Curzon Sponsors the 2024 AMBS Case Interview Competition
Curzon Consulting is thrilled to sponsor this year’s Alliance Manchester Business School Consultancy Case Competition.
Introduced in 2016, the competition enables AMBS MBA students to showcase their skills, innovative thinking, and problem-solving abilities. It’s a platform that challenges them and provides them with real-world experience in tackling complex business scenarios in preparation for interview processes across a variety of industries.
Curzon is a key recruitment partner for the full-time MBA programme, and everyone involved is excited to further develop this relationship. Last Friday, Curzon representatives Nigel Brannan, and AMBS Alumni Sarbo Saha, and Aziz Yuldashev, joined the group and were introduced to the students, leading them through an interactive case study session.
We also heard from Class 2025 students Yasar W Khan and Syed Arhaam Ahmed from last year’s winning team, who both shared their top tips on how to succeed in the competition.
The students now have a few months of preparation before the preliminary rounds begin in January 2025. We can’t wait to see how everyone gets on!
Nigel said
We deeply appreciate Chris Garnett and Nick Burrows for your support and are excited by the enthusiasm and energy of the participating MBA students. It’s a pleasure to partner with you on this valuable and enjoyable aspect of their course”.
Thank you to Nigel Brannan, Sarbo Saha and Aziz Yuldashev for your assistance on the day.
CONTACT US TO FIND OUT HOW WE CAN HELP
Highly Commended in the 2024 MCA Awards
10 Years of Continued Success
Huge congratulations to the Curzon Consulting team – marking 10 years of continued success at last night’s MCA Awards. Amidst strong competition, we proudly secured a Highly Commended award in the Commercial Impact category.
This outstanding achievement is a testament to the incredible work of the joint Marston Holdings and Curzon Consulting team, who delivered exceptional results within an impressively short timeframe.
The judges said this was a “project which used an imaginative approach and truly showed the power of a consulting team in delivering commercial benefits.”
Commercial Impact with Marston Holdings Ltd
Marston Holdings Ltd (MHL), a private equity-backed enterprise with a turnover exceeding £350 million. Primarily operating within the UK, the company caters to diverse sectors, prioritising services related to legal and regulatory obligations enforcement, including but not limited to parking enforcement, fine collection, and management.
MHL embarked on a transformative journey to achieve remarkable growth, with a focus on unlocking substantial savings through a strategic procurement programme. In collaboration with Curzon Consulting, MHL aimed to address challenges such as insufficient spend visibility, dominant incumbent suppliers, and limited procurement influence within the organisation.
Under the leadership of Curzon Consulting and CEO Martin Johnson, the project, named Project Eagle, aimed to drive sales, optimise costs, and enhance productivity. The procurement transformation programme set out to revamp MHL’s procurement organisation while delivering substantial savings.
Curzon’s approach was multi-faceted, leveraging deep data analytics, innovative thinking, and tried-and-tested change management methodologies. The process involved three main workstreams: Spend Opportunity Assessment, Benefits Delivery, and Procurement Organisation Assessment.
The Spend Opportunity Assessment phase involved a rapid analysis of MHL’s spend, identifying significant savings. Despite initial challenges, the team delivered the core assessment in less than five business days. Subsequent phases focused on implementing cost-saving initiatives, including achieving quick wins within the first two months.
The Benefits Delivery phase saw the implementation of various procurement strategies across different expenditure categories, such as strategic sourcing, product harmonisation, and make vs. buy analysis. These initiatives led to significant cost reductions.
Additionally, the Procurement Organisation Assessment aimed to enhance MHL’s procurement capabilities. Recommendations included restructuring the team, enhancing governance, and improving strategy and systems.
Throughout the project, Curzon fostered a collaborative relationship with MHL, employing a unified ‘one team’ approach and acting as trusted advisors. A well-defined governance model ensured efficient communication and problem-solving.
Despite challenges such as supplier resistance and stakeholder reluctance to change, Curzon overcame obstacles through pragmatic approaches, evidence-based reasoning, and stakeholder management expertise. The project delivered measurable results, exceeding savings targets by 28%, with a sizeable in-year cash impact. Qualitative outcomes included improved transparency in spend areas, satisfaction with new products, and enhanced trust in the procurement team.
In conclusion, the partnership between MHL and Curzon Consulting exemplified resilience, innovation, and successful collaboration, resulting in significant cost savings and organisational improvements.
Chetan, Stephane and the Curzon team were contracted to deliver an optimisation programme at Marston Holdings. The Curzon team approached the complex task with energy and professionalism, which was key to the ultimate success of the programme.
The technical knowledge and capability of the Curzon team were clear from the start of the engagement and we had total faith in their capability to deliver the ambitious goals they had been set. Marston would recommend Curzon to anyone who requires the domain knowledge and experience of a capable consulting partner. We look forward to working with them in the future
Martin Johnson, CEO, Marston Holdings Ltd