Our approach to corporate and commercial transaction advisory work entails understanding:

• our clients’ industry and the market for their products/services; and
• the economic dynamics underpinning their participation in the industry/market through a value configuration analysis.

It is based on the understanding of the foregoing that we apply our legal and general industry governance knowledge to the transaction or project. Broadly speaking, our services in this area encompass business set-up and various phases of financing (VC/PE, Private Placement, Debt and various Hybrids, M&A, Public Offer, etc) as well as business alliances including Joint Ventures, Partnerships and Strategic Collaborations.

Our Solutions also entail corporate restructuring. This may be in pursuit of growth and opportunities, including corporate group structuring (subsidiarisations, conglomerations and simplifications), mergers, demergers, etc. Otherwise, it may be in the context of insolvency, stretching from informal procedures such as contractual workout, interventionist takeover and collaborative schemes, to an orderly winding-up.​

Besides financing and corporate structuring services, we also attend to the operational contracts of our clients where our market and industry knowledge are at the most use

Our dispute-related services include all manners of ADR and litigation. Besides, we assist clients in assessment of various options and guide them through the initial twilight zones in which dispute may be avoided through deft negotiations, while keeping an eye on securing a good position in any eventuality

“The 19th century was the century of the entrepreneur. The 20th century became the century of management. The 21st century promises to be the century of governance, as the focus swings to the legitimacy and the effectiveness of the wielding of power over corporate entities worldwide.” (King Report on Corporate Governance for South Africa, 2001; para. 24)

Our services here are built around the two nodes of Governance Advisory and Sustainability Advisory. In each node, our solutions are designed along the four problem-solving phases of (i) diagnostics (ii) development of strategies, systems and processes (iii) implementation support and (iv) metrics and control.

GOVERNANCE

Diagnostics

• Governance audit (Diagnostics/prognostics and Gap Analysis)
• Benchmarking

Strategies, Systems and Processes Development

• Governance set-up (Governance code, Board charter, Code of Conduct, etc)
• Regulatory/Industry Governance modeling
• Ethics - Ethical charter - Anti-corruption principles - Whistle-blower procedures - Anti-money laundering (AML) advisory.

Implementation

• Director Selection & Capacity Building •
• C2B’ Leadership ‘Prep’ Training [‘Extended Leadership Pipeline’]
• General Meeting— Stakeholder Engagement
• Investor Relations

Metrics

• Board Evaluation/Director Appraisal
• Industry/Market-wide Governance & Performance Survey

SUSTAINABILITY

Diagnostics

• Profile mapping/current position assessment, need analysis—diagnostics/prognostics
• Regulatory/Self-Regulatory advisory (state-of-the-market/industry surveys, need analysis, regulatory/governance modeling, multi-stakeholder/cross-sectoral initiatives)

Strategies, Systems and Processes Development

• Sustainability strategy development (embedment in corporate strategy/decision-making, etc)
• Social Enterprise, Corporate Social Investment, Multi-stakeholder/Cross-Sectoral Initiatives.
• Integration of Sustainable Development into Government policies.

Implementation

• Sustainability strategy implementation (identification of sustainability context, applicable rules and principles based on laws, standards and best practices (Governance-triangle), policy development, corporate-ownership design, ‘Board to Shop-floor’ acculturation, assistance with tools such as benchmarking, labeling/certifications)
• Stakeholder identification, prioritization and engagement
• Special Sustainability programme design and implementation— e.g. Sustainable Upstream Supply Chain design, Sustainable Downstream Supply Chain (extended product responsibility, customer/distributor engagement, product lifecycle design, etc), Supply chain optimization readiness through Eco- Green- or ethical- procurement for Nigerian exporters/suppliers and trade groups (LCCI and other chambers of commerce or export promotion council, etc), Environmental Programme consulting— EIA (pre- and post-project), E&S due diligence, etc
• Capacity building (singly or in collaboration with, e.g. IoD, FITC, etc).
• Social Enterprise, Corporate Social Investment, Multi-stakeholder/Cross-Sectoral Initiative advisory [Note: this could span the entire 4 phases of activities]

Metrics

• Sustainability Reporting and other standard communication
• Benchmarking
• Rating
• Research