Backed by private equity they faced critical operational failure during exit preparation, the business needed immediate, decisive leadership.
Holdsway hand-picked an experienced interim who had previously taken on roles as CIO, CTO and Chief Digital & AI Officer from its extensive network to be Interim VP Solution Deployment and lead a rapid transformation of people, process and technology.
We met with the client, and the mandate became very clear:
Therefore the starting point was high risk.
The company provides technology solutions supporting research and drug discovery. Operating across the UK, US, and Asia the business had been carved out and was preparing for private equity exit.
Nevertheless, the briefing with the client made the following issue clear:
So that the reputational and valuation risk was significant.
Reporting directly to the COO, our interim moved quickly to stabilise both performance and morale.
“He integrated seamlessly into the team and was able to provide much needed technical and personal leadership. The team responded exceptionally well to his collaborative style, resulting in a very quick improvement in performance.” COO
Accordingly, rather than impose change from above, he focused on alignment, clarity and accountability. He introduced structured governance, defined ownership, and established individual and team development plans to restore confidence internally before tackling systemic issues.
The most urgent issue was the catastrophic failure rate within medical data services.
So that the interim decided to lead a detailed root cause analysis across technology, workflow and resourcing.
The result:
The COO commented on the turnaround:
“Our key delivery team, responsible for servicing the top 20 pharma, had been underperforming in terms of quality and delivery. The interim joined the team and was able to mobilise the team, improving morale and focussing on the key issues affecting performance.”
As a result, the improvement was measurable — and visible to clients.
Beyond remediation, the interim ensured structural change, this meant:
As a result, rigorously transforming people, process and technology created a repeatable, scalable deployment model — critical for a PE-backed business preparing for sale.
During the transformation, he identified significant cloud cost inefficiencies and therefore led a cloud optimisation initiative that delivered:
This output was a huge win because for private equity sponsors, recurring cost reduction directly supports valuation uplift.
Within just a few months the interim delivered the following results:
Therefore, the business could then move from reactive crisis management to structured, predictable delivery.
“Holdsway’s interim was able to make improvements by identifying and solving key resourcing gaps as well as strengthening workflows and processes to improve quality. Following these targeted interventions, we saw a very quick improvement on performance, backed up by positive feedback from key clients.” COO
Why PE Sponsors and CEOs Engage This Interim
He specialises in stepping into:
He combines:
✔ Rapid operational diagnostics
✔ Hands-on execution
✔ Collaborative leadership that mobilises teams
✔ Technology and deployment expertise
✔ Measurable cost reduction
✔ Exit-readiness mindset
Introduced by Holdsway to deliver milestone-based transformation of people, process and technology, he demonstrated how interim leadership can quickly de-risk operations, rebuild confidence and materially enhance valuation.
Finally, what was the legacy of Holdsway’s interim?
Operational stabilisation.
Client confidence restored.
Cost reduction delivered.
Transformation embedded.
When performance matters — speed, credibility and execution define the outcome.
If your company is facing operational instability, delivery breakdown or exit pressure, interims from our fully interviewed, screened and benchmarked network are available for confidential discussion.
