We seek customer success over our own short-term interests
We thrive by our reputation, so the only way to guarantee our future success is to do what’s right, right now, for our customers
This is the value that is hardest to convey (we recognise it can sound clichéd), but it is perhaps the most important in terms of day-to-day decision-making.
We need to be clear that this is not a naive or altruistic value. We are a reputation business – most of our customers (and most of our consultants) come from referrals. We have learnt that the only way to guarantee our own long-term success is to do, today, what is right for our customers.
Equal Experts is in a relatively unique position to follow through on this. We became employee-owned in 2024 meaning we don’t have investors demanding we meet short-term financial targets. We operate a very lean business, with low fixed costs, and a limited “bench”. Our whole organisation is designed from the outset so that individuals never feel compromised in having to make decisions to protect EE – that might be detrimental to our customers.
How we do this:
It’s better to leave a customer with reputation, rather than revenue
Sometimes we find that we are not the right solution to a customer’s problem (or perhaps the right solution, but at the wrong time). In this case, then we should move as soon as possible to allow our customer to progress. We never want to be bums on seats or feet under the table.
This means helping the customer to find alternative solutions and ensuring a smooth handover and transition.
We embrace recognition of our customers, over our own fame.
Whilst it’s always nice to gain recognition, we’re paid to ensure we achieve our customer’s goals not further our own agenda.
We are part of the customer’s overall delivery group, not the other way around so we do not brag about EE, and our own contribution, louder than we brag about the overall delivery success of the customer.
We don’t ‘land and expand’
People who join Equal Experts are often surprised that we don’t have explicit “account expansion plans”. We, of course, have holistic ambitions that we use for planning – mainly around business sustainability – but these aren’t underpinned by forcing expansion on our customers. It’s more likely that we will be resisting requests for more people than it is that we will be proposing teams or products that are not wanted.
The growth of an account, when it happens, is driven by new opportunities to solve new problems, add value through software, and build customer capability for the long term. When value-adding opportunities run out – we aim to leave the customer in a better place than we found them. A customer once called it ‘land and retract’.
Explore our other values
We deliver as teams of equals
Teams are greater than the sum of their parts. No matter what role people play in a team, they all have something to contribute, and they all have a voice in delivery decisions.
We have a passion for learning over knowing all the answers
We may have Experts in our name, but we do not pretend to know all the answers. We hire experienced people who value ongoing learning.
We prioritise outcomes over approach
We work in complex and highly dynamic environments where understanding the context is vital. We’re not interested in a cookie-cutter approach.
We narrow our focus but widen our context
We deliver concrete value as early as possible by quickly identifying key opportunities, but framing them within the wider organisational context.
We bring step-by-step change
It can be tempting to look for a WOW factor, but we know that lasting change is best achieved through small practices that build towards larger transformation.
Join us
Be part of a network of experts
Ready for a new challenge? We look for people with a depth and breadth of experience, the right attitude to get things done and a real desire to help our customers be successful. Most of our people have at least 10 years of experience with a variety of different industries or clients.
Operating a flat structure, also allows our people to make the most of their industry experience, giving teams autonomy in making decisions that are aligned with the way we want to behave, how we work with our customers as well as how we want to be recognised.
Take a look at our current opportunities.