The AI noise in financial services is not coming from the technology. It is coming from the mismatch between how quickly ideas can be produced and how slowly institutions are allowed to change. In the same week, you can have a board asking why the firm isn’t moving faster, a CIO being told to standardise and reduce complexity, a COO trying to protect service levels, and Risk and Legal asking the only question that matters when something breaks: who owned the decision.

That contradiction is structural. Regulated institutions are built to be stable, legible and accountable. AI, as it is being sold, is none of those things by default. It is fast, probabilistic, and increasingly embedded in third party ecosystems. So the noise grows. Every team can generate a plausible use case. Every vendor can produce a demo. And the organisation starts to confuse activity with progress.

The clearest organisations I’ve seen are not trying to “do AI.” They are trying to reduce decision friction in specific places, without creating a new operational risk class. That starts with a framing shift. AI is not a programme. It is a portfolio of decisions. Each decision has a measurable outcome, a human owner, and a level of consequence if it fails. When you force that language, the conversation becomes calmer, because it stops being about capability and starts being about accountability.

It also exposes an uncomfortable truth. The commercial upside is often strongest in the most constrained parts of the institution. Credit, fraud, financial crime, complaints, servicing, claims, collections. High volume workflows where small accuracy gains and faster cycle times compound into real operating leverage. Those are also the areas where failure is visible, customer facing, and hard to reverse. That is why so many institutions default to safe experimentation. They pick low consequence use cases, measure success in pilots, and then struggle to scale anything that actually matters.

This is where the blockchain cycle is a useful memory. Not because AI and blockchain are similar technologies, but because the governance pattern is. The firms that navigated that period well did not win by being early. They won by being controlled. They set up councils with real authority, ran constrained pilots, tightened vendor diligence, and created a path from test to production that did not require renegotiating controls every time. They made experimentation legible to leadership and tolerable to risk.

AI needs the same spine, but it has to be tighter. The guardrails are not optional, and they are not just about regulation. They are about execution capacity. Without a consistent way to classify use cases and apply controls, every initiative becomes a bespoke debate. Risk arrives late. Legal is asked to bless something already built. Technology teams become the connective tissue for decisions they do not own. You end up with a scattered portfolio of tools and a growing dependency footprint, without a clear inventory of what is running where, on which data, under whose accountability.

Capital discipline is starting to push this in a healthier direction. Valuation pressure has reduced the tolerance for theatre. Boards and investors are more interested in controllable operating leverage than abstract transformation narratives. That changes the due diligence questions. Not “is the model accurate,” but “can the institution prove it is in control.” How quickly can a capability be disabled. How are overrides tracked. What happens when a vendor changes a model version. Where is concentration building across shared platforms. How are incidents handled when automation makes a bad call at scale.

The noise will not disappear. The supply of ideas will keep rising. The institutions that cut through it will be the ones that treat AI as a controlled decision portfolio, with a governance spine strong enough to scale what matters and quiet enough to say not yet when it doesn’t. That posture doesn’t slow progress. It makes progress repeatable. And that is what starts to feel like momentum in an environment that cannot afford surprises.

I’ll be on the road over the coming months, largely around conversations where investment and value creation intersect. If our paths happen to cross, even briefly, it would be good to connect and talk about your transformation goals.

• February 24-25: Malta

• March 2-5: Lisbon

• March 9–11: Speaking at MoneyLIVE, London

• March 16–19: Speaking at Merchant Payment Ecosystem, Berlin

• March 23-24: London / Dublin Placeholder

• April 20-21: London

• April 29-30: Zurich

• June: Money20/20 Amsterdam

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

Happy New Year. I spent the break properly offline with my family. No panels. No decks. No pipeline calls. Somewhere between long walks and quiet mornings, a familiar instinct kicked back in. I am ready to engage again. Ready for real underwriting conversations. Ready for situations where conviction still has to be earned, not assumed.

What follows reflects how I have been thinking about readiness from the buy side, and why so many processes lose momentum long before price is ever the issue.

How conviction actually forms and why it decays
Transactions rarely break because of a single red flag. They stall because confidence erodes gradually.

Small frictions compound. Slow responses. Numbers that shift subtly between conversations. Ownership of answers that feels unclear. Each instance is interpreted as information. Over time, conviction weakens and risk is reintroduced into the price or, more often, into structure.

The implicit question being tested is constant
What will we discover later that we cannot price with confidence today?

The underwriting reality behind multiples
Multiples are shorthand. The real work is underwriting future cash flows adjusted for risk, durability, and controllability.

Value expands when cash flows are predictable, explainable, and resilient across scenarios. It compresses when they depend on fragile assumptions, heroic execution, or a narrow set of conditions.

When risk feels unresolved, it does not disappear. It migrates into earnouts, escrows, holdbacks, working capital mechanics, or tighter covenants.

What “ready” actually looks like
Readiness is not polish. It is transferability without interruption.

Conviction builds when a buyer can move from interest to underwriting without forced pauses. That requires
• Valuation expectations supported by verifiable evidence
• Questions answered quickly, consistently, and without rework or escalation

In practice, readiness shows up across five dimensions
• Performance clarity: stable definitions, defensible run rates, reconciled bridges
• Operational transferability: decision rights pushed down, documented processes, predictable governance
• Risk containment: key risks identified, quantified, and actively managed
• Data discipline: one source of truth, clean version control, current documentation
• A coherent equity story: consistent across materials, discussions, and diligence responses

Revenue quality over growth optics
Growth attracts attention. Fragile growth undermines confidence.

What matters is not just the rate, but how it is earned
• Concentration and renewal behavior
• Pricing power and churn dynamics
• Repeatability of pipeline conversion
• Dependency on individual customers, channels, or people

Two workstreams tend to anchor the underwriting
• A customer and revenue pack fully tied to the P&L
• A pipeline and forecast pack with objective stage definitions, historical conversion, and a documented forecasting method

Leadership dependency as a risk signal
Strong leadership is attractive. Operational dependency is not.

Confidence rises when it is clear that
• Decisions do not bottleneck at the top
• Customer relationships are institutional
• Reporting, pricing, approvals, and escalations are system-driven

This risk is not mitigated through reassurance. It is mitigated through observable behavior and evidence.

Diligence should confirm, not discover
When a clean fact base is missing, underwriting becomes conservative by default.

Preparation replaces narrative with proof
• Revenue reconciles cleanly from customer to P&L
• Gross margin methodology is stable and well-bridged
• KPI definitions do not drift mid-process
• Q&A is controlled, logged, and consistent

Data discipline is not administrative. It directly protects value and terms.

Why structure often matters more than price
Headline valuation rarely tells the full story. Structure determines what is realized, when, and with what residual risk.

When conviction is high, competition centers on price.
When it is fragile, it centers on risk transfer.

Earnouts, escrows, holdbacks, and extended indemnities are not aggressive tactics. They are symptoms of unresolved uncertainty. The only durable way to preserve leverage is to convert unknown risk into bounded, evidenced risk.

The simplest discipline that changes outcomes
Run a pre-mortem early.

Assume the process fails in the final weeks. Identify what broke conviction, define the evidence required to satisfy a skeptical underwriter, and address the highest-impact gaps first.

The strongest outcomes occur when readiness is treated as an operating priority
• Clear owners
• Weekly cadence
• Single source of truth
• Response standards where a slower right answer beats a fast wrong one

I’ll be on the road over the coming months, largely around conversations where investment and value creation intersect. If our paths happen to cross, even briefly, it would be good to connect.

• Jan 19–20: ICE Conference, Barcelona
• Jan 27–30: London
• March 9–11: Speaking at MoneyLIVE, London
• March 16–19: Speaking at Merchant Payment Ecosystem, Berlin
• Late April (likely): Zurich
• June: Money20/20 Amsterdam

If you are quietly underwriting a situation this year, or simply want to pressure-test readiness from an investor’s lens, I’m always open to a thoughtful conversation.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

I do not often bring my private life into my writing. Work has always been the visible surface. But this year, more than any other, has reminded me that the most important decisions we make rarely sit in a data room or board room.

Sarah and I have two young daughters, Liliana and Isla. Six and four. They are at that age where the world is still wide open, where curiosity comes naturally, and where the smallest moments leave the deepest marks.

Three years ago, we left Chicago and moved to Cascais, Portugal. It was less a relocation and more a reorientation. Toward a different pace. Toward different values. Toward a life anchored in time, culture and proximity. Professionally, my work has increasingly pulled me north, into London and across Northern Europe. Personally, our home has rooted us firmly here. That contrast has been grounding rather than conflicting. It has given me both reach and perspective.

Living here has changed us. Quietly, but profoundly.

Our girls move between languages with ease. They absorb difference without hesitation. Their school days are filled with accents, traditions and viewpoints that feel entirely normal to them. Watching this unfold has been one of the great privileges of my life. It has also reinforced something I have always believed professionally. The most durable forms of value are built slowly, through exposure, consistency and care.

Life, I have learned, mirrors the work many of us do. Not in mechanics, but in essence. The outcomes that matter most are never the result of a single bold move. They come from a series of thoughtful choices. From knowing where to invest energy. From being selective about what and who we bring close. From allowing time to do its work.

Much of our daily life now revolves around those quiet investments. Afternoons that stretch a little longer. Evenings spent reading the same stories again and again. Conversations, reassurance, closeness. Holidays and Augusts chosen not for efficiency, but for presence. There is nothing dramatic about it, and yet it is deeply formative.

This period has also strengthened my relationship with my wife in ways I did not fully anticipate. Building a life together far from what is familiar requires trust, humour and patience. Alignment, whether in families or organisations, is not something you set once. It is renewed daily.

As the year closes, I find myself thinking less about what has been achieved and more about what has been built. The foundations that will carry us forward. The relationships that compound quietly. The sense that we are exactly where we need to be.

Many of us are now stepping into a pause. A moment to slow down, to be present, to recharge. I hope you give yourself that space. The work will wait. The moments will not.

We will see each other again in the new year, recharged. There is a clear signal in the market that momentum is returning and opportunities are beginning to surface again. There will be much to do together.

Until then, I wish you a peaceful holiday season and a gentle close to the year.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

Company Culture as a Leadership Legacy

A recent M&A engagement in the global insurance sector underscored the pivotal role of company culture in organizational success. Culture is not an abstract concept, it’s the collective behavior, values, and norms that determine how work actually gets done. And while every employee contributes to it, culture is, above all, a leadership legacy.

Leaders set the tone through every decision and behavior. When they “walk the talk,” embodying the company’s values in how they act and communicate, employees mirror that example. When they don’t, misalignment sets in quickly. If leadership prioritizes short-term performance at the expense of people or principles, engagement falters. But when leaders show integrity and consistency, culture becomes a multiplier, reinforcing trust, clarity, and performance across teams.

Nowhere is this more evident than during mergers and acquisitions. Cultural alignment or the lack of it can determine whether deal value is ultimately realized. Misaligned ways of working create friction; roles blur, key people leave, and performance dips. But when leadership identifies cultural differences early and sets clear priorities for the new organization, integration accelerates.

In the insurance industry, where success depends on trust, relationships, and long-term consistency, culture isn’t a “soft” topic. It’s a strategic one. Leaders who treat culture with the same discipline as financials or technology integration tend to outperform, not because they manage people better, but because they shape alignment faster. Culture, in this sense, becomes the invisible infrastructure of post-merger value creation.

Outsourcing Non-Core Functions for Strategic Focus

Another surprising discovery from this engagement was how a relatively young firm had outsourced many of its non-core functions from IT to administrative support. At first, it seemed unusual for a company still finding its footing. But upon reflection, it was a smart and deliberate choice: a way to stay lean, focused, and agile.

Outsourcing non-core functions allows leadership to concentrate on what truly differentiates the business, growth and strategy. In this case, the company’s advantage lay in underwriting and marketing expertise and client service not IT development, finance functions and other support areas. By contracting out those activities, they freed internal teams to focus on refining products, enhancing customer experience, and be nimble!

Beyond efficiency, this strategy creates flexibility. Fixed costs become variable; capacity can scale up or down without disrupting operations. External partners bring specialized capabilities and mature processes — often delivering better outcomes, faster. For a firm in growth mode, this means speed and adaptability without the overhead of building every department in-house.

Typical outsourced functions in insurance and financial services include:

• Administrative support and data processing (policy data entry, records management)

• Customer service operations (call centers, inquiries, and claims assistance)

• Finance and HR back-office (payroll, accounts payable/receivable, bookkeeping)

• Information technology support (helpdesk, infrastructure, and non-core software management)

When managed thoughtfully, outsourcing can complement a company’s cultural strategy. It allows leadership to direct internal attention toward innovation, strategic growth, and relationship-building — the very areas where culture, judgment, and trust matter most.

Aligning Culture and Focus

The intersection of culture and strategic focus reveals a subtle but powerful lesson. Strong leadership builds culture; disciplined focus sustains it. When these forces align, organizations unlock clarity, people understand not only what to do, but why it matters.

For leaders in insurance and beyond, the takeaway is clear: treat culture as a core asset and operational focus as a discipline. Review where your people spend their energy. Ask whether your leadership behaviors reflect the values you want reinforced. And consider which activities could be delegated, outsourced, or simplified to sharpen the company’s focus on what truly drives value.

In a landscape defined by change and consolidation, those who get this balance right — nurturing culture while staying strategically lean — will be the ones to grow stronger through disruption. The next move, as always, belongs to leadership.

About Imagine Capital Group
Imagine Capital Group advises private equity firms, portfolio companies, and financial institutions on strategic execution, value creation, and transformation. We support operating partners, CIOs, and change leaders in optimizing executive structures and driving measurable outcomes.

To discuss M&A, organizational models, leadership structures, or transformation governance, contact us directly.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

A Summer Reset

I hope you’ve had a productive summer. I spent three weeks in Chicago — a wedding, time with friends, and more than a few late dinners that added 2kg on the way back from “organic foods”.

It was a small reset before the final stretch of 2025. And here we are — 19 September, with the year’s last quarter just ahead.

The Case for Strategic Dialogue

For many GPs, September is the moment when portfolio reviews, LP updates, and 2026 planning begin to accelerate. Too often, these discussions default to metrics and monitoring. What’s missing is strategic dialogue — conversations that move beyond oversight into real levers of value creation:

• Where do tuck-in acquisitions create defensible scale?

• Which companies should consider growth capital before 2026?

• How should management teams position around partnerships, licensing, or competitive threats?

• Do current capital structures align with the next phase of growth?

These questions are best explored informally and early — not for the first time in a boardroom or investment committee.

Strategy – Beyond the Numbers

Over the past month, I’ve been pulled into exactly these conversations. No mandate, no fee, no stopwatch — simply acting as a sounding board. The value isn’t in “answers on a slide deck” but in pressure-testing assumptions before they harden into decisions.

Sometimes that means assessing whether portfolio strategy matches market reality. Other times, it’s comparing what peers are seeing in fundraising or competitive dynamics. Always, it’s about broadening perspective.

Capital and Transactions – Timing Matters

Capital remains unevenly available. Some companies will benefit from raising now, while others should preserve runway and wait for stronger conditions. The same applies to M&A: a well-timed tuck-in can transform a growth story, but only if investor sentiment supports it.

These are choices that benefit from a neutral, external view grounded in real market dialogue.

Competitive and Structural Insights

Licensing frameworks, regulatory shifts, and competitive positioning are areas where external context is critical. In fast-moving sectors, management teams rarely have the bandwidth to track these dynamics closely. Advisors who see across markets can translate signals into portfolio-specific implications.

The Nudge – Don’t Be Shy

So here’s the point: as you prepare for year-end reviews and 2026 planning, do you have someone outside the firm who can help frame these conversations — across M&A, growth capital, partnerships, competition, and capital structures? If not — you do now.

Don’t be shy. A short conversation can sharpen decision-making and strengthen relationships.

I’ll be in London throughout September and October if you’d like a discreet conversation

About Imagine Capital Group
Imagine Capital Group advises private equity firms, portfolio companies, and financial institutions on strategic execution, value creation, and transformation. We support operating partners, CIOs, and change leaders in optimizing executive structures and driving measurable outcomes.

To discuss M&A, organizational models, leadership structures, or transformation governance, contact us directly.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

As many head off for a late-summer reset, here’s a thought worth sitting with: if your fund is targeting a portfolio exit or executing buy-and-build by year end, the window for decisive action is narrowing.

Most GPs underestimate the time and complexity behind M&A execution, even when the target is known and internal alignment is clear. Diligence, negotiation, governance, and legal friction all take time—and they rarely compress the way founders and deal teams hope. Transactions announced in Q4 are often those quietly initiated in Q2 or well-advanced by September.

For platforms where you’re still considering strategic combinations, the message is clear: the time to act is now.

The Case for Action This Quarter

1. Strategic Clarity Beats Opportunism

In this market, strong buyers and sellers are those with clarity. As valuations normalize and investor scrutiny increases, last-minute opportunism has largely given way to structured, stage-gated execution. The best-run processes don’t just present numbers—they present conviction. Whether you’re prepping a divestiture or evaluating a tuck-in, a 4–6 month lead time is now the baseline.

2. Sophisticated Buyers Are Back

Strategics, secondaries platforms, and crossover investors are returning to the table. They’re selective, but they’re buying. The bar is higher—buyers want product-level clarity, defendable margin structure, scalable tech, and well-incentivized teams. But for assets that check those boxes, liquidity is available. Particularly in vertical software, fintech infrastructure, compliance tooling, and anything mission-critical to end customers.

3. Buy-and-Build Is Alive—But Only for the Prepared

If you’re leading a consolidation play, don’t wait until Q4 to brief bankers or legal. The time to prepare is now. September is a peak period for founder responsiveness. There is a limited window to originate bilateral conversations before processes become competitive. Use August to fine-tune messaging, streamline IC governance, and line up execution muscle.

Final Thought

There’s dry powder on the buyside—but not for those who show up late or unprepared. If a sale, acquisition, or structured secondary is on the table for one of your portfolio companies, get in motion now. Your actions in August shape your outcomes in December.

Happy to explore specific situations or playbooks when you’re back. In the meantime, enjoy the break.

About Imagine Capital Group
Imagine Capital Group advises private equity firms, portfolio companies, and financial institutions on strategic execution, value creation, and transformation. We support operating partners, CIOs, and change leaders in optimizing executive structures and driving measurable outcomes.

To discuss M&A, organizational models, leadership structures, or transformation governance, contact us directly.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

I’ll Be in London June 23–25 — Let’s Talk If This Resonates

Over the past quarter, I’ve had dozens of conversations with COOs, CTOs, and transformation leads across banking, custody, insurance, and trading infrastructure firms. The same patterns keep emerging. 

Most firms aren’t lacking AI ambition—but they’re stuck converting ambition into value.

If you’re in London next week and navigating one of these transition points, I’d be glad to connect in person. Here’s what I’ve been sharing with boards and transformation committees lately:

1. AI Is Operational—Not Abstract

The rhetoric around AI is lofty. But productivity gains only emerge when it's embedded into real workflows. BCG’s recent piece puts it well: only those allocating 80% of AI budgets to revenue or ops-critical functions are seeing tangible returns.

The shift isn’t about automation—it’s about rethinking how decisions are made across underwriting, reconciliations, fraud, and claims. Microsoft, Visa, and other leaders now frame AI less as a tool and more as a co-worker—one that requires structured interfaces and clearly defined accountability.

🧩 Takeaway: Start with use cases where latency, cycle time, or accuracy materially impact your economics. And build from there. Otherwise, you’ll generate demos—not EBITDA.

2. Execution Still Breaks at the Middle

Forbes and CIO.com both landed on this truth: transformation stalls not at the C-suite, but in the operational core. In one case, a billion-dollar transformation failed because middle managers were bypassed, data governance was assumed, and legacy systems were left untouched.

Most FS firms have already seen this movie. The middle layer—product owners, tech leads, regional operations—often hold the actual decision rights. But without redefining incentives and operating rhythms, these transformations drift.

🧩 Takeaway: Diagnose friction zones with surgical precision. Then drive transformation with the same discipline used in regulatory change management.

3. Delivery Models Are Being Redefined

Consulting models are shifting—and rightly so. Firms are no longer willing to pay for presentations. With GenAI pressuring legacy pyramid structures, delivery expectations are evolving fast. The best internal and external partners are now judged by how quickly they integrate, execute, and exit.

For platform investments or regulated infrastructure, this means building leaner delivery ecosystems—fewer layers, more accountability, and real joint ownership of outcomes.

🧩 Takeaway: Structure delivery around time-to-impact, not timelines. And challenge your vendors to co-own the metrics.

4. The COO’s Re-Emergence—For Good Reason

One consistent theme across all four articles? The fragmentation of digital programs, compliance upgrades, and operating model redesigns has outpaced organizational integration. That’s why the COO is once again a strategic role.

Whether you're scaling a custody platform, modernizing a risk core, or restructuring policy admin systems—>

the COO is the only person who sees across P&L, technology, and operations. They’re now the de facto Chief Integration Officer.

🧩 Takeaway: Re-empower the COO. Give them veto rights, budget control, and clear KPIs tied to transformation throughput.

Closing Thoughts

Transformation isn’t new. But right now, the stakes are higher. The investment cycles are shorter. And the tolerance for abstract strategy is gone.

AI won’t save broken workflows. A new front-end won’t erase legacy complexity. But leaders who build integration muscle, fund real operational change, and commit to governance—will win.

I’ll be in London June 23–25. Let’s talk if this sounds familiar, or if you’re preparing for a 2025 realignment.

About Imagine Capital Group
Imagine Capital Group advises private equity firms, portfolio companies, and financial institutions on strategic execution, value creation, and transformation. We support operating partners, CIOs, and change leaders in optimizing executive structures and driving measurable outcomes.

To discuss organizational models, leadership structures, or transformation governance, contact us directly.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

Across financial institutions and private equity portfolio companies, the pressure on technology and transformation leaders continues to intensify. CIOs, CTIOs, and Heads of Transformation are now expected to deliver integrated digital strategies, manage complex change portfolios, and create measurable value in increasingly constrained operating environments.

Yet despite these heightened expectations, many organizations overlook one of the most impactful structural decisions available: appointing a senior Chief of Staff to the Office of the CIO or Transformation Office.

While often viewed as ancillary or administrative, the Chief of Staff—when properly defined and resourced—serves as a critical leverage point. Particularly in institutions where complexity is high, execution risks are material, and interdependencies span business units, functions, and geographies, the role is foundational to success.

The Strategic Value of the Chief of Staff

Our analysis suggests that a senior Chief of Staff fulfills five essential functions in high-performing transformation environments:

1. Execution Discipline
   The CoS enforces operational cadence and accountability across initiatives. This includes maintaining strategic roadmaps, managing SLT and program interlock meetings, ensuring KPI alignment, and mitigating execution drift. In large-scale change programs, lack of cross-functional discipline—not flawed strategy—is often the primary reason for failure.

2. Decision Enablement
   Effective transformation requires timely and data-driven decision-making. The CoS ensures that leadership has access to consolidated insights, synthesized reporting, and risk-adjusted options. This accelerates decision cycles and reduces the burden of context-switching for CIOs managing multiple portfolios simultaneously.

3. Stakeholder Alignment
   In both regulated FSIs and private equity settings, transformation spans diverse stakeholder groups—technology, operations, risk, compliance, business line leaders, and external partners. The CoS plays a central role in aligning incentives, reconciling timelines, and maintaining strategic narrative consistency across forums.

4. Governance & Integration
   Transformation programs often suffer from fragmented governance and limited integration between workstreams. The CoS is typically responsible for managing governance routines, chairing working groups, coordinating board-level reporting, and ensuring that transformation goals remain aligned with capital planning, regulatory mandates, and enterprise risk appetite.

5. Strategic Proxy
   A seasoned CoS can represent the CIO or transformation lead in internal settings, freeing up leadership capacity while maintaining strategic continuity. This is particularly valuable in firms undergoing rapid growth, M&A integration, or technology modernization, where the volume of required engagement often exceeds what a single executive can sustain.

Private Equity Context: Accelerating the Value Creation Plan

Within private equity-owned businesses, the need for structured execution is magnified. The Chief of Staff becomes a pivotal driver of the value creation plan, acting as an embedded operator who ensures that transformation activities are implemented with speed, discipline, and investor-aligned focus.

In successful cases, the CoS:

• Tracks and reports value capture milestones

• Interfaces with operating partners to validate assumptions and course-correct when necessary

• Manages interdependencies between technology modernization and commercial outcomes (e.g., improved retention, reduced cost to serve)

• Ensures alignment between C-level sponsors and delivery functions

This role is particularly critical in the first 12–18 months post-close, when the execution window is tight, and investor expectations are most acute.

Public Financial Institutions: Operating Within Complexity

For large financial institutions, particularly banks, insurers, and asset managers, transformation often occurs in a legacy-heavy, highly regulated environment. The Chief of Staff serves to coordinate activity within the constraints of:

• Regulatory frameworks (e.g., Basel III, Solvency II, GDPR, DORA)

• Change fatigue across business lines

• Technology constraints and vendor limitations

• Risk, compliance, and audit oversight processes

In this context, the CoS must exhibit fluency in both operational and regulatory dimensions, ensuring transformation remains executable without breaching internal or external guardrails.

What “Good” Looks Like

A high-performing Chief of Staff is not an administrative assistant or a first-time manager. The role requires a unique combination of strategic acumen, operational rigor, and interpersonal fluency.

Typical profiles include:

• 15–25 years of experience across strategy consulting, corporate development, or enterprise transformation

• Demonstrated leadership in matrixed environments

• Strong analytical background with experience in performance management and transformation metrics

• High executive presence with board-level exposure

• Proven ability to influence laterally across business, tech, and control functions

Organizations that treat this as a developmental or rotational role often fail to realize its full benefit.

Conclusion

As technology and transformation become more deeply embedded in enterprise value creation, the organizational structures that support these efforts must evolve. The Chief of Staff—when staffed with senior, credible, and execution-focused talent—is a critical enabler of delivery at scale.

In environments where execution is the constraint—not strategy—the presence of a high-functioning Chief of Staff can determine whether transformation creates real value or becomes an expensive cycle of reinvention.

About Imagine Capital Group
Imagine Capital Group advises private equity firms, portfolio companies, and financial institutions on strategic execution, value creation, and transformation. We support operating partners, CIOs, and change leaders in optimizing executive structures and driving measurable outcomes.

To discuss organizational models, leadership structures, or transformation governance, contact us directly.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

📣 The Tariffs Are Back. What Now?

President Trump’s April 2 announcement of broad-based tariffs—10% on all imports, with targeted surcharges as high as 54%—has immediate implications for transformation leaders in financial services and PE-backed firms alike. A 25% tariff on all imported vehicles is also now in effect.

These aren’t just economic headlines—they’re strategic inflection points.

If you’re mid-flight on a major change program, leading a post-deal value creation plan, or building the next-generation tech stack for insurance, banking, or wealth management—this is a moment to reassess.

✈️ In-Flight Programs: Stress-Test the Roadmap

Whether you’re modernizing core underwriting platforms, building a digital onboarding journey, or re-platforming wealth infrastructure, many transformation programs are already underway and tightly scoped. Tariffs now force an honest reevaluation:

• Will infrastructure or integration partners be impacted by increased input or labor costs?

• Are regulatory tech, third-party data services, or front-end platforms exposed through global supply dependencies?

• Are there near-term program costs that need reprioritization—even if the long-term ROI remains solid?

✅ Action: Convene a rapid-impact checkpoint with change and delivery teams. Look at TCO projections, vendor exposure, and upcoming procurement milestones. Small adjustments now can protect long-term program credibility.

💸 CAPEX and Prioritization: From Ambition to Optionality

Capital allocation strategies are already being rethought in boardrooms this week. That doesn’t mean “cut everything.” It means invest with sharper intent:

• In insurance, underwriting transformation initiatives should be prioritized based on risk controls and automation capabilities—not just digitization for convenience.

• In wealth management, programs building new research, advisory, and client engagement ecosystems must factor in platform resilience and localization, especially where data sovereignty or multi-jurisdictional compliance is involved.

✅ Action: Refine investment cases around flexibility, modularity, and long-term adaptability—not just technical novelty. Ask: “Will this still make sense if tariffs hold for 12–18 months?”

🔄 M&A Integration and Value Creation: Keep Your Thesis Intact

For recently closed or ongoing FS M&A deals, the stakes just rose.

• Value creation plans tied to cross-border platform integrations may now carry different cost structures.

• Regulatory onboarding and middle-office consolidations—especially those requiring international collaboration—could encounter friction.

• Third-party software, data partners, or compliance tooling built overseas may need contingency or repapering.

✅ Action: PE operating partners and integration leads should initiate a post-close resilience review. Pressure-test key milestones, rebalance sequencing, and protect the original deal thesis through measured adjustments—not wholesale redesign.

🧠 Tech Modernization: Lead with Control, Visibility & Modularity

Across the industry, one theme is clear: control beats complexity.

Tariffs are a reminder that modernization isn’t a luxury—it’s a hedge. Not because it’s fashionable, but because it gives institutions better command over how they operate, scale, and comply.

• Modular architecture lets you pivot vendors without ripping up core flows.

• Embedded governance tools give you auditability on cost shocks and regulatory fallout.

• Cloud-native orchestration (where appropriate) lets you respond quickly to geo-political or cost-based triggers.

✅ Action: Don’t pause modernization—tighten it. Prioritize programs that shorten time-to-change, enhance visibility, or insulate operations from external volatility.

🤝 Final Word: Your Playbook Just Got More Valuable

Change has always been complex. Now it’s geopolitical.

The role of the change leader, CIO, or PE value creation expert isn’t just to hit milestones—it’s to navigate disruption without losing momentum. And this week’s news is exactly the kind of event that separates reactive orgs from adaptive ones.

If you need a second set of eyes on your roadmap, post-close plan, or funding case—we’re here. The goal isn’t perfection—it’s durability.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

⏳ When Execution Slows and Strategy Stalls — What Do You Do Next?

It’s a strange time to be leading change.

The ambition is there.
The strategy is sound.
The board is aligned.

And yet — nothing seems to be moving.

You’re not alone.

Across financial services, insurance companies, and PE-backed firms, the same pattern keeps emerging: teams sitting in a holding pattern. Not for lack of effort — but because the operating environment has become… foggy.

The year didn’t start this way

Late 2024 ended with momentum.

Markets surged on the back of a Trump win. Pro-business sentiment, deregulation hopes, and capital markets optimism all combined to drive the “Trump Bump.”

By January, the path seemed clear.
Capital was flowing.
Boards were ready.
Growth was back in the conversation.

But by the end of Q1, the narrative changed.

Tariff policies were announced, delayed, reintroduced.
Markets stumbled.
Inflation expectations crept up.
Regulatory signals got louder, not clearer.

The result? Bold plans shelved. Decisions paused. Energy lost.

I’ve been in dozens of conversations like this

Inside transformation offices, it’s not the strategy being questioned — it’s the timing.

Inside investment committees, it’s not the logic of the deal — it’s the execution risk.

People are tired.
Roadmaps feel heavier.
Initiatives start slipping.

That’s what drift looks like.

It’s quiet. It’s invisible at first. And it’s deeply corrosive if left unchecked.

What’s behind the stall?

Some of it’s macro.
Sticky inflation.
Tariff whiplash.
Uncertainty from Washington to Berlin to Beijing.

But the deeper issue is organizational.

The narrative has collapsed.
The sense of why now has disappeared.

People need reasons to push through ambiguity. Without that clarity, they default to wait-and-see.

And when that happens, transformation slows, talent disengages, and value creation quietly decays.

But it doesn’t have to be this way

Across our network, we’re seeing firms who are pushing forward — not recklessly, but with smart, strategic intent.

They aren’t waiting for perfect conditions.

They’re making moves:

• Resetting execution timelines to 90 days

• Prioritizing clarity over volume

• Sequencing change instead of stacking it

• Using outside firepower to unblock critical initiatives

These teams are betting on momentum — not timing.

They’re not trying to outguess policy.
They’re trying to outperform paralysis.

This moment is about positioning

Whether you’re a CTO, COO, Head of Change, or operating partner — you already know this: when the environment is noisy, how you act matters more than when.

You don’t need a 24-month plan right now.

You need focus. A confident first step.
And the courage to lead when others hesitate.

So — what’s next for you?

Is your team still executing, or just staying busy?

Is your roadmap still aligned with your conviction?

Are you building optionality for the second half of the year — or hoping the clouds lift before summer?

Let’s talk

We help leadership teams navigate moments like this.

Not with jargon, not with playbooks — but with pragmatic, senior-level guidance that gets things unstuck.

If your transformation has stalled — or if your strategy needs fresh eyes — let’s connect.

This isn’t about doing more.
It’s about doing right.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

On a recent call with a client, a familiar challenge surfaced: How do you engage the right help for strategic initiatives without overcommitting or underinvesting? The answer isn't always obvious. Choosing between full-time employees, interim executives, contractors, offshore talent, and consultants can be the difference between transformation success and wasted budget.

Consider this: You need expertise for a major technology transformation. Hiring a full-time executive is costly and slow. An interim leader could bring instant credibility but leave after the project. A contractor offers flexibility but may lack strategic depth. Offshore or nearshore talent can provide cost-effective execution but may require additional oversight. Each model has trade-offs, and selecting the wrong one leads to inefficiencies, misalignment, and cost overruns.

In my experience, organizations often default to the wrong engagement model, either overspending on full-time hires or underestimating the need for experienced leadership. The key is understanding the strengths of each model and aligning them with your business needs.

The Right Help for the Right Job

The engagement model you choose should align with the nature of the project. Here’s how different scenarios could benefit from specific models:

• Enterprise-wide Digital Transformation: A full-time executive may be too slow to hire, while a consultant might be too expensive for long-term involvement. An interim executive with experience in large-scale transformation is the best fit, driving immediate action while embedding capabilities for a permanent hire later.

• Regulatory and Compliance Overhaul: A full-time compliance officer makes sense for ongoing operations, but if your firm is facing a one-time regulatory overhaul, a consulting firm specializing in compliance strategy and risk management can deliver expertise without adding to fixed costs.

• M&A Due Diligence and Integration: Pre-deal due diligence requires deep expertise on a short timeline—perfect for consultants who bring strategic and financial analysis capabilities. Post-merger integration, however, is an execution-heavy process, where hiring interim program managers and change leaders can ensure smooth implementation without burdening your leadership team.

• Data Modernization Initiative: Implementing a new data platform often requires temporary, specialized skills. Contractors or offshore specialists are ideal for execution, providing technical expertise for system migration and data integration. Once the system is in place, a full-time data governance leader can oversee ongoing operations.

• Customer Experience Enhancement: If your organization is redesigning its customer journey and digital touchpoints, engaging an advisory firm for strategy and leveraging nearshore developers for rapid implementation can be an efficient approach.

How You Pay Matters

Beyond choosing the right model, selecting the right compensation structure ensures cost control and accountability.

• Fixed-Fee Engagements: Best for projects with well-defined scopes like tech audits, regulatory assessments, or system implementations. You get budget predictability, but misalignment in scope can lead to renegotiations.

• Time & Materials (T&M): Ideal for evolving, agile-driven projects like digital transformation, where adaptability is key. However, without strict oversight, costs can exceed expectations.

• Risk-Based Compensation: Best for high-stakes initiatives like post-merger integration, performance turnarounds, or private equity-driven transformations. The firm shares in the risk, aligning incentives with your success, but defining clear performance metrics is crucial.

Offshore & Nearshore Talent: Cost-Effective Execution

For organizations looking to optimize costs without sacrificing quality, offshore and nearshore talent can provide a strategic advantage. When managed effectively, these resources offer:

• Software Development & IT Services: Leveraging nearshore teams in Eastern Europe or Latin America can provide quality software development at a fraction of onshore costs while maintaining timezone alignment.

• Data Analytics & Reporting: Offshore teams in India or the Philippines can manage high-volume data processing and analytics efficiently.

• Back-Office Support: Administrative functions, compliance reporting, and customer service can be outsourced to nearshore centers to free up internal resources for strategic work.

While offshore talent reduces costs, successful integration requires clear governance, strong communication, and well-defined workflows to ensure alignment with business objectives.

Finding the Right Partner

Some firms offer all three models—permanent hires, interim executives, and consulting services—allowing you to scale and adapt as needed. This flexibility ensures that as your initiative progresses, you can pivot between advisory, execution, and leadership continuity without needing to rebuild your talent pool.

Balancing Cost, Speed, and Impact

Deciding between permanent, interim, offshore, or contract help is not just a hiring decision—it’s a business strategy. The wrong choice can slow momentum, dilute accountability, or drain budgets. The right mix accelerates transformation and delivers measurable ROI.

Organizations that optimize their engagement models see faster execution, improved decision-making, and better budget allocation. The key is being strategic about when to use full-time talent, external expertise, and flexible resources.

Your Next Steps If you’re facing a technology transformation, M&A execution, or strategic planning challenge, let’s discuss how to optimize your engagement model. Drop me a note or book some time to chat.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

On my recent trip to London, I left a client meeting with a familiar thought: too many cooks in the kitchen. This wasn’t about culinary mishaps, but rather a common challenge in strategic initiatives—when too many stakeholders are involved, progress often stalls.

Consider this: you start an initiative needing insights from Jim, Sally, and Sue. But as the project unfolds, the list of contributors balloons to include 10 or more people. While gathering diverse perspectives is essential, the process can become cumbersome, leading to decision paralysis, diluted accountability, and missed deadlines.

In my experience, this approach only works about 50% of the time—and that’s when there’s a robust RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) matrix in place. Clear delineation of roles and ownership is critical. Without it, initiatives get bogged down by conflicting opinions and unclear accountability.

Balancing collaboration with efficiency is a constant juggling act. The key lies in recognizing when less is more.

The Solution: Establish a SWAT Team.
To streamline initiatives and maintain momentum, form a small, focused SWAT team. This group, ideally 3-4 members, represents key stakeholders without overwhelming the process. Each member should:

1. Articulate Stakeholder Positions: Ensure diverse viewpoints are considered without needing everyone at the table.

2. Shield Against Politics: Minimize the influence of office politics and keep the focus on outcomes.

3. Drive the Initiative: Maintain clear goals, timelines, and accountability to ensure completion.

Appoint a Tie-Breaker: The Executive Sponsor.
Every successful SWAT team needs an executive sponsor—someone with the authority to steer conversations, clear roadblocks, and provide actionable directives. This leader plays a crucial role in:

• Decision-Making: Acting as the final authority when consensus is elusive.

• Removing Barriers: Addressing organizational obstacles that slow progress.

• Ensuring Alignment: Keeping the team aligned with broader business objectives.

Communication Without Overload.
One common concern is keeping broader teams informed without falling back into the “too many cooks” trap. The answer lies in structured, efficient reporting. Regular updates through steering committees or executive summaries ensure transparency without burdening the process. This way, progress, successes, and challenges are communicated effectively, keeping everyone in the loop while allowing the SWAT team to focus on execution.

Why This Matters for You.
For technology leaders and operational executives, the ability to drive initiatives swiftly and effectively is a competitive advantage. In today’s fast-paced environment, agility isn’t just a buzzword—it’s a necessity. By adopting a streamlined approach, you can:

• Accelerate Time-to-Market: Reduce delays and bring solutions to market faster.

• Enhance Accountability: Clarify roles and responsibilities to ensure everyone knows their part.

• Improve Outcomes: Focused teams deliver higher-quality results with fewer distractions.

Your next steps
If you’re looking to optimize your strategic sprints, structure high-impact initiatives, and enable meaningful change, let’s connect. Drop me a note or book some time to discuss how we can streamline your processes and drive your next initiative to success..

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

Leading Transformation – Balancing Innovation, Resilience, and Value Creation

2025 is here, and with it comes a moment of clarity for leaders driving digital transformation. For CTOs, COOs, and Heads of Digital Transformation, the mandate is clear: align innovation with resilience, deliver measurable value, and do so in a rapidly evolving landscape.

This isn’t just about technology. It’s about making the right investments, building trust through operational resilience, and empowering teams to drive meaningful change.

Reflections from 2024: Success Through Strategic Focus

Last year, the most successful transformations didn’t come from overhauling everything at once. Instead, they focused on high-impact initiatives. Consider this:

• 30% higher profitability was achieved by firms leveraging modular cloud platforms to scale operations (McKinsey, 2024).

• Strong change management practices reduced project delays by 40%, according to Gartner.

• Companies using AI-powered threat detection saw a 50% reduction in cybersecurity incidents (IBM, 2024).

However, 93% of organizations experienced a ransomware attack in 2024, and 62% of breaches were traced to third-party vulnerabilities (Verizon Data Breach Report). These aren’t just statistics—they’re reminders that transformation requires both agility and resilience.

What’s Driving Transformation in 2025?

This year brings several key forces shaping strategies across industries:

1. Technology Disruptions

AI, blockchain, and cloud adoption continue to accelerate, offering both opportunities and risks. Leaders must balance the speed of innovation with stability.

What You Can Do: Focus on modular, scalable systems that adapt to technological advancements. For example, adopting API-first architectures can reduce integration costs by 50% while enabling faster innovation.

2. Cybersecurity as an Organizational Priority

Cyber threats remain a pressing issue, particularly as regulatory frameworks like DORA demand operational resilience. The penalties for non-compliance are steep, but the reputational risks are even higher.

What You Can Do: Invest in Zero Trust Architecture and AI-driven monitoring systems. Firms that adopted these in 2024 were able to neutralize breaches 95% faster, maintaining customer trust and avoiding financial penalties.

3. Balancing Innovation and Cost Management

Budget constraints are real, but underinvestment in innovation can be just as risky. The key is prioritizing initiatives with measurable ROI.

What You Can Do: Pilot projects in controlled environments to demonstrate impact before scaling. One European wealth manager saved 20% on costs by testing digital tools with a single team before a full rollout.

4. Regulations as Catalysts for Growth

From SFDR to MiCA, new mandates are reshaping how organizations operate. These aren’t just compliance requirements—they’re opportunities to build trust and differentiate in competitive markets.

What You Can Do: Use compliance frameworks to enhance transparency and attract stakeholders. A wealth management firm in Germany increased client retention by 15% through SFDR-aligned ESG reporting.

5. Empowering Teams to Drive Change

Transformation fails when teams don’t buy in. Gartner reports that 60% of stalled projects stem from resistance, not technical challenges.

What You Can Do: Align transformation efforts with your people. Invest in regular communication and skill-building to foster engagement. Celebrating small wins can build momentum for larger initiatives.

Your 2025 Action Plan

Leaders driving transformation this year need to focus on:

1. Prioritizing High-Impact Initiatives: Target areas that deliver measurable outcomes, like operational efficiency or customer satisfaction.

2. Strengthening Cyber Resilience: Address vulnerabilities proactively to stay ahead of regulatory and reputational risks.

3. Aligning Teams Around a Shared Vision: Engage teams through clear goals, ongoing training, and transparent communication.

Would you like to discuss more?

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

Strategic Planning for 2025: Setting the Course and Staying Agile

Welcome to 2025. We’re barely a few weeks into the new year, and many of you might already feel the weight of what lies ahead. The budgets were finalized, priorities were set, and plans drafted in Q4 of 2024—but let’s be honest: how many of those plans truly survived contact with reality?

If you’re feeling the pressure, you’re not alone. The start of a new year is always a mix of excitement and uncertainty. As someone who’s walked the path of large-scale transformations for over two decades, I’ve seen what works—and more importantly, what doesn’t.

This isn’t about perfection; it’s about readiness. The start of Q1 is the ideal time to step back, reflect, and make the adjustments that will define your success for the rest of the year. Let me share some guidance, drawn from years of watching organizations thrive—and stumble—on this very journey.

The Start of the Year: A Time to Reflect and Reset

Last week, I talked about the importance of resource estimation when you’re mapping out your 2025 priorities. But there’s much more to the story.

Let’s ask some honest questions:

• Do you have KPIs, OKRs, and milestones in place? Are they clear, measurable, and actionable? Remember, vague goals lead to vague results.

• Have you established a reporting and governance structure that allows you to track progress and address bottlenecks? Strategy without oversight is just hope.

• Did you take the time to do a bottom-up cost estimation to ensure your budget holds water? Surprises on this front can derail even the best-laid plans.

• Most importantly: Are your goals aligned? Does your 2025 strategy feed into the long-term vision for 2026? And do the people responsible for executing it believe in its feasibility?

These aren’t just tactical to-dos. They’re the building blocks of strategic clarity.

The good news is that these questions can be addressed quickly—through a focused 45 day strategic plan sprint in Q1.

Wisdom from the Trenches: The Power of a Strategic Planning Sprint

Let me share a story that underscores why strategic planning isn’t optional—it’s essential.

A few years ago, I joined a large-scale data provider mid-project. The program was already in motion, but it was clear from day one why I had been brought in: there was no structure.

The project was fragmented, lacking alignment across teams and clarity around the deliverables. Leadership had ambitious targets but no actionable plan to get there. The risks were mounting, and so was frustration.

We had to act fast. The first step? Refresh the strategy, reset the program, and create a proper strategic plan.

Over the next 45 days, we launched a focused strategic planning sprint. Here’s how we did it:

1. Workshops with cross-functional teams to identify gaps, realign priorities, and establish a shared vision.

2. Stakeholder interviews to surface pain points, clarify expectations, and secure buy-in.

3. Governance meetings to define a structure for oversight and decision-making.

4. Scope refinement sessions to bring clarity to deliverables and ensure feasibility within the timeline.

5. A head-down, iterative approach to draft, refine, and finalize the strategic plan.

By maintaining a relentless focus on execution and collaboration, we steered the program back on course. Not only did we bring clarity and alignment to the initiative, but we also helped the organization hit its original target dates.

That’s the power of a strategic planning sprint: 45 days of focused effort can course-correct even the most complex programs, ensuring alignment, structure, and momentum.

If you’re starting 2025 with ambitious goals but lingering uncertainty, ask yourself: Do we have the clarity and structure we need to succeed? If the answer is no, it’s time to dive in, reset, and create the strategic foundation that will carry your team forward.

What It Takes to Win in 2025

Here’s the truth: Strategic planning is not a fixed exercise. It’s a living process.

The pace of change in Financial Services, Insurance, and FinTech means you can’t afford to lock yourself into rigid plans. Flexibility, clarity, and leadership are your greatest assets.

Take the time now to:

• Align and communicate. Make sure every stakeholder understands the strategy and how their role contributes to it.

• Empower the right leaders. Transformation demands socially savvy change agents who can navigate politics and inspire teams.

• Build in flexibility. Create buffers for inevitable disruptions and reprioritizations.

Most importantly: Check in with your teams. The people executing your plans need to feel heard, supported, and equipped to succeed. Their feedback is your reality check—and your lifeline.

Final Thought: The Power of the First 90 Days

As you move through Q1, think of this period as a recalibration. The plans you adjust now will pay dividends throughout the year.

Is your 2025 strategy built to adapt? A focused 45-day strategic planning sprint can realign your goals, refresh your program, and keep your team on track for success.

I'll be in London Feb 4–6th if you'd like to discuss more.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses

Happy New Year! 🎉

After spending 25 years navigating digital transformation and change management in financial services—both in public companies and private equity-backed firms—I’ve picked up a few lessons along the way. One of the most important? Ensuring that your team has the bandwidth to succeed.

As we kick off a new year, many of you have a portfolio of initiatives on your plate—some new, some carried over from last year. No matter the scope of your plans, one factor consistently impacts your critical path: resource availability and load.

Too often, critical initiatives are assigned to team members already stretched thin managing their day-to-day responsibilities in the middle and back office. And when they’re nominated—sometimes without a holistic review of their current workload—this oversight can derail your timeline and, ultimately, your budget.

A tough client once told me: “We need to move slower to move fast.” I’ll admit—I initially smirked at the idea. But she was right. Taking a step back in January to assess your resources and set realistic expectations can save you from headaches (and budget overruns) later in the year.

Here’s my advice:
1️⃣ Review your team’s current workload.
2️⃣ Ask whether key players can handle both BAU and your new initiatives.
3️⃣ Make adjustments now to ensure a smoother path forward.

Block time this month to evaluate your resources—your future self will thank you.

Need help getting started? I’ve created a resource estimation template to simplify the process. Drop me a note or schedule a quick chat, and I’ll send it your way.

Let’s make 2025 your smoothest year yet.

Tom C. Schapira
Founder and CEO
Imagine Capital Group
E: tom@imaginecapitalgroup.com
Website http://www.imaginecapitalgroup.com

Value creation and digital transformation for private equity and financial services powerhouses