Meet Anthony Singleton – Non-Executive Director and all-round super Melo challenger

Anthony Singleton is our Non-Executive Director (NED) and friendly challenger.

Having racked up 40 years of corporate experience, he sits on the Melo board, supporting and challenging decisions.

With a knack for integrating businesses through mergers and acquisitions, Anthony is an advocate for change based on people, process, and technology.

This month, Anthony sat down with Victoria Hicks to tell us more about his career and explain the value businesses can gain by working with a Non-Exec Director.

Could you start by telling us a bit about your career journey and what led you to take on Non-Executive Director roles? What qualities or experiences have helped you succeed as a NED?

Having had a career spanning nearly 40 years with the last 20 spent in senior executive roles across a number of private equity (PE) backed businesses, I’ve learnt a thing or two about how to grow businesses.

In particular, the importance of people and ensuring that you surround yourself with the relevant skills, and capabilities to drive a business forward. I also learnt how to become a better leader through empowerment and mentorship while dealing with and managing the politics that go hand in hand with getting the best out of a board while managing the needs of the PE firm.

My career commenced in banking, which taught me the importance of customer loyalty. I then moved into the IT industry, working for the likes of Groupe Bull and IBM – both large IT providers through the 1980s.

I quickly rose through the ranks, becoming a Sales Director in 1997. I moved into software development in 1999 and became a Board Director in 2009, successfully growing and exiting three software businesses on behalf of the PE backers.

All businesses saw double-digit profit growth and sold for a combined total of more than £1 billion.

In 2021, after the last sale process, I decided to move into non-executive roles where I could help other SME businesses grow exponentially by utilising the skills, expertise, and leadership qualities I had learnt.

As a NED, in addition to the skills and expertise of having walked in the shoes of the people I work with, I also bring a calming influence on leadership teams. Most challenges they face are not unique and there is always a solution.

I’m there to provide challenge and rigour, ensuring that the day-to-day decisions being made by the board or leadership team are right for the organisation, do not place to great a risk on the operation, and are aligned to the strategy for the business.

In your view, what makes a truly effective NED? Are there specific qualities or skills that you believe are essential for success in this role, particularly when working with financial planning professionals?

To be a truly effective NED , you first need to have walked in the shoes of your leadership team. You must have seen and dealt first-hand with the challenges of building a business.

No textbook can provide you with the practical experiences of going on and through that journey.

The qualities and skills you then bring are twofold:

1. Challenge and rigour

Businesses must learn how to deal with all the challenges that will be faced through their own growth journey.

As a NED, you are not there to give all the answers. You are there to guide and steer, allowing the board/leadership team to learn and grow themselves.

Yes, you need to challenge decisions but not for the sake of challenging, simply to ensure everyone understands why they are making the decisions. And that those decisions follow the strategy set by the business – that they are the right ones and won’t place too much risk on the operation.

2. Business involvement

Getting involved in the business you are NED for is key. Spending time getting to know how it operates and understanding the strengths and weaknesses of its people allows you to guide and steer.

Financial planning professionals are no different to those in most industries. You all live or die on your reputation and integrity, with client satisfaction top of the agenda.

Key skills for any NED are:

1. Being able to listen
2. Being a good communicator
3. Acting as a coach/mentor for all members of the board/leadership team
4. Applying focus and discipline.

And, above all else, ensure there is FUN.

Why do you think so few Independent Financial Advisory (IFA) firms have a Non-Executive Director on their boards? What challenges might these firms face without this external viewpoint, and what opportunities could a NED bring?

I believe that the reason few IFA firms have a NED is a fear of the unknown, and not fully understanding the benefits a NED can bring.

Deciding you need support and/or guidance to build a better business requires a brave decision.

Many IFA firms believe they have grown successfully, so having someone come into their business and tell them how they should operate is not for them. In addition, many IFA firms believe you need to come from the profession to be able to advise, which is simply not true.

Read more: NED in a Box: The check and challenge you need to grow your business

Building a successful business is the same the world over. Yes, you need people with the skills and knowledge of the sector you operate within, but you also need a specific set of characteristics that are different but gel. This allows people with skills in operations, sales, marketing, finance and so on to drive the business forward.

You also need processes that align, providing you with valuable data insight into how you need to adapt and change to meet future demand. Most IFA businesses don’t look at business in this way but will need to adapt over the next five years.

With Consumer Duty and other regulations also coming into play, the financial service sector is becoming more transparent. This will mean increased rigour will be placed on businesses, requiring greater focus and improved discipline. And having an external viewpoint/critical friend to help guide will help enormously.

You’ve worked as a NED for IFA firms. From your experience, what specific benefits has your role brought to these organisations? Could you provide an example of how your perspective has led to positive changes or improvements?

In my role as NED within IFA firms, the biggest benefit to date has been the focus on people.

I am a huge advocate of people. They are the heartbeat of a business and without the right team in place, you cannot grow.

It may sound like common sense, but you first need to understand your culture – what the moral compass is that drives your business – then find the right skills that match that moral compass.

It’s harder than it sounds but it will make the biggest difference.

In one business I work with we embraced this approach, spending time initially to make sure we really understood what made us tick, what our values were, and why those made us different.

We then set out to appoint a leadership team that bought into those values and fully understood why we were in existence. We then aligned processes and applied some technology to improve those processes.

Over the last four years, that business has more than doubled in revenue and tripled its profit through organic growth.

In many IFA firms, there can be a risk of working in an echo chamber, where alternative views are limited, and decisions might lack external scrutiny. How does a NED help mitigate this “marking your own homework” issue, and why is an independent viewpoint particularly valuable in this context?

The echo chamber does exist. Worse still, in many owner-led businesses, very few employees feel they can suggest change. So, default decisions are made without any level of scrutiny or challenge and become self-professing.

Equally, many businesses don’t go back to basics in terms of assessing whether their vision and/or mission is still fit for purpose or set a strategy/endgame in terms of what they want to achieve over the short to midterm.

Without this strategic direction it is impossible to measure success against any relevant criteria. Businesses tend to operate reactively when in this mode which can stifle any ability to grow.

A NED should provide the challenge to ensure that:

1. The vision and mission is still relevant and that everyone understands what direction the boat is travelling in.
2. Decisions are the right decisions for the business.
3. Rigour is in place to allow all voices to be heard.
4. All business risk is understood, managed and mitigated.

The concept of “check and challenge” is vital in the NED role. Could you share a time when you needed to challenge a decision or direction within a board, and how you ensured this was constructive and led to a positive outcome?

The majority of challenges I make as a NED are simply to ensure the leadership fully understands the implications of decisions being made. This rarely changes the outcome, unless I feel the risk a business is taking is too great.

If the risk is significant, I will generally articulate why and try to give an analogy of where a similar decision led to a problematic outcome.

Quite often, businesses don’t always see the downside of certain decisions and how that can impact the business negatively.

I always take out the emotion and deal pragmatically with the issue at hand. It’s a careful balance but once most leadership teams see all outcomes that a decision can lead to, they are better placed to make positive outcomes themselves.

Looking to the future, how do you see the role of NEDs evolving, especially with the increasing emphasis on ESG, regulatory changes, and digital transformation in the IFA sector? What new challenges and opportunities might NEDs face in this space?

If IFA firms want to build at scale and create lasting legacies, then they should be looking to engage external support at an early juncture through that journey.

Having individuals within the business who have been in their shoes and can provide valuable insight into what is required and articulate some of the pitfalls before they manifest themselves will prove invaluable.

NEDs are, by nature, advocates for change and most will have seen significant transformation through their careers. Allowing them to add value as any business adapts to new challenges.

What advice would you offer to a firm considering taking on a NED?

I would urge any business to look positively at the role of a NED, understanding help and support is required is step one and arguably the bravest.

If any business decides a NED is the right investment, make sure you spend time assessing their moral compass to ensure it aligns with yours. Assess whether they truly have walked in your shoes and still have the passion to get stuck in and help you drive the business forward.

Get in touch

We’re incredibly fortunate to have Anthony on our team. If you’re keen to find a NED to help challenge your decisions and drive growth, we can help. Email hello@melo.co.uk or call 0113 4656111.