In our experience, the biggest barriers to scale are usually internal. External events can affect operations, but over time growth more often stalls because of factors within management’s control. Priorities blur. Decision-making slows. Bureaucracy creeps in. Talent processes lag behind business needs. Incentives stop reinforcing the right behaviours. The organisation becomes more complex, but not…

March 24, 2026 Read more >

A recent newspaper report highlighted that there is a worry in the “Big 4” accountancy firms that there will not be enough people coming through their “talent pipeline”. For many businesses, the thought will strike them that “if one of the deepest resourced firms in the country is having issues, what could that mean for…

March 23, 2026 Read more >

Life in the Boardroom is a unique biennial survey that gathers insights directly from Non-Executive Directors (NEDs) and Board Chairs, rather than from company staff or annual reports. Key areas covered include directors’ fees and time commitments, as well as their views on a range of topical board issues. Since 1990, this survey has provided…

March 20, 2026 Read more >

Culture as a value lever That PE investors are thinking about culture as a value lever should not be surprising. Recent discussions between PE boards and operating partners highlight that even the most detailed playbooks, growth targets and process improvement plans can be undermined if culture and incentives are misaligned. Growth in fund value is…

March 2, 2026 Read more >

The UK economy needs to grow. That is the simple message (and fervent hope) of the Government. It is welcoming to see steps already being taken to support this, for example via the proposed changes to the Enterprise Management Incentive scheme (see our reporting of this here – Employee Share Schemes). This quest for nurturing…

February 25, 2026 Read more >

MM&K’s annual Private Equity and Venture Capital Compensation Survey continues to provide one of the most comprehensive analyses of remuneration trends across the industry. Drawing on data from a wide cross-section of firms, the survey captures salary movements, bonus structures, long-term incentives (LTIs) including carry, and broader talent dynamics shaping the market. The 2025 findings…

February 23, 2026 Read more >

Many organisations talk about culture, but few have robust evidence of how effectively it supports strategic objectives. According to our most recent Life in the Boardroom report (a survey of UK board Chairs and Non‑Executive Directors) 66 % of directors reported strong alignment between their organisation’s culture, values, and strategic objectives, with NEDs playing a proactive…

February 22, 2026 Read more >

For the 2025/26 edition of Life in the Boardroom, MM&K collected responses from Chairs and NEDs who hold a total of 435 board appointments, surveying them on their fees, their use of time, and their opinions and experiences on topics such as board governance, board effectiveness, and more. The survey highlights a clear and consistent…

February 20, 2026 Read more >

Depending on your bonus culture, January may be when discretionary awards for 2025 are being decided, for others, this is when their “balanced scorecard” for 2026 is being reviewed and updated. Either way, now is the time when decisions will be made around where bonus monies (actual or potential) will be deployed. And for businesses…

January 21, 2026 Read more >

In December 2025, HM Revenue & Customs published the Employment Related Securities Bulletin (November 2025). The bulletin contains details from Autumn Budget 2025, including on the Private Intermittent Securities and Capital Exchange System (PISCES), Enterprise Management Incentives (EMI) and the published summary of responses to the Share Incentive Plans (SIP) and Save As You Earn…

January 21, 2026 Read more >

Boards focus on how culture enables strategy, shapes risk, drives leadership, and creates long-term value. Yet measuring culture is complex. Research by Russell Reynolds Associates shows that only 53% of board directors feel they have sufficient data to assess corporate culture, highlighting a persistent gap between intent and insight. Engagement surveys capture sentiment at a…

January 21, 2026 Read more >

Boards are more than decision-making bodies; they are the custodians of organisational culture, strategic alignment, and long-term value creation. In the most recent Life in the Boardroom webinar, moderated by Katya Gorbatiouk (Head of Investment Funds at the London Stock Exchange), Paul Norris (Senior Partner, MM&K), Kieran Moynihan (Managing Partner, Board Excellence), Fiona Hathorn (CEO, WB…

January 20, 2026 Read more >