Who we are

Leaders who want to move fast (and already have to deal with their own organisation’s inertia) are looking for nimble partners. We bring a collaborative mindset shaped by our values, and a way of working centred on being agile and adaptive.

We are a purposefully small team – ‘what you see is what you get’. Simply put, we offer a business model based on low-overhead, high-value pricing – it’s all about fewer consultants and more expertise.  We bring in additional skills or experience only when you need them. Outwith has established a unique network of ex-industry leaders and change practitioners worldwide that we call on as required. This gives our clients access to a rich community of like-minded people to lean into.

And we are uniquely flexible. Our simple engagement model enables open monitoring and management of our resources committed – such that you have the assurance and convenience of a long-term partner, but the flexibility of a short-term solutions provider. Outwith works with only a few clients at any one point in time, so we can target more of our effort towards your challenge. This means that we can help you shortcut to the right answers.

Learn more about Outwith’s founders below:

 

Peter Hocknell

Peter Hocknell

Tim Sefton

Tim Sefton

Peter’s journey to co-founding Outwith has seen him:

  • Help create and capture customer value across a diversity of sectors with some of the best-known brands including DHL, giffgaff, Microsoft, Virgin, MultiChoice, Samsung, Gucci, BP, Vodafone and the National Lottery
  • Lead Customer Experience (CX) capability development and operational turnaround agendas respectively as a senior executive at Nationwide (the UK’s most trusted financial brand) and First Utility (a ‘Top 25 Fast Track’ UK company since acquired by Shell)
  • Deliver what Forrester’s analysts cited repeatedly as best-practice client solutions as one of the pioneering team of directors that led Mulberry Consulting to become the largest international consultancy specialised in CX
  • Deliver performance improvements across multiple businesses in EMEA, North America and APAC, as lead customer strategist at PA Consulting.

Tim’s journey to co-founding Outwith saw him:

  • Be one of the lead architects of the transformation of mobile operator, BT Cellnet to become O2, the UK’s leading mobile operator brand (during his 12-year career at O2, Tim rose to the position of Customer Director and then Strategy & New Business Development Director on the Executive Committee)
  • Build for O2 a pipeline of new growth platforms and a capability to foster intrapreneurship which included the creation and launch of successful customer-led businesses such as giffgaff (revenues of >£400m) and O2 Wifi
  • Appointed as architect or workstream leader for a diversity of businesses across sectors and around the world who are intent on customer-centric transformation, including Jaguar Land Rover, Verizon, Multichoice SA, Welsh Water, Harvey Nichols, Camelot and Good Energy

Tim is now EVP, Global Marketing Strategy at Sage – playing a critical role delivering on their purpose and delivering a world-class marketing function that can become a champion and pioneer for true customer centricity.

What are we like to work with?

Our partnering approach relies on collaboration: Outwith’s know-how and perspectives, combined with your expertise on your organisation and today’s market. We won’t re-invent knowledge or re-present it as our own – the more answers you have to our questions, the faster we can deliver.

Where we find gaps, we can work together on how best to fill them. We often work with other, larger solution providers – but we remain independent. We do not commit to exclusive partnerships as we know that’s not necessarily in the client’s best interest. No one wants ‘me too’ strategies and solutions used by your competitors. Breakthrough thinking comes from outsiders who don’t have a vested interest in playing to the masses and preserving the norms of the industry.

Outwith’s collaborative mindset is reflected in our five values that define how we lead and the choices we make:

  • Simply put, we give a damn (and we like working with people who do too)
  • We believe that if we are working together, we are in it together – for the long-term
  • We are inclusive and supportive of each other and our clients
  • We are open to new and creative ideas: we say “Why not?”
  • We are considerate and sensitive to the cultures and personalities in our clients’ businesses.

Who we have helped