Firms co-launch growth proposition for startups and SMEs

Three Dubai based professional services firms – Rising Phoenix Consultancy, Campaign Works and LEA Growing People – have joined forces to launch Insight360, a proposition that aims at helping startups and SMEs tap into unfolding growth opportunities.

The new offering provides according to the co-founders a 360 degrees panoramic on business growth, brand evolution, market leadership and performance resilience, in an approach designed to identify and unleash growth opportunities emerging out of the ‘new normal’ induced by the Covid-19 pandemic. 

The partners teamed up to cater to the need for an integrated value proposition, which provides a significant advantage over a single domain strategic approach, said Kirsten Westholter, Managing Director of boutique management consulting firm Rising Phoenix Consultancy. Campaign Works is a digital marketing agency, and LEA Growing People is a training and coaching company. 

“Researching the needs of businesses, especially in these challenging times, strengthened us to combine our expertise in a 360 degrees view on realising sustainable business growth. Now more than ever a business needs to be better, faster, more effective and more powerful than its competition.” Although it wasn’t planned to play out this way, the partnership sees three women take the fold. Nevertheless, “we really like the idea of working in an all power women based team, combined with the diversity of a true melting pot of Italian temperament, Dutch directness and a local Middle Eastern mindset,” said Westholter. 

Westholter is the Dutchie of the trio. Prior to relocating to the Middle East, she worked for fintech company Fidor, Dutch consulting firm MLC and Adidas in Germany. Having gained on the ground business consulting and project management experience in the region, she launched her own venture Rising Phoenix Consultancy early 2019. 

Vicky Varfis is a Managing Director at Campaign Works Middle East, and brings years of experience in hospitality marketing and the advertising industry to the table. Prior to assuming her current role, she worked as Corporate Vice President Sales & Revenue for Rotana in the UAE and as Area Director Sales & Marketing Eastern Europe for Marriott International. 

Elena Buriani, born and raised in Italy, has many years of experience in human capital under her belt. Two years ago she founded LEA Growing People together with her husband – the firm supports and coaches C-suite executives, business owners and teams with change and professional development. 

Central in their approach are three pillars: people centric leadership (“we strongly believe in growing business by growing leaders with a people centric focus”), creativity and innovation.