The LDC Top 50 Most Ambitious Business Leaders 2021

Tim Smeaton and Simon Walker, joint founders of Kubrick Group, have been listed in this year’s LDC Top 50 Most Ambitious Business Leaders. The feature follows a string of accolades commemorating Kubrick’s rapid expansion in the UK market during the past year, including becoming the 2nd fastest private company in the UK (2020 Sunday Times Fast Track 100), and the fastest growing consultancy in Europe (2021 Financial Times 1000).

The program, which is supported by The Times and now in its fourth year, celebrates the inspiring leaders behind some of the UK’s most successful and fast-growing medium-sized firms. Despite the challenges of the last 18 months, the LDC Top 50 received a record number of nominations, with more than 600 leaders contending to make the list and celebrate their achievements amidst an unprecedented year.

The featured Top 50 hail from every corner of the country and operate across a diverse range of sectors. Collectively, they employ over 9,500 people and contribute more than £1.2bn to the UK economy. Kubrick alone employ around 800 members of staff, and Tim and Simon’s ambitious leadership, they are sure to see this exceed well beyond 1,000 employees in the coming months. But their ambition doesn’t stop there: Kubrick will be opening a US arm based in New York in 2022.

Simon and Tim spoke to LDC and the Times about their journey to founding Kubrick and the ambition behind it:

Tim: “We came together to address the digital skills emergency; traditional education just isn’t addressing it, so we are bringing more people into the industry and bridging the knowledge gap. There was a moment, early on in the business, when a client said, “What an honorable business to run. It’s really great you’re training graduates to get the career they want. I really wish you’d been around when I was young.” We realized then that we were building a business with a strong purpose that is changing people’s lives.”

Simon: “Often, incredible graduates are coming out of university and having a tough time. We are preparing them for the next industrial revolution, giving them the skills to have amazing careers in the latest most sought-after technology sectors, and helping our clients to succeed at the same time. We’re disrupting the typical consulting model and I think we have lots of opportunity to make a big difference.”

LDC’s John Garner added: “The last 18 months have presented challenges that none of us could have foreseen, but despite everything, it’s fantastic to see that so many business leaders have achieved remarkable things. Through their resourcefulness and resilience, this year’s Top 50 Most Ambitious Leaders prove that the flame of ambition is hard to extinguish. Congratulations to all those featured and we look forward to seeing their continued success and impact, and contribution the broader UK economy.

You can find out more information on this year’s Top 50 Most Ambitious Business Leaders program here: https://bit.ly/2WMjNum

To learn more about how Kubrick is building a workforce to drive transformation and how we can support your business, get in touch: speaktous@kubrickgroup.com