Niels de Coninck-Smith - Your Consulting Partner

A senior business leader with a strong commercial and results-orientated approach. Offers a combination of experienced business leadership coupled with the ethos and analytics of a leading professional services organisation.

 
Significant experience from a variety of Non-Executive Director roles and broad international exposure add to the overall substantial leadership and consulting experience.
 
McKINSEY & Co.

20 years with the firm, the bulk of which with focus on life sciences. Exposed to several of the largest enterprises in the world and comfortable with large scale corporate dealings.

 
Achieved turn around in the Copenhagen practice in the late nineties. Elected senior partner within the Scandinavian office complex and, subsequently co-led the firm’s life sciences related practice based in the Tokyo and Brussels offices. Led multiple M & A and post-merger assignments.

 
FERROSAN A/S.

 
Shaped growth strategy, and new organisation for ailing Danish OTC and med tech firm. Led the successful implementation. Worked closely with new private equity owner as CEO until late 2008 (moved to the UK for personal reasons and in agreement with the Ferrosan owner) and remain involved as NED.

 
Increased revenue and profit in each of the 6 years with revenue increasing from €75m to €175m and EBIT from €1m to €23m.

 
KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

 
Driving Growth – When appointed as CEO of Ferrosan, Ferrosan had declining sales and was regarded as a dusty and sleepy company. The challenge was to reverse this development. The shareholders agreed to inject fresh equity for an early acquisition. Subsequently a new focused strategy produced sharp growth in selected core brands and geographies. As a result Ferrosan turnover grew by 260% from 2001 to 2008.

 
Commercial / Business Development – with McKinsey & Co developed multiple large scale client relationships. Specifically the challenge with several pharmaceutical companies had been to move from one off projects to a sustained relationship. In several cases the key action was to assemble a strong global set of client service partners who were dedicated to serving the particular client. This team was able to craft attractive large scale interventions. In one specific case a Scandinavian pharmaceuticals company grew from being insignificant in terms of McKinsey activity to become the largest client of the health care practice. This company has continued to do extremely well and is top of the league tables in terms of shareholder returns.

 
With Ferrosan (both as CEO and as NED) led the renegotiation of key contracts and creation of new alliance with a globally leading health products company.

 
Leadership / Management - Accomplishing election to director of McKinsey & Co attests to fundamental leadership qualities. Ferrosan was demoralised and without direction. The leadership team has been revamped (twice to fit the different stages of the turnaround) and attractive company values and strong people processes have been put in place.

As Non-Executive Director of several companies substantial impact has been achieved including the design of major restructuring and new strategic direction.