We partner with PE firms and portfolio companies to drive business transformation across the full transaction cycle — from pre-deal thesis validation to exit-ready value realisation.
pe-top was founded on a single conviction: lasting value creation in private equity depends not just on financial engineering, but on fundamentally transforming business models to focus on customer value — and reaching the next level of performance that follows from that focus. Processes, systems, and organisations must be built around the people who use them, not the other way around.
We bring a deep understanding of Lean — not as a set of tools to be deployed, but as a way of transforming businesses and improving performance with the right tools at the right time, always keeping in mind the bandwidth and capabilities of the management team.
The starting point is always understanding what truly creates value for customers — and then building the processes and capabilities to deliver it consistently. Only once that is clear can we design what the business needs to become.
We do not hand off recommendations. We partner through design, implementation, and embedding — ensuring transformation becomes institutional capability, not a consulting report.
We don't aim to build the perfect company — we bring it onto the continuous improvement journey, delivering first what is needed for a capital markets reward. Transformations are sequenced around what matters most within the deal cycle, not around theoretical completeness.
Only the team can deliver sustained change — and only change carried by the team endures. We are fully aware of this. Our solutions are developed by the team, not imposed on it. We build ownership, capability, and confidence at every level of the organisation.
From commercial due diligence to exit preparation, we are the operational partner PE firms rely on to turn investment theses into compounding enterprise value.
Every engagement begins here. We map what the end customer truly values — and what they actually pay for. This becomes the fixed reference point against which every business model and process decision is measured.
With customer value defined, we work with the leadership team to build a shared vision — then design the business and operating model to deliver it. Value stream design is a key tool here, but it is always framed by the broader model: what the business needs to become, not just how its processes should flow.
This is pe-top's core focus. We design the strategy and sequence for change — in steps and timeframes that are right for the PE fund's horizon and can realistically be executed by the company. PE funds and management teams often have diverging interests and priorities; we help balance these, creating a roadmap that is ambitious but achievable and credible to all stakeholders.
Implementation is where specialist partners provide delivery leverage. The roadmap is not static — it follows the logic of Hoshin-Kanri: a dynamic, iterative process of deployment, review, and adjustment that keeps the organisation aligned and moving toward the target condition, even as circumstances change.
Too many transformation programmes deploy Lean as a set of tools — 5S events, Kaizen workshops, A3s filed and forgotten. The results are cosmetic. The underlying operating logic goes unchanged, and performance improvements fade as soon as the consultants leave.
At pe-top, the four steps above — defining value, reshaping the model, architecting the approach, and dynamically implementing — are not a linear checklist. They are a way of thinking about transformation that keeps every action anchored to customer value and business reality. The right tools are applied at the right time, in the right sequence, with full awareness of what the management team can absorb and deliver.
For PE-backed businesses, this discipline is what separates cosmetic change from compounding value creation — and a credible exit story from one that falls apart under due diligence.
"Lean is not a toolkit. It is a way of thinking — and the right way to think about building a business that performs for its customers, its people, and its investors."
A selection of engagements, sanitised to protect commercially sensitive information.
Led a multi-year operational transformation programme across manufacturing, supply chain, and quality management as the business scaled internationally. Focus was on standardising end-to-end processes across sites while preserving regulatory compliance and improving customer service levels.
Supported a global metal implant CDMO through a comprehensive operational transformation — aligning manufacturing capabilities, quality systems, and commercial processes to serve a growing global customer base while meeting exacting regulatory standards across multiple jurisdictions.
Supported a leading pharmaceutical packaging CDMO — one that both manufactures for customers and develops its own proprietary device IP — through a critical growth transformation. Engaged across commercial, operations, and organisational design to align the business for continued expansion and investor exit.
Embedded as a transformation partner during a period of rapid M&A-driven growth. Designed and deployed operating model changes to integrate acquisitions, build scalable fund-administration processes, and create a culture capable of sustaining high-quality service delivery at scale.
Deep collaboration with two of the world's leading Lean advisory practices — combining PE-specific transaction expertise with deep Lean management and operational excellence capabilities across joint client engagements in North America and Europe.
pe-top operates as a lean, high-impact practice that draws on a curated network of specialists. We build partnerships that deliver depth where it is needed — without the overhead of large consultancies.
US-based Lean management consulting firm. Joint engagements in manufacturing, healthcare, and private equity portfolio operations across North America and Europe.
Premier operational improvement consultancy. Collaboration on PE-backed transformations requiring deep Lean management system deployment and leadership coaching.
Whether you're a PE firm evaluating operational capability, a portfolio company navigating a transformation, or a potential partner — we'd welcome the conversation.