2022 11 08 FPE 05 Harriet Group 0705 High Res 3
Home / Working with FPE

Committed to
the journey

We believe that the key to creating value in any investment is alignment and transparency. We strive to build productive, supportive, and honest relationships with the business leaders we invest behind, at all stages of our investment process. We begin by collaborating to refine and agree a clear strategy, and offer business leaders a clearly defined, four-part toolkit post-investment to help their hard work go further.

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Toolkit for second-stage growth

Established Growth Levers

On average, companies that partner with us accelerate their top-line growth rate by more than 250% during our investment.

We believe this is the result of investing time with company leaders to develop a detailed understanding of the areas requiring focus, and of our mutual commitment to delivering on them together.

No two businesses are identical, but there are common challenges and solutions across software and services companies. We have experience across:

Power of Network

By partnering with FPE, business leaders enter an ecosystem of like-minded people tackling the same opportunities and challenges. We create opportunities for this invaluable experience to be shared through a range of summits and functional forums:

  • Annual FPE Growth Conference, bringing together company leaders, establishing relationships and catalysing collaboration
  • Regular functional C-level forums, where best practice can be shared and problems solved collectively
  • Sector-focused events, for both existing and prospective FPE companies, exploring issues and surfacing industry-relevant insights

Flexibility

We typically offer up to £25m of equity funding to each business that we partner with, in exchange for a majority or minority shareholding.

We assess the needs of the market, the business model and the people, and then apply a more flexible approach than many investors to the structuring of our funding and the usage of it.

We recognize that working with a significant investor for the time can be daunting step and each transaction with FPE is tailored to the needs of a business and its existing shareholders, whether capital is needed for organic growth initiatives, M&A, or shareholder liquidity.

We typically offer £5m - £25m of funding to each business that we partner with, in exchange for a majority or minority shareholding. However we have the capacity with our underlying investors to increase this commitment.

We frequently see in bootstrapped businesses that have achieved a level of profitability and cash generation that there can be risk aversion to reinvesting in the next stage of growth. As such, we frequently encourage founders to (partially) de-risk when we invest, and ultimately then achieving a higher cash return from (potentially) a smaller % shareholding when they exit in full second time with us.

Many investors have hard & fast rules for founders and management teams around reinvestment and cash realisation in a transaction. We treat each situation and personal situation as an individual.

Pathway to Operational Excellence

Reaching the second stage of business maturity requires positive change, and a renewed commitment to investing in and developing people, product and processes. In each of our partnerships, we are committed to providing the tailored operational support they need to realise their potential and optimise productivity.

  • Organisation design: On average, more than 2 new C-level executive roles are created in every company we invest in, and we frequently assist our companies to transition from over-reliance on a handful of key individuals to a more sustainable, broad-based team.
  • Talent assessment and identification: FPE has the in-house capability to support talent development in our portfolio companies. This can help with role and scope definition and recruitment, and/or help to manage external agencies.
  • Systems and processes: Reviewing systems and processes often provides essential data and insight into the business, surfacing ways to improve efficiency (and therefore profitability) and to allow a business to scale its revenue capability. To this process we bring our own insight from prior investments, as well expertise from a trusted external team of functional experts.

We practise 'fair process' – a form of communication and decision-making that trusts people and seeks out their ideas.

This reflects our core values, is built into FPE's culture, and is the bedrock of how we approach interactions with each of our partner companies.

Built on the finding that successful execution of a strategy depends on a process that feels fair and inclusive to all stakeholders, we use this leadership model to build trust, foster ideas and create the conditions required for the highest levels of performance.

Developed by Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne, the 'fair process' model communicates the value of every individual's input in developing strategy. This collegiate process fosters profound shifts in attitudes and behaviours, and inspires participation vital for the successful implementation of the agreed strategy.

There are three mutually reinforcing elements of fair process: engagement, explanation, and expectation clarity.


Engagement

Engagement involves individuals in the strategic decisions that affect them by seeking their input, and allowing them to challenge the merits of one another’s ideas and assumptions. It communicates management’s respect for individuals and the value of their point of view. It results in better strategic decision-making and genuine commitment from everyone involved in execution.

Explanation

Explanation ensures that everyone understands why final strategic decisions are made. Explaining the rationale cultivates confidence among employees that their opinions have been considered and that decision-makers acted impartially in the overall interest of the company, even if their own ideas were rejected. It also serves as a powerful feedback loop to enhance learning.

Expectation Clarity

Expectation clarity requires that after a strategy is set, managers clearly outline the standards by which their work will be judged and the consequences of failure. When people clearly understand expectations, political jockeying and favoritism are minimized, and people can focus on executing the strategy rapidly.

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years of investment experience across the FPE team

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partnerships with UK- and Irish-headquartered software and services companies in the last 10 years

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average increase in revenue following investment from FPE