Skip to main content
All news

Spotlight on Portfolio Operations: Harry Haslem

In a new series shining a light on BC Partners’ approach to operational excellence, we’re sitting down with members of our Portfolio Operations team to find out more about their backgrounds and specialisms, emerging themes in their practice areas and how they work across BC Partners’ portfolio to deliver hands-on support and value creation.

In this Q&A, we sit down with Harry Haslem, Director and Head of Portfolio Finance Effectiveness at BC Partners. Harry reflects on how his team ensures financial effectiveness across the portfolio, from pre-deal assessments to post-acquisition transformation, driving long-term value creation.

Harry, thank you for joining us today. You recently joined BC Partners as Director and Head of Portfolio Finance Effectiveness. Could you tell us about your new role and the experience you bring to the firm?

Harry Haslem: Thanks for having me. I joined BC Partners in January 2024 as Head of Portfolio Finance Effectiveness. Prior to this, I spent six years at PwC and five years at EY. My career began at Moore Stephens, which is now part of BDO, where I worked in audit and corporate finance. Later, I moved to EY Parthenon, focusing on finance transformation and CFO advisory.

At PwC, I helped build a private equity CFO advisory team that grew from 5 to 40 people, serving clients across Europe from our London office. Interestingly, during my time at PwC, I worked on several finance effectiveness assessments for BC Partners, which gave me valuable insight into how the firm operates.

In my current role, I collaborate closely with deal teams and CFOs throughout the investment lifecycle — from pre-deal due diligence all the way through to exit planning. My focus is on creating finance functions that set our portfolio companies up for long-term success. This involves working alongside management teams, engaging external advisors when necessary, and addressing urgent challenges as they arise.

Can you describe your approach to working with portfolio companies to improve financial operations and enhance efficiency? Are there any specific frameworks or models that you use?

Harry Haslem: Our approach is very structured, especially when we’re involved at the beginning of an investment. We typically start with a six-to-eight-week engagement that focuses on value creation and identifying how the finance function can play a key role in building the equity story.

We begin by evaluating the target state for the business, comparing it to the maturity of its current operating model in key areas like people, processes, data, and systems. We then conduct a detailed gap analysis, which results in a comprehensive plan outlining actionable steps. This is not just about the finance function; we look at the broader business to ensure that finance is well-positioned to support operations.

At the end of this assessment, we produce a 100-page report that guides the next 12 to 18 months of work actionable steps outlines. The management team, and in particular the CFO, takes ownership of the plan, and we track progress tracked through a bi-weekly steering committee.

Do portfolio companies typically have mature finance functions when you start working with them?

Harry Haslem: It varies depending on the business. Family-owned companies, for example, often require more professionalisation in their finance functions. One of our goals by the time we exit is to ensure these businesses have a robust finance operation that can support future owners.

Before making an acquisition, I assess the maturity of the finance function to ensure it is ready for transformation. This evaluation is a crucial part of the pre-deal process, and I work closely with my investing colleagues to assess readiness before moving forward.

What common challenges do you encounter when attempting to create value through finance effectiveness?

Harry Haslem: One common challenge is the speed at which data can be processed and integrated. Many companies grow through acquisition, which leads to a fragmented technology stack with multiple ERP systems that don’t always effectively communicate. These legacy systems often require manual workarounds, leading to errors, delays, and difficulty consolidating data.

While budget is always a consideration, we aim to rationalise these systems to create a robust platform for future growth.

**In your experience, what are the key elements needed to establish and sustain effective financial operations across a diverse portfolio? **

Harry Haslem: At the heart of this is strong data and insights. Without robust data, controls, and processes, what I refer to as the “plumbing” of the finance function, management can’t make the informed decisions necessary for driving value.

When redesigning a finance organisation, people often focus too much on cutting costs, but the end goal is typically cost-neutral. The real difference comes from moving away from transactional, low-value tasks like accounts receivable (AR) / accounts payable (AP) processing and automating them. This frees up resources to focus on higher-value activities like financial planning, business partnering, and automated reporting, all of which drive equity value.

Can you share specific examples where you have supported portfolio companies in optimising their finance functions? What were the primary areas of focus and outcomes?

Harry Haslem: A recent example involves Valtech’s acquisition of Kin + Carta, two digital consulting businesses in Europe and the U.S. I partnered with the company’s Finance leadership on the finance integration design phase, which spanned 30 countries. The primary shift in approach was centralising in-country transactional processing. In effect, moving away from low-value, high-volume activities so that we could generate better insights at the group level, particularly around pricing, staffing, and consistency.

We also conducted a thorough evaluation of the finance applications, selecting the best systems from both companies to ensure we didn’t overspend while optimising the technology stack. This project is set to take 12-18 months, but it’s already setting the foundation for more effective finance operations.

As part of your role, what technologies or tools have you implemented to enhance finance effectiveness across BC Partners’ portfolio? How impactful have these technologies been?

Harry Haslem: One example is our work with the Davies Group, which had accumulated 18 different ERPs as part of its acquisition strategy. We’re now rationalising these systems, consolidating them into one or two ERPs based on geography. This standardisation not only improves efficiency but also provides greater insight and consistency across the business.

Beyond the ERP consolidation, we’ve also introduced flexible analytical software tools. For instance, we’re implementing solutions like data warehouses and visualisation tools such as Power BI and Fabric. These are affordable, off-the-shelf solutions that can be deployed quickly, helping portfolio companies modernise their financial operations in a short period of time.

This is particularly important for companies that have pursued a buy-and-build strategy, either historically or as part of our future investment thesis. As such, we are focusing on consolidating and standardising systems and processes to improve efficiency and drive value.

What do you view as the main trends driving how BC Partners will approach value creation in the next 5 – 10 years?

Harry Haslem: AI and automation is at the core of this, and it has a significant role to play in finance, as it does across most business functions. While it’s already impacting certain sectors more heavily, I believe leveraging AI innovatively and effectively will increasingly become central across the back office processes that we look to enhance.