New Business Development

What was the Challenge? ​

In recent years the housing sector has seen a number of fundamental reforms and policy introductions that have considerably changed business models across the sector.

We have seen a number of mergers and acquisitions in this space where large organisations have combined forces to ensure their continued success.

The leading organisation based in the South-East wanted to retain their independence but needed to make considerable savings. We worked closely with them looking at ways in which they could adapt their business model to realise their aspirations.

What did the Crown Consulting Group do?

We started by examining the direct competition. Coupling this with our already deep experience of the sector allowed us to work with the client to extract and understand their deeper goals. Fundamentally the organisation was very proud of its heritage and wanted to preserve it. Knowing this and understanding the functions of the business meant we could almost immediately discount any ideas of mergers, acquisitions or takeovers.

The suggestion was that the organisation form two separate sister companies, one being focused on the provision of rented accommodation to the private sector and the second being a construction business where the private sale would be the main aim. The organisation had a number of properties in prominent locations that needed renovation, these formed the basis for the initial launch of the first sister company. Some of the key elements that the Crown Consulting Group delivered included;

• Company strategy (Corporate, Business and Technology);

• Financial viability studies;

• Business & Marketing planning;

• Industry benchmarking & research;

• Technology options, pre-procurement, procurement, and implementation;

• Company branding & Image; And

• Process re-engineering and optimisation to accommodate new customer demographics.

This met some intimal objectives and allowed the organisation to remain operationally efficient. The longer-term objective was the delivery of a construction based company which would focus on delivering new homes for private sale, the aim of this being the futureproofing of the client to absorb further market disruption if applicable. We worked collaboratively to help set-up the new company and bring the first set of products to the market. In order to ensure the success of the new venture, we partnered with a leading construction firm which allowed for far greater knowledge transfer and market visibility.

For both measures, we found many of the existing customer-facing and back-end processes within the company needed elements of revision to take account for the new operating models. A much wider scope of customer demographic meant considerable re-working to customer-facing systems and processes. New revenue streams meant considerable re-work to core financial and reporting processes. We worked across the business to holistically identify what elements would need alternation to accommodate the new streams. We then helped the client priorities these and continued to work collaboratively in making the necessary changes.

What was the Outcome?

The outcome of this engagement was the client having a fully introduced sister company focusing on the rented sector market. Secondly, the client successfully partnered with a leading construction company and is continuing to deliver high-quality homes for private sale and shared ownership. Since the introduction, the client has been involved with a number of award-winning schemes and reaeration and eco living. Both new companies have allowed the client to continue their social objectives whilst seeking new successful opportunity in other markets. All profits are invested back into the business meaning they are able to sustain their current operations, protect their heritage and continue to grow in a controlled and sustainable manner.

The key here was not looking necessarily at ways in which the client could make the necessary savings from their existing operations rather looking for ways in which they could generate additional revenue through expansion.