To those who may not have heard we announced today the sale of Consilium to ICR, one of the largest and most experienced independent strategic communications and advisory firms in North America with offices in New York, Norwalk, Boston, Baltimore, San Diego, San Jose and Beijing. ICR has acquired 100% of the equity of Consilium.
This follows a very successful collaboration between our firms for almost 10 years. Having originally established a Joint Venture agreement with Westwicke Partners – the leading healthcare IR firm in the US – in 2014, we continued our collaboration after ICR acquired Westwicke in 2019 and are now so excited to also be joining with ICR in full, including all the additional benefits it will allow us to bring to our clients. I am personally extremely excited too that I will continue to lead the firm and our wonderful team.
Having advised on the communications of so many deals over our careers, it also feels exciting to have done one of our own, especially when the strategic and cultural fit is so strong.
As with any deal there are so many people to thank:
Amber Fennell, my co-founder, for the wonderful fun, hard work and friendship I have relished since we set the business up in 2013 following the management buy-out and an entrepreneurial leap together out of M:Communications. I can’t wait to continue this journey with you as part of ICR.
Our clients, who were the reason we did the buy-out and the reason we did this deal, you have always been the centre for Consilium.
Our team. My God what a market-leading team we’ve got. Since TUPE transferring five of us across with the management buy-out, and since collecting together a group of awesome operators, I am so proud of what we’ve achieved. I adore working with you – this makes me passionate about my job. I’ve always enjoyed making friends for life wherever I’ve worked and I’ve certainly made many more here so far at Consilium.
Our team is solely focused on providing excellent advice and outstanding client service. We have a high bar for it and pride ourselves on the consistently senior-level advice and quality, and our energy and speed. Our office has the feel of a unique camaraderie; there’s great banter among us and an intense level of thoughtfulness and respect that surrounds everyone, every day. No one takes themselves too seriously. Everyone can be themselves. This is so important to me – it’s how your job should feel and something I have strived for over the past 10 years while building Consilium. This talent and culture has been key to our success and I’m excited that, via joining our long-term partner ICR, this is only set to continue.
Ivar Milligan, our Chief Operating Officer, who joined us from the British Army in 2013 when we were setting the firm up. He flew up the firm as an advisor and then, after a career break, rejoined us, much to my relief, and now runs our entire back office. He does this with military-like precision, naturally, he is annoyingly unflusterable, constantly kind and thoughtful, and a complete legend who allows all us advisors to ‘advise’ and focus on our clients.
Our support staff are more than just admin assistants. They are our angels! They, under Ivar and with Liza Carr, our Office Manager, professionally helped to run this deal and particularly the comprehensive due diligence process so we could remain focused on our priorities: our clients and team. Harpreet Virdi, ‘my Angel’, you deserve a medal for making my client work so achievable and enjoyable. You are constantly an incredible support to me and I’ve never been lucky enough to work with anyone like you before.
Sandra Williams, our Financial Controller, the timing of our reconnection was fate and we couldn’t have done this deal without you. Your M&A and finance experience has been mind-blowing to me and your humour and laughter is still as infectious and loved by all as it always was when we worked together with friends at PowderJect.
ICR,– it’s felt like dating since we were first introduced and, after a long and fruitful engagement, we are tying the knot! Our clients can now access ICR’s entire platform of international IR, PR, Digital, ESG and Capital Markets Advisory services in a seamless fashion. John Sorenson (COO) your efficiency, friendship, patience, tirelessness and humour throughout this deal process has been enormously appreciated, as has Tim Bishop’s (Head of Legal) calmness, partnership and wide selection of baseball caps! Tom Ryan and Don Duffy (CEO and President, respectively), thank you for this and for staying the good cops. I’m looking forward to integrating our businesses with many more fun dinners and stories ahead of us. We are also extremely fortunate and grateful to have two leading global private equity firms – Investcorp and CDPQ, who invested in ICR in recent years – that we can now count as integral partners on this continuing journey.
Freeths, our lawyers. Emily Settle is a definite friend for life and I have Beaudesert Park School to thank for that. The team alongside you and led by Malin Svanberg Larsson, Francis Dalton, Leanne Fryer with Claire Boyce, Edward Chapman, Charlotte Collard and everyone who helped, took us through this transaction with great professionalism. We always felt in good hands and congrats again to Malin on the birth of Isabel who entered the world along the way!
Ensors, our accountants, for their first-rate responsiveness. Seldom do I get a call back within seconds in response to a ‘housekeeping’ email. Ensors you are on it! The world needs more people like you!
Seward and Kissel, your skills in US tax are like another language to me – thank you for being there and working literally around the clock for us. Nick Katsanos – you have been a pleasure to have on board the team. It’s been an education!
PWC and White & Case, representing ICR, thank you for your thoroughness, hard work and efficiency when interacting with our team. Denis Whelan – those spreadsheets and charts were a work of art! Hats off to you and your team!
Overall, I never once felt this transaction was overwhelming, despite people telling me it would be. As always in my life, this was due to the team involved. Thank you to everyone here for pulling together, being supportive of one another, for being keen, kind and as excited as I have been from the get-go, and to everyone for simply working damn hard!
Above all, I thank our clients for your loyal relationship with us.
And finally, I thank my husband and soulmate, Simon (who is often an afterthought when I write for work), for his unwavering support throughout this incredible initial 10-year journey at Consilium and for his great understanding of my career demands, pleasures and ongoing aspirations.
Thank you,
MJ
