Brought in when it's unclear, complex, and growth has stalled.
Twenty-five years driving growth and transforming businesses in the UK, US, Europe and worldwide, across multiple sectors including media, retail, marketplaces, software, data and healthcare. I launched The Guardian in America, added $618m of enterprise value at Scout24, and rebuilt how Marks & Spencer sold online, adding £116m in online revenue. I build the value inside the business and leave it growing without me.
Where I'm brought in
Support or lead through instability. Steady the business, build the plan, then carry the transformation.
Remove what is stalling growth. Find the blockers holding the business back and clear them.
Reset the strategy to accelerate growth. Focus the priorities, then realign the proposition, go-to-market and operating models.
Turn around what's failing. Take control through losses, covenant breaches and restructuring.
Prepare for the transaction. Maximise enterprise value, position for exit, fundraise or acquisition, and run the process.
Chair or counsel the board. Steady the leadership team through change, remove the barriers to success, and provide an unfiltered view.
On AI, without the hype
Early, not late. Designed customer personalisation for a major US retailer years before generative AI, selecting recommendations and supply chain as the highest impact. $750m case, board approved.
Live in the portfolio. Chair of Kompas Health, building AI to support physician diagnosis. Previously chaired MediMusic, where generative AI fingerprints music and adapts each patient's playlist to their response.
Through the regulator. Advises the chief executive of a UK AI legal platform, now taking the product through SRA approval.
Across sectors. Generative AI in entertainment storytelling and in marketing intelligence, on top of retail, healthcare, and legal.
Business-led, not technology-led. Comes at AI from the customer, the product and the P&L. Advises leaders on where to invest, what to leave alone, and what to ask of management.
Selected outcomes
Scout24. Swiss online marketplace group, around $330m revenue, private equity-owned. Added $618m (CHF 550m) of enterprise value in 18 months, a 3x return, on double-digit growth.
Major US retailer. National chain, name withheld under NDA. Engaged to design an AI personalisation programme and build the business case. Delivered a $750m case, board approved.
Marks & Spencer. One of Britain's largest retailers. Created a new operating model that lifted online revenue 39%, worth $154m (£116m), in six months.
Bupa. Global health insurance group. Rebuilt the online platform, lifting traffic 20% and doubling conversion.
Future Thinking. UK market research and insights group, around $30m revenue. Took the leadership through a covenant breach and turned a $3.2m (£2.4m) loss into profit in eight months, then raised $2.6m (£2m) to fund growth.
It starts with a conversation
A brief conversation, then, if it's useful, a short piece of work to establish what is actually going on.
Start the conversation here
Contact
Jim Stevenson, Founder, Bletchley Group
Chair, Kompas Health | Partner, Spark Collective International.
jimstevenson.co | linkedin.com/in/jimstevenson
Thought Leadership, Speaking and Writing
Speaks and writes on leadership, strategy, transformation and AI adoption. Forbes Business Council contributor. Writes at BrkThruLeadership.substack.com