Philip West

Co-founder & Consulting and Delivery Director

Location: United Kingdom

What I do

I help organisations deliver change that actually sticks — not just projects that complete.

My work sits at the intersection of transformation delivery, operating model design, change management, and business improvement. I work with senior leaders who need clarity on what is happening inside complex programmes, confidence in how their teams are executing, and assurance that the business will be genuinely ready when go-live arrives.

I have spent over 25 years leading delivery systems, building operating models, turning around troubled programmes, and embedding the kind of continuous improvement culture that outlasts the project team. That experience spans Fortune 500 corporate leadership, Army officer command, management consulting across multiple sectors, and founding and scaling professional services businesses, including running the P&L as Managing Director.

I co-founded Arqvera because the same problems keep appearing in different organisations: delivery that drifts because governance arrived late, change that fails because adoption was an afterthought, and value that evaporates because no one defined what it looked like before the programme began. The antidote is always the same — discipline applied early, with genuine commitment to people and process alongside the technology.

Background and experience

Transformation delivery and programme governance Led and governed complex, multi-workstream transformation programmes across retail, transport, legal services, financial services, manufacturing, and technology. Deployments have included establishing PMOs for £100M+ re-platforming programmes, leading mobilisation for politically sensitive rail franchise transitions, and managing concurrent portfolios of 40+ projects. Consistent track record of turning around at-risk programmes and returning delivery confidence to sponsors and boards.

PE-backed and corporate operating model leadership Directly led operating model and business unit transformation for PE-backed and Fortune 500 businesses at multiple stages of the investment lifecycle. Highlights include P&L ownership for a £3.2M business unit restructuring (delivered on time, under budget, manufacturing outsourced to China), managing the divestiture of a £8.6M division including information memorandum, due diligence, and transition planning, and turning around a £2.7M business unit from loss to 19% growth and 80% profitability improvement within seven months.

Founding and scaling professional services businesses Founded and scaled two professional services businesses: CoronaGrey (Salesforce consultancy, 15+ implementations over 22 months) and served as MD/COO of CloudSymphony (leading UK Salesforce consultancy for charities and non-profits). At both, built delivery methodology, commercial processes, resource management, and operating rhythm from scratch. At North Highland, acted as interim General Manager for a start-up business analysis unit — grew to 40 people and £4M annualised revenue in six months.

People-centred change and continuous improvement Six Sigma Black Belt with direct project leadership across Lean, Six Sigma, and Enterprise Lean Sigma programmes. Achieved >95% reduction in pricing credits, £1.4M+ savings across improvement programmes, 50% KPI improvement in customer operations within six months, and service fill rate improvement from 76% to 98%. Strong emphasis on building cultures of continuous improvement that outlast the programme — not just fixing the immediate problem.

Military leadership Infantry Officer in The Highlanders, commissioned and promoted to Captain. Active service in Northern Ireland. Selected to lead a specialised Ministry of Defence surveillance training team. Led teams of up to 60 personnel across six locations. Twelve months' leadership training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.

Where I work with clients

I operate across Arqvera's full service portfolio. My deepest experience aligns to:

Frameworks:

• Trust Arq
• Value Compass
• Change Studio
• PS Growth Engine

Fractional leadership:

• Fractional Delivery Director
• Fractional Transformation Director
• Fractional CIO & Technology Assurance Partner
• Fractional COO & Operating Model Partner

Specialist context:

Private equity-backed businesses, portfolio company transformation, operating model change, value creation, and integration governance

sector experience

Philip has worked across a broad range of sectors including:

Retail • Transport • Legal services · Technology • Financial services • Professional Services • Manufacturing • Non-profit • Automotive • Consumer goods • Defence • Private Equity