With a career spanning strategy consulting, private equity and large corporates, Steve Huntley has seen transformation from every angle.
In our chat, Steve opened up about what really makes transformation work, why so many strategies fall short, and how staying calm under pressure can make all the difference when the stakes are high.
What follows is not a traditional Q&A, but a window into Steve’s thinking on value creation, innovation, and staying sharp under pressure.
Steve’s career has spanned billion-pound transformations and brand-new consulting ventures. What ties it all together is his ability to navigate the messy middle. That’s the space where priorities compete, pressure builds, and strategy needs to turn into action.
What’s your go-to playbook for keeping strategy, execution, and outcomes aligned?
Regardless of size, I think the principles are the same: having the ability to bring clarity from chaos. No business is perfect; no stakeholder group is always utterly aligned; and value creating transformation is rarely smooth. If it were easy, someone would have already executed. Having the ability and experience to envisage, architect and create a new path, whilst simultaneously adjusting and aligning is the only playbook required in my view.
For me, there are 3 key reasons a strategy is more likely to fail:
I think it’s important to look beyond the balance sheet and trading reports. Yes, data and trends will give you an indication of likely challenges and opportunities, but it’s just as important to understand things like customer sentiment, product roadmaps, investment choices (or missed opportunities) and workplace ‘pinch points’ that prevent the business from becoming high-performing or implementing a specific priority. You can often only get this from talking to a few choice colleagues.
We got talking about how the idea of value creation is changing and why building credibility and momentum inside big, complex organisations is getting harder, not easier. With more pressure to deliver results fast, it’s not just about setting the right strategy. It’s about proving you can execute, too.
In my experience, Value creation (VC) as a distinct function is relatively new. Whilst it’s existed in the private equity space for some time under various guises, corporates are only recently turning to a VC function that can set AND execute strategic (and tactical) priorities, whilst also adapting to market conditions. Often, value will be derived from various levers and rarely do I see a corporate only focusing on one priority.
A good value creator will be able to curate a narrative between these levers and enable a positive spiral of success - for example, recognising that driving improved customer experience will also improve revenue growth opportunities; or enhancing employee engagement can motivate more productivity, which enables margin enhancement, which funds further transformation.
Having the customer at the heart of what you do is rarely a bad idea. Last year in VMO2 Business, we really doubled down on how we could improve our relationships with our B2B customers. This was both data and experience led, and really changed the way we made decisions in our own business. During a period of uncertainty, we were proud of delighting our customers and finding ways to make them buy more from us when times get better.
I have a saying that “sunshine is the best disinfectant” — meaning let’s use data to shine a light on all of the things that aren’t going well. As someone who thrives on strategising and transforming in challenged or high growth situations, data should always provide an important input into the way you lead and take decisions. Having led data functions during my career, mostly recently at VMO2 Business, it’s unlikely you will rely on it solely, but if nothing else, it will highlight areas to probe. The real question to ask your data team is ‘what doesn’t the data tell us, and why’?
We moved on to talk about transformation on the ground. Steve’s been in the thick of billion-pound tech programmes and day-one delivery challenges, so I was curious: what actually makes the difference between transformations that land and the ones that never quite get there?
Having consistency in the team and the leader is often a big differentiator. Handoffs between different sponsors and across a multitude of suppliers or internal functions tends to be where mistakes are made, estimates exaggerated, accountability lost and focus diminished. If you’re not set up to be accountable to both architect the strategy and deliver the outcomes, then any kind of transformational change is going to be more problematic and require an even greater focus on stakeholder alignment.
I think it can be misleading to assume that all innovation or technology is costly and messy — being too risk averse when it comes to innovation is a transformation killer. What’s often more pragmatic is to consider ‘what’s the minimum we could get away with’. That’s not to say businesses should settle with something low quality, but having an appreciation for what is absolutely essential will naturally provide an attainable benchmark upon which management teams can evolve and stretch. In my experience, this has led to faster results and is self-fulfilling when it comes to innovating in a complex business: smaller, less risky, faster outcomes means teams feel more productive, and learn from wins and losses which encourages the next iteration of innovation.
You can’t talk to someone who’s led as much change as Steve has and not get into the people side of it. Transformation is never just about the tech and it’s humans that make or break large scale programmes. And for all the results he’s delivered, what really stands out is how down-to-earth he is about the messy reality of leading through it.
It taught me that forming a consulting business is hard..! Despite the expertise, willingness, and track record of the team, it still wasn’t straight forward to create momentum. We learnt to celebrate all wins, regardless of size; we learnt to be uber resourceful - a small team meant all pitching in and coming up with creative ideas to enable progress. Finally, to build scale, credibility and pace, we partnered, we pioneered a strategic relationship with peers, and also found win-win opportunities with our competitors in the segment.
I always try to travel for work by train vs alternatives, even if slightly less convenient. The dedicated time and head space really works for me. It provides the bandwidth for me to read, reflect and prioritise and ensures this thinking time doesn’t interfere with family time at home. This means I arrive sharper (at work) and more relaxed (at home).
I’ve been lucky to have the opportunity to use my professional experiences to support some good causes. The biggest lesson is to always show up authentically. My belief is this trait goes a long way. Everyone wants to work for an authentic leader and, particularly if you’re in an unfamiliar or tough situation, being authentic will encourage those around you to be more motivated, engaged and high performing, in my experience it can make the difference between a short-lived result and a sustainable result.
As the conversation drew to a close, I wanted to leave Steve with two final questions: one looking ahead, and one looking back. Where is value creation heading next, and what advice would he pass on to someone stepping into their first senior strategy role?
As industries, business models and workplace patterns shift more regularly, I think value will be derived more absolutely through a leadership teams’ ability to adapt quickly, effectively and purposefully. It’s uncertain where the next technological advancement or market shock will come from, but having the ability to repeatedly exploit uncertainty and turn it into value will undoubtedly be a capability worth developing and optimising.
Be intellectually curious and always have an opinion. Strategy is all about facing into the unknown, taking calculated risks, and curating a new journey. This will be much easier, more enjoyable, and with greater impact if you’re able to fully get under the skin of the business you’re working in — and you can’t do this without having an opinion. Right or wrong, having an opinion on all of the topics you’re involved with encourages debate and new ways of thinking. This behaviour should start from the top and be encouraged in all your teams.
From startup ventures to billion-pound integrations, Steve’s experience makes one thing clear, successful transformation isn’t about sticking to the plan, it’s about knowing when and how to flex. Whether he’s talking about strategy, leadership or execution, the through line is the same: stay grounded, stay human, and stay focused on what really moves the needle.
