Engagement: Fractional / part-time, initial 4-week phase leading to a c.4-month project, with scope for ongoing work
Location: Remote or hybrid, with regular check-ins at our client's Birmingham office (well connected from London and Manchester)
Day rate: £800–£1,200 per day, depending on experience
Start: Immediate – initial output required by end of October
The Opportunity
Exec Capital is retained by a growing advisory business to appoint a senior fractional professional to lead a flagship thought leadership project exploring the role of brand and narrative as a value creation lever in Private Equity.
This is not a marketing role. It is an intellectual leadership brief. You will shape the central hypothesis, design and lead the research programme, interview senior figures across the PE ecosystem – GPs, Operating Partners, value creation specialists – and oversee the development of what our client intends to be a genuinely influential piece of work for the industry.
The premise is that brand is more than a logo: it is an upstream lever of competitive advantage, in fundraising, in origination, in portfolio company growth and at exit. If that idea resonates with you – and you have the standing to interrogate it with the people who matter – we would like to hear from you.
- What You Will Own
- Framing the central hypothesis and research architecture for the project
- Identifying and securing interviews with senior PE figures, drawing on your own network
- Leading qualitative research and synthesising findings into a compelling narrative
- Overseeing the writing and development of the final published work
- Acting as the intellectual anchor for the project end to end
Who We Are Looking For
Backgrounds may vary – what unites strong candidates is credibility in the Private Equity ecosystem, excellent strategic judgement and a network you can genuinely draw upon. You might be:
- A former Operating Partner or value creation specialist with first-hand experience of driving growth inside portfolio companies
- An experienced PE journalist or editor with a strong byline history and a contact book of senior industry figures
- A strategy or brand consultant who has worked extensively with sponsors and understands commercial value creation
- You Will Need
- Demonstrable published or presented work – reports, white papers, industry commentary or keynotes (writing samples will be requested)
- An evidenced network of senior PE contacts you can bring to the project
- Experience owning a research or thought leadership programme end to end
- Immediate or near-immediate availability, and the ability to show momentum within the first four weeks
- Willingness to attend periodic check-ins in Birmingham
The Engagement
The project begins with a short initial phase of approximately four weeks, extending into a c.4-month engagement with the option of further or ongoing work based on fit and performance. Working patterns are flexible and well suited to a fractional portfolio, an independent consultant or a senior professional between roles who wants a substantial, intellectually rewarding project
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