industries

Tech-Enabled Businesses & Services

Digital transformation is now table-stakes across all businesses, and it is mobilizing organizations to think beyond efficiency improvements and digitization of processes to reinvent their strategies, business and operating models, and customer delivery approaches. Activate’s digital-native approach, paired with our industry expertise, helps our clients develop pragmatic and highly actionable growth plans and execution roadmaps to drive growth and create moats for our clients as they face new paradigms.
What we do
Growth strategy and transformation to tech-enabled businessDeveloping 3-year strategic roadmaps and initiatives (opportunity identification and assessment, new business development, organic growth performance improvement drivers, M&A) to transform analog or product businesses into tech-enabled businesses
Value proposition development and product roadmapsOptimizing near- and long-term product-market fit by realigning and future-proofing product roadmaps and investments with major market and customer needs, in light of competitive and ecosystem dynamics
Go-to-market strategy and execution plansDetermining the optimal way to acquire and serve the demand – leveraging channel opportunities, field sales approaches, inside-sales motions, and product-lead growth – and creating specific strategies, customer and channel propositions, and execution playbooks
M&A strategy & value creation roadmaps
  • Buy-side support: Investment thesis development, target identification, due diligence, deal execution support
  • Integration support: Pre-acquisition integration planning, synergy identification and planning, post-merger integration
  • Sell-side support: Investment narrative, company positioning and roadmaps, management presentation, 3- to 5-year financial models
  • Value creation roadmaps: Designing growths strategies aiming at maximizing value creation and shareholder outcomes
Pricing strategies, program, and performance optimizationDriving profitable growth and long-term customer value by helping technology and software organization create differentiated pricing capabilities to roll out optimal pricing structures, metrics, and processes
Channel and ecosystem strategy and program development (including managed services)Maximizing market reach and commercial impact through the identification of high potential channel and strategic ecosystem partners and development of partner proposition and program that foster long-term mutually beneficial partner connections
Customer/buyer insights and development of sales playbooksCapturing the voice of customer across decision-makers, influencers, and end-users, to develop highly actionable leads and sales insights, and deliver detailed playbooks (narrative, stakeholders, proposition, pricing)
Customer economics and route-to-market optimizationMaximizing long-term growth and profitability by developing customer-level KPIs to optimize acquisition channels and costs, service models, and overall customer segment prioritization
Marketing effectivenessSupporting CMOs as they determine how to optimize spend, especially given new user challenges as well as the changing role of technology platforms and major media companies (data and segmentation, evaluation of existing solutions, KPIs, budgeting and mix, optimal partner ecosystem, organization)
Sales effectivenessMaximizing ROI of sales investment by enhancing the full sales funnel management, processes (prospecting, lead generation and qualification, customer engagement strategies and coordination, etc.) and organization (territories, goal-setting, incentives, etc.), delivering high-impact performance improvement plans
Operating model transformation and organization developmentRedesigning organizations, processes, and operating models to meet the requirements from major industry shifts and digital transformation
Tech-Enabled Businesses & Service segments
AR/VR experiences Auctions Business & professional services Digital learning Distributors Education Entertainment destinations & tourism Freight & logistics Healthcare services Home care services platforms IT managed services Legal services Live entertainment Members clubs Movie experiences Music festival Sports betting operators Theaters Theme parks Training & certification Value-added resellers Venue services

Impact examples

Example #1Healthcare devices and tech-enabled servicesCreated the overall strategy for the company, including the development of investor narrative, presentation, and financials. A core element of the strategy was the articulation of a vision and formulation of a roadmap to create a unified patient-centric platform, bringing together rehabilitation hardware and therapy apps and services, powered by data collected from their installed base
Example #2Global logistics companyDeveloped the strategy, product roadmap, and go-to-market approach for the transformation of the company from a brokerage into a marketplace powered by data and technology — with the goal of becoming the platform for the overall industry
Example #3Global professional services companyIdentified opportunities to create hybrid businesses, leveraging services, technology implementation, and proprietary technology in areas such as legal services / eDiscovery, HR systems, and global tax
Example #4Professional event services companyIdentified acquisition opportunities to accelerate the company’s growth and take advantage of consolidation underway in the industry. As a result of our work, the company made over 20 acquisitions to expand into new B2B verticals, build scale in the existing exhibitions businesses, and extend into new services such as professional training and certification, marketing, and lead generation
Example #5Global professional industry associationDetermined the growth strategy for the association, identifying how to best meet the evolving needs of industry professionals, including redefining the services, programming, events, advocacy efforts, and core value proposition of the organization moving forward