When risk management meets growth: in conversation with Optimind

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When you’re a world-leading private investment house, there’s more to your business than market growth. It’s about connections, relationships.
Ardian, a French-based private equity investment company, is constantly building its portfolio - to strengthen its partnerships, offer its expertise and remain true to the spirit of entrepreneurship.
Welcome to Entrepreneurial Journeys, a podcast all about Ardian’s commitment to building better business, together. In each episode, we’ll learn about Ardian’s growing global network.
I’m your host, Colette Davidson.

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Intro

Optimind is a consulting company based in Paris. Its clients include insurance companies, banks and large groups, to which Optimind brings its expertise, particularly in risk management.

In 2019, Optimind welcomes Ardian as a minority shareholder - as part of a €25 million fundraising campaign, designed to support its future investments and external growth.

But at first, this decision is not easy to make. Both companies must first ensure that their goals are aligned. 

For both Ardian and Optimind, we need to go beyond a simple financial agreement and share a vision of the company's development and the goal to be achieved.

I went to the offices of Optimind in Paris to meet Christophe Eberlé, the CEO of Optimind, Aline Roy, its HRD, and Alexis Saada, the Head of Growth at Ardian, to learn more about this partnership. 

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Colette:

Christophe Eberlé Hello.

Christophe:

Hello Colette.

Colette:

You are the CEO and founder of Optimind. Could you explain the beginnings of Optimind to us?

Christophe:

Absolutely. Optimind was born in 2000 with a simple idea: to provide expert consulting services to the insurance and financial sectors. So the first years of Optimind were focused on the development of actuarial consulting, which is a rather confidential and particular discipline that consists of doing mathematics applied to the financial and insurance sector. And as this development progressed, which was quite rapid after all, with periods of annual growth of over 40%. We have gradually developed our manifesto, our DNA, around more global risk management, around quantitative subjects, actuarial science, but also qualitative subjects of risk management, including everything related to risk mapping, crisis management and compliance. Our objective, even then, was to become the French leader in risk management. We were far from it, since we started from scratch and arrived in 2012 at a company made up of about 140 consultants, rather well placed, in our market, with increasingly strong competition in these sectors, in particular with large international consulting firms, the 'big four', and local players who were also in a good position.

Colette:

What was your development strategy?

Christophe:

A strategy based on old values around organic growth and over the long term. I would like to tell you that we have a fairly aggressive recruitment policy in the noble sense of the word, with a very strong communication policy in a sector where, historically, corporate communication has not been natural, and also a vision of the expert consultant profession. But, despite everything, by integrating strong methodologies around the consultant. And finally, to summarise, perhaps to be a local player sufficiently equipped in terms of methodology to be able to meet the best international standards and in particular what the 'Big Four,' our natural competitors, are offering their clients and us in a way that is perhaps more established on the local terrain of the various players in the market, whether they be insurance companies, banks or also large corporations.

Colette:

And how was your meeting with Ardian and its team? Do you share a common vision for the future?

Christophe:

Absolutely. It didn't necessarily happen naturally. Before we meet, there is a thought process around entrepreneurship which is the key word of this meeting and of our story. Namely: how, after fifteen years of organic growth, can we accelerate the company's development in light of the current challenges (we're about to enter 2016-2017) and be able to accelerate, with the idea of being able to grow externally and find a private equity player able to support us as much in terms of the financial aspects as in terms of a more methodological market aspect? Another objective at that time: to be able, with this reference shareholder, to increase our signature on our market, which is an institutional market, and thus to find a player with sufficient weight in terms of signatures to enter the capital of Optimind. This is the beginning of reflection. Afterwards, quite classical I guess, a process was organised with an investment bank and we met Ardian at that time. What made the difference and Alexis will certainly be able to confirm it, was not necessarily the financial conditions... Or in any case the money was not at the centre of our concerns. The main concern was to find a team of entrepreneurs capable of supporting the company and its managers, including myself, in build-up projects, while at the same time providing this support function in terms of brand.

Colette:

Christophe Eberlé, what did you expect from this support in concrete terms?

Christophe:

So obviously, the ability to recover equity to support this build-up policy, but also this strong capacity, which is clearly part of the DNA of the Ardian Croissance team, to help us identify entrepreneurial companies - in their language, targets - allowing us to ensure our policy, our development strategy around risk management, while having sufficient security, preventing us from going after the wrong deals and rather going for coherent projects capable of supporting the growth of the company quickly.

Colette:

Alexis Saada Hello.

Alexis:

Hello Colette.

Colette:

You are responsible for Ardian's Growth business. 
Can you define this relationship between Ardian and Optimind?

Alexis:

We are simply companions. You have understood that our job is to provide support to a team that by itself would already do very well on its own. And so to contribute in some way to this creation of value, but each in its own role. So the objective is to share experiences, good practices, and mistakes that have been made and that we would like not to make again in a new adventure. And so it can indeed be lively. But it's always cordial and it always leads to, I want to say, the best possible decision at the time it is made. Because we know that these companies, which are growth companies, which sometimes evolve their activities as we did at Optimind, they take a certain number of risks that are more execution risks than model risks. And not everything is done in a straight line. It is not necessarily a constant speed, it is not necessarily a single direction with a course that does not vary. It is necessary to manage somewhat the sea that we find. And to get there, it sometimes requires getting rid of certainties or embracing new ones, in any case.

Christophe:

It is a real relationship in the human and challenging sense of the term. And if we want to avoid babbling, in fact, there are moments that are not always pleasant where one party or the other expresses its point of view, which is not necessarily that of the other party. And the discussions can be lively and in this sense, I want to say positive. And I must admit that on certain subjects, I was not forced but convinced to change options and that made me perhaps more efficient and fairer in some of the decisions, in particular of acquisition. And this is the opportunity to thank Alexis and her team for that! 

Colette:

What have been the strategic transformations of the last three years for Optimind?

Christophe:

The major transformation was clearly the acceleration of our growth thanks to the build-up and reception of several companies since we have made six acquisitions in the meantime, including five in almost twelve months, which has enabled Optimind, quite simply, to double in size. And Aline will certainly explain to us better than I can, the major transformations observed internally in the company. Already, when Ardian acquired a stake in Optimind, it was a positive shock for our clients, who looked at us differently. And for us, it was a higher level of confidence in the business... When you have more confidence in the battle, you may go more easily and more effectively. So it's a psychological transformation in itself, but it actually makes sense in the territory of business.

Colette:

And what was the expertise they brought specifically?

Christophe:

So an undeniable expertise that is, I guess, part of their historical DNA since it is their job. It is the financial analysis, in the broadest sense of the term, of companies. And indeed, what is the value of a company? What is the asset, how strong is the asset and how sustainable is it over time, both on its own and with us. And this is a real expertise in which I think I completed my first training cycle with Ardian. Today, I have learned a lot from this expertise and have been inspired by it for the last few operations.

Colette:

Aline Roy, hello!

Aline:

Hello Colette.

Colette:

You are the Director of Human Resources at Optimind. And so, what developments have you seen in recent years following Ardian's involvement in the company's capital?

Aline:

In three years, we have seen exponential growth as we have more than doubled our size. And so today, we have almost 400 employees with, as Christophe said, six acquisitions, including five in twelve months, which is huge. This has enabled us to cover all the markets today and to respond to all the problems of our customer ecosystem. And therefore to go, as Alexis said earlier, to position ourselves in markets where we were not yet sufficiently well established, such as for example finance or risk management, with the latest acquisition we just made.

Colette:

Were there also issues, in terms of recruitment following the growth of the company?

Aline:

So there were of course recruitment issues, since we had to continue to grow organically, but also a real challenge of integration, and sharing cultures and values, which was absolutely fundamental for us. And it's something we're quite proud of today because we didn't impose anything. But we were able to share these values and I think that's also what allowed us to make these connections, because it was the basis for us to actually share them.

Christophe:

I think, to add to what Aline said, and this is one of the values we certainly share with Ardian, it is humility and agility. At each meeting with the companies that have joined us, we have never hesitated to score the best practices. And in some cases, to change our processes or change the way we do things in favour of the best practices that the companies that joined us were practising. It is also a way of explaining that our DNA has evolved positively, i.e. by taking the best of each of the companies and ensuring that these human encounters between an entrepreneur - because the companies are all run by entrepreneurs who have joined us, in the same way that we joined Ardian or vice versa - and it is these meetings, beyond the financial aspects of the financial capacity, that have in any case, with Aline, the most, the most marked and the most enthusiastic, it was the meeting with the men and therefore, naturally, the integration was done more easily.

Aline:

There is one point I would like to add, which is that we have gone from an SME (small-sized company) to an ETI (medium-sized company), thanks to the presence of Ardian, in particular.

Alexis:

It's such an honour. But what is certain is that one of your merits is to have been able to put in place the necessary structure to keep up with the growth, which required hiring a lot of people on the organic side. And to welcome teams that were sometimes supplied.

Alexis:

So it's to your merit that you did it so well. Because it's true that we sometimes forget that when we have internet companies that multiply their size by six in 18 months, it's certainly the case that if the management doesn't follow, nothing happens. It stops midway. And even if it's not at that level of growth because it's not 70% per year, the problem of people is still quite robust.

Christophe:

This is essential. And to continue the military metaphor, we have our soldiers in the field and we have to provide them with communication support, HR support, office support, well-being, facilitation and training. And all this was one of the talents of the teams, and especially Aline. It meant being able to accompany these growths by making sure that the logistics could follow. Because a consultant without logistics is like a soldier without a gun. (LAUGHTER) 

Christophe:

Or a candlelight dinner without candles, if you prefer.

Colette:

Can we talk about a success story since the beginning of your partnership with Optimind?

Alexis:

Yes, this is one of the great successes of our current year. We are very proud to have been able to join this adventure, and that Christophe trusted us after a first meeting where we had crossed swords a little on the analysis of the market and the way to project ourselves. We were not necessarily both in favour of a seduction approach, but rather one of comparing ideas. And I think we can really say that it is a success. 
We quickly passed over the failures, but with the first external growth we wanted to make that was significant and potentially transformative for us, we went very far. Still, just about everything was flashing green. We were after, after the bottle of wine and the handshake. And yet, it fell through for reasons that were not necessarily good reasons. And in the end, instead of making one big, transformative acquisition, we made a number of significant ones and in the end, it was probably less risky. So there is always a silver lining.

Christophe:

Exactly - that's what I called an ability to adapt and be agile and change the tactical face. Success stories also translate for an investment fund at the time of its exit. The future will answer this question.

Colette:

So if we look to the future. Christophe Eberlé, what is your strategy at Optimind?

Christophe:

I am quite happy to be able to say today that our strategy is the one we had planned about five years ago, because today we think we have reached our goal of national leadership, that is to say, to have constituted a company that is present in all areas of risk management and of more than significant size. What's next? The objective is our roadmap 23 28 which aims to build in Europe what we have built in France and to take advantage of European regulations that make a lot of sense, to create a European Optimind on a French platform. With both organic development of course, since this is also Optimind's DNA, but also with Ardian, and another potential player, to be able to develop a build-up policy in Europe to accelerate this movement.

Colette:

Christophe Eberlé, Aline Roy and Alexis Saada, thank you very much for being with us.

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Outro

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Thanks for tuning into Entrepreneurial Journeys, a podcast from Ardian.
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Deezer, or wherever you get your podcasts. And for more information, visit Ardian.com. If you liked this episode, don’t hesitate to leave a comment on Apple Podcasts and talk about it with your friends and colleagues. Until next time!

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