Simon Arbuthnot
First car:
Favourite movie:
Recommended book:
Hobby:
Best boss:
VW Beetle 1302S
Withnail and I
The Quiet American
Reading and cooking
Ian Kershaw
Engagement Model Offered
Day Rate; Technical / Advisory; Project Based; Interim / Contract; Full time Transition
Suited to Organisational Types
Start-ups; Scale-ups; SME; Corporate
Simon is a strategic consultancy and business development leader with over 25 years of experience across automotive and complex industrial sectors, including WMG, Ricardo, Qualcomm, SE & AVL.
He specialises in helping organisations understand complex business challenges, develop practical strategies and deliver transformation. His expertise spans corporate strategy, market entry and growth, restructuring, cost reduction and due diligence, combining analytical thinking with strong commercial execution.
Simon’s Arena
Automotive & Complex Industrials.
Technical Focus: Corporate Strategy, Transformation & Pivot, Market Entry & Growth, Due Diligence.
Function Expertise: Strategic Consultancy, Business Development, Commercial Transformation, Restructuring & Cost Reduction.
Superpowers
Quickly grasps complex business problems and identifies practical solutions.
Turns strategic ideas into deliverable plans and commercial opportunities.
Builds consensus across teams to create alignment and momentum.
Combines analytical thinking with hands-on execution.
Impact in Action
Launched a new UK strategic consultancy, growing turnover from £950k in year one to £2.5m in year two.
Turned around Ricardo Strategic Consulting, shifting its customer focus and offer to improve commercial performance without job or cost cuts.
Expanded Qualcomm’s automotive technology licensee base from 3 to 15 through targeted business development and buyer-led sales strategies.
Working style
Sleeves rolled up.
Analytical, practical and commercially focused.
Brings people together around a clear direction.
Focused on turning strategy into action.