Contact Edward
"To make change happen, leaders have to have a genuine passion for change and show it, so that people believe in it. Then build a movement around it. Make it more than a programme - make it a home for people to be part of."
At a glance:
Joined Baringa in
2013
Works across
All industries
Job in another life
Airline pilot
In detail:
If you’ve met Ed, you’ll know he’s passionate about getting things done. He makes it his mission to bring energy, excitement and enthusiasm into projects to inspire change.
Ed leads Baringa’s operational strategy and transformation practice, a team he’s helped grow from six people a decade ago to nearly 100 people today. He describes their role as being ‘doctors for business’, helping fix the ills that are hurting them.
As well as being a chartered accountant, Ed has a degree in economics and econometrics. During his degree he took on a course in HR relations as a balance to the statistics - a balance between people and numbers that’s reflected today in how he works. He’s driven by leading strategic projects that create a big commercial impact, while creating a positive impact for his clients’ teams - and his clients’ clients. This includes a multi-year, global operational lean improvement for an investment bank and a large-scale digital transformation and merger support for one of UK’s leading mass media and telecoms firms. Not to mention many projects spanning insurance, retail banks, telcos, fund managers and oil & gas supermajors.
Two things are critical to his approach. First, he brings a private equity mindset to his clients’ businesses, asking, “if I were a PE firm, what would I do if I bought this asset?” Second, he looks beyond the numbers, spending time getting to know his clients and their people. This is vital to make sure they trust each other as they embark on complex, high-profile change.
His proudest moment was optimising a floating ‘mega tanker’ for an oil and gas company in Angola. This was his first time as a project lead, in a country that was new and unknown to him and his team. Together, they saved the client around £600m over three months - and still managed to find time for a safari trip and visit to the Skeleton Coast.
Ed became a qualified ski instructor in New Zealand during his second year at university. Today, he puts those skills to practice by teaching his fearless five-year-old son to ski. You’ll also find him ferrying his children between rugby and golf practice, followed closely by their cocker spaniel, Hector.
Learn more about Operations and Organisational Transformation at Baringa