A North East business coaching consultancy is reaping the rewards of taking some of its own advice by sharpening its focus and pivoting the business.
During the last year Newcastle-based AuxinOKR has extended and developed the business support it offers, resulting in the firm securing corporate clients around the UK and overseas. New clients include Legal & General, Which?, Rolls-Royce, and South African banking group Absa.
Even the disruptive effects of the coronavirus pandemic have not halted the work or growth of this high-impact consultancy, which has adjusted by pivoting to enable consultants to deliver support and training remotely over video conferencing platforms.
Blue-chip organisations have turned to AuxinOKR for support in the development and implementation of a goal-setting management process – objectives and key results, better known as OKRs. This approach of turning business strategy into measurable goals has been embraced by high growth companies like Intel, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook, Siemens, and Netflix.
Few business coaching and management consultancies have the expertise to advise on this style of goal management system; and within a fairly short time AuxinOKR has become one of the leading exponents in the UK.
The business has applied OKRs to its own growth strategy and has expanded at a rapid pace with the three-man consultancy about to expand by appointing five new partners, two in the UK and three overseas, while also looking to join a wider international network of OKR specialists.
Peter Kerr, managing director of Auxin OKR, explained: “Auxin has been around for many years, running as a small, successful generic business support consultancy. But since we reviewed our own objectives and invested in developing our focus and expertise in OKRs we have completely changed our model, reached outside of the North East to win work with larger and more corporate clients.
“By embracing and applying what we preach, it’s reassuring to see the positive impact OKRs can have on any size of business from the ambitious start-ups, to scale-ups and ultimately the large, global corporates. We’re working with them all.
“We’re proud of our North East roots and would like to work with more high-growth companies that we know are around the region. But we’re pleased to have exported our expertise nationally and even to places like South Africa and perhaps further afield in the coming year.”
Rather than seeing the current pandemic as a hindrance to business, Peter Kerr believes the economic environment will accelerate the need for business transformation and that’s where he believes OKRs will help companies focus on key goals to change the way they do business.
Peter added: “The economic landscape will be tough for the next year or two but will focus minds and encourage more corporates and large organisations to transform their current business models. This is where AuxinOKR has a great opportunity to step in to help them implement and drive their strategies for change.”