Team Biographies

Our people combine deep practical experience and a history of delivering measurable business benefits with a passion for life - it's not always about work!

1/1

James Doyle

Managing Director

A world leader at delivering transformational business change and creating, finding and unlocking hidden value

James has worked with CEO’s for over 30 years with an unblemished record of success in delivering superior business outcomes to cost, time, scope and quality.

Financial Services

With Telefonica/O2's core revenues from mobile 'phone contracts stagnating, there was a need to generate new revenue streams without damaging the exceptional loyalty and support of the customer base. He worked as Commercial Director on the creation and launch of a new data-driven motor insurance product O2D. He led the creation and management of the outsourced relationship with Junction (part of the BGL Group which owns Compare The Market) that provided administration and the development of the data-led proposition. The customer approved use of their mobile location data enable creation of an insurance risk segment of one leading to a 40% reduction in claims risk for insurers and up to a 60% reduction in cost for customers.
He worked on a driver safety app that provided real time driving information, support and advice based on an analysis of speed, cornering, location and time of day. This helped reduce incidents by over 20%.
Working with a specialist provider of investment and pensions services, after leading the transformation of the quality of operations and growth of the core pensions business there was a need to further improve margins. He led the launch of a consumer marketing business that leveraged member buying clout to deliver great deals on financial and other services, resulting in a 90% approval rating from a members and over £1bn of sales.
He led the £100m+ programme of a major high street bank to consolidate the secured and unsecured loan books of recent acquisition, create a single Shared Service Centre for customers, replace aging IT and enhance the online and social media presence.
He led the programme to provide linked credit card issuing services to the launch of a new full-service bank specialising in offset loans.
He led the programme to transform the quality of secured lending operations for a major UK player.
He led the programme to replace the cheque processing infrastructure of a major high street bank.
He has led multiple programme to transform the productivity and quality of operations supporting retail investment and pensions products.

Business Services and Outsourcing

When the financial services sector of EDS EMEA was stagnating through an aggressive focus on IT Outsourcing, which had alienated the CIO’s of their target market, he worked with the EMEA CEO and led the strategic push into Business Process Outsourcing. This increased the internal market share of financial services from 7% to 14% of total revenues, doubled the average size of deals and pulled through core IT services by selling to the issues of the CFO rather than CIO.
Working with the UK MD of Atos Origin, shortly after Atos bought Origin, he worked with him to transform a cash dilutive, loss making and shrinking business into a cash generative, profitable and growing business in under a year. He did this by transforming the HR infrastructure to focus careers on competency development, and remuneration and incentives onto the strategic growth agenda.
Working with CEO and MD of Xansa he led the Insurance Sector and grew it from £20m pa to £35m pa in under a year. Expanding his role to include all of the £80m pa Financial Services Sector he increased sales to financial services organisation from £80m to £150m in 3 years and increased gross margins from 10% to 30%. He did this by a relentless focus on sales talent and performance, expansion into BPO and by transferring 80% of work to captive Indian operations. He was the first leader to move ownership of P&L’s to India and the first to sell an HR Outsourcing deal into the UK financial services market.
Working with a private equity group on the management buy-out of a pensions consulting, software, administration and payroll business. He worked with the Group CEO and CFO to lead a growth strategy involving killing the core competition and consolidating core markets through aggressive pricing, whilst protecting margins through centralisation, offshoring and diversification. Out of a conservative pensions business were borne businesses that distribute financial services to pensioners that have an enterprise value of over £50m. The total value of the business doubled in 4 years.
James helped shape the Innovo Network a commercialised network of board-level execs and inter-company trading operations across the UK. He was responsible for:1. Creation and operation of monitised social networks. 2. Monitising of consumer databases through distribution of financial and other services. 3. Provision of outsourced sales services. 4. Provision of outsourced innovation and procurement services.

Other

James led a £150m strategic transformation of a water utility to prepare the core business for the PR14 price review and diversify into energy production - turning them from a net user to a net exporter of energy to the gas and electricity distribution grids and into a key supplier to the pharmaceutical industry.

With a passion for life

James balances his work life with a passion for mountain sports and blues music. He lived with his family in the French Alps for many years whilst continuing to commute to work in the UK, Geneva and the rest of Europe and India. He has also spent time living and working on the island of Mallorca and in Chicago.

In the summer James combines road cycling and mountain biking with tennis, golf (12), hiking and swimming in the mountain lakes and Med. Having played fsemi-professional cricket in his early 20’s he has yet to convince anyone to launch a cricket league in the Alps or on Mallorca! Rugby remains a passion.

In winter James indulges his passion for snowsports. His is a qualified ski and snowboard instructor (he's raced down the Hahnenkamm) and occasional skeleton bob enthusiast (5 runs down the Cresta run, including two "outs" at Shuttlecock).

In any season he indulges his passion for blues music. Although a grade 8 trained trumpet player he found little outlet in electric blues. He therefore taught himself blues harmonica and acoustic, electric and slide guitar. One of his proudest moments was when he jammed with Nine Below Zero including Mark Feltham, in his opinion, the worlds best blues harp player. More recently he toured for 40 nights across Europe culminating in a performance at the Montreux Jazz festival.