi-nationals to support their growth priorities. She works closely with founders, CEOs, and Boards of Directors—often as an interim CXO—on the most pressing issues, from hiring to pricing, strategy to fundraising, organization to business development. Prior to founding…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Katarina Podlesnaya.  Katarina spent 8+ years across management consulting at BCG, venturing and blockchain product development at ConsenSys, advising multiple start-ups, and serving as an owner of a retail business. Katarina’s expertise focuses on growth strategy, procurement and negotiation, technology, operational improvement, and organizational design. She currently resides in New York City and maintains a strong network and presence in San Francisco, Washington, DC, and Dubai, UAE. Katarina is happy to discuss collaboration opportunities irrespective of…

  Luiz Zorzella explains why non-strategic projects can be a distraction that get in the way of real strategic work and what you can do about it.    When companies define their strategic priorities, it is common to include in this list items that are not building blocks of the company’s strategic goals. At least directly. Some of these items are extraneous, pet projects and/or impositions from third-party actors or the result of internal politics and accommodations and at best…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Michael Casaburi with Revulus Growth Partners to our community. Michael Casaburi spent 13 years at Bain and has been running a boutique consulting firm focused on market due diligence for investors and growth strategy for companies since 2013. Michael brings top tier consulting approaches to investors (e.g., PE firms), the middle market, and BUs of large companies. He’s worked with some of the largest investors/companies globally as well as smaller firms/companies. Michael lives in a Chicago, Illinois suburb…