Paul Lenton

Paul Lenton In 60 Seconds

I am an entrepreneurial finance leader with experience across the media, creative and technology sectors. My career focus has been to deliver a finance function that delivers valuable insight to the business and to leverage that information, aligned with a strategic mindset, to drive the profitability and value of the business. I have led businesses through exits leading to favourable outcomes.

Specialist Skills

Financial Operations

Organising and leading cross-functional teams including recruiting, mentoring and training. Designing and implementing best-in-class financial systems and processes.

Business Planning

Developing financial forecasts and long term business plans, forecasting cash flow, analysing expenditures, evaluating capital investments, and analysing data to identify opportunities for improvement.

Exit Planning

Looking at value drivers beyond P&L metrics, planning for showcase profile of business to achieve high valuation and wide appeal, Information Memorandum planning, and selection of partners to manage exit.

Strategic Thinker

Identifying potential growth or efficiency opportunities and developing and executing strategies to capitalise on them.

Profit Improvement

Identifying underlying weaknesses in business strategy or processes that undermine both profit generation and cashflow.

Track Record Highlights

Advised loss making £12m Consumer Data business, in extreme financial distress, on strategy to manage and avoid liquidation/closure by managing HMRC, Bank and key supplier relationships. Worked closely with the owner to create a turnaround plan, including redundancies and changes to the senior management team. Business now making 15% net margin and owner has recently exited at a value over £25m.
Worked with two 50/50 joint shareholders of a £3m revenue risk management business who were looking to exit, with a focus on increasing profitability, with a view to a trade sale. Includes incentivising senior management team with both short and long-term objectives/bonus and reviewing strategy to focus on aspects of the business which will add significant value to prospective acquirors. Since starting the business re-focus, previously stagnant revenue has now increased 10% in each of last two years, and gross margin has improved significantly. Trade sale successfully achieved in 2022 at values ahead of shareholder expectations.
Initially assisting a £3m revenue business owner with due diligence information and negotiation support for a prospective sale (which was rejected by the owner on price grounds). Subsequently building a 5-year strategy and finance plan to achieve the business size and profitability to achieve the owners’ sale value expectations. In 2022, undertook an Employee Ownership Trust buyout from the owner.
Working with a £12m Revenue Financial Data business in evaluation of two US acquisitions, supervised due diligence, assisted with vendor price offer and negotiation, whilst managing the process for raising loan funding for the acquisitions.
Assist owners of £3m revenue business in identifying the disconnect between revenue growth and cash-flow difficulties. Delivered by renewed focus on margin management/contract pricing, whilst also upgrading the timing and quality of financial information so that issues could be identified earlier. Also sought and achieved long term loan funding of £500k repayable over 5 years to support business working capital growth.
Working closely with owner of £10m Contract Decorator to segment activities by profit and security of contract, and also seek to minimise variation issues post completion, in order to avoid low margin work. Also developing KPI reports to monitor success of various growth initiatives. Advising on family succession strategy, and sourcing working capital loans to fund growth.

Sector Experience

Technology, Media & Telecoms: TV production, publishing, stock photography
Sport & Recreation: Sport development consultancy, sport branding strategy
Services: Software, Credit risk management

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